Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 11 October 2022 to Question 55048, if Mark Fullbrook was (a) on secondment from and (b) paid through Fullbrook Strategies at the time of his appointment; and whether he was subject to the checks and vetting the Cabinet Office guidance requires of Government officials.

Mr Fullbrook has a standard Special Adviser employment contract which covers his entire appointment as Chief of Staff. While a secondment was initially discussed, it was decided to instead employ Mr Fullbrook directly and a secondment agreement was never put in place.

The Model Contract for Special Advisers, which sets out the terms of employment for special advisers, is available on GOV.UK. Together, with the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers and the Civil Service Code, this constitutes a special adviser’s contract of employment with the Crown.

All civil servants, whether on secondment or directly employed, are subject to the necessary checks and vetting, as was Mr Fullbrook.