Written question asked by Robin Cook (Labour), in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 6 February 1997. It was answered by Lord Arbuthnot of Edrom (Conservative) on Thursday, 6 February 1997 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Ministry of Defence

Question: If he will provide a breakdown of the spending by his Department on external advice in relation to the Scott Inquiry, indicating how much has been spent on legal advice and from whom it was obtained. - Includes figure.

Answer: Mr. Robin Cook: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will provide a breakdown of the spending by his Department on external advice in relation to the Scott inquiry, indicating how much has been spent on legal advice and from whom it was obtained. [14529] Mr. Arbuthnot: The amount spent by my Department on external advice, including legal advice, in relation to individuals giving evidence to the Scott inquiry and the preparation of the Government's response to it is £216,117; this consists entirely of legal advice. This figure includes £196,555 representing the value of legal services charged by the Treasury Solicitor's department. External legal advice was obtained by individual MOD witnesses from Lovell, White, Durrant and Peter Carter-Ruck and Partners.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 14529; 289 c684W
Session: 1996-97
Subjects: Expenditure Government departments Legal opinion Ministry of Defence Arms to Iraq Inquiry
Contains statistics: Yes