§ Mr. PurchaseTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what proportion of bills were paid on time by Government Departments and their agencies during the financial year 1997–98. [52148]
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§ Mrs. RocheI am pleased to announce that there has been an improvement in the payment performance of Central Government as a whole. The majority of Departments are now meeting the target of paying 95 per cent. of their suppliers bills on time.
There is no room for complacency, however. New tougher targets for Departments and their agencies will be set by my hon. Friend the Paymaster General, which will ensure that this improvement in performance continues.
The target for paying undisputed bills on time in the 1998–99 financial year will be 97.5 per cent. and for the 1999–2000 financial year 100 per cent.
We are committed to improving Britain's payment culture. It is important that the public sector sets an example to business and is seen to pay its bills on time.
Late payment is a serious problem for business and particularly for small businesses. Not knowing when customers' bills will be paid means uncertain cashflow, increased borrowings, higher costs and reduced profits.
Government Departments and their agencies are required to monitor their payment performance and to publish the results in their departmental or annual reports. The following table lists, by Department, the proportion of bills paid within 30 days, or other agreed credit period, of receipt of a valid invoice for financial year 1997–98. Similar information for earlier years is held in the House of Commons Library.
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Departmental payment performance 1997–98 Department % of invoices paid on time Government Actuary's Department 100.0 National Investment and Loan Office 100.0 Privy Council Office 100.0 Office of Electricity Regulation 99.7 Office of National Lottery 99.7 Defence, Ministry of 98.9 Ordnance Survey 98.3 Trade and Industry, Department of 98.2 Insolvency Service1 98.9 Radiocommunications Agency1 96.1 Office of Gas Supply 98.2 Office of the Rail Regulator 98.0 Office for Standards in Education 97.3 Office of Water Services 98.0 Registry of Friendly Societies Commission 97.6 The Welsh Office 97.3 Treasury Solicitor's Department inc. Law Officers Department 97.3 Office of Telecommunications 97.0 Foreign and Commonwealth Office 96.9 Office of Passenger Rail Franchising 96.9 Intervention Board for Agricultural Produce 96.8 Serious Fraud Office 96.6 Education and Employment, Department for 96.5 Land Registry 96.3 Lord Chancellor's Department inc. Public Trustee Office 96.0 Charity Commission 96.0 Export Credits Guarantee Department 95.9 Home Office 95.6 Inland Revenue 95.6 National Savings Department 95.6 HM Customs and Excise 95.5 Health, Department of 95.3 Forestry Commission 95.3 Public Record Office 95.2 HM Treasury 95.1
Departmental payment performance 1997–98 Department % of invoices paid on time International Development, Department for 95.0 Crown Prosecution Service 95.0 Cabinet Office (inc. Office of Public Service) 94.7 Culture, Media and Sport, Department for 94.6 DETR 93.7 Health and Safety Executive2 91.0 The Scottish Office 93.6 Royal Mint 93.0 Office of Fair Trading 93.0 Northern Ireland Office 92.9 Crown Office, Scotland (inc. Lord Advocate's Department) 91.0 Social Security, Department of 90.7 National Statistics, Office for 89.4 Agriculture, Fisheries and Food 83.8 1Insolvency Service and Radiocommunications Agency are Executive Agencies of the Department of Trade and Industry 2Health and Safety Executive is an Executive Agency for the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions