§ Mr. Don FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list(a) those units in his Department and (b) the number of departmental staff which are concerned with preparing rebuttals of allegations in the media; and what is (i) the total cost of their work, including salaries, and (ii) the number of rebuttals issued since May 1997. [71850]
§ Ms JowellThe Department's communications planning unit includes an officer whose job is to make more systematic and orderly the process of responding to criticism on Government policy, and, in particular to inaccurate or misleading allegations. This is in common with other departments, where the work of press office includes responding to misinformed allegations. The salary of that officer is £22,746.95. Three hundred and ninety-nine rebuttals have been issued since May 1997.