To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they encourage bodies in receipt of public funds to publish the salaries and expenses of their senior members of staff. [HL3890]

In accordance with the Government Financial Reporting Manual central government bodies are required to publish within their annual report details of remuneration in respect of their senior members of staff. The remuneration report includes Ministers, where relevant, and the management board, including advisory and non-executive members, and requires disclosure of salary, allowances and pension entitlements. Disclosure is not required for the reimbursement of expenses directly incurred in the performance of an individual's duties.

The answer does not cover banks that the Government own or where the Government have a shareholder interest. As these bodies are classified as public corporations by the ONS, they fall outside the scope of the Government Financial Reporting Manual, and its disclosure requirements. The banks in which the Government have a shareholder interest and whose shares are still traded on the Stock Exchange are subject to the Stock Exchange Listing Rules and the Companies Act, which require similar disclosures to those required by the Government Financial Reporting Manual. The Government have required the banks in which they have a 100 per cent stake to meet the same standard of disclosure.