Newspaper Licensing Agency

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what payment from (a) her Department and (b) each of its agencies to the Newspaper Licensing Agency was made in each of the last 10 years. (315587)

The Department for Work and Pensions was created in June 2001. The payments made to the Newspaper Licensing Agency (excluding VAT) in each full year since then are set out in the following table. The press cuttings to which they refer cover the whole range of the Department's businesses including the Pension, Disability and Carers Service, and Jobcentre Plus.

The volume of cuttings has increased considerably throughout the recession as mentions of the work of Jobcentre Plus have increased. Since December 2008 this has also included coverage from regional titles. A review of the Department's licensing arrangements for press cuttings is currently under way.