§ Mr. Robert B. JonesTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will set out in tabular form the official rates of interest on loans provided to civil servants by their employers by category of loan.
§ Mr. MaplesDepartments as employers do not normally make loans to their staff. They may provide advances of salary for travel costs, including season tickets and bicycle purchase, for house purchase where a member of staff is being compulsorily transferred in the public interest, and to assist with car purchase and miscellaneous additional expenses on posting overseas. No interest is paid on these advances. Departments and agencies also have discretion to take over any excess bridging loan after sale charging nominal interest rates in circumstances where staff face financial hardship following a move in the public interest if they have a bridging loan in excess of the sale value of their old property. Information on the use of the discretion is not held centrally.