Question

To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, what recent assessment the Commission has made of the efficiency of call-handling procedures in the House of Commons Pass Office.

The Pass Office recently introduced a Netcall telephone management system in order to monitor calls. In general, this shows that the Pass Office is receiving an increased volume of calls. This reflects a 17% increase in the number of pass applications, from 10,849 in 2017 to 12,940 in 2018. In particular, the Pass Office experienced a large increase in calls following the Christmas break. This coincided with a period when the Pass Office was suffering from staff shortages. While this is now being addressed, it has meant that the office currently has fewer people dedicated to responding to calls, as the back-office team also perform duties such as processing security clearance applications.

The Pass Office is keen to ensure good customer service. As calls to the Pass Office are often to check on the status of applications, callers are being advised to email the Pass Office with the relevant information. This is so that Pass Office staff can then respond more effectively and swiftly to these enquiries. The Pass Office encourages e-mail enquiries as the best way customers can get a quick update on the status of an application.