DEFRA has paid £6,900 in respect of property consultancy, including the site search and financial appraisal of the property options, for the Marine Management Organisation headquarters building in Newcastle.
Since the beginning of October 2009, interim accommodation for Marine and Fisheries Agency staff based in Newcastle has been the Government Office North East. Additional accommodation from 14 December will be in city centre commercial offices. It is estimated that the cost of this interim accommodation will amount to approximately £150,000.
In the 12 months up to November 2009, approximately £153,000 of expenditure had been incurred on recruitment agencies as part of a continuing exercise to recruit Marine and Fisheries Agency staff.