HC Deb 27 April 1995 vol 258 cc630-3W
Mr. Luff

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what are the key performance targets for Her Majesty's Land Registry, the Public Record Office and the Public Trust Office executive agencies for 1995–96. [21854]

Mr. John M. Taylor

The following tables set out the key performance targets that the Lord Chancellor has set for Her Majesty's Land Registry, the Public Records Office and the Public Trust Office for 1995–96.

Her Majesty's Land Registry Executive Agency Key Performance Targets 1995–96
Indicator Target
1.Financial
return on average capital employed1: 6 per cent.
External Financing Limit: £0
2. Efficiency
Cost per unit in real terms2: £28.70 (2.9 per cent. reduction over the 1994–95 target of £29.56)
Cost per unit in cash terms: £31.15
3. Productivity
Unit output per post (per day): 3.202 units (9.1 per cent. increase over the 1994–95 target of 2.935 units)
4. Speed of Service
Percentage of pre-completion applications handled within 2 working days at every district land registry: Not less than 96 per cent.
Average processing time for post-completion applications at every district land registry: Where no requisitions arise, no more than 19 working days
5. Quality of Service
Percentage of pre-completion applications handled free of error at every district land registry: No less than 99.75 per cent.
Percentage of post-completion applications handled free of error at every district land registry: No less than 98.30 per cent.
6. Development of Land Registration
Number of computerised registers: To increase the number of registered titles in computerised format to 12.50 million.
1 A revised target for return on average capital employed will be agreed for 1995–96 following the conclusion of discussions with HM Treasury. The purpose of the discussions is to enable an element of surpluses arising up to 31 March 1995 to be carried over to 1995–96 and future years. This will allow the registry to reduce or contain future fee levels.
2 The real term unit cost in the base year of 1992–93 was £31.30.

Note:

Fuller details of the registry's performance targets are given in its business plan, which is available from Her Majesty's Land Registry.

Public Record Office Key Performance Targets 1995–96
Indicator Target
1. Efficiency
Unit cost of selecting and accessioning records (per unit): Targets: (a) standard accessions £25.69 and (b) Open Government accessions £94.71
Unit cost of providing storage space per linear metre: Target: £5.19
Unit cost of documents produced to readers, per document: Target: £16.84
Unit cost of census reader service, per reader visit: Target: £4.93

Public Record Office Key Performance Targets 1995–96
Indicator Target
Unit cost of other reader services, per reader visit: Target: £31.65
Backlog of records reported by departments as being over 30 years old and awaiting review: To reduce the current known backlog of such records (2,700 linear metres) by 675 metres
Provision of acceptable storage conditions: 81 per cent. of records to be stored to the preservation and environmental standard recommended by BS5454: 1989 Recommendations for storage and exhibition of archival documents (BSI 1989)
The timely destruction of records not worthy of preservation: Departments to have in place specified key features of records management as described in the PRO Manual of Records Administration
Management efficiency in running support services and projects: To reduce the running costs of corporate services in relation to the total running costs of the Office from 9.83 per cent. to 9.74 per cent.
2. Quality of service
Readers' views on services provided, as discovered through biannual satisfaction surveys: 82 per cent. of reader satisfaction survey forms returned to have an overall assessment of "good" or better
Response times for answering correspondence: To send replies to letters requiring a stock letter within one week
To send replies to other letters (including those requiring estimates for copies) within three weeks
Documents production times: To make documents available to readers within the following maximum times: Kew: 35 minutes Chancery Lane: 40 minutes
The speed of the reprographic service and quality of copies (subject to the preservation needs of the documents): (a) Electrostatic copies (except A2 size), up to 15 copies: same day counter service for readers
(b) Electrostatic copies (A2 size), up to 10 copies: same day counter service for readers
(c) Electrostatic copies, up to 75 copies: 5 working days
(d) Electrostatic copies, over 75 copies: 20 working days
(e) Prints from existing microfilm, up to 75 copies: 5 working days
(f) Prints from existing microfilm, over 75 copies: 20 working days
(g) Prints from new microfilm: 3 weeks
(h) Microfilm from existing negatives, up to 1000m: 4 weeks
(i) Microfilm where there is no existing negative, up to 350m: 22 weeks
(j) Bromide prints: 3 weeks

Public Record Office Key Performance Targets 1995–96
Indicator Target
(k) Self service copying from microfilm: a service will be available in the microfilm reading rooms during opening times
Quality of copying: No more than 4 per cent. to be required to be re-taken
The quality and usefulness of finding aids to the records: To continue work on bringing the current guide up to date:
—to produce a new edition in hard copy;
—to write or expand 10 new sections or sub-sections

Notes:

1. Some of these targets will be subject to suspension or modification on occasion due to the major disruption to the Office's services and activities which will be caused in 1995–96 by the closure of the Chancery Lane building, the removal of records to Kew and the refurbishment of the existing Kew building. Where appropriate, supplemental targets have been set in order to mitigate the effect on users.

2. Fuller details of the office's performance targets and of anticipated disruptions to services and activities are given in its business plan, which is available from the Public Record Office.

Public Trust Office Executive Agency Key Performance Targets 1995–96
Indicator Target
1. To carry out accounting transactions within target times. To bring to account at least 97 per cent. of receipts and payments transactions within turnaround targets by volume weighted performance against those targets.
2. To achieve investment targets. To pay annually not less than the rate provided by the average of a model set of comparators for special rate and basic rate at 75 per cent. of special rate; on an annual basis to ensure that 85 per cent. of all measured funds perform in line or better than their model based on stock market indices.
3. To achieve Charter standards. To achieve 98 per cent. of Charter Standards.
4. To achieve unit costs in activity areas. To reduce unit costs so that the weighted mean percentage reduction of the PTO's activities, taken with achievement in 1994–95, will be at least 4 per cent. against the baseline year of 1993–94.
5. Percentage of full costs recovered. To ensure that 100 per cent. of full costs are recovered.

Note:

Fuller details of the office's performance targets are given in its business plan, which is available from the Public Trust Office.