§ Mr. Michael Brownasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many Government cars are available to officials and civil servants in his Department: what are the rules governing their use; and what is the total cost per annum for providing such a service.
§ Mr. Peter WalkerAt 31 December 1980 my Department owned 154 saloon and estate cars. These are mainly deployed at the Ministry's regional and divisional offices, experimental centres and laboratories.
The Department's rules provide that the strictest economy must be exercised at all times in the use of these vehicles and that they must not be used for unofficial journeys. The total cost of purchasing, maintaining and running these vehicles in 1979–80 was approximately £130,000.