Transparency data

Data on Responses to Correspondence from MPs and Peers in Q2 2023 (HTML)

Published 19 October 2023

The Government attaches great importance to the effective and timely handling of correspondence. The Cabinet Office is publishing this correspondence data to enable transparency and to demonstrate the total volume of correspondence received by Government Departments and Agencies from Members of Parliament and Peers between April and June 2023.

The deadlines set by Government Departments and Agencies for responding to correspondence from Members of Parliament and Peers should not exceed 20 working days, and Departments and Agencies are advised to consider setting more challenging deadlines than 20 working days to ensure a better minimum service level.

In Q2, Government departments received a total of 25,611 cases of correspondence. Of these, 61% were responded to within the 20 working day target outlined in the Guide to Handling Correspondence. In Q2, agencies received a total of 24,080 cases of correspondence. Of these, 97% were responded to within the 20 working day target outlined in the Guide to Handling Correspondence.

Department	Target Response time (Working Days)	Total Number of MP correspondence received	% of cases responded to within target response time	% of cases responded to within 20 working days
Total	-	25,611	58%	61%
Attorney General’s Office	20 Days	37	95%	95%
Cabinet Office	20 Days	384	89%	89%
Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy[footnote 1]	15 Days	2,502	68%	77%
Department for Culture, Media and Sport[footnote 2]	20 Days	698	60%	60%
Department for Education	18 Days	1,889	67%	69%
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs	20 Days	2,959	48%	48%
Department for International Trade[footnote 3]	15 Days	312	67%	77%
Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities	20 Days	2,201	46%	46%
Department for Transport[footnote 4]	10 Days	1,403	70%	86%
Department for Work and Pensions	20 Days	1,287	76%	76%
Department of Health and Social Care	20 Days	3,854	51%	51%
Foreign and Commonwealth & Development Office	20 Days	1,626	82%	82%
HM Revenue and Customs	15 Days	2,266	26%	34%
HM Treasury	20 Days	1,429	77%	77%
Home Office	20 Days	1,473	81%	81%
Ministry of Defence	20 Days	659	79%	79%
Ministry of Justice	15 Days	490	74%	90%
Northern Ireland Office	20 Days	86	91%	91%
Office of the Leader of the House of Commons	15 Days	24	89%	100%
Office of the Leader of the House of Lords	10 Days	0	-	-
Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland	20 Days	17	94%	94%
Office of the Secretary of State for Wales	15 Days	15	73%	87%

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero received 2,166 pieces of MP correspondence in Q2. It responded to 72% within their internal target deadline of 15 working days and 81% within 20 working days.

Agency	Target Response time (Working Days)	Total Number of MP correspondence received	% of cases responded to within target response time	% of cases responded to within 20 working days
Total	-	24,080	96%	97%
Building Digital UK	20 Days	43	86%	86%
Charity Commission	20 Days	47	100%	100%
Competition Markets Authority	15 Days	33	70%	82%
Crown Prosecution Service	20 Days	75	76%	76%
Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency	8 Days	1,192	83%	100%
Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency	10 Days	151	100%	100%
Equality Hub	20 Days	118	80%	80%
Food Standards Agency	20 Days	20	100%	100%
Health and Safety Executive	10 Days	44	84%	100%
Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service	15 Days	380	70%	92%
HM Land Registry	15 Days	166	95%	99%
HM Prison and Probation Service	15 Days	200	80%	95%
HMPO/UK Visas and Immigration/Immigration Enforcement/Border Force[footnote 5]	20 Days	21,144	98%	98%
HMRC Policy[footnote 6]	20 Days	141	57%	57%
Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency	18 Days	29	10%	14%
National Archives	20 Days	4	75%	75%
National Crime Agency	10 Days	4	100%	100%
Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (OFSTED)	15 Days	48	40%	58%
Office of the Public Guardian	15 Days	30	63%	97%
The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (OFGEM)	15 Days	148	62%	88%
Serious Fraud Office	20 Days	4	50%	50%
The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (OFQUAL)	20 Days	14	93%	93%
UK Health Security Agency	20 Days	27	78%	78%
UK Statistics Authority / Office for National Statistics	10 Days	18	56%	89%

1. On 7 February 2023, the Prime Minister announced Machinery of Government (MoG) changes to create three new government departments: the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), and the Department for Business and Trade (DBT); as well as a refocused Department for Culture, Media and Sport. With Cabinet Office approval, DESNZ has provided correspondence performance data for Q1 and Q2 as the pre-MoG Department, BEIS. However, DESNZ have also requested that their performance data for Q2 is published separately - which has been included as a footnote on page 5. ↩

2. Per the aforementioned MoG changes, DCMS performance data includes correspondence for policy areas transferred to DSIT, alongside its own caseload. ↩

3. DBT began processing cases previously managed by ex-BEIS on 5 June. ↩

4. The DfT target was extended from 7 to 10 working days at the start of Q2 to reflect additional internal clearances that are now required. The Vehicle Certification Agency is a nil return for Q1 and Q2. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency had 1 case in Q1 and 2 in Q2, of which all were responded to on time. ↩

5. As a consequence of the evacuation of Afghanistan, invasion of Ukraine and a surge in passport queries, the Home Office received an unprecedented volume of MPs Correspondence from August 2021 to August 2022 leading to a large stock of out of service standard cases in operational parts of the department. A subsequent recovery plan ensured that by the end of January the stock of out of service standard cases had decreased to frictional levels. This has enabled the Home Office’s operational areas to now focus on newly submitted correspondence meaning that, since the end of January, service standards have met. Where possible, an official will respond to straightforward cases by telephone or email for expediency. ↩

6. These are cases drafted by HMRC policy and signed by HM Treasury Ministers. ↩