§ Mr. Tony Banksasked the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his reply of 26 January, Official Report, c. 692, what were the costs in addition to air movements of the 40 visits abroad made by Ministers in the period 1 April 1983 to 31 December 1983.
§ Mr. PattieAs I indicated in my earlier reply, total expenditure figures could be provided only at diaproportionate cost. This applies particularly to expenditure which is met by senior diplomatic and military staff from their official representational allowances. However, it is 311W possible to identify expenditure in the form of travelling and subsistence allowances; and over the period in question this amounted to £3,596.
§ Mr. Tony Banksasked the Secretary of State for Defence why cost of ministerial visits abroad are not kept by his Department.
§ Mr. PattieAll public expenditure rising from Ministerial visits abroad is charged to the relevant Votes. However, it is not necessary for iternal management purposes to maintain separate records of such expenditure. In practice some elements of cost are readily identifiable from the accounting information available, but to keep a fully comprehensive record of the expenditure involved would require a considerable amount of administrative effort which would be difficult to justify.