Cabinet Office

We support the Prime Minister and ensure the effective running of government. We are also the corporate headquarters for government, in partnership with HM Treasury, and we take the lead in certain critical policy areas.



Secretary of State

 Portrait

Keir Starmer
Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury

 Portrait

Angela Rayner
Deputy Prime Minister

 Portrait

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Lords Spokesperson (Cabinet Office)

Shadow Ministers / Spokeperson
Liberal Democrat
Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD - Life peer)
Liberal Democrat Lords Spokesperson (Cabinet Office)
Sarah Olney (LD - Richmond Park)
Liberal Democrat Spokesperson (Cabinet Office)

Scottish National Party
Brendan O'Hara (SNP - Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber)
Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Cabinet Office)
Junior Shadow Ministers / Deputy Spokesperson
Conservative
Alex Burghart (Con - Brentwood and Ongar)
Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Mike Wood (Con - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Shadow Minister (Cabinet Office)
Baroness Finn (Con - Life peer)
Shadow Minister (Cabinet Office)
Ministers of State
Pat McFadden (Lab - Wolverhampton South East)
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Nick Thomas-Symonds (Lab - Torfaen)
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Ellie Reeves (Lab - Lewisham West and East Dulwich)
Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
Douglas Alexander (LAB - Lothian East)
Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
Parliamentary Under-Secretaries of State
Abena Oppong-Asare (Lab - Erith and Thamesmead)
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
Georgia Gould (Lab - Queen's Park and Maida Vale)
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
There are no upcoming events identified
Debates
Thursday 10th July 2025
Oral Answers to Questions
Oral Questions
Select Committee Docs
None available
Select Committee Inquiry
None available
Written Answers
Friday 11th July 2025
Civil Service: Photographs and Video Recordings
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 54808 on …
Secondary Legislation
Wednesday 21st May 2025
Bills
Thursday 13th February 2025
Church of Scotland (Lord High Commissioner) Act 2024-26
A bill to Make provision for persons of the Roman Catholic faith to be eligible to hold the office of …
Dept. Publications
Friday 11th July 2025
15:24

Cabinet Office Commons Appearances

Oral Answers to Questions is a regularly scheduled appearance where the Secretary of State and junior minister will answer at the Dispatch Box questions from backbench MPs

Other Commons Chamber appearances can be:
  • Urgent Questions where the Speaker has selected a question to which a Minister must reply that day
  • Adjornment Debates a 30 minute debate attended by a Minister that concludes the day in Parliament.
  • Oral Statements informing the Commons of a significant development, where backbench MP's can then question the Minister making the statement.

Westminster Hall debates are performed in response to backbench MPs or e-petitions asking for a Minister to address a detailed issue

Written Statements are made when a current event is not sufficiently significant to require an Oral Statement, but the House is required to be informed.

Most Recent Commons Appearances by Category
Jul. 10
Oral Questions
Feb. 11
Urgent Questions
May. 22
Westminster Hall
View All Cabinet Office Commons Contibutions

Bills currently before Parliament

Cabinet Office does not have Bills currently before Parliament


Acts of Parliament created in the 2024 Parliament

Introduced: 13th February 2025

A bill to Make provision for persons of the Roman Catholic faith to be eligible to hold the office of His Majesty’s High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.

This Bill received Royal Assent on 3rd April 2025 and was enacted into law.

Introduced: 30th July 2024

A Bill to extend the period within which vacancies among the Lords Spiritual are to be filled by bishops who are women.

This Bill received Royal Assent on 16th January 2025 and was enacted into law.

Cabinet Office - Secondary Legislation

View All Cabinet Office Secondary Legislation

Petitions

e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.

If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.

If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).

Trending Petitions
Petition Open
2,147 Signatures
(475 in the last 7 days)
Petition Open
3,417 Signatures
(179 in the last 7 days)
Petition Open
1,518 Signatures
(128 in the last 7 days)
Petition Open
141 Signatures
(117 in the last 7 days)
Petition Open
181 Signatures
(69 in the last 7 days)
Petitions with most signatures
Petition Open
14,313 Signatures
(34 in the last 7 days)
Petition Open
4,382 Signatures
(7 in the last 7 days)
Petition Open
3,417 Signatures
(179 in the last 7 days)
Petition Open
2,944 Signatures
(33 in the last 7 days)
Petition Open
2,465 Signatures
(9 in the last 7 days)
Petition Debates Contributed
3,084,713
Petition Closed
20 May 2025
closed 1 month, 3 weeks ago

I would like there to be another General Election.

I believe the current Labour Government have gone back on the promises they laid out in the lead up to the last election.

I believe joining the EU would boost the economy, increase global influence, improve collaboration and provide stability & freedom. I believe that Brexit hasn't brought any tangible benefit and there is no future prospect of any, that the UK has changed its mind and that this should be recognised.

We believe the government should change legislation to make it easier for trans people of all ages to change their legal gender without an official diagnosis of gender dysphoria.

View All Cabinet Office Petitions

50 most recent Written Questions

(View all written questions)
Written Questions can be tabled by MPs and Lords to request specific information information on the work, policy and activities of a Government Department

3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 54820 on Civil Service: Equality, if he will make it his policy to (a) publish the new network guidance on gov.uk and (b) place it in the House of Commons Library once finalised.

Guidance for Civil Service Staff Networks is in development. This will be internal guidance which is not usually published.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 28 May 2025 to Question 53204 on Central Government: Empty Property, whether the InSite database is accessible to the public.

The InSite database is an internal government system and is not accessible to the public. While the data held in InSite informs public outputs such as official reports, the platform itself is not publicly available due to data protection, security, and operational sensitivity considerations.

Members of the public can view information on vacant or surplus government-owned properties via the Government Property Finder: https://www.gov.uk/find-government-property

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what guidance his Department has issued on who should pay for the cost of (a) water and (b) electricity used in official residences occupied by Ministers.

The Cabinet Office has not issued any such guidance.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 54760 on Civil Servants: London, whether he plans to require any civil servants based in London to compulsorily relocate as part of the Places for Growth scheme.

London-based civil servants will not be required to compulsorily relocate as part of Places for Growth. Role relocations will occur predominantly through churn and some London-based civil servants may choose to voluntarily relocate.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
8th Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 54808 on Civil Service: Photographs and Video Recordings, whether unpublished content can be used by Ministers for party political purposes.

I refer the Hon Member for Basildon and Billericay to the answer on 9 June 2025 (PQ54808).

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
2nd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many staff in his Department have permission to work remotely outside the UK; and in which countries those staff are based.

Cabinet Office staff may apply for permission to temporarily work remotely overseas in exceptional circumstances. Examples of this might include when accompanying a Civil Service or Armed Forces partner on an official posting.

There are <5 staff registered on payroll whose permanent working location is abroad. On security and data protection grounds, we are not able to share their location/s.

Separately, there is also a process for staff to request to take their IT overseas with them while on leave, for example if they believe they may need to be contacted during that time.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
2nd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the entry in his Department's publication entitled Cabinet Office Commercial Pipeline 2024-26, of 31 October 2024 P2465: CO COMMERCIAL: Venue Booking Services, who the supplier is of those services.

Calder Conferences Limited is the current supplier providing Venue Booking Services to the Cabinet Office. This contract started in February 2023 under the previous administration.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
2nd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 54825 on Government Departments: Training, if he will publish the updated guidance on the use of external venues.

A copy of the Cabinet Office's guidance on the use of external venues will be placed in the libraries of both Houses.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
2nd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 3 June 2025 to Question 53901 on Data, Statistics and Research on Sex and Gender Independent Review, how the UK Statistics Authority plans to inform (a) Parliament and (b) the public of whether the recommendations in the Review will be taken forward once the Authority Board has concluded its considerations of the Review.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 2nd July is attached.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
4th Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when his Department plans to respond to the letter of May 2025 from the hon. Member for Thirsk and Malton to the Cabinet Secretary on the role of special advisers at party political events.

I refer the Hon. member to the answer of 24 June, UIN 59090.

Abena Oppong-Asare
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
3rd Jul 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will take steps to ensure that correspondence from a member of Parliament to a chief executive officer of a non-departmental public body is answered by the chief executive officer.

The Guide to Handling Correspondence, sets out the guidance for Government departments and executive agencies to follow in responding to correspondence from members of Parliament. While it is not mandatory for correspondence from members of Parliament to be answered by Chief Executive Officers of non-departmental public bodies, correspondence responses should be high quality and answered within set timeframes.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of mandating DBS checks for people who wish to stand for election.

The Government has no plans to introduce a requirement for candidates to undergo DBS checks before standing for elections. Candidate selection in elections is a matter for political parties.

Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Windsor Framework on SMEs in Northern Ireland.

The Windsor Framework established a broad set of arrangements to support businesses to move goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, including to small- and medium- sized businesses based in Northern Ireland.

On 1 May 2025, we introduced under the Windsor Framework important new arrangements for freight and parcels movements to guarantee that goods can continue to move smoothly between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, ensuring that goods sent to or from consumers will not be subject to customs declarations or duty.

As set out in our Common Understanding, the Government will take forward a new UK-EU SPS Agreement, and this will further simplify the movement of agri-food goods within the United Kingdom. As a result, we expect there will no longer be a need for SPS paperwork when moving agrifood or plant products and the requirement to label goods ‘not for EU’ will diminish significantly.

The Government works closely with industry stakeholders and trade associations on the implementation of these arrangements and will continue to do so.

Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Infected Blood Compensation Authority plans to prioritise older claimants when making payments.

The delivery of compensation is a matter for the Infected Blood Compensation Authority (IBCA) as an independent body.

In February, IBCA set out their plans to open the compensation service in stages to make sure it is effective and secure for all those claiming. This was a decision taken independently of the Government by the IBCA Board. Based on community feedback, IBCA are prioritising claims for registered infected people who have been told by a medical professional that they may have 12 months or less to live.

Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
4th Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent progress his Department has made on implementing the UK-EU summit agreements.

At the first UK-EU Summit, the Government agreed a substantial package to take forward our new Strategic Partnership with the EU. We are proceeding swiftly with technical negotiations to implement these commitments. We will keep Parliament updated on significant developments.

Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
2nd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Government plans to establish an Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

Deputy Prime Ministers are rightly supported in their role to deliver the additional responsibilities.

The Deputy Prime Minister’s responsibilities are set out on Gov.uk and any such plans would be set out in the usual way.

Abena Oppong-Asare
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 9 April 2025 to Question 43478 on Admiralty House, if he will make it his policy to rent out the two empty flats in Admiralty House at a market rate.

This Government will take the same approach as the previous administration, as set out in my answer of 31 October 2024, Official Report, PQ 10703.

Abena Oppong-Asare
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans the Prime Minister has to appoint an Envoy for the Nations and Regions.

There are currently no plans to appoint an Envoy for the Nations and Regions.

Abena Oppong-Asare
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
1st Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent assessment his Department has made on the potential merits of using (a) local and (b) regional newspapers for government advertising.

The Government selects media channels for communications based on reaching target audiences effectively. The Government values the important role of local and regional newspapers and is developing a Local Media Strategy. As part of this, the Cabinet Office and DCMS are exploring how to better utilise local press for government advertising.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
1st Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make it his policy to create a single public reporting service for problems at (a) local and (b) national government level.

This Government is determined to reforming the state to deliver high quality public services and better value for money for the taxpayer.

The Government recognises the importance of transparency of public services, that appropriate feedback mechanisms help to ensure accountability by identifying and resolving problems, and that public participation can help to improve future service design to meet the needs of end users. The Service Manual provides guidance on creating and running public services in accordance with the Service Standards, both of which are available on GOV.UK.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
25th Jun 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government which trade unions are recognised by the MyCSP.

MyCSP operates as a private company, delivering the administration of Civil Service pensions through commercial contract arrangements starting 2013 and ending December 2025.

Any decisions concerning the recognition of trade unions are made independently by them as the employer. They are contractually obliged to comply with UK legislation, which includes worker and employment rights, including those rights associated with trade union recognition.

As far as we are aware, MyCSP does not currently recognise any trade unions either by voluntary or statutory arrangement. They do have staff representation on their Board.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
25th Jun 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what guidance they have issued to departments about the ethical and reputational risks of awarding public contracts to suppliers, such as Fujitsu, that are subject to public sector inquiries.

I refer the noble Lord to the answer given to question HL8487 on 30th June.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
13th Jun 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he plans to (a) consolidate and (b) relocate departmental property estates outside of London.

On 14 May, the Government announced it will:

  • strengthen its presence in 13 cross Government locations across the UK;

  • ensure that 50% of UK-based SCS are located outside of London by 2030;

  • strengthen the talent pipeline by launching a new apprenticeship programme, setting an ambition for 50% of Fast Stream roles to be based outside London by 2030, and committing to develop and launch a local government interchange programme in partnership with the Local Government Association (LGA);

  • reduce the number of Civil Service buildings in London, closing 11 buildings by 2030 to deliver £94m in savings per year; and

  • launch two new thematic campuses: an Energy Campus in Aberdeen; and a Digital & AI Innovation Campus in Manchester.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
30th Jun 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 3 June 2025 to Question HL7758 on Government Departments: Sanitation, if he will publish the Government Property Agency's guidance document that is now used in (a) new build and (b) refurbishment projects.

The Government Property Agency’s latest Workplace Design Guide (published March 2022) is available on GOV.UK. This is kept under review.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
30th Jun 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people with Hepatitis B had received an interim payment of compensation from the Infected Blood Compensation Authority by 30 June 2025.

The delivery of the Infected Blood Interim Compensation Payments is the responsibility of the four existing Infected Blood Support Schemes (IBSS). Interim Payments have been made to people infected with HIV and/or Hepatitis C as a result of infected blood and their bereaved partners. People infected with Hepatitis B are not eligible to apply to IBSS and are therefore not eligible for interim payments.

However, the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme, which is being delivered by the Infected Blood Compensation Authority (IBCA), has broader eligibility criteria than the current Infected Blood Support Schemes. People who are or were infected with a chronic case of Hepatitis B are eligible for compensation under the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme, including compensation for past financial loss and care costs.

Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
30th Jun 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people with Hepatitis B were waiting for an interim payment of compensation from the Infected Blood Compensation Authority on 30 June 2025.

The delivery of the Infected Blood Interim Compensation Payments is the responsibility of the four existing Infected Blood Support Schemes (IBSS). Interim Payments have been made to people infected with HIV and/or Hepatitis C as a result of infected blood and their bereaved partners. People infected with Hepatitis B are not eligible to apply to IBSS and are therefore not eligible for interim payments.

However, the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme, which is being delivered by the Infected Blood Compensation Authority (IBCA), has broader eligibility criteria than the current Infected Blood Support Schemes. People who are or were infected with a chronic case of Hepatitis B are eligible for compensation under the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme, including compensation for past financial loss and care costs.

Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
30th Jun 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on compensation for people impacted by infected blood and also by variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

In his 2022 Compensation Framework Study, Sir Robert Francis recommended that variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) was not included in the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme. He noted that “this is a rare disease for which there is a separate compensation scheme. It is unlikely, therefore, that a separate category is justified in this scheme. However, many of the infected have been warned there is a risk of their having vCJD. Assuming that risk, insofar as it exists, is shared by all who have received blood or blood products in the relevant period, there is no special case for taking it into account in this scheme."

Chapter 5 of the Infected Blood Inquiry’s May 2024 Report examines the Government response to vCJD.

Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what guidance has been given to Cabinet ministers by the (a) Independent Adviser on Ministerial Standards and (b) Cabinet Office on whether Ministers who personally receive donations from trade unions (i) must and (ii) need not recuse themselves from (A) official government meetings and (B) decisions relating to those specific trade unions.

As set out in the Ministerial Code, there is an established process in place for the declaration and management of private interests held by ministers. This ensures that steps are taken to avoid or mitigate any actual or perceived conflicts of interest. Any advice given to ministers as part of this process would be in confidence.

Abena Oppong-Asare
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 54828 on Civil Servants: Training, if he will publish the full training (a) documentation and (b) modules prepared for the course.

It is not possible to share these products as they are interactive e-learning and videos that need to run on learning management systems. We would not publish learning content or materials themselves, as they might contain internal policy details, or intellectual property owned by a third party.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 3 June 2025 to Question 54280 on Civil Servants: Pay, whether civil servants in her Department that are relocated outside of London will have their pay reduced; and whether civil servants employed in new locations outside of London will lose their London weighting.

I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answer on 3 July (PQ 63008).

The Cabinet Office does not have London Weighting. There are separate London and National pay ranges. If an employee relocates from a London to National location on a voluntary basis, their salary would reduce to the equivalent point on the opposite pay range.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
19th Jun 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to page 43 of their policy paper Spending Review 2025: Departmental Efficiency Plans, published on 11 June, what was the average span of managerial control across the Cabinet Office by grade in 2024–25; and how many line management posts they expect will be removed to achieve the £5 million saving identified through organisational restructure by 2028–29.

The average span of control of line managers by grade in FY 2024/25 has been presented in the table below.

Line Manager Grade

Average Span of Control

Perm Sec

12.5

SCS3

7.6

SCS2

5.3

SCS1

4.5

Grade 6

3.5

Grade 7

2.0

SEO

3.1

HEO

3.3

EO

6.2

In line with the 2025 Spending Review, we are restructuring the Cabinet Office into a more strategic, specialised, and smaller department. Our focus is on identifying budgetary savings rather than meeting a specific headcount target.

So far, 540 employees have been approved to leave through the Voluntary Exit Scheme.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his Department's press release entitled Conclusion of His Majesty The King’s free Portrait Scheme, published on 28 November 2024, what the percentage take-up rate was for (a) UK Government departments and (b) arm's-length bodies separately.

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 was published on gov.uk.

Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
1st Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he plans to publish the Resilience Strategy.

The Government will set out its resilience strategy in due course.

Abena Oppong-Asare
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
1st Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what contracts their Department has with Palantir.

Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder. Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023, which came into force on 24 February 2025, are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
24th Jun 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government how many Assessment Advisory Panels for public appointments (1) the Director General, Propriety and Constitution Group, and (2) the Director General, Propriety and Ethics, have served on since 2019; what assessment they have made of the appropriateness for individuals in those roles to sit on Assessment Advisory Panels given their responsibilities for sponsoring the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments and advising on ethical issues in the appointments process; and whether they have made an assessment of the risk of conflict of interest where individuals in those roles may later be required to investigate or advise on complaints relating to campaigns on which they have served.

The Director General of the Cabinet Office's Propriety and Constitution Group (previously Director General of Propriety and Ethics), since taking up the role in March 2021, has served as a member of an Advisory Assessment Panel on seven (7) public appointment recruitment campaigns.

The Governance Code on Public Appointments has a rigorous and well established process for assessing and managing potential conflicts of interest in all regulated public appointments processes, which has been in effect across a number of administrations. The process covers potential personal and professional conflicts of interest for both independent panel members and the departmental or sponsor body representatives. As per the Governance Code on Public Appointments, ministers must agree the composition of all Advisory Assessment Panels.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
1st Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many (a) unauthorised and (b) sickness absences there were in the civil service in each of the last five years.

Sickness absence data for the Civil Service is published annually, and is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/sickness-absence.

Individual departments are responsible for managing their workforces, including any instances of unauthorised absence. This information is not held centrally by the Cabinet Office.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
1st Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the level of UK investment generated by the GREAT campaign since 5 July 2024.

I refer the hon. member to the PQ 63750.

The campaign uses a comprehensive evaluation framework with timeframes for results tailored to each participating organisation's activities. Evaluation results for the GREAT Britain & Northern Ireland Campaign have not yet been finalised for financial year 2024/25.

Ellie Reeves
Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
1st Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, on what date (a) was the last and (b) is the next meeting of the Honours and Appointments Secretariat.

The UK Honours and awards system does not comprise a committee or administrative team known as the Honours and Appointments Secretariat, which was the previous name of the Honours and Memorialisation Secretariat. This team holds weekly team meetings.

Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
1st Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will reintroduce Lords Spiritual from the Church of Ireland to the House of Lords.

Bishops of the Church of Ireland previously sat in the House of Lords as Lords Spiritual, from the coming into force of the Union with Ireland Act 1800 until the disestablishment of the Church in 1871. Given the Church of Ireland is no longer part of the established church, there are no plans to reintroduce Church of Ireland bishops to the House of Lords as Lords Spiritual.

Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
1st Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, for what reason council tax is not included in the measure of consumer price inflation.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 1st July is attached.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
2nd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an estimate of the potential impact of reducing GREAT campaign funding on economic growth.

I refer the hon. member to the PQs 63750 and 64200.


In 2025/26, GREAT has allocated its budget to maximise the economic returns that the programme can deliver with the available resources. This includes delivering targeted campaigns and events in high-priority markets to continue to drive international trade, investment, tourism and student recruitment for all nations and regions of the UK.

Ellie Reeves
Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
2nd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 12 May 2025 to Question 49382 on 9 Downing Street: Repairs and Maintenance, whether the relevant narrative entry in the transparency data will show which OCS invoice relates to the refurbishment of the Downing Street media room.

The Government Property Agency is awaiting OCS' submission of an application for payment for the costs for the 9DS Media Suite.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
2nd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse for Senior Civil Service pay in the (a) 2024-25 and (b) 2025-26 financial years.

The latest paybill information for the Senior Civil Service can be found in the 2025/26 annual report by the Senior Salaries Review Body (SSRB).

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
2nd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 17 June 2025 to Question 59366 on Cabinet Office: staff, whether his Department has a target for (a) voluntary and (b) compulsory exits; and what communications have been sent to civil servants on this matter.

As set out in the Answer of 17 June 2025 to Question 59366, in line with the 2025 Spending Review, we are restructuring the Cabinet Office into a more strategic, specialised, and smaller department to achieve £110 million in annual expenditure savings by the 2028/29 financial year. Our focus is on identifying budgetary savings rather than meeting a specific headcount target.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
2nd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 54812 on Government Departments: media, if he will list the 180 companies that expressed an interest in providing external public relations under the RM6364 Media and Creative Framework.

The procurement process under RM6364 Media and Creative Framework is currently live. As such, we are unable to disclose details of the interest expressed by individual companies at this stage, as doing so would be likely to prejudice the commercial interests of the Crown Commercial Service and the bidders engaged in the bidding process. Further information will be made available in accordance with procurement confidentiality and competition rules as the process progresses. The agreement is due to be awarded in December 2025.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
3rd Jul 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 54822 on Cabinet Office: Directors, whether Baroness Casey will be a member of the Cabinet Office Board.

I refer the Hon. member to PQ 54822.

Georgia Gould
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
30th Jun 2025
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the UK-US Economic Prosperity Deal on his Department.

In May, the UK concluded a landmark economic deal with the US. This deal protects jobs in the automotive, steel, aluminium, pharmaceutical and aerospace sectors - sectors that employ over 320,000 people across the UK. In addition, an estimated 260,000 jobs are supported by the auto industry in the wider economy. The Government remains focused on making sure British businesses can feel the benefits of the deal as soon as possible.

Government is continuing discussions on the UK-US Economic Prosperity Deal which will look at increasing digital trade, enhancing access for our world-leading services industries and improving supply chains. My Department will continue to support the ongoing negotiations with the US, led by the Department for Business and Trade.

Ellie Reeves
Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
24th Jun 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the total value of contracts that they have awarded to Fujitsu over the past 12 months.

In January 2024, Fujitsu said it would withdraw from bidding for contracts with new Government customers until the Post Office Horizon inquiry concludes – and it would only bid for work with existing Government customers where it already has an existing customer relationship with them, or where there is an agreed need for Fujitsu’s skills and capabilities. Fujitsu's bid approach is detailed in correspondence deposited in the Houses of Parliament libraries on 4 March 2024 (DEP2024-0247).

Details of public sector awards are publicly available on Contracts Finder & Find a Tender services. In addition to extensions available under Fujitsu’s existing contracts, Contracts Finder and Find a Tender provide details of twelve new Fujitsu contracts since July 2024. These awards are compliant with Fujitsu's commitment not to bid for work with new customers. The majority are for services already provided by Fujitsu and were put in place to ensure continuity of services whilst competitive procurements are being set up.

The Government is determined to hold those responsible for the Horizon scandal to account, and will continue to make rapid progress on compensation and redress. Fujitsu’s role in Horizon is one of the issues which is being reviewed by Sir Wyn Williams’s statutory inquiry. The Cabinet Office has been monitoring the situation, in addition to continuing its usual monitoring of Fujitsu as a strategic supplier. The Government will carefully consider volume 1 of the report, to be published on 8 July, which is limited in scope. Once the inquiry establishes the full facts, we will review its final report and consider any further action, as appropriate.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
24th Jun 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to review Fujitsu’s suitability to continue as a supplier for public sector contracts.

In January 2024, Fujitsu said it would withdraw from bidding for contracts with new Government customers until the Post Office Horizon inquiry concludes – and it would only bid for work with existing Government customers where it already has an existing customer relationship with them, or where there is an agreed need for Fujitsu’s skills and capabilities. Fujitsu's bid approach is detailed in correspondence deposited in the Houses of Parliament libraries on 4 March 2024 (DEP2024-0247).

Details of public sector awards are publicly available on Contracts Finder & Find a Tender services. In addition to extensions available under Fujitsu’s existing contracts, Contracts Finder and Find a Tender provide details of twelve new Fujitsu contracts since July 2024. These awards are compliant with Fujitsu's commitment not to bid for work with new customers. The majority are for services already provided by Fujitsu and were put in place to ensure continuity of services whilst competitive procurements are being set up.

The Government is determined to hold those responsible for the Horizon scandal to account, and will continue to make rapid progress on compensation and redress. Fujitsu’s role in Horizon is one of the issues which is being reviewed by Sir Wyn Williams’s statutory inquiry. The Cabinet Office has been monitoring the situation, in addition to continuing its usual monitoring of Fujitsu as a strategic supplier. The Government will carefully consider volume 1 of the report, to be published on 8 July, which is limited in scope. Once the inquiry establishes the full facts, we will review its final report and consider any further action, as appropriate.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)