§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Prime Minister whether she will cause an investigation to be made to ascertain what action is called for to restore the speed and efficiency of the various Government Departments to that which operated 30 years ago, in view of delays in providing replies to correspondence in general and to that of hon. Members in particular; and whether she is satisfied that increased staff and modern improvements in electronics, computers and telephones have led to commensurate improvements in service.
§ The Prime MinisterDepartments have now, as in the past, endeavoured to reply to correspondence helpfully and as quickly as possible, and will continue to do so. Mechanical aids and computers, where their use would contribute to greater efficiency, have been readily adopted, and recent examples of the improvements they have brought about have been noted in the White Paper "Efficiency in the Civil Service"—Cmnd. 8293.