§ Mr. BlunkettTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (i) cases were lodged with the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board in each of the last three years and (ii) staff were employed by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board during each of the last three years; and what was(a) the average time taken to complete each case and (b) the average time taken to respond to an initial application. [3740]
§ Mr. Maclean[holding answer 4 December 1995]: The latest published figures are given in the board's third annual report, Cm 2849, copies of which are held in the Library. Paragraph 3.1 shows that 61,400 applications were received in 1991–92, 65,977 in 1992–93 and 73,473 in 1993–94. Paragraph 3.12 gives information about the time taken to resolve cases and shows, by way of example, that 49 per cent., 57 per cent., and 70 per cent. of cases were resolved within 12 months in the three years respectively. Similar data for 1994–95 will be published shortly.
The average staff complement in the three years was 380, 387 and 430, and currently stands at 480. The board advises that historical data on the time taken to acknowledge initial applications is not available, but the current average is six days.