HC Deb 31 March 1998 vol 309 cc450-1W
Mr. Caplin

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress he has made in transferring debt management responsibilities to the Treasury; and if he will make a statement. [37451]

Mrs. Liddell

The United Kingdom Debt Management Office (DMO) will be launched as an Executive Agency on 1 April 1998. From that date it will take over as the Government's agent for operations in the gilts market. Copies of the DMO Framework Document have been placed in the libraries of both Houses.

I have set the following targets for the DMO for 1998–99:

  1. 1. To ensure full compliance with the Government's remit for the issuance of debt to finance the Central Government Borrowing Requirement as set out in the Debt Management Report, published on 19 March, within the tolerances and subject to the review triggers notified separately to the Office.
  2. 2. To reduce the maximum time taken to issue the results of conventional gilt auctions from 45 minutes to 40 minutes whilst achieving complete accuracy.
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  3. 3. To establish the system for managing the Exchequer's aggregate cash position which achieves cost-effective financing and is error free, properly conducted, legally sound and subject to minimal credit risk (to the satisfaction of an external assessor) by January 1999.
  4. 4. To achieve complete accuracy, within agreed accounting tolerances, in the recording of transactions, the money delivered to the NLF and the reports of the Debt Management Account.
  5. 5. To acknowledge all letters from the public within two weeks and for at least 95 per cent. to be sent a substantive reply within four weeks.
  6. 6. To achieve less than 12 breaches of the operational market notice (excluding any breaches which the Treasury accept were beyond the control of the office).
  7. 7. To ensure that the qualifications that the NAO have made in respect of the Gilt-Edged Official Operations Account are satisfactorily addressed in the running and presentation of the Debt Management Account.