§ Mr. BennettTo ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when local authorities first contacted the Government asking for details of how information was to be forwarded after the year 2000 and in what format; when the Government will respond to the local authorities; and what co-ordination he is seeking between departments in the format of information. [40432]
§ Angela EagleI have been asked to reply.
I am aware of only one approach from a local authority on this aspect of the Year 2000 issue. Where local authority systems interact with those of other bodies they should agree, through their normal liaison procedures, the format to be followed so that changes made to systems are compatible with one another. However, they should not delay remedial action on their own business critical systems because others are unable to give any firm indication of the changes they are having to make to their own systems.