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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Politics
Matthew Davis

Ministry of Defence spending £756k a year on cabs to ferry around senior staff and VIPs

The Ministry of Defence is spending almost £15,000 a WEEK on cabs.

The department run by Defence Secretary Ben Wallace spent £756,000 ferrying senior staff and VIPs around the country last year.

The sum covers taxis and chauffeur driven limousines, with a total of 4,050 bookings. In 2020 during Covid restrictions around £310,000 was spent, a Freedom of Information request confirmed.

One booking cost £5,383 for several vehicles over a three-day period to drive 70 miles from RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, to the MoD’s Whitehall HQ.

A first class train ticket from Oxford to London bought on the day of travel is £64 for a one-way trip. The bookings were made under a £12million contract used by the MoD for non-military lease and rental cars and taxis and private cars.

The Ministry of Defence spends almost £15,000 a week on cabs (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

The Phoenix II contract is operated by defence firm Babcock International. It’s chief David Lockwood earns almost £2million a year.

Caren Evans, national union officer for defence at Unite, said: “This is a kick in the teeth for civilian defence staff. The MoD must rein in unnecessary luxuries for senior staff and give its workers a pay rise.”

The MOD said: “Our staff have to travel to locations not always accessible by public transport and a hire car or taxi is the most efficient and cost effective way to travel.

“We are committed to delivering value for money.”

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