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<p> </p><p><em>Role of the Department</em></p><p>Reflecting our responsibilities for
local government, housing, planning and communities across England, the work of the
Department involves staff travelling to different parts of the country.</p><p>Improved
procurement has reduced our average domestic hotel rate in the UK by 8% between 2009-10
and 2012-13. Moreover, domestic flights for longer journeys can avoid the need for
paying for staff to stay in a hotel overnight.</p><p>Since 2011-12, the Department
accepted responsibility for some new functions outside of London, including residual
functions following the closure of the Government Offices for the Regions and then
oversight of the European Regional Development Fund following the abolition of the
Regional Development Agencies. As these business functions relate to work in areas
outside of London and to the European Commission, this has therefore increased our
travel spend compared to the base of 2010-11. However, this is far more than offset
by the very significant savings to taxpayers of the abolition of these regional bodies.</p><p>Based
on current estimates (which reflect accounting consequences from machinery of government
changes) the DCLG Group is reducing its annual running costs by around 40% in real
terms between 2010-11 and 2014-15. This equates to net savings of at least £532 million
over this spending review period and includes savings of around £420 million from
the closure of the Government Offices for the Regions.</p><p>In addition to this,
I note that the Regional Development Agencies were spending in the region of £246
million a year on administration (as cited in 11 March 2009, <em>Official Report</em>,
Column 592W).</p><p><em>Spending data</em></p><p>The tables below list spending on
travel by financial year. Figures for 2009-10 are from July 2009, as this is when
the department's current approved travel agent contract commenced; those figures are
therefore only for three-quarters of the financial year, and the full year is likely
to be proportionately higher.</p><p> </p><table><thead><tr><td> </td><td><p><em>Overseas
Travel</em></p></td><td><p><em>Overseas Accommodation</em></p></td><td><p><em>Overseas
Subsistence</em></p></td><td><p><em>Total</em></p></td></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><p>July
2009 - March 10</p></td><td><p>£408,621</p></td><td><p>£19,847</p></td><td><p>£79,574</p></td><td><p>£508,042
(part-year)</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2010-11</p></td><td><p>£56,304</p></td><td><p>£21,759</p></td><td><p>£27,798</p></td><td><p>£105,861</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2011-12</p></td><td><p>£69,463</p></td><td><p>£21,204</p></td><td><p>£19,946</p></td><td><p>£110,613</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2012-13</p></td><td><p>£78,474</p></td><td><p>£29,224</p></td><td><p>£21,911</p></td><td><p>£129,609</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>
</p><table><thead><tr><td> </td><td><p><em>UK Travel</em></p></td><td><p><em>UK Accommodation</em></p></td><td><p><em>UK
Subsistence</em></p></td><td><p><em>Total</em></p></td></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><p>July
2009 - March 10</p></td><td><p>£621,028</p></td><td><p>£309,260</p></td><td><p>£174,888</p></td><td><p>£1,105,176
(part-year)</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2010-11</p></td><td><p>£434,467</p></td><td><p>£199,563</p></td><td><p>£81,315</p></td><td><p>£715,345</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2011-12</p></td><td><p>£980,307</p></td><td><p>£162,544</p></td><td><p>£71,913</p></td><td><p>£1,214,764</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2012-13</p></td><td><p>£1,030,710</p></td><td><p>£166,149</p></td><td><p>£74,424</p></td><td><p>£1,271,283</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Explanatory
notes:</p><p>- Overseas subsistence costs can include accommodation, meals and travel
tickets purchased locally.</p><p>- The costs of internal travel abroad are not routinely
recorded in the form requested and this information could only be provided at a disproportionate
cost.</p><p>- Data on cost per trip is not centrally held in the form requested.</p><p>-
For car hire, the data from our finance systems do not separate out expenditure for
domestic and international car hire and this could only be provided at disproportionate
cost.</p><p>- For helicopter hire, our records show that the Department has incurred
no expenditure on this since 2010-11.</p><p>- Figures contained in this answer may
differ from previous answers to Parliamentary Questions, as the data extracts have
been re-run and reflect ongoing accruals and data. Delays in billing or crediting
transactions can sometimes have an effect on the spend data between the financial
years.</p><p>Taken in the whole, we have reduced overall travel spending compared
to the last Administration, and delivered substantive savings for taxpayers' from
the abolition of regional government in England.</p><p> </p>
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