Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much public money has been given to P&O Ferries in each of the last five years.

In 2020, the Government bought approximately £11.4M of capacity from P&O Ferries under the Government-Secured Freight Capacity (GSFC) scheme. P&O Ferries also received £4.4M under the 2020 Public Service Obligation (PSO) scheme for the continuation of specified routes. This was on the basis of audited costs and included no allowance for profit.

In addition, P&O made extensive use of the furlough scheme, with over 1,000 staff on furlough at one point.

Given the considerable support P&O Ferries has received from the taxpayer, the Transport Secretary has instructed officials to review all contracts the Government currently has with both P&O Ferries and DP World.