§ Mr. WinnickTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if letters written by hon. Members of the Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency are seen by him initially; and what procedures are followed before a reply is sent. [39729]
§ Mr. Keith BradleyThis is a matter for Peter Mathison, the Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to my hon. Friend.
Letter from Peter Mathison to Mr. David Winnick, dated 27 April 1998:
The Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking if letters written by honourable Members to the Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency (BA) are seen by him initially; and what procedures are followed before a reply is to be sent.All the letters I receive from MPs command a personal response.103WI do not see all letters from MPs initially. My office handle all my post in the first instance and scrutinise it thoroughly to ensure any deadlines are observed or urgent cases identified and suitably fast tracked in order to give a rapid response.In the vast majority of cases, my office will, on my behalf, ask the BA Parliamentary Correspondence Section to gather sufficient specific information and detailed technical input, provide me with advice on the background to the correspondence and produce a draft reply for me to consider.In order to obtain the required information, the Parliamentary Correspondence Section will invariably refer to the relevant business unit or specialist central unit within the Agency to provide the level of detail required for a complete answer.Once a final reply has been prepared, this and the supporting advice and background information are passed to my support staff for checking to ensure all points raised are covered and the answers are factually and legally correct. The original correspondence, the checked draft and supporting documents are then examined by me and may be amended if required, before the reply is signed and dispatched to the MP.I aim to ensure that all official correspondence is replied to within 20 working days.However, if I am away from the office it is not always possible for me to personally sign the letters within this time scale. On these occasions a Benefits Agency Director will act for me and scrutinise the final draft, amend it as required, before signing it on my behalf.I hope that this reply is helpful.