HC Deb 08 November 2001 vol 374 cc369-70W
Annabelle Ewing

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) if he will place in the Library for each year since 1995 the average response time for providing a substantive answer to(a) hon. Member's correspondence, (b) correspondence from members of the public and (c) written parliamentary questions in the (i) House of Commons and (ii) House of Lords; [7019]

(2) if he will place in the Library for each year since 1995 the total number of (a) letters from hon. Members, (b) letters from members of the public and (c) parliamentary questions from (i) hon. Members and (ii) Lords dealt with by his Department; what percentage took (A) more than one month and (B) more than three months to provide a substantive answer; and if he will make a statement. [7020]

Mr. Nicholas Brown

Information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is as follows.

General information on the volumes of correspondence received across Whitehall and on overall performance is published by the Cabinet Office. Figures for 2000 were published on 6 April 2001, Official Report, columns 324–28W and on 19 July 2001, columns 454–56W.

Numbers leaving NDLP by destination to July 2001—Great Britain
Thousand
Left income support Still on income support
Period Total Employment1 Transfer to other benefits2 Ineligible3 Employment1,4 Withdrawn for other reasons5 Unknown destination6
October 1998-September 1999
Age of youngest child7
0–4 7.66 2.10 0.04 0.15 0.07 4.79 0.50
5–11 7.46 2.11 0.03 0.12 0.09 4.65 0.46
12–16 1.89 0.60 0.06 0.07 0.02 1.03 0.11
Not recorded8 6.50 4.38 0.11 0.31 0.02 1.45 0.23

Total number of parliamentary questions by parliamentary session since 1995
Percentage
Session Total Over one month Over three months
Commons
1995–96 2,667 1.50 0
1996–97 17 0 0
1997–98 3,666 1.67 0
1998–99 2,173 0.41 0
1999–2000 2,878 0.14 0.04
2000–01 1,254 0.56 0
Lords
1995–96 148 0 0
1996–97 2 0 0
1997–98 208 2.4 0
1998–99 0 0 0
1999–2000 151 0 0
2000–01 43 0 0