§ Mr. AllenTo ask the hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, as representing the House of Commons Commission, what is the approximate or average cost of 128 staff on duty after 10 pm.
§ Mr. BeithNon-industrial staff with a commitment to remain on duty as a direct consequence of sittings of the House receive either an annual allowance which in most cases is calculated from 6 pm according to an agreed formula; or night duty pay which varies according to the lateness of the hour. Industrial staff, in general, are paid at overtime rates for the actual number of hours worked. Details of these allowances are set out in the annual report of the House of Commons Commission.
The varying times of adjournment of the House and difficulty in extracting the appropriate proportion of some of the costs involved make the provision of any meaningful figure possible only at disproportionate cost.