To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether (a) agencies and (b) non-departmental public bodies for which his Department is responsible sell information on a commercial basis to (i) companies or individuals in the private sector and (ii) other organisations. (313225)

Government Departments and agencies and non-departmental public bodies that have Crown status make most of their information available for free re-use under the Public Sector Information Click-Use Licence. Government trading funds, such as Foreign and Commonwealth Office Services, for which I have ministerial responsibility, are able under their trading fund status to charge for the services they provide in order to cover their costs. This covers information and its supply provided to other public bodies, commercial organisations and individuals. In common with other Government policy initiatives, some Foreign and Commonwealth Office information is published and sold as priced publications.