§ Lord Lester of Herne Hillasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will publish a list of lead contacts and departmental openness officers in the departments referred to in paragraph (c) of their response to the Public Administration Select Committee's Third Report of Session 2002–03, Ombudsman Issues (HC 448) [HL4364]
§ Lord Bassam of BrightonDetails of departmental openness contacts are already published in theCivil Service Yearbook. They are also published as an appendix to the Monitoring Report on the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information, published annually. Copies of these documents are available in the Libraries of the House.
As the Government response to the Select Committee indicates, the Cabinet Office is currently compiling a list of departmental contacts tasked with ensuring that the ombudsman receives prompt responses to requests for information. This list will be of use primarily to the ombudsman and her staff, but I shall send a copy to the noble Lord when it is ready.