Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many government procurement cards were held by staff within (a) her core Department and (b) executive agencies of her Department at the end of calendar years (i) 2022 and (ii) 2023.
Answered by Mike Kane - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The number of Government Procurement Cards allocated to individuals for making purchases against (a) the core Department's budget was:
(i) As of December 31, 2022: 325
(ii) As of December 31, 2023: 324
The number of Government Procurement Cards allocated to individuals for making purchases against (b) the executive agencies’ budgets was:
(i) As of December 31, 2022: 304
(ii) As of December 31, 2023: 280
The Department for Transport has a clear policy for card allocation. Applications for cards must be accompanied by confirmation that budget holders approve the issue of the card within their delegated budget areas. The application confirms the Merchant Category Codes the individual is authorised to use and proposed card transaction limit and monthly limit. Card applications must include a signature to confirm that the cardholder has read and accepted departmental policies and the consequences of misuse.
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 October 2024 to Question 9281 on Department for Transport: Ministers' Private Offices, how much was spent on (a) new furniture and fittings and (b) other refurbishment of Ministerial offices in her Department between 4 July 2022 and 4 July 2024; and on what items this was spent.
Answered by Mike Kane - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Between 4 July 2022 and 4 July 2024 the Department spent £405 on furniture for Ministerial offices. No other costs were incurred during this period.
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much her Department spent on government procurement card purchases (a) above and (b) below £500 net of refunded payments in (i) 2022 and (ii) 2023.
Answered by Mike Kane - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
(a) The value of spend for purchases under £500 made against the Department’s budget using a Government Procurement Card was:
(i) in calendar year 2022 - £391,995.07
(ii) in calendar year 2023 - £415,715.73
(b) The value of spend for purchases over £500 made against the Department’s budget using a Government Procurement Card was:
(i) in calendar year 2022 - £567,711.85
(ii) in calendar year 2023 - £633,173.21
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 16 May 2024 to Question 25812 on Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency: Contracts and with reference to the Minister without Portfolio's article of 12 May 2024 in The Sunday Telegraph, whether the DVLA intends to cancel the contract with Political Engagement Ltd.
Answered by Guy Opperman
The DVLA is reviewing a range of commitments, in line with Cabinet Office guidance. There has been no spending under this particular contract.
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Minister without Portfolio's article of 12 May 2024 in The Sunday Telegraph, when the DVLA is expected to terminate its contract with Political Engagement Ltd., procurement reference 430567/1349023; and whether a notice period is required under the provisions of clause 11.3 of that contract.
Answered by Guy Opperman
No monies have been paid under this contract, which is a call-off contract for conference attendance. It can be cancelled at 90 days notice.
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to his Department's publication entitled DfT: spending over £500, December 2023, published on 25 April 2024, which Minister used RD Chauffeur Services on 18 December 2023; and what the (a) location and (b) purpose of the visit was.
Answered by Anthony Browne
Baroness Vere of Norbiton visited Northern Ireland between 27-29 September 2023 to conduct ministerial visits in relation to aviation and maritime. RD Chauffeur services provided a secure car service for these visits. The invoice was paid on 18 December 2023.
The Government Car Service is used wherever possible. On occasion, external companies are used for ministerial visits.
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 April 2024 to Question 21943 on Official Cars, which organisation holds the information for the total miles driven by vehicles in the Government Car Service fleet from the start of financial year 2022-23 onwards; and by what means hon. Members can seek to obtain that information.
Answered by Anthony Browne
The information for 2022/23 was provided in response to Question 21943 (838,113.00). As a result of changes to legacy IT systems, the information for 2023/24 would only be available at a disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to his Department's publication entitled DfT: spending over £500, December 2023, published on 25 April 2024, which Minister used Network Executive Ltd on 14 December 2023; and what the (a) location and (b) purpose of the visit was.
Answered by Anthony Browne
On 1st December 2023, Minister Opperman travelled to Barrow-in-Furness, the Grizebeck bypass, opened the A595 improvements and had further ministerial meetings in and around Carlisle. The invoice for this visit was paid on 14th December 2023.
The Government Car Service is used wherever possible. On occasions, external companies are used for ministerial visits.
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many miles vehicles in the Government Car Service fleet drove in financial years (a) 2021-22, (b) 2022-23 and (c) 2023-24; and how many vehicles were in the fleet at the end of each of those years.
Answered by Anthony Browne
Please see below in relation to fleet mileage and numbers. Figures for the fleet mileage for the financial year 2023/2024 are not available. This is due to the legacy reporting system used by GCS no longer being supported by the Department for Transports IT suite. Figures for 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 are available as they have had been produced in previous years. The figures for fleet numbers have been collated manually.
| 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/2024 |
Fleet mileage | 793,836.00 | 838,113.00 | Unavailable |
No. of vehicles | 87 | 111 | 122 |
Given the ongoing security context, demand for Ministerial cars has naturally increased. New cars are also purchased before older models are disposed of to ensure operational resilience and we anticipate at least 10 cars will be disposed of in the coming months. Our budget for new cars has remained consistent over recent years and we continue to take into account value for money for the taxpayer, bearing down on costs wherever possible.
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to his Department's contract with Pacific Computers Ltd of 9 January 2024, reference TRGA3330, for which of his Department's buildings will the services under that contract be supplied.
Answered by Anthony Browne
As part of the Pacific Computers Ltd (TRGA3330) contract, services can be supplied to all current and potential new Department for Transport sites.