Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to Operation Brock (a) how many Highways England traffic officers have been redeployed to Kent and (b) how much money has been allocated to cover their accommodation costs for that Operation.

Highways England have plans to redeploy 80 Traffic Officers under arrangements to support Operation Brock in Kent. The package of hotel and food costs for these staff is £119 per officer per diem.

The Traffic Officers will be carrying out their normal duties, but in an enhanced capacity in what is expected to be a highly congested area. Activities will include:

- Rapid attendance to incidents,

- Monitoring, operation and supervision of new traffic management arrangements,

- Reporting on queue lengths and responding to issues,

- Providing a visible presence to inspire confidence and encourage compliance.

Under these plans there will be approximately 140 Traffic Officers working a 24/7 roster (30 on duty at any one time). These resources are being managed by a dedicated operational management team, from a shared multi-agency operating base in Maidstone.