Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Aviation

(asked on 21st February 2020) - View Source

Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many air miles were accumulated by (a) Ministers, (b) special advisers and (c) civil servants in his Department in (i) the last six months and (ii) each calendar year since 2015.


Answered by
Nadhim Zahawi Portrait
Nadhim Zahawi
This question was answered on 2nd March 2020

All air flights for the Department must be booked through the Crown Commercial travel management system and do not provide personal rewards. The Departmental expenses policy, which applies to special advisers as well as civil servants, sets out that air miles and similar benefits earned through official travel should not be used for private purposes.

Similar arrangements for Ministers are set out in the Ministerial Code; if it is impractical to use benefits for Government travel, Ministers may donate air miles to charity if permissible under the terms of the airline’s scheme and the charity is chosen by the airline.

Information on accumulated air miles is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

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