§ Mr. AmessTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many right hon. and hon. Members who have written to Ministers in his Department have waited(a) 12 months, (b) 11 months, (c) 10 months, (d) nine months, (e) eight months, (f) seven months, (g) six months, (h) five months, (i) four months, (j) three months, (k) two months and (l) one month for a reply to their correspondence. [164093]
§ Caroline Flint[holding answer 30 March 2004]: Figures are not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The Home Office is, however, achieving a steady improvement in its correspondence handling capability following the introduction in March 2003 of a new Correspondence Tracking System. In April 2003, the first complete month for which accurate performance monitoring information is available, 51 per cent. of ministerial correspondence was replied to within the 15 working day (20 days in the Immigration Nationality Directorate (IND)) published target. 12 months later, in March 2004, that overall figure had risen to 76 per cent. The aim is to achieve the target of 95 per cent. replied to on time by the last quarter of 2004.