§ Norman LambTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what surveys of public perceptions of(a) his Department and of its areas of responsibility, (b) Customs and Excise and (c) the Inland Revenue have taken place over the last 12 months; what the (a) title and (b) nature of these surveys was; what the findings of each survey were; where these findings have been published; what the cost of such surveys was; and if he will make a statement and place copies of the surveys in the Library. [176944]
§ Ruth KellyThe information is as follows:
HM Treasury
No surveys of public perception of HM Treasury have been conducted during the past 12 months.
HM Customs and Excise
HM Customs and Excise commissioned a programme of 'Business Needs' surveys at the end of 2003. The cost of these surveys was £79,959 (including VAT).
An overall measure of customer satisfaction, obtained by combining results from the separate surveys, is used to monitor performance against the customer satisfaction element of the Department's current Public Service Agreement (PSA) Target 4.
Reports on these surveys will, following completion, be published on the Customs and Excise website and hard copies will be placed in the Library of the House.
No other surveys of this type were conducted during the past 12 months.
833WInland Revenue
The Customer Service Performance Indicator (CSPI) is used as a performance indicator score for the Revenue's Public Service Agreement (PSA) Target 5. Information about the nature of the CSPI survey and the overall score produced by the 2003 survey have been published in the Inland Revenue's Spring Departmental Report (May 2004 (Cm 6225) Page 23). A research summary of the findings for the customer groups covered is under preparation and will be included in the Inland Revenue's publication schedule copies of which will be placed in the House of Commons Library. The cost of the 2003–4 CSPI survey was £292,810 (including VAT).
The Brand Tracking study tracks customer perception of the Inland Revenue over time.
A research report summarising the findings for future waves of Brand Tracking will be produced and will be included in the Inland Revenue's publication schedule copies of which will be placed in the House of Commons Library. The total cost of the two waves of Brand Tracking Research was £115,020.80 (including VAT).