§ Mr. ChopeTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the policy is of his Department in relation to the reimbursement of Central London road user charges incurred by its employees. [81843]
§ Dr. Moonie[holding answer 19 November 2002]All civil servants are responsible for meeting the cost of their travel between home and normal place of work. The introduction of a Central London Road User Charge will not affect this basic condition of service. Accordingly, the Ministry of Defence has no plans for reimbursing the cost of the Road User Charge where it is incurred as part of normal commuting. However, civil servants travelling on detached duty to other establishments are entitled to claim the cost of the resultant travel. Where road user charges— whether these be urban congestion charges or road/bridge tolls— are incurred on such journeys, these costs can be claimed.