Travel
(asked on 11th December 2014) - View Source
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much his Department has spent on (a) taxis, (b) first class train tickets and (c) business class air travel in each of the last five years.
In each of the last five financial years the following amounts have been spent by the Department (BIS and UK Trade and Investment) on first class train tickets and business class air travel. Figures for the total amount spent on taxis prior to 2012-13 cannot be provided without incurring disproportionate cost as these costs were included in individual travel and expense claims and not centrally collated.
| Financial Year | Rail - 1st Class | Air - Business Class | Taxis |
| 2009-2010 | £761,381.87 | £2,061,066.16 | £n/a |
| 2010-2011 | £179,884.52 | £1,177,664.09 | £n/a |
| 2011-2012 | £47,316.35 | £1,379,266.78 | £n/a |
| 2012-2013 | £18,974.65 | £1,282,766.02 | £92,301 |
| 2013-2014 | £21,277.50 | £1,725,998.87 | £79,701 |
Note: The use of first class rail travel is restricted for those with health issues and exceptional business need. In both cases prior approval is required in line with the Department’s travel policy. The use of business class flights is restricted to long haul and the figures above will include some costs relating to multi leg journeys made up of economy and business class elements; these cannot be separated without incurring disproportionate costs.