Departmental Travel

Justine Greening
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department spent on (a) car hire, (b) train travel, (c) air travel, (d) hotels and (e) restaurant meals for (i) Ministers and (ii) staff in his Department in each of the last five years.

Dan Norris
From information held centrally, the core-Department's expenditure on (a) car hire since 2005-06 is:

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|                 |£      |
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|2005-06          |35,003 |
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|2006-07          |110,279|
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|2007-08          |134,803|
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|2008-09          |143,644|
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|2009-10 (to date)|50,368 |
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On the train travel and air travel the expenditure is:

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|                        |         |Air      |Train    |
--------------------------------------------------------
|July 2006 - March 2007  |Staff    |1,035,396|1,820,169|
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|                        |Ministers|71,710   |48,562   |
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|April 2007 - March 2008 |Staff    |1,352,261|1,926,544|
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|                        |Ministers|152,836  |52,306   |
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|April 2008 - March 2009 |Staff    |946,526  |1,680,163|
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|                        |Ministers|102,730  |53,254   |
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|April 2009 - August 2009|Staff    |625,562  |922,768  |
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|                        |Ministers|38,324   |14,148   |
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Information on the split of car-hire expenditure between Ministers and staff could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

On hotels, the expenditure is:

-----------------------------------
|                         |£      |
-----------------------------------
|April 2006 - March 2007  |87,950 |
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|April 2007 - March 2008  |358,866|
-----------------------------------
|April 2008 - March 2009  |541,311|
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|April 2009 - October 2009|327,067|
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Information on the split of hotel expenditure between Ministers and staff could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

The core-Department's financial system records the following expenditure for UK and overseas subsistence but restaurant meals expenditure for Ministers and staff could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

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|                           |UK     |Overseas|
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|April 2006 - March 2007    |700,293|542,883 |
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|April 2007 - March 2008    |369,091|421,188 |
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|April 2008 - March 2009    |265,977|357,897 |
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|April 2009 - September 2009|252,111|159,318 |
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Travel by Ministers and civil servants is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code and the Civil Service Management Code respectively. The Cabinet office publish an annual list of overseas travel over £500 undertaken by Ministers. The 2008-09 list was published on 16 July and can be viewed at:

http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/proprietyandethics/ministers/travelgifts.aspx

The Department for Transport publish an annual written ministerial statement on the cost of ministerial cars. The latest one can be viewed at:

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhanrd/cm090716/wmstext/90716m0009