We asked the Department when it would be sensible for us to assess the work going on to improve productivity and whether it had been successful. The Department suggested that coming back to this issue in a year’s time would be reasonable as it would take six months for it to recruit more staff and a further six months to improve the impact of the standard operating process and increase productivity.35 30 Q 11 31 Q 16 32 Qq 14 and 16-17 33 C&AG’s Report, para 3.15 34 Qq 15-16 35 Qq 19-20 13 Chapter 2: Decision-making and value for money Decision-making