Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps he is taking to replace the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
I introduced the Northern Ireland Troubles Bill on 14 October – a significant step in fulfilling our commitment to repeal and replace the Legacy Act.
The Bill received its Second Reading yesterday, and I look forward to continued debate and scrutiny as it progresses through Parliament.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what proportion of staff in his Department did not meet the minimum office attendance target in the latest period for which data is available; and what sanctions his Department issues to staff who do not meet this target.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Northern Ireland Office follows the cross Civil Service expectation that everyone spend at least 60% of their time at a Government building or on official business, such as visiting stakeholders, unless they have an agreed adjustment or exception. Deputy Directors monitor records of team office attendance and therefore data is not held centrally.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what proportion of staff in his Department have flexible working arrangements; and how many of those work compressed hours.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
At the Northern Ireland Office, flexible working requests are submitted directly to line managers for discussion and approval. The department does not maintain data centrally on the number of staff working compressed hours.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether there are any requirements for civil servants to book a desk in advance in order to attend the office in person in each of (a) their Department's office workplaces and (b) the arm’s length bodies of their Department.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Northern Ireland Office employs a desk booking system for its offices in London and Belfast. This must be used to book desks in advance of intended attendance, or on the same day. Information on desk booking services for arm’s length bodies, which are not co-located in the department's two main offices, is not centrally held.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many civil servants are assigned to work in each of his Department's offices; and how many desks are available for staff to work in that individual office.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The total number of people by full-time equivalent hours (FTE) at 30 September 2024 is 159.96, which is 165 headcount; 86 members of staff are based in the Belfast office and 79 are based in the London office.
There are 121 bookable desks available in total across both offices. There are 59 desks in the London open plan area and 62 desks in Belfast open plan area available for booking. This figure does not cover Ministerial Offices or other business areas not covered by the booking system.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many and what proportion of desks were occupied in each of his Department’s offices in the most recent four weeks for which figures are available; and how many staff attended each office in person in the same period.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Northern Ireland Office employs a desk booking system (Matrix) to monitor desk occupancy. Staff can book desks in advance of their intended attendance, or the same day. The following data was gathered from Monday 23 September until Friday 18 October 2024 and relates to the open plan areas in London and Belfast which use the desk booking system. There are 59 desks in the London open plan area and 62 desks in Belfast open plan area available for booking. The information below does not cover Ministerial Offices and other business areas not covered by the booking system.
| London Average Daily Occupancy | London Average Daily Staff Attendance | Belfast Average Daily Occupancy | Belfast Average Daily Staff Attendance |
w/c 23 September 2024 | 47% | 28 | 64% | 40 |
w/c 30 September 2024 | 52% | 31 | 61% | 38 |
w/c 7 October 2024 | 52% | 31 | 60% | 38 |
w/c 14 October 2024 | 54% | 32 | 66% | 41 |
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how much was spent on (a) new furniture and fittings and (b) other refurbishment of Ministerial offices in his Department since the dissolution of the last Parliament; and on what items this was spent.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Since the dissolution of the last Parliament on 30 May 2024, one three-seater office sofa for the Ministerial Office was purchased at a cost of £811.14.