§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Minister for the Civil Service whether he will give the average time taken by his Department to send formal acknowledgements of receipt and replies to letters sent to him generally and by Members of Parliament in particular; how these times compare with a stated period as long ago as may be conveniently recorded; and what action he has taken or intends taking to expedite these replies to the taxpayer and their elected representatives.
§ Mr. Charles R. MorrisStatistics of this kind are not readily available. It is, however, normal practice for letters sent to this Department which are to receive a ministerial reply to be acknowledged upon receipt and for a full reply to be sent whenever possible within a period of two weeks from receipt. Other letters are not acknowledged but are dealt with by officials as expeditiously as possible.