§ Mr. Edward DaveyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the average queuing time for the Public Inquiry Office at the Immigration and Nationality Directorate in Croydon; what is the average time taken to answer(a) telephone inquiries and (b) inquiries by letter to the Immigration and Nationality Directorate in Croydon; and if he will make a statement. [23915]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienDuring the last quarter of 1997, the average time for a case to be decided in the Croydon Public Inquiry Office was 5 hours 30 minutes and, for telephone inquiries to the Telephone Inquiry Bureau to be answered, 3 minutes and 24 seconds. A sample of 2,370 letters of inquiry between June and September 1997 showed that in 92 per cent. a full or holding reply had been given within the target of 20 working days.