§ Mr. SteinbergTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is the average time his Department takes in replying to an hon. Member's letter; and what is(a) the shortest time and (b) the longest time it has taken to reply in full to an hon. Member's letter in the last Session of Parliament.
§ Mr. McLoughlinThe average time my Department takes to reply to an hon. Member's letter is three weeks. In the last Session of Parliament the(a) shortest time was one day and (b) the longest time it has taken to reply in full was five months. Complex questions or problems inevitably take longer to research and resolve.