§ Lord Swinfenasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will give the latest estimates of the number of elected representatives of Civil Service trade unions in each of the main government departments and of the cost of providing paid time off.
The Paymaster General (The Earl of Caithness)The details for 1988–89 are given in the following table which show that the total cost of facility time was £12.67 million. Compared with the position as at 31st March 1988, the total amount of paid time off for union business shows a reduction of 64 man years (6.1 per cent.), with a consequential saving of £0.41 million. This marks the seventh successive year in which facilities costs have been reduced.