§ Mr. ByersTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what properties are owned or leased by his Department for the use of Ministers; what was the total running cost for each property for the latest year available broken down into(a) furniture and fittings, (b) maintenance, (c) staffing, including the number of butlers, cooks and housekeepers, (d) food and hospitality and (e) other costs; what is the estimated value of each property; and how many times in the latest year the property was stayed in overnight by a Minister.
§ Mr. HowardThe Home Office leases one property used, for security reasons, as the London residence of the Home Secretary of the day. The value of the property is not known. There are no Home Office staff employed at the property and the Home Secretary is responsible for meeting all expenditure on food, private telephone calls and hospitality. Running costs in 1993–94 totalled £79,781 comprising:
£ (a)Furniture and fittings 1,076 (b)Maintenance 140,385 (c)Staff nil (d)Food and hospitality nil (e)Other costs 38,320 Note:
1 of which 23,285 was for the replacement of the roof