To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many flags his Department (a) owns and (b) maintains; and what the cost of maintaining them was in the last 12 months. (284106)

For the Home Office HQ at 2 Marsham street the Department has 10 flags including replacements. Union flag replacements are needed every three to six months according to weather conditions at a cost of around £130 per flag. Flag pole maintenance costs are not held separately as they are part of the building's overall PFI charge. Information on the number and annual cost of flags held across the rest of the Department is not held centrally.