Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the cost of legal advice was to his Department during the (a) due diligence, (b) contract management and (c) contract cancellation process for the Seaborne Freight contract.

Combined costs of external legal, financial and project assurance advice on all three freight contracts including legal advice up to the end of December 2018 were approximately £800,000. Subsequent costs up to termination cannot yet be derived as contracts are still live and invoices pending.