When silence tells a thousand words?

Last week, Oliver Heald asked the Prime Minister a number of quite pertinent questions about the IT systems in Number 10. Specifically, he asked,

(1) whether the Cabinet Office IT Department holds web traffic data of visits from 10 Downing Street computers to webmail email accounts; and if he will make a statement;
(2) how many different email systems operate in the offices of 10 Downing Street;
(3) whether (a) all and (b) some webmail accounts are blocked in the offices of 10 Downing Street
(4) what guidance has been produced for Cabinet Office (a) staff and (b) special advisers on the use of non-government email accounts for official purposes.

Tony Blair, in response simply referred him to this transcript of what his official spokesman had said and also "to the evidence given by the Secretary to the Cabinet (Sir Gus ODonnell) to the Public Administration Select Committee on 6 February 2007".

A quick look at the linked transcript shows that the PMOS didn't answer the questions, and according to the uncorrected evidence published today on the Public Administration Select Committee website, all Gus ODonnell said on the matter was, "[t]here is no second email system inside Number 10".

Now, it's already been pointed out before that saying there is no second email system inside Number 10 is not the same as whether a second system is used, or accessible from Number 10. It worrying though that Prime Minister would, instead of answering a question himself to Parliament (which he is supposed to be accountable too) he instead refers to a statement by a civil servant that bears no resemblance as an answer to what was asked.

Given what was asked by Oliver Heald in comparison to the response, one is left wondering what other conclusions to draw than negative ones.