§ Mr. VazTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what was the involvement of Warren Springs in the application by Leicester Combined Heat and Power to develop a CHP scheme in Leicester; what was the cost to public funds of this involvement; what are the position and salary scale of Dr. Rampling; on whose invitation Dr. Rampling attended the meeting in Leicester on 9 November; and what was the cost of attendance by Dr. Rampling at that meeting.
§ Mr. McLoughlinI have asked the chief executive of Warren Spring Laboratory to write to the hon. Member.
Letter from D. Cormack to Mr. Keith Vaz, dated 26 November 1993:
Warren Spring Laboratory (WSL) has the remit to recover its costs through the execution of contract work for both government and non-government customers. In this case WSL was acting under contract to Leicester CHP Limited, to study the distillation of oil from waste tyre pyrolysis, to evaluate its possible use as a fuel for CHP application.It is normal WSL practice to provide high quality objective scientific and technical data and evaluations, on all its contract work. This is recognised by its customers, and understood by all parties who may have an interest in any particular issue.There was no cost to public funds of this involvement. All Dr. Rampling's activities, including meetings with interested parties at the invitation of Leicester CHP Ltd, are charged to Leicester CHP Ltd under the contract, at a rate which covers all his costs, including his salary, according to Treasury rules under which the Laboratory operates as a full economic cost recovery Agency.