§ Mr. SteenTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many officials he employed(a) full time and (b) part time in his Department in each of the last three years to answer letters sent to him from hon. Members; and what was the estimated overall cost of replying to them in each of the last three years. [5611]
§ Mr. HoramMinisters receive a large number of letters from hon. Members each year on a range of health issues. Officials are responsible for contributing to replies relating to areas of their responsibility. Due to the large volume of letters received, and the wide variety of subjects raised, it is not possible to quantify the involvement of officials or the overall cost of replying to letters from hon. Members.