Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what proportion of suppliers to his Department and its agencies and non-departmental public bodies paid subcontractors within 30 days in the last period for which figures are available.

This information is not held centrally. However, where a contractor enters into a subcontract, for the purpose of performing its obligations under the contract, a term is included in such subcontract. The term requires payment to be made by the contractor to the subcontractor within a specified period not exceeding 30 days from receipt of a valid invoice as defined by the subcontract.