Departments: Official Hospitality

David Simpson
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will break down the figures referred to in the answer of 22 October 2007, Official Report, columns 2-3W, on Departments: official hospitality, to show how much was spent on each function at which hospitality expenses were incurred.

Paul Goggins
I am unable to provide the level of detail requested as this could be done only at disproportionate cost.

I can however provide a breakdown by location and this is shown in the following table.

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|                                                                                                               |Expenditure|Income|
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|Stormont House                                                                                                 |75,767     |43,460|
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|Hillsborough Castle                                                                                            |1260,697   |76,513|
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|Other NIO hospitality                                                                                          |117,303    |Nil   |
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|1 This figure includes £55,000 for two garden parties in 2007, one at Hillsborough Castle and one in Coleraine.|           |      |
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Expenditure incurred on hospitality by the NIO includes general living costs for Ministers and officials in lieu of hotel costs when in Northern Ireland; accommodation and hospitality for members of the royal family, visiting dignitaries and Heads of State; and hospitality for the representatives of political parties, business, voluntary, religious and community sectors in Northern Ireland attending events with Ministers. Customers using Hillsborough Castle and Stormont House are charged for the services they receive.