Royal Mail

Mr. Weir
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department spent on Royal Mail services in each of the last five years.

Mr. McFadden
During the last five financial years, this Department and its predecessors spent the following on Royal Mail services provided to buildings on its central London estate:

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|£000   |
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|2004-05|215.5|
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|2005-06|194.1|
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|2006-07|119.2|
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|2007-08|118.5|
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|2008-09|137.9|
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Mr. Djanogly
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department plans to take to secure the (a) short-term and (b) long-term viability of Royal Mail as a commercial enterprise.

Mr. McFadden
The Government consider that the implementation of the Hooper review recommendations as a package is the best way forward to secure Royal Mail's future. We will return to this package once market conditions are right to secure a suitable partner for Royal Mail Group Limited. In the meantime, the Government are looking to the management and the unions to take forward the modernisation of the company. We encourage both the management and the unions to work together to achieve this.