§ Mr. SandersTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what is his Department's average response time to correspondence from members of the public; and how such response times are monitored. [48668]
298W
§ Dr. HowellsInformation in the form requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. The Department's monitoring systems record the proportion of replies that meet the DfEE correspondence standard, which is that replies will be made within 15 working days of receipt. I also refer the hon. Member to the reply by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster on 14 July 1998,Official Report, column 159.