Cabinet Office

For information relating to stakeholder engagement, I refer the Noble Lord to Question HC112168:

Question: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Prime Minister, as the King's principal adviser, (a) was consulted on and (b) approved the decision to change the HM Government identity to the UK Government; and whether the Prime Minister was advised by Tim Allan in this regard when Mr Allan was Executive Director of Communications. 112168

Answer: There are no plans to discontinue the use of “HM Government”.

Please refer to https://www.communications.gov.uk/guidance/marketing/branding-guidelines/ for guidance on logo use. There are no plans to publish the revised guidance held by the Government Digital Service and the Government Communication Service.

Communications teams are advised to use "UK Government" rather than departmental names and logos for announcements, to provide clarity to the public. This does not affect the use of "His Majesty's Government", which continues on relevant official communications and records.

"UK Government" has long been the term used for the government in public-facing communications. All governments have regularly reviewed and updated government branding guidance to ensure that communications with the public are clear.

This guidance was developed in consultation with relevant stakeholders and in accordance with standard protocols in Summer 2025.

As individual employers, decisions on remuneration are delegated to individual departments for grades below the Senior Civil Service (SCS). This information is not held centrally by the Cabinet Office.

I refer the Noble Lady to Parliamentary Question HC112174:

Question: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, for what policy reason the Government has decided not to use the HM Government identity; and if he will publish the revised guidance held by the Government Digital Service and Government Communications Service. 112174

Answer: There are no plans to discontinue the use of “HM Government”.

Please refer to https://www.communications.gov.uk/guidance/marketing/branding-guidelines/ for guidance on logo use. There are no plans to publish the revised guidance held by the Government Digital Service and the Government Communication Service.

Communications teams are advised to use "UK Government" rather than departmental names and logos for announcements, to provide clarity to the public. This does not affect the use of "His Majesty's Government", which continues on relevant official communications and records.

"UK Government" has long been the term used for the government in public-facing communications. All governments have regularly reviewed and updated government branding guidance to ensure that communications with the public are clear.

This guidance was developed in consultation with relevant stakeholders and in accordance with standard protocols in Summer 2025.

For information relating to stakeholder engagement, I refer the Hon. Member to Question 112168.

Direct Ministerial Appointments are required to adhere to the Code of Conduct for Board Members of Public Bodies. As set out in the Code, all potential conflicts of interest - including political activity where that is an actual or perceived conflict to the role - should, as a minimum, be declared publicly, usually in the sponsor body’s register of interests. It is the sponsor body’s responsibility to maintain a register of interests, which should be proactively refreshed twice yearly at the beginning of the fiscal year and at the beginning of Q3. Appointees are asked to inform their sponsor body throughout the year of any relevant additions or changes to their interests as soon as they occur.

As digital and social media become central to how people consume information, Government is adapting its communications approach to meet audiences where they are.

Digital and social media channels enable us to reach audiences more cost-effectively, delivering better value from communications budgets.

The table shows monthly platform expenditure for the last 12 complete months. Twitter/X is excluded due to zero expenditure. This list is not comprehensive of all social media platforms used.

The Government takes the function of the Cabinet Manual seriously and we will keep it under review.

UK negotiations with the EU on a bilateral agreement to facilitate UK participation in the EU’s Security Action for Europe (SAFE) instrument concluded last year. The UK entered negotiations in good faith, recognising our mutual strategic interest and commitment to work with the EU on defence. However, this Government has always been clear that we will only sign agreements that are in the national interest - in this case we were unable to reach an agreement that passed that test. While it is disappointing that we were not able to positively conclude discussions, the UK’s defence industry continues to have access to SAFE under standard third country terms.

Guidance is regularly reviewed and updated, in accordance with best practices, to maintain its relevance, appropriateness, and effectiveness in addressing its intended topics. The timeline for this is dependent upon the area of policy development in question.

This information is not retained for the time periods specified.

Given the UK is one of Europe’s largest economies, and an integral part of existing supply chains, we have been clear with EU counterparts that the UK and EU should be working together to tackle the challenges we all face in terms of promoting economic security as well as boosting growth and productivity. At the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement Partnership Council on 2 February, the UK raised these issues and stressed the need to work together to address shared challenges. The agenda was published ahead of the meeting on GOV.UK

Advice for the general public on how to prepare for emergencies is published at GOV.UK/Prepare. The website provides simple and effective steps that individuals, households and communities can take to be more prepared for a range of emergencies.

We regularly review the website's content and continue to explore options for improving it, and for increasing public awareness of emergency preparedness advice beyond the website.

There is no established precedent for withdrawing a peerage nomination after it has been announced.

I refer you to the Government's response to the Urgent Question tabled on 12th February, and the Written Ministerial Statement in the name of the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister that same day, and the Oral Statement on 23rd February, which set out an update on the Government's process. We will set out further details in due course. The Government wishes to ensure that Parliament’s instruction is met with the urgency and transparency that it deserves.

I refer you to the Government's response to the Urgent Question tabled on 12th February, and the Written Ministerial Statement in the name of the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister that same day, and the Oral Statement on 23rd February, which set out an update on the Government's process. We will set out further details in due course. The Government wishes to ensure that Parliament’s instruction is met with the urgency and transparency that it deserves.

It is for individual public bodies to apply pre-election guidance within their own organisations, but in doing so they should not go beyond the principles set out in central guidance. Sponsor departments must ensure that staff and board members of their ALBs are aware of the guidance and are applying the principles appropriately. Sponsor departments should be consulted by the ALB in cases of doubt.

The Cabinet Office issued guidance on 25/04/2024 to all Arm's Length Bodies, which outlines the rules to ensure political impartiality and the proper use of public money. This guidance can be found on gov.uk.

The Government Property Strategy is driving a shift towards a smaller, better, and greener public estate. Significant progress has been made in consolidating the public estate. By disposing of unneeded assets, the Government has generated over £2 billion in capital receipts since 2022.

Programmes like One Public Estate are successfully unlocking potential across England by enabling co-location, releasing land for housing, and improving local public services. Since 2013, this work has helped transform places, supporting the release of land for over 54,000 homes, the creation of over 93,000 jobs, and delivering £211 million in running cost savings. Programmes to improve estate efficiency also operate in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, under the direction of the devolved administrations.

Co-location is also a key feature of the Government office estate, with multi-department hubs now operating across the UK. This initiative, alongside the Places for Growth drive to move roles to cities and regions, has allowed the Government - through the Plan for London - to commit to leaving 11 expensive London locations, saving taxpayers £94 million by 2032. Beyond the office estate, OPE also facilitates co-location of services, for example the Middlesborough Live Well hub which brings together public health services with employment, education, housing and welfare support.

The Government Property Strategy also focuses on ensuring the efficient use of the wider public estate. Full details on the performance and utilisation of the estate are presented to the House annually in the State of the Estate report.

Since July 2024, 10 Arms Length Bodies have been announced to deliver the manifesto the Government was elected on. In conjunction with this, the government is conducting a comprehensive review of the entire ALB landscape, as announced on 6 April 2025, this has already made progress with announcements of the closure of Building Digital UK and LocatED amongst others. This aims to streamline the state and increase ministerial accountability, a vital step toward creating a more productive and agile state.

All FOI requests are handled in accordance with the legislation, including the application of relevant exemptions where applicable.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to questions HL14450, HL14451 and HL14452.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to questions HL14450, HL14451 and HL14452.

I confirm the £4.85 million referenced in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office press release of 2 December 2025 refers directly to the Integrated Security Fund allocation for the Gender and National Security portfolio. This forms part of the Fund’s overall allocation of £854.82 million in 2025/26.

The National Security Adviser and his deputies meet with a range of individuals and organisations as part of their roles providing advice to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet on national security matters. Such meetings are often sensitive in nature, and the Government does not routinely comment on them or their content.

The UK is facing an ever-changing and growing set of risks. All risks in the National Risk Register are kept under review to ensure that they are the most appropriate scenarios to inform emergency preparedness and resilience activity.

The challenges posed by artificial intelligence are referenced in the 2025 National Risk Register as a chronic risk, and incorporated in the Chronic Risks Analysis, the UK's first bespoke assessment for medium to long-term challenges facing the nation.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT)’s AI risk register covers the full spectrum of AI risks that could impact the UK, spanning national security, defence, the economy and society. The AI Risk Register includes AI-loss-of control scenarios. The Government is committed to protecting UK citizens against the risks that advanced AI could bring, while ensuring we can maximise AI's potential for growth and public service delivery.

This Government is committed to delivering the largest wave of insourcing in a generation. As part of this, we will introduce a ‘Public Interest Test’. This will be a game-changer - ending the culture of ‘outsourcing by default’. This will ensure contracting authorities are undertaking a holistic assessment of their services and identifying opportunities to insource contracts as they expire.

Application of the Public Interest Test will be assessed through the usual contracting authority governance processes and, where applicable, Cabinet Office controls.

There are currently no plans to publish this guidance.

Corporate communications channels have auto-delete functionality enabled. Any government business that needs to be recorded must be copied onto the official systems. The policy covering non-corporate communication channels is published on gov.uk, available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/non-corporate-communication-channels-for-government-business/using-non-corporate-communication-channels-eg-whatsapp-private-email-sms-for-government-business-html

The Explanatory Memorandum considers a proposal by the European Commission to the European Council to open negotiations with the UK on an electricity agreement and on “the financial contribution of the United Kingdom towards reducing economic and social disparities between the regions of the Union”. It does not represent a proposal by the Government. In line with the outcome from exploratory talks on an electricity agreement, we are prepared to make an appropriate financial contribution to support the relevant costs associated with the European Union’s work in this policy area, for example to access EU agencies or databases. The details of any contribution are subject to negotiation.

Influencers are subject to the Advertising Standards Authority.

Individuals applying for compensation from IBCA have the choice between receiving their award as a single lump sum payment, or as a series of periodical payments over a 5, 10, or 25 year period. The compensation scheme indexes all future periodical payments to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to ensure that these payments hold value against inflation and provide parity between applicants that choose a lump sum or periodical payments.

The Government has consulted on proposed changes to the infected blood compensation scheme, to gather views on how the Government intends to implement the Inquiry’s recommendations. The consultation closed on 22 January. The Government is considering the responses to the consultation carefully, and we will publish our response to the consultation, which will set out our final decisions on the compensation scheme, within 12 weeks of the closing date.

The delivery of compensation is a matter for IBCA, and as of 10 February, 3,153 people have received an offer of compensation, totalling over £2.5 billion. IBCA has now opened its service to the people who are infected but not registered with an IBSS, as well as to the first claims from affected people and from estates on behalf of deceased infected people.

The Government takes the function of the Cabinet Manual seriously and we will keep it under review.

The Cabinet Office Records Selection Policy under the Public Records Act 1958 is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-records-selection-policy/cabinet-office-records-selection-policy-html#:~:text=The%20Cabinet%20Office%20Records%20Selection,selection%20of%20historic%20public%20records.

At the time of transfer to The National Archives, redactions can be made by the application of FOI exemptions that persist beyond 20 years or by provision of Section 3(4) of the Public Records Act. Any closures or retentions are made clear either within the open file or on The National Archives catalogue, which is available on line.

The UK and European Commission have reached an agreement in principle for the UK’s association to Erasmus+ in 2027. This builds on the foundations of the UK and EU’s new strategic partnership agreed at the UK-EU Summit in May 2025.

The benefits of our association are clear. It opens up world class opportunities for students, teachers, youth workers, sport-sector professionals, and communities of all ages in our education, training, sport and youth sectors.

It is an investment in opportunity for our young people, our workforce and our future, opening doors for tens of thousands across the UK.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to questions 103788, 103791 and 103792.

The Crown Commercial Service (CCS) facilitates public sector access to Artificial Intelligence (AI) expertise primarily through the AI Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS). This agreement provides a flexible route for the public sector to procure AI services from a range of specialist suppliers.

CCS manages flexible commercial agreements that regularly engage the market and encourage new suppliers to join. To be admitted, all providers must demonstrate that they meet the required standards and assessment criteria, ensuring high-quality expertise is available across the public sector.

Until the Government Commercial Agency is established, these functions will continue to be led by CCS.

The Cabinet Office does not record individual hotel star ratings.

This is because the Cabinet Office’s travel policy prioritises specific amenities, like a workspace, and safety requirements within fixed nightly rate ceilings rather than subjective commercial gradings.

I refer the Hon Member back to the answer given in UIN 73729.

The Government is determined to ensure the £400 billion of public money spent on public procurement annually delivers economic growth and supports British businesses.

The Procurement Act 2023 allows contracting authorities to require that suppliers meet specific standards by, where appropriate, setting them as conditions of participation in a procurement. Contracting authorities must be satisfied that any such conditions of participation have been met before awarding a public contract, including when a supplier proposes to meet them via a subcontractor. The Procurement Specific Questionnaire template, published on the Procurement Pathway, helps contracting authorities collect relevant subcontractor information.

The Public Procurement Review Service (PPRS) also helps to protect UK subcontractors working with government suppliers by providing a free, anonymous, and confidential way to report poor public sector procurement practices, including contract management issues and unfair, late payment issues.

The UK Government Supplier Code of Conduct v3.0 (published May 2023) outlines the ethical standards expected of suppliers working with the government. Although the Code is not legally enforceable, it encourages transparent dialogue where standards are not met and, in extreme unresolved cases, escalation to the Government Chief Commercial Officer.

We will set out further reforms to procurement rules, including the response to the recent public procurement consultation, in due course.

The Government is determined to ensure the £400 billion of public money spent on public procurement annually delivers economic growth and supports British businesses.

The Procurement Act 2023 allows contracting authorities to require that suppliers meet specific standards by, where appropriate, setting them as conditions of participation in a procurement. Contracting authorities must be satisfied that any such conditions of participation have been met before awarding a public contract, including when a supplier proposes to meet them via a subcontractor. The Procurement Specific Questionnaire template, published on the Procurement Pathway, helps contracting authorities collect relevant subcontractor information.

The Public Procurement Review Service (PPRS) also helps to protect UK subcontractors working with government suppliers by providing a free, anonymous, and confidential way to report poor public sector procurement practices, including contract management issues and unfair, late payment issues.

The UK Government Supplier Code of Conduct v3.0 (published May 2023) outlines the ethical standards expected of suppliers working with the government. Although the Code is not legally enforceable, it encourages transparent dialogue where standards are not met and, in extreme unresolved cases, escalation to the Government Chief Commercial Officer.

We will set out further reforms to procurement rules, including the response to the recent public procurement consultation, in due course.

The Government is determined to ensure the £400 billion of public money spent on public procurement annually delivers economic growth and supports British businesses.

The Procurement Act 2023 allows contracting authorities to require that suppliers meet specific standards by, where appropriate, setting them as conditions of participation in a procurement. Contracting authorities must be satisfied that any such conditions of participation have been met before awarding a public contract, including when a supplier proposes to meet them via a subcontractor. The Procurement Specific Questionnaire template, published on the Procurement Pathway, helps contracting authorities collect relevant subcontractor information.

The Public Procurement Review Service (PPRS) also helps to protect UK subcontractors working with government suppliers by providing a free, anonymous, and confidential way to report poor public sector procurement practices, including contract management issues and unfair, late payment issues.

The UK Government Supplier Code of Conduct v3.0 (published May 2023) outlines the ethical standards expected of suppliers working with the government. Although the Code is not legally enforceable, it encourages transparent dialogue where standards are not met and, in extreme unresolved cases, escalation to the Government Chief Commercial Officer.

We will set out further reforms to procurement rules, including the response to the recent public procurement consultation, in due course.

I refer you to the Government's response to the Urgent Question tabled on 12th February, and the Written Ministerial Statement, and the Oral Statement on 23 February, in the name of the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister that same day, which set out an update on the Government's process. We will set out further details in due course. The Government wishes to ensure that Parliament’s instruction is met with the urgency and transparency that it deserves.

I refer the Hon. Gentleman to PQ 103784.

The Government has published a Memorandum of Understanding setting out the arrangements for sharing information between HMRC and the House of Lords Appointments Commission when it considers appointments to the House of Lords. The MoU can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sharing-hmrc-information-to-assist-in-appointments-to-the-house-of-lords/memorandum-of-understanding-accessing-hmrc-information-for-appointments-to-the-house-of-lords--3