§ Mr. ColemanTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the average time recorded by the IND offices in Croydon for response to inquiries made to them by(a) telephone and (b) in writing for the months of (i) January, (ii) February and (iii) March. [81683]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienIn respect of telephone inquiries, I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Woking (Mr. Malins) on 29 March 1999,Official Report, column 537. The latest position is that the average time a caller waits in the queue has reduced to two minutes and twenty seconds. In respect of written inquiries for January, February and March, eighty four per cent. of written inquiries are responded to within 20 working days, excluding correspondence related to casework and applications.