Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an estimate of the number and proportion of advertised jobs that can be undertaken solely at home in each of the last 5 years.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
A response to the Hon lady’s Parliamentary Question of 30th January is attached.
Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make it his policy to help ensure that people who are not online have the choice of accessing public services (a) by phone, (b) by letter and (c) face-to-face.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone has affordable access to public services, whether online or offline.
Government departments are already required by the Government's Service Standard to provide support via alternative channels for all their online services. The wider public sector, including local government, is also encouraged to use the service standard, with some Local Authorities having committed to doing so via the Local Digital Declaration.
Government teams are assessed against Service Standard to ensure that services are accessible to all users, including disabled people, people with other legally protected characteristics, people who do not have access to the internet and/or lack the skills and/or confidence to use the internet.
Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make it his policy to introduce funding for public bodies to help ensure the provision of offline options for service users.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone has affordable access to public services, whether online or offline.
Government departments are already required by the Government's Service Standard to provide support via alternative channels for all their online services. The wider public sector, including local government, is also encouraged to use the service standard, with some Local Authorities having committed to doing so via the Local Digital Declaration.
Government teams are assessed against Service Standard to ensure that services are accessible to all users, including disabled people, people with other legally protected characteristics, people who do not have access to the internet and/or lack the skills and/or confidence to use the internet.
Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answers of 8 November 2021 to Question 68322 and 19 January 2022 to Question 105589 on Ministers: Leave, and with reference to the Written Ministerial Statement of 15 July 2021, HCWS185, when the Government plans to present a report to Parliament setting out considerations and proposals on adoption and parental leave, absences for sickness and other reasons, and unpaid roles.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Policy development in these areas is ongoing. It remains the Government's intention to lay a report before Parliament in due course.
Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answers of 8 November 2021 to Question 68322 and 19 January 2022 to Question 105589 on Ministers: Leave, and with reference to the Written Ministerial Statement of 15 July 2021 on Government Transparency and Accountability, HCWS185, when the Government plans to present a report to Parliament setting out considerations and proposals on adoption and parental leave, absences for sickness and other reasons and unpaid roles.
Answered by Michael Ellis
Policy development in these areas is ongoing. It remains the Government's intention to lay a report before Parliament in due course.
Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent assessment he has made of the rates of economic inactivity within Gypsy, Roma, and Traveller communities in the UK.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
A response to the hon. Member’s Parliamentary Question of 4 July is attached.
Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department issues guidance to companies that deliver public-facing services on behalf of the Government on establishing routes where MPs can raise issues on behalf of constituents.
Answered by Jacob Rees-Mogg
The Cabinet Office does not issue guidance to service providers on establishing routes where MPs can raise issues on behalf of constituents. However, MPs are able to raise any issues with government suppliers through existing channels - by writing to the Secretary of State, writing to the Department through MP correspondence, or through Parliamentary questions.
Those dissatisfied with government services can also raise issues directly with the responsible government department. Departments provide details on their complaints procedure on their GOV.UK pages. If, having followed the stages of the complaints procedure the complainant remains dissatisfied, our published guidance recommends that members of the public contact their MP and ask for your complaint to be referred to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman. The Ombudsman can carry out independent investigations into complaints about government departments, agencies and some public bodies.
Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 8 November 2021 to Question 68322, on Ministers: Leave, and with reference to the Written Ministerial Statement of 15 July 2021, HCWS185, when the Government plans to present a report to Parliament setting out considerations and proposals on adoption and parental leave, absences for sickness and other reasons and unpaid roles.
Answered by Michael Ellis
Policy development in these areas is ongoing. These are complex policy matters and the Government is giving them careful and thorough consideration. It remains the Government's intention to lay a report before Parliament in due course.
Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent assessment he has made of the degree of compliance by UK Government departmental offices located in the devolved nations with the guidance on the need for continued home working issued by the devolved administrations.
Answered by Michael Ellis
Civil Service employers are responsible for following and embedding government guidance across all of the four nations.
Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will ensure that the panel leading the inquiry into the Government's handling of the covid-19 pandemic (a) includes and (b) hears from disabled people.
Answered by Michael Ellis
On 12 May, the Prime Minister confirmed that a public inquiry into COVID-19 will be established on a statutory basis, with full formal powers and that it will begin its work in spring 2022. A chair will be appointed by the end of the year. More details, including the terms of reference for the inquiry, will be set out in due course.