The government minister working on efficiency spent more than £1,300 travelling from London to Wales, it's been reported. Jacob Rees-Mogg visited Wrexham AFC during a trip to discuss “opportunities to bring UK Civil Service jobs to the town”.
Fans of the football club were said to be angered by the visit. But now details of the trip - on July 21 - have revealed that the efficiency minister spent £1,332 of taxpayers’ cash travelling to, from and around Wrexham by chauffeur-driven limousine. This was instead of taking a train, which would have cost £98, reports MirrorOnline.
The former Leader of the House was accompanied by Welsh Secretary Robert Buckland, who travelled by train and car at a cost of £692.35 - half of what the ‘Efficiency Minister’ spent on his journey. The visit, which also took in visits to local businesses, drew howls of protest from local activists.
Kate Wilkinson, a local Plaid Cymru councillor, said Mr Rees-Mogg had avoided meeting members of the public - and claimed he had made at least part of the journey on “a private train.”
She told The National at the time: "He didn't come anywhere near us, he did his best to avoid us.”
According to Freedom of Information disclosures seen by the Sunday Mirror, Mr Rees-Mogg: “The total cost of the Minister for Brexit Opportunities and Government Efficiency’s travel was £1,332.00. The mode of transport used by the Minister was a car.
"The cost includes all car travel associated with the Minister for the visit... The total cost of the Secretary of State for Wales’ travel was £692.35.
“The Secretary of State travelled by car and train. This cost includes all train and car travel associated with the Minister for the visit.”
A spokesman for Mr Rees-Mogg said: “The Welsh Secretary was doing a morning visit only, Jacob had a whole day and evening of events and wasn't returning to London if I remember rightly. There had been a lot of disruption on trains around then and he was going to multiple locations and finishing outside London, I think back in Somerset.”
