§ Mr. LawsTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her estimate is of total expenditure by her Department on(a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year from 1995–96 to 2003–04; and if she will make a statement. [162760]
§ Alun MichaelThe Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs came into being in June 2001 and information, prior to that period, could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
While information is not held in the format requested, centrally-held records show that we have spent in the region of £345,000 on external market research and focus group research since Defra's creation in June 2001.