§ Mr. Dewarasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the average time taken from application to determination of claims for compensation under the criminal injuries scheme in England and Wales in each of the last three years; and if he is satisfied that there is sufficient staff to operate the scheme efficiently.
§ Mr. MayhewInformation available on the time taken by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board to resolve cases relates only to Great Britain as a whole. The figures for 1981–82 are not yet available, but those for the previous three years are as follows:
439W
1980–81 1979–80 1978–79 Percentage Percentage Percentage Three months or less 4.0 1.8 3.5
1980–81 1979–80 1978–79 Percentage Percentage Percentage Over 3 but not more than 6 months 30.0 22.7 29.0 Over 6 but not more than 9 months 26.4 31.6 37.3 Over 9 but not more than 12 months 15.9 18.7 17.4 Over 12 months 23.7 25.2 12.8 TOTAL 100 100 100 We are satisfied that the scheme is operated as efficiently as possible within the manpower constraints which apply to the Government service as a whole.