To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much her Department and its predecessor spent on the purchase of (a) recycled office supplies in the last 12 months and (b) printer ink cartridges in each of the last five years. (274208)

The following table shows how much the Department has spent (excluding VAT) with its preferred supplier on the purchase of recycled office supplies in each of the last five years:

The Department's office supplies were ordered from the supplier's Globe & Tick™ range of sustainable products. Globe & Tick™ assessment criteria are based on a broad range of factors including the supplier's environmental management system, the country of origin, ease of disposal and the method of transportation if imported from overseas.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of office supplies purchased by her Department were recycled products in the latest period for which figures are available. (275350)

For the period May 2008 to April 2009, 29 per cent. of the Department’s office supplies were ordered from the supplier’s Globe and Tick™ range of sustainable products. Globe and Tick™ assessment criteria are based on a broad range of factors including the supplier’s environmental management system, the country of origin, ease of disposal and the method of transportation if imported from overseas.

During this period 92 per cent. of our paper came from a recycled source.