HC Deb 30 January 1996 vol 270 cc625-6W
Mr. Malcolm Bruce

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his estimate of his Department's expenditure on newspaper and magazines in(a) 1993–94, (b) 1994–95 and (c) 1995–96, to date; and if he will list the publications purchased for the latest year for which information is available. [11442]

Mr. Hanley

Foreign and Commonwealth Office diplomatic wing expenditure in the UK on newspapers and magazines was as follows:

  • 1993–94: £95,631
  • 1994–95: £101,909
  • 1995–96: £77,395 (to the end December)

Additionally, posts overseas spent the following on books, periodicals and newspapers. Figures for 1995–96 will be available only at the end of the financial year.

  • 1993–94: £1,072,972
  • 1994–95: £1,104,409

Figures for newspapers and magazines alone, purchased overseas, could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

The Overseas Development Administration does not maintain separate records of expenditure on newspapers and magazines alone. Expenditure on all publications, including books, newspapers and journals, by the ODA including the Natural Resources Institute, was as follows:

  • 1993–94: £244,857
  • 1994–95: £264,821
  • 1995–96: £196,776 (to date)

The FCO buys a very wide selection of publications in the UK and from around the world. A list could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Mr. Bruce

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his estimate of his Department's expenditure on administration for(a) 1979–80, (b) 1989–90, (c) 1991–92, (d) 1993–94, (e) 1994–95, (f) 1995–96 and (g) 1996–97. [11439]

Mr. Hanley

I refer the hon. Member to appendix A of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office departmental report for 1995—Cm 2802—and previous years, copies of which can be found in the Library of the House. Our 1996 departmental report will be published in March. Information on expenditure in 1979–80 can be obtained from the FCO diplomatic and aid wings appropriation accounts 1979–80, which is also available in the Library of the House. When comparing expenditure over different periods, it should be noted that there have been a number of structural changes in the FCO since 1979–80 which are explained in the departmental reports and appropriation accounts.