Asked by: Lord Gilbert of Panteg (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Twycross on 17 December (HL3301), what steps the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government is taking to discourage local authorities from translating into foreign languages, in line with the Guidance on Diversity and Inclusion and Impartiality for Civil Servants, published on 14 May, and the associated guidance in 2013.
Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the Noble Lord to the answer given to Question UIN HL2739 on 4 December 2024.
Asked by: Lord Gilbert of Panteg (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Baroness Twycross on (1) 3 December (HL2738), and (2) 17 December (HL3301), why the Written Answer of 3 December stated that no guidance on translation had been issued by the Cabinet Office but the Written Answer of 17 December stated the Guidance on Diversity and Inclusion and Impartiality for Civil Servants, published on 14 May, remains in force; and whether they will now correct the official record.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
No specific guidance has been directly issued by the Cabinet Office on the topic of reducing spending by the civil service on translation into foreign languages. The Guidance on Diversity and Inclusion and Impartiality Requirements for Civil Servants signposts to another department's guidance that was issued in 2013.
Asked by: Lord Gilbert of Panteg (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Twycross on 17 December (HL3302), what records the Crown Commercial Service holds on which public bodies have taken out contracts for translation services using the framework agreement on translation into foreign languages.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Crown Commercial Service (CCS) collects information from suppliers for public bodies that have taken out contracts for translation services under its Language Services agreement (RM6141) only. These records contain the names of the public sector bodies (contracting authority) and their spend through the framework, an aggregate of £5,402,890 from 10 May 2021 to 10 December 2024.
Public bodies that have used the CCS commercial agreement RM6141 Language Services include: Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council, Bridgend County Borough Council, British Library, British Transport Police, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, Commonwealth War Graves Commission, Department for Transport, Department for Work and Pensions, Department of Health and Social Care, Environment Agency, Equality and Human Rights Commission, High Speed Two (HS2) Ltd, HM Revenue & Customs, Intellectual Property Office, London Borough of Brent Council, London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Council, London Borough of Lambeth Council, London Borough of Tower Hamlets Council, Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government, National Crime Agency, NHS England, NHS England - East of England, NHS England Sustainable Improvement Team, NHS Improvement, NHS South, Central and West Commissioning Unit, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Office for National Statistics, Office for Nuclear Regulation, Oxfordshire County Council, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, Serious Fraud Office, Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, The Pensions Regulator, Transport for London, UK Health Security Agency, Westminster City Council and Wokingham Borough Council.
Information on individual contracts should be publicly available on Contracts Finder at the following link: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk