Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Written Statement of 6 December 2017 on Government Asset Sale, HCWS317, what estimate he has made of what the minimum price for the sale was that would have achieved value for money according to HM Treasury Green Book rules.

Disclosing the minimum value is considered commercially sensitive and would put achieving the best value for money for future sales at risk.

The approach to Sale 1, including the tests the department used to assess value for money, was reviewed by the National Audit Office, which concluded that in terms of preparation, process and proceeds, the government achieved value for money.

Following HM Treasury Green Book principles, the department used a range of measures to assess that the sale offered value for money, as set out in the report that was placed in the Libraries of both Houses on 7 December 2017.