§ Mr. Roweasked the Secretary of State for Transport what actions he proposes to take following the recent review of his Department's road programme procedures.
§ Mr. Peter BottomleyThe review made a number of recommendations and identified a large number of possible areas in which procedures might be further investigated. These have been examined very fully. Changes to procedures and practice are being made and some further investigations will be carried out internally.
The changes in procedures are as follows:
- (i.) A new system of monthly slippage reports to headquarters and regional office management is to be set up to provide a basis for more rapid action to reduce delays. It will be based on a new computerised management information system being introduced this summer. Responsibility for
287 progress will remain with the established management line but the new arrangements will provide for earlier recognition of, and attention to, problems. - (ii.) In reviewing the road programme, the Department will consider whether certain schemes merit continued preparation or should be dropped; this change was introduced in the recent review of the road programme.
- (iii.) At public consultation stage, regional offices will set out more fully in published documents the basis on which route options are rejected; they will also aim to limit the number of alternative routes to be worked up to detail where such alternatives are clearly unsuitable.
- (iv.) Regional offices will aim to allocate a single member of staff to concentrate exclusively on drafting each decision letter; in exceptional cases, the Department will consider bringing in staff from outside the regional office to assist. The Department will also review the scope for keeping the length of decision letters to a minimum.
- (v.) The Department will aim to maintain a flexible approach to staff postings in relation to peaks and troughs of work in regional offices.
Items to be the subject of further review are:
- (i.) Ways of accelerating preparation of submissions to the Treasury on schemes outside its delegation;
- (ii.) The scope for further use of whole-route assessments where a scheme or schemes within a route are likely to prove negative or marginal in economic terms;
- (iii.) Means by which the Highways Manual, the Department's comprehensive internal manual of procedure and practice, might be most effectively revised in preparation for a full revision.
The changes are expected to reduce delay. We shall continue to keep all aspects of our procedures under review.