Scott Inquiry (Hansard, 18 January 1996)

§ Mr. Robin Cook
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will provide a breakdown of the spending by his Department on external advice in relation to the Scott inquiry; and how much has been spent on legal advice and for whom. [10226]

§ Mr. Arbuthnot
The amount so far spent by my Department on external advice in relation to Sir Richard Scott's inquiry is £215,862; this consists entirely of legal advice. This cost includes the provision of advice by the Treasury Solicitor's Department. The names of the individuals and their legal advisers are confidential to them.

§ Mr. Cook
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he has(a) read, collated or received and (b) authorised civil servants or any other persons to read, collate or receive copies of draft sections of Sir Richard Scott's report circulated by Sir Richard Scott to Ministers, civil servants and other persons. [10227]

§ Mr. Arbuthnot
The handling of extracts of Sir Richard Scott's draft report, subject to guidance received from the inquiry, is for those to whom they are sent. The Government do not disclose details of correspondence between the inquiry and individual witnesses.

§ Mr. Cook
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the total cost of salaries since 1992 paid to persons in his Department employed on a part-time or full-time basis in any connection in relation to the Scott inquiry. [10225]

§ Mr. Arbuthnot
The direct salary cost of officials within my Department wholly employed on matters relating to the Scott inquiry since 1992 is approximately £218,000. Other officials will inevitably be involved from time to time; their direct salary cost is unquantifiable.