Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the press release entitled Government responds to the public desire for EU facts published on 6 April 2016, what proportion and how much of the £2,894,064 will be spent on digital promotion and a website as part of the EU referendum campaign; and whether the website eureferendum.gov.uk will be removed from the internet during the period in which section 125 of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 applies.

The Government published details of the cost of the production and delivery of this public information leaflet on 6^th April. It is not possible to provide a further breakdown of these figures, as this would compromise the commercial confidentiality of Royal Mail and the relevant printers.

The Government has confirmed that a budget of £2.894,064m has been allocated for digital promotion and the operation of the EUreferendum.gov.uk website. This will be a key means through which the public can access factual information on the Referendum question.

It is important to ensure that the public continue to have access to factual information throughout the Referendum campaign. The Government has been clear that it will comply fully with the statutory restrictions in place during the 28 day period from 27th May 2016. No new content will be added to the EUreferendum.gov.uk website during this period.

Work on the leaflet and the website was taken forward by Cabinet Office and No 10 staff, as part of their on-going responsibilities and it is not possible to separate out the cost without incurring disproportionate cost.