Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much his Department spent on communications staff in (a) 2019-20, (b) 2020-21 and (c) 2021-22.

Defra Group Communications is the first single employer shared service communications team in Whitehall, working for six organisations. Alongside the core department it also provides communications support for five of the department’s largest Arm’s Length Bodies including the Environment Agency, Natural England, the Animal and Plant Health Agency, the Forestry Commission and the Rural Payments Agency. Defra Group Communications staff work to different organisations across policy and operational areas and the communications spend covers six organisations. The department communications budget for the last three years has been £15.3 million for 2019-20, £14.5million for 2020-21 and £14.1 million for 2021-22.