§ Mr. LawsTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many press officers were employed in his Department in each year from 1990–91 to 2003–04; what the total cost was in each year; and if he will make a statement. [162856]
§ Mr. Stephen TwiggThe table as follows sets out number of press officers employed in the Department for Education and Skills and its predecessors. We are unable to provide information on the number of press officers employed by the Department from 1990–91 to 1995–96 without incurring disproportionate cost. Information for 1996–97 to 1998–99 is available from appendix 10 of the Sixth Report from the Select Committee on Public 1831W Administration, entitled Government Information and Communication Service, published on 29 July 1998 (www.publications.parliament.uk).
Number of Press Officers
Actual salaries spend (£)
1999–2000 28 1,110,589 2000–01 28 1,246,588 2001–02 23 1,265,626 2002–03 23 1,192,645 2003–04 18 1,352,041