§ John BarrettTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the consultation documents issued by her Department in each of the last four years; what the cost was of producing each of these; how many documents were issued in each consultation; and how many responses were received in each consultation. [124565]
§ Ms HewittThe Government recommends that policy development should be done in close consultation with stakeholders. Formal consultation documents are only one part of this process, which includes:
- Stakeholder meetings
- Listening events/public meetings
- Web forums
- Public surveys
- Focus groups
- Regional events
- Free-phone and freepost surveys and events
- Targeted leaflet campaigns
- Road shows and exhibitions.
It is standard practice for Departments to evaluate the policy development process, including the use of consultation. The specific information requested is not collated on a central basis and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
However, consultation exercises run by the Department of Trade and Industry since the Code of Practice came into force in January 2001, have been published on the Department of Trade and Industry website.