CONFIDENTIAL
Page 259
ONDENCE
THE PRIME MINISTER said that the Chief Whip had reported complaints by the Government's backbench supporters about delays by Departments in replying to letters from Members. Ministers in charge of Departments should review their Departments' performance in this respect, and ensure that arrangements were designed to minimise delay. The use of standard letters where appropriate; effective arrangements for ensuring that sensible decisions were made about the handling of letters immediately they were received; and the nomination of a junior Minister with responsibility for overseeing the efficiency of departmental
rangements were all matters to be considered in this context.
NFIDENTIAL
brief discussion, the following points were made:
Reports from Departments should include a measure of growing volume of correspondence dealt with.
In many cases, it was the weight of correspondence which caused problems.
b. Embers often seemed too ready to send on letters from const Ne to Departments, even where they had already received a standard letter from the Department on the subject the constituent was raising. No doubt they did this because they wished to have a letter signed by the Minister to eack to their constituent. Nevertheless, it put a subsandid avoidable burden on Departments. The provision of a
signed by the Minister but not specific to a particular constituent could help in this respect.
C.
DEN
Members also seafoo ready merely to act as a postbox on occasion between constituents and a Department. The result could be that a lengthy sequence of
correspondence unfolded between a Minister and a particular constituent with little benefit to either side.
THE PRIME MINISTER, summing up
scussion, said that the Secretary of the Cabinet should Kite Departments to report on the volume of correspondence which they handled from Members and on their targets and their performance objectives in replying to it. The points made in discussion about Members' handling of correspondence, and any other such points to emerge from the survey of Departments, should be taken up when the outcome was reported to the 1922 Committee.
The Cabinet
Took note, with approval, of the Prime Minister of their discussion and invited the Secretary of
to proceed accordingly.
Cabinet Office
mming up
Cabinet
ONFIDENTIAL
19 December 1989
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CONFIDENTIAL
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