Question to the Department for International Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what the cost of sickness pay to staff in his Department has been since it was established.

The Department for International Trade (DIT) became a legal entity and an employer in its own right on 9^th November 2016. Since that date the total cost of sickness pay to UK staff within the Department is as follows:

DIT payroll: £88,660 (9^th November 2016 – 30^th June 2017)

UK Export Finance (UKEF) payroll: £68,159 (9^th November 2016 – 30^th 2017)

Total: £156,819

DIT and UKEF have reported data separately as two payroll providers are used.