§ Mr. MorganTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what are the terms of reference of the study commissioned from University college, Cardiff, concerning the efficiency of the Customs and Excise Agency in its service at airports and seaports; when he expects it to be completed; when it was initiated; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mrs. Gillian Shephard[holding answer 3 February 1992]: The Economic and Social Research Council sponsored Mr. E. Maguire, Professor R. Morgan and Mr. C. Kemp to research complaints to and against central Government Departments. The immigration service and Her Majesty's Customs and Excise were selected to be researched, in a project which started on 1 October 1989. Research was completed in September 1991. A draft report has been produced, and is with the Government Departments to identify factual inaccuracies before publication.
The terms of reference of the research were to construct a comprehensive picture of complaints received in all areas of the Department, analyse the grievance mechanisms, examine internal attitudes towards complaints, and examine any managerial or policy making use made of complaints patterns or outcomes. The research therefore extended far wider than the efficiency of the service at airports and seaports, although this area was covered in two small exercises seeking travellers' and complainants' views through questionnaires.
The survey of travellers concluded that most had no contact with officers of Customs and Excise, and of those who did have contact, most rated the officers positively. The sample of complainants found that few were happy with the responses that they had received from the Department, but nearly half felt that they had achieved something and more than half were impressed by some aspects of the response—especially its speed and the quality of the written reply.