To ask Her Majesty's Government when the practice of paying bonuses to civil servants began; and what was the total paid in each year since 1997. [HL1282]

Civil Service reward systems have evolved over time and have featured performance-related payments for at least the past 20 years.

Non-consolidated performance payments (e.g. payments for outstanding delivery on particularly stretching objectives) became a common feature of Civil Service pay in 1996.

Information on the level of non-consolidated performance payments across the Civil Service is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.