Global SafetyWatch

The response register

Every question sent to a decision-maker, the date, and what came back. Nobody else keeps this list. It is the part that makes the rest count.

A working group ends with one page sent to one named person, with a date by which a response is asked for. What they say is recorded here in their own words. If nothing comes by the date, that is recorded too, without comment. The row stays on this page for as long as the site exists.

What counts as a response

Anything the decision-maker says about the result, in writing, in a meeting minute, in a vote, or in public. It is recorded as they said it, with the source. A reply that does not address the question is recorded as received, and the page says what it does and does not answer. A reply after the date is recorded with its date.

What silence looks like

A row that reads no response received by the date. Nothing is added to it. The next working group in the same place may ask the decision-maker why, and that question and its response are recorded in turn.

How the register is measured

The programme publishes one figure from this page each quarter: the share of questions that received a response by the date asked. It is the only measure of success the programme reports, because it is the only one that shows whether the method changes anything. The first figure follows the first quarter with a completed row.

If a row is wrong

A decision-maker who believes a row misstates their response can write to [email]. The row is corrected within [number] working days and the correction is logged on Governance and safeguards.

Decision-makers are named in their public role only. Nothing here is a statement about any person’s character or motives. Nothing on this site is legal advice.