Departmental Buildings

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the answer of 20 July 2009, Official Report, column 895W, on empty property, what (a) residential and (b) business properties his Department (i) owns and (ii) rents overseas; in which locations; and what the cost of those properties was to his Department in the latest period for which figures are available. (320904)

My Department including its executive agencies does not own any overseas property. The UK Border Agency rents residential and business properties on the continent for use by officials who operate from ports, terminals and office sites. Landlord and other costs of these properties from available information for 2008-09 were £3.6 million.

The UK Border Agency also operates from Foreign and Commonwealth Office embassies and high commissions around the world for which my Department paid the FCO £16.2 million in 2008-09 for property and related services, excluding non-cash cost of capital and depreciation.