The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (Jenny Willott)
I have set performance targets for the Insolvency Service for the coming financial year, 2014-15.
In recent years there has been a significant fall in the number of new insolvency cases dealt with by the official receiver, from 78,000 cases in 2009-10 to a level of around 27,000 in 2013-14, with the expectation that this will fall further in 2014-15. The number of redundancy claims handled by the Insolvency Service has also dropped from a peak of 117,000 to 75,000 in the current year.
The Insolvency Service has reduced its cost base significantly to reflect reducing demand, including reducing its work force from 3,200 people to fewer than 1,900 and reducing the number of offices from 36 to 32. Such reductions will continue in 2014-15 as the agency continues to respond to a declining level of work.
In 2014-15 an important priority for the Insolvency Service will be to maintain its current high level of customer service during this period of major change. I have set targets at a level which reflects the challenges the agency continues to face.
The Insolvency Service annual plan 2014-15 will be available from 2 April 2014 at: http://www.bis.gov.uk/insolvency/About-us. This plan builds on achievements to date and the direction of travel agreed in 2012. It continues the agency’s focus on actions that support its long-term resilience: an enhanced profile and external relationships, an improved funding model, better delivery tools and investment in people capability.
Target | Forecast Outturn | Target | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Value for Public Money | Deliver against agreed budget, with sound financial management and robust governance | On target | Achieve | |
Customer/Stakeholder Satisfaction | Customer satisfaction sustained in upper quartile of comparable public bodies (survey) | 90% | 96% | 90% |
Confidence in enforcement activity (survey) | >66% | 69% | 69% | |
Delivery of projects to enhance the insolvency regime and to improve customer experience (% of milestones achieved to time) | On target | 80% | ||
Operational Effectiveness | % of reports issued to creditors within eight weeks bankruptcy/company cases | 92% - 85% | 97% - 92% | 92% - 85% |
% of disqualification cases in which proceedings are instigated under 23 months | 95% | 99% | 95% | |
% of bankruptcy restrictions authorised within 11 months of insolvency | 80% | 92% | 80% | |
Action redundancy payment claims within three weeks to six weeks | 80% - 92% | 86% - 97% | 80% - 92% |