To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what average hourly rate his Department and its predecessors paid to employment agencies for agency staff in each year since 1999, broken down by employment agency. (187915)

DEFRA came into being in June 2001. The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. For the years 2005, 2006 and 2007 the core Department holds the following average hourly charge rate data:

The average hourly rate charge varies from firm to firm because it is dependent on the total charge(s) divided by the total numbers of hours worked.