Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the estimated cost is of The Ministers’ Etc. Pension Scheme (Amendment) 2025, dated 6 November 2025.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Ministers’ Etc. Pension Scheme (Amendment) 2025 makes technical amendments to the rules to allow the cost control mechanism (CCM) process to be completed, and the Scheme does not incur a cost as a result of the changes.
All public service pension schemes are subject to the CCM as part of the valuation cycle in line with HM Treasury policy. The CCM is designed to ensure a fair balance of risk with regard to the cost of providing public service pension schemes between members of those schemes and the Exchequer (and by extension taxpayers). If, when the CCM is tested, those costs are not within agreed target levels the member contributions are adjusted accordingly.
Any administrative costs associated with drafting and implementing these regulations are negligible and have been absorbed within existing Cabinet Office budgets.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the guidance entitled the approvals process for the creation of new arm's-length bodies, published on 15 March 2018, whether the Cabinet Office Public Bodies Team assessed the National Centre of Policing against the requirement that the creation of a new arms length body should only be considered as a last resort; whether the Department provided evidence that alternative delivery models were considered; and which of the tests in chapter 2 of that guidance it overcame.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The initial intention to explore a National Centre of Policing was announced by the then Home Secretary at the APCC/NPCC Conference in November 2024, as part of outlining their ambition for police reform. The Home Office will publish a White Paper on Police Reform in due course. If those proposals include establishing a new Arm's Length Body (ALB), then the standard process for establishing an ALB will be followed.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39926 on Senior Civil Servants: Pay, when he plans to publish the next list of senior officials high earners salaries.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
Departments and their partner organisations are currently collecting the data for the next ‘high earner’ list. It will be published when the data set is complete and the personal information being released about individuals has been fully quality assured. Departments also publish salary information for all their Senior Civil Service (SCS) roles in quarterly organograms on data.gov.uk and for all SCS operating at Board level in their Annual Accounts.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department is taking to strengthen supply chain resilience by supporting the use of British natural stone in public building projects.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
Government Property Agency Capital projects will use tools such as Whole Life Carbon Assessments (WLCA) to analyse the cost and carbon impact of materials and products used during construction. This would favour local materials that naturally have a lower carbon footprint. The GPA would also factor in maintenance and replacement considerations on the choice and sourcing of material.
The Government Property Agency aims to utilise and support British businesses throughout our supply chain and in line with the principles of the Procurement Act 2023, which aims to support smaller local businesses and embeds social value into our contract delivery model.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assurance mechanisms will be introduced as part of the transition from MyCSP to Capita to ensure that delays experienced under the current contract are not repeated.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Cabinet Office has enforced strict commercial governance and, unlike the legacy arrangement, the new contract incorporates sharp, automatic financial penalties for failure to meet Key Performance Indicators. This will ensure that the supplier is held financially accountable for service delivery standards from the outset.
These measures include a rigorous period of parallel running and system testing to validate operational readiness, alongside extensive data integrity checks and migration audits prior to service commencement.
This process is underpinned by a strengthened governance structure with active Cabinet Office oversight to monitor progress against key milestones, whilst applying lessons learned from previous transitions to mitigate risks regarding payment timeliness. Ensuring scheme members receive their pensions accurately and on time remains the Government’s priority throughout this process.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 125 of the Cabinet Office Annual report and accounts 2024-2025, HC1372, 23 October 2025, whether the £30 million Capital AME bid by the Government Property Agency that recorded a zero outturn was supported by approved business cases for government hub projects.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The GPA requested £30 million of Capital AME in the estimate as cover for potential accounting adjustments around dilapidation provisions in accordance with HM Treasury’s Financial Reporting Manual and Consolidated Budgeting Guidance. This is not directly related to government hub projects or business cases. The cover was based on a worst-case scenario that didn't materialise and so was not required.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how compliance with his Department’s Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method tenancy standard will be monitored and enforced.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Government Property Agency (GPA) uses BREEAM when retrofitting and building new capital projects as per the government buying standards requirements.This system is administered through a third-party certification process managed by licensed assessors and enforced primarily by contractual agreements and planning policies.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) ratings are for 10 Downing Street, 11 Downing Street, and Admiralty House; and whether any assessments have been carried out since July 2024 to determine whether tenancies are in buildings with a BREEAM rating of A or above.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Government Property Agency (GPA) uses BREEAM when retrofitting and building new capital projects as per the government buying standards requirements. Where budget and time allows, GPA aims to deliver to the government buying standards requirements or better. As these buildings are not being developed the BREEAM standard is not relevant. If the buildings were to be retrofitted by the GPA in the future, BREEAM would be applied as per the government buying standards requirements.
In regards to existing commercial spaces, the GPA will deliver to the MEES (Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards, regulations) and produce Display Energy Certificates (DECs) and/or Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) where commercially relevant.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 10 November 2025 to Question 85830 on Digital Technology: Identity Cards, whether people will be subject to any sanction if they do not enrol in the digital ID scheme.
Answered by Josh Simons - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
There will be no criminal sanctions for people who don’t enrol in Digital ID.
The new digital ID scheme will help drive forward the digitisation of Right to Work checks by the end of this Parliament. We will launch a major digital inclusion drive to support this and help ensure nobody is left behind.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 5 November 2025, to Question 85506, on Cabinet Office: Data Protection, how many people had their personal data compromised.
Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
In relation to the eight incidents stated in Question 85506 a total of 148 individuals were affected. This is the total number as notified to the Information Commissioner’s Office.