§ Mr. LidingtonTo ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what was the total cost of the Scott inquiry. [36042]
§ Mr. FreemanThe total cost so far to public funds of Sir Richard Scott's inquiry is assessed as £6,945,000.
This figure includes the direct salary, legal and other estimated costs of the inquiry itself; the direct salary cost of officials wholly employed on matters relating to the inquiry—but not the cost of officials who have worked on inquiry-related matters from time to time as part of their normal duties, which is unquantifiable; the cost of providing external legal services for witnesses to the inquiry, and the value of legal services charged by the Treasury Solicitor's Department. Some legal advice has been provided by Government lawyers as part of their normal duties, which is also unquantifiable and therefore not included.
Some officials continue to work on inquiry-related matters, for example in taking forward the Government's response to Sir Richard Scott's recommendations. However, since this work is generally carried out as part of officials' other duties it is unlikely that there will be a significant increase in the costs set out.