Cabinet Office

The government is committed to identifying existing disproportionate reporting and consultation duties that are slowing down delivery. The policy analysis is in the early stages and all options are being considered.

The Cabinet Office manages its departmental records in accordance with the provisions of the Public Records Act 1958. Section 3 of the Act sets out the provisions for selecting and preserving public records.

I refer you to the Government's response to the Urgent Question tabled on 12th February, the Written Ministerial Statement in the name of the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister that same day, and the Oral Statement on the 23rd February, in the name of the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, which set out an update on the Government's process and that Departments have been instructed to retain material that may be relevant to the motion.

The Prime Minister's letter to the Ethics and Integrity Commission Chair, dated 11 March 2026 and published on GOV.UK, sets out the policy areas the Commission has been asked to review.

As set out in the Humble Address debate of 4th February, the process is being conducted and led by the Cabinet Secretary who has delegated the role to the Cabinet Office Permanent Secretary. Civil servants are of course accountable to Ministers, who are in turn accountable to Parliament.

I refer you to the Oral Statement on the 23rd February, in the name of the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, the Government's response to the Urgent Question tabled on 16th March, and the Government's statement and release of information on 11th March, providing an update on the response to the Humble Address. The Government is working to ensure that Parliament’s instruction is met with the urgency and transparency that it deserves.

All relevant material is being prepared for publication, including the appropriate checks relating to national security, international relations, legal privilege and the protection of personal data.

I refer you to the Government's statement and release of information on 11th March, providing an update on the response to the Humble Address. The Government is working 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, the Written Ministerial Statement in the name of the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister that same day, and the Oral Statement on the 23rd February, in the name of the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, which set out an update on the Government's process and that Departments have been instructed to retain material that may be relevant to the motion.

I refer the Hon Gentleman to the answer to PQ 120319.

The Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister's responsibilities are available on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/people/darren-jones

I refer the Hon Member to my previous answer.

I refer the Hon Member to my previous answer.

The Cabinet Office has launched a programme of work to simplify the state, removing unnecessary bureaucracy and speeding up the timeline from ministerial decision to delivery for citizens, including through the process for collective agreement of government policy.

All 131 consultation requirements were from existing primary legislation, not bills currently before Parliament or Secondary legislation. The government is committed to identifying existing disproportionate reporting and consultation duties that are slowing down delivery.

The government is committed to identifying existing disproportionate reporting and consultation duties that are slowing down delivery. This process is still ongoing.

We are using state-of-the-art large language models to identify all duties to consult within the statute book, as well as contextual information such as responsible department and the circumstances under which consultation is required.

The government is committed to protecting the necessary checks and balances to ministerial and Parliamentary decision making. In line with standard processes, Parliament will have the opportunity to scrutinise and challenge any changes to consultation requirements where they are legislative.

AI tools are being used to identify statutory requirements to consult. Decisions remain the purview of ministers.

AI tools are being used to identify statutory requirements to consult. Decisions remain the purview of Ministers.

Consultation should only be used when it is the most effective tool for good policymaking and not used for other reasons. Reporting requirements should not disproportionately slow down delivery.

We have developed an AI tool to help identify uncover consultation requirements hidden within legislation. It is up to ministerial and Parliamentary discretion to decide their value to specific legislation and the policies underlying that legislation. This initiative will ensure that government policies can be implemented as efficiently as possible, streamlining the process while retaining necessary checks and balances where appropriate. We are introducing a higher bar inclusion of consultation requirements in legislation, and prioritising finding more effective and efficient ways to engage stakeholders. The end goal is ending the introduction of further unnecessary reporting and consultation requirements.

The UK-EU Electricity Agreement will cut electricity costs, strengthen our energy security, drive investment and jobs, and help to achieve our Clean Power 2030 Mission. The Government’s reforms to nuclear regulation, which will make it easier to deliver nuclear projects, also support these objectives. The regulatory changes we are making will provide the best outcomes for both nuclear development and the environment, by offering a more streamlined and co-ordinated pathway to deliver environmental protections. There will be no change to the high environmental standards to which the Government is committed.

Transparency data is published alongside each New Year Honours List and King’s Birthday Honours List, giving an individual breakdown of recipients' names, level of award, their short citation and the city and country in which their correspondence address was located. Transparency data for each Honours List in each of the past five years can be found on gov.uk using the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/honours-reform-and-operation#honours-lists

The Cabinet Office does not collect home or work addresses for honours recipients; the information published reflects the correspondence address provided by recipients. This data relates only to the main Prime Minister’s List and does not include data from the Defence List or the Overseas and International List, which are not administered by the Cabinet Office.

Honours are awarded on merit basis. A key aim of the honours system is to ensure that it is more representative of the country as a whole and we will continue to encourage more nominations from every corner of the UK in future honours lists.

An official definition does not exist, but it is a term that will be widely recognised by the public.

The Infected Blood Compensation Authority has paid over £2 billion in compensation payments. As of 1 October 2025, IBCA had asked every living infected person who is registered with a support scheme to come forward and start their claim. IBCA has now opened the service for the first claims from infected people who were never compensated, deceased infected people, and living affected people. This met the Government’s targets for compensation delivery in 2025.

With each new cohort, IBCA are starting small, allowing them to learn what additions to the claim service are needed. This will allow them to open their service to more people as the service is built around specific needs. Whilst the roll out of the scheme is an operational decision for IBCA as an independent body, the Government fully supports its commitment to moving forward as swiftly as possible.

Equalities Impact Assessments are carried out for a variety of reasons, for both internal policies and processes within the Cabinet Office under Public Sector Equality Duty to assess the impact of external policies and processes. Although there is a small central team who provide advice and guidance, it is the responsibility of individual business units to assess whether a formal assessment is required, and if so, these are typically conducted locally by the teams themselves.

There is currently no requirement for teams to report activity, and we do not hold a central record across the department. It is therefore not possible to provide an accurate estimate of the number of assessments conducted. Given Equalities Impact Assessments are conducted internally, there are no direct costs associated, however the amount of official time taken to carry out the activity would be relevant. It is similarly not possible to provide an accurate estimate of time taken, as this varies significantly based on the scale and complexity of the policy or process being developed.

The new policy referenced will ensure it is far clearer when an assessment is required, and what parameters need to be followed, with the intention of reducing the amount of official time spent on this activity, whilst still providing robust challenge.

On 11 March the Prime Minister wrote to the Chair of the Ethics and Integrity Commission, Doug Chalmers, to commission a review into lobbying, disclosure and access to government. As set out in the terms of reference, this includes looking at whether the current Business Appointment Rules are sufficient, in particular in respect of managing potentially improper access to, and influence within, government..

The Civil Service Code sets out the rules for Civil Servants speaking to the media. The Civil Service Management Code provides further guidance for civil servants on their obligations.

The Cabinet Office has launched a programme of work to simplify the state, removing unnecessary bureaucracy and speeding up the timeline from ministerial decision to delivery for citizens, including through the process for collective agreement of government policy.

Since the General Election, the UK government has introduced a new monthly Register of Ministers' Gifts and Hospitality, is working to deliver the Public Office (Accountability) Bill to introduce new duties of candour, has revised and strengthened the Ministerial Code and strengthened the role of the Independent Adviser on Ministerial Standards. In addition, the government has recently launched the call for evidence to inform the next National Action Plan for Open Government.

Developed with No10 Innovation Fellows, the bespoke AI tool found 131 consultation requirements in just ten pieces of legislation.

There are currently no plans to publish a list of excessive processes and checks that are clogging up the system. However, we continue to develop policy options for the sludgebusting agenda, and all options are currently open for how we communicate any changes to the public.

No decision has currently been taken on which requirements have been removed or amended under the reforms.Any removal of statutory consultation duties will require legislation, and so parliament will be able to scrutinise these changes in the ordinary way.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer of 17 March 2026, Official Report, PQ 118753.

We expect the Inquiry, which has now formally completed its work, to publish its final financial report soon

The Infected Blood Inquiry publishes its own financial reports, which can be found here: https://www.infectedbloodinquiry.org.uk/about/financial-reports.

As an Executive Agency of the Cabinet Office, all spend by the Government Property Agency which meets the criteria for disclosure in the Cabinet Office spend data is disclosed in the published reports: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-spend-data

Spend which is recharged to the Cabinet Office group entities which meets the criteria is also published, and would be shown as income with the GPA accounts

Hospitality and gifts received by Ministers in their ministerial capacity are declared in accordance with the Ministerial Code on gov.uk

The Cabinet Office publishes guidance setting out the process that departments should follow to complete the publication of the Register of Ministers’ Gifts and Hospitality: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministers-gifts-and-hospitality-publication-guidance/ministers-gifts-and-hospitality-publication-guidance

I refer the Hon Member to the answer of 19 March 2026, Official Report, PQ HL15173.

As under previous administrations, details of official receptions are published in quarterly transparency returns on gov.uk

The Cabinet Office is committed to providing timely and high-quality responses to correspondence from Parliamenterians and the wider public. The Cabinet Office regularly reviews and refreshes departmental processes, including the use of new digital tools, to ensure it meets these commitments. Annual Government data on response rates to Parliamenterian correspondence will be published in due course.

The Prime Minister met the Taoiseach on March 13. A readout of discussions between the Prime Minister and the Taoiseach are made available on gov.uk.

His Majesty The King’s free Portrait Scheme was a voluntary programme offering a free, framed portrait of The King to any eligible public institution that requested one.

Following the conclusion of the scheme, a breakdown of the take up, including percentage take-up figures were published on gov.uk.

The digital ID consultation is open to the public, and its success is hinged on open and transparent participation. We have a duty to reach as broad a population as possible and have worked with media partners in order to ensure that the public are aware of the consultation and how to participate. For this campaign, we’ve worked with two podcast partners: Acast and Audioboom, with a combined spend of £62,817 for the duration of the 12 week consultation.