Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he plans to make reforms to the Civil Service Compensation Scheme.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government has taken the decision to close the consultation to reform the Civil Service Compensation Scheme, which began in 2017. The scheme terms as set out in 2010 will remain in place but the Government remains open to reviewing the terms of the scheme in the future.
Asked by: Lord Agnew of Oulton (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 18 February (HL4612), how many non-statutory public inquiries have been established since 2005; what were the names of each inquiry; what were the projected costs of each inquiry at the time of its establishment; and, for those that have concluded, what was the final cost of each inquiry upon its conclusion.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Since 2005, His Majesty’s Government has established 18 non-statutory inquiries.
The Cabinet Office collects data on the duration and cost of inquiries from departments, inquiries’ own reports, and other publicly available information. We do not centrally hold data on the projected costs of each inquiry as each Government Department is responsible for the inquiries they sponsor.
We have provided details on all non statutory inquiries established since 2005 in the table below. In the table below, “unknown” means that it is not known by Cabinet Office.
Inquiry | Legislative Basis | Year established | Duration in months (from announcement to publication of final report) | Reported final costs where publicly available |
Manston Inquiry | Non-Statutory | 2025 | Ongoing | Pending |
Cranston Inquiry | Non-statutory | 2023 | Ongoing | Pending |
Andrew Malkinson Inquiry | Non-statutory | 2023 | Ongoing | Pending |
Fuller Inquiry | Non-statutory | 2022 | Ongoing | Pending |
Angiolini Inquiry | Non-statutory | 2022 | Ongoing | Pending |
The Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review | Non-statutory | 2018 | 29 | £1.7m |
Independent Inquiry into the issues raised by Ian Paterson | Non-statutory | 2018 | 26 | £1.9m |
Independent inquiry into the award of the Magnox decommissioning contract by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) and its subsequent termination | Non-statutory | 2017 | 48 | Unknown |
Gosport Independent Panel | Non-statutory | 2014 | 42 | £13m |
Harris Review / Independent review of self-inflicted deaths of young adults in custody aged between 18 and 24 | Non-statutory | 2014 | 17 | £0.2m |
The Morecambe Bay Maternity and Neonatal Services Investigation | Non-statutory | 2013 | 18 | £1.1m |
Daniel Morgan Independent Panel | Non-statutory | 2013 | 97 | £17.6m |
The Detainee Inquiry | Non-statutory (Committee of Privy Counsellors) | 2010 | 45 | £2.3m (exc. VAT) |
The Hillsborough Independent Panel | Non-statutory | 2009 | 33 | Less than £5m |
Independent Inquiry into care provided by Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust January 2001 – March 2009 | Non-statutory | 2009 | 7 | Unknown |
The Iraq Inquiry / The Chilcot Inquiry | Non-statutory (Committee of Privy Counsellors) | 2009 | 85 | £13.1m |
Inquiry into Human Tissue Analysis in UK Nuclear Facilities / Redfern Inquiry | Non-statutory | 2007 | 43 | Unknown |
Contaminated Blood and Blood Products Inquiry | Non-statutory | 2007 | 48 | £75k |
Asked by: Lord Leigh of Hurley (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 22 April (HL6565), how, if at all, the policy of salary transparency applies to transparency on (1) severance payments, and (2) cash equivalent transfer value pension amounts, with respect to (a) senior civil servants and (b) special advisers.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government financial reporting manual (FReM) is the technical accounting guide for the preparation of financial statements. The FReM sets out a number of transparency requirements when it comes to severance payments and cash equivalent transfer values specifically, which are separate from the salary transparency requirements.
For severance payments, departments are broadly required to report the number and value of compensation payments made under the terms of any approved compensation schemes, as well as certain detail on any special severance payments made. The FReM also provides that information about the cash equivalent transfer values at the start and end of the report year must be disclosed in relation to directors, together with the real increases.
Asked by: Lord Kempsell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much public funding they have provided to public inquires in each of the last five years; and which are the current and anticipated (beginning in 2025) public inquiries to which they are providing, or are expecting to provide, support or funding.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Since 2020, His Majesty’s Government has supported 16 public inquiries under the Inquiries Act 2005. The Cabinet Office does not centrally hold data on the yearly public funding to inquiries as each Government Department is responsible for the inquiries they sponsor.
Four inquiries have been established so far in 2025. The Independent inquiry into Manston short-term holding facility and the Stockport Inquiry will be sponsored by the Home Office, the Nottingham Inquiry will be sponsored by the Ministry of Justice, and the Patrick Finucane Inquiry by the Northern Ireland Office.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 22 April 2025 (HL6561), whether there are informal or political committees of Cabinet which are not listed on the Cabinet Office's list of Cabinet committees and whether this includes a ministerial 'quad' meeting.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
There are various configurations of ministerial meetings. Cabinet committees are publicly listed on GOV.UK
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 10 March to Question 34653 on Royal Mail: Workplace Pensions, how many of the 906 retirees effected by tax free lump sum overpayments in 2024 have been offered (a) compensation or (b) a reduction in repayment.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The scheme administrator, Capita, has not compensated or agreed a reduction of payment figures for any of the 906 cases affected by overpayments.
However, the scheme administrator has taken steps to support these members. This includes arranging monthly deductions to be taken from the member’s pension in payment where they were unable to repay their overpayment in full. Affected members are also able to contact Capita to discuss alternative repayment arrangements using the helpline number or dedicated email address.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the actual attendance of civil servants in the office as a proportion of assigned workforce to each government building.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
Central data on Civil Service Headquarters (HQ) occupancy is collected and published quarterly on GOV.UK for all HQ buildings of Whitehall Departments, Office for Scotland, Office for Wales and Northern Ireland Office. The latest data for the period January to March 2025 can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-hq-occupancy-data. No other central information on occupancy data is gathered.
Asked by: Lord Blencathra (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the decision of the Supreme Court in For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers [2025] UKSC 16 on 16 April, what plans they have to ensure that departments reflect the decision of the Supreme Court in (1) guidance, (2) publications, and (3) policy proposals.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We will review and update policy wherever necessary to ensure it complies with the latest legal requirements.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department has issued guidance on policing announcements during the pre-election purdah period.
Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Cabinet Office published guidance on conduct for civil servants during the pre-election period on 20 March. The guidance includes advice on government announcements during the pre-election period
The guidance can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/election-guidance-for-civil-servants
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 10 March to Question 34653 on Royal Mail: Workplace Pensions, what the total value of the 906 tax free lump sum overpayments in 2024 was.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The total value of the overpayments in relation to the 906 lump sums miscalculated in 2024 is £1,325,340.78.
The Cabinet Office has worked closely with the scheme administrator, Capita, to review all other processes in relation to the administration of the scheme, to ensure that they are documented and accurately reflect the contractual requirements and scheme rules, to deliver the best possible service to members and minimise errors.