FOI REF: FOI/2023/5001
You asked
Please could I ask:
What is the estimated overall cost to businesses of completing the Annual Purchases 2022 survey?
Why is it not possible to complete the survey online?
Why is the ONS using fax machines in the 21st century?
We said
Thank you for your request.
What is the estimated overall cost to businesses of completing the Purchases survey?
Unfortunately, we do not hold the information you require. The Annual Purchases Survey does not collect the quantitative data that would allow ONS to work out these costs.
Why is it not possible to complete the survey online?
We recognise that further development of the electronic data collection system would provide significant benefits to both businesses and the ONS itself.
The office is developing the facility to allow respondents to submit data over the internet. However, this is currently in use for a limited number of surveys. Until the electronic data collection facility is fully adopted, the Annual Purchases Survey is only available in paper questionnaire form.
Why is the ONS using fax machines in the 21st century?
Faxes were historically the most secure and the quickest means of sending documents. Their usage has dropped enormously as emails have become universal. That said, some respondents still return their documents by fax, so we have not withdrawn this option from them. It is in our interest to offer as many options of returning figures as possible. It may look as if ONS still uses fax machines, but we do not. Behind the scenes is a secure, web-based system which allows documents to be sent to a phone number. PDFs are entirely separate and have nothing to do with the fax number.