§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff in his Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies receive paid leave to undertake union duties; how many days they are allocated; and what has been the cost to public funds in each of the last four years. [36198]
§ Mr. McCartneyThe information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available, for the financial year 2001–02, is in the table:
Department for Work and Pensions Agency/body Full-time post allocation1 Approximate cost2 £ Headquarters 5.94 114,9003 Benefits Agency 207.76 4,017,100 Child Support Agency 28.50 551,100 Employment Service 45.00 538,500 Other 27.25 526,900 Total 314.45 5,748,500 1 This is not necessarily equivalent to the number of union officials because (i) some officials are part-time; (ii) some union posts are not filled. 2 The figures have been calculated using average, not actual, salaries. 3 Amounts are rounded to the nearest one hundred pounds.