Lord Lexden

The data relating to 1997 and 1998 pre-dates the requirement of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010 (CRAG) for the Government to prepare an annual report on the numbers and costs of Special Advisers. Therefore, this information has been taken from data that is publicly available in Hansard [1]:

• In the year 1997/8, Hansard reports that there were 70 Special Advisers employed in Government.

• In the year 1998/9, Hansard reports that there were 72 Special Advisers employed in Government.

Since 2010, as per the requirements of CRAG, the Cabinet Office has published an annual report on Special Adviser numbers and costs. Therefore, the information requested in relation to 2010 - 2022 has been taken from the relevant report on Gov.uk:

• In the Annual Report on Special Advisers published in 2010, there were 61 special advisers employed in Government as at 10 June 2010. [2]

• In the Annual Report on Special Advisers published in 2011, there were 72 special advisers employed in Government as at 10 March 2011. [3]

• In the Annual Report on Special Advisers published in 2016, there were 83 Special Advisers employed in Government as at 21 December 2016. [4]

• Following the centralisation of all Special Advisers onto the Cabinet Office payroll in 2019, internal data is also available as at the requested date for 2022. As at 1 December 2022, there were 102 special advisers employed in Government.

[1] https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/1999-11-11/debates/a5ac908d-ba91-443b-81ee-0b3a84b75393/SpecialAdvisers

[2] https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/62377/special-advisers-in-post-June-2010.pdf

[3] https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/62374/spads-in-post100311_0.pdf

[4] https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/579892/List_of_special_advisers_in_post_as_at_21_December_2016.pdf

Appointments to the Privy Council are made by His Majesty The King on the recommendation of the Prime Minister.

Appointment to the Privy Council is for life. Those appointed comprise Ministers, other parliamentarians and members of the judiciary. Only serving Government ministers have a role in advising on Privy Council matters. Therefore the majority of Counsellors play no part in the Privy Council’s day-to-day business.

1. The size of the Privy Council on 1 December 1992 was about 275.

2. The size of the Privy Council on 1 December 2022 was 743.

Nazir Ahmed retired from the House of Lords as a result of a complaint before the House of Lords Conduct Committee in 2020, which recommended he be expelled from the House. He is therefore no longer a member of the House of Lords, retains no privileges and may not return.

Whilst Peers may voluntarily stop using their titles, there is currently no formal mechanism for revoking their titles, which would require bespoke primary legislation. The Government currently has no plans to bring forward such legislation.

The Government is firmly committed to tackling all forms of child sexual abuse, whether it takes place online or in families, institutions or communities, here in this country or overseas.

Volumes 4 and 5 of the Official History of the Criminal Justice system and volume 2 of the Official History of the Joint Intelligence Committee will be published in due course.

The vandalism against the portrait of A.J. Balfour at Trinity College, Cambridge, last month is rightly being investigated as a criminal act by Cambridgeshire Police. The shoddy sense of history by those who perpetrated and promoted it is also a reminder of the importance of historic portraits in improving our awareness and understanding of the past.

The famous declaration made by Balfour as Foreign Secretary in November 1917 made clear that ‘nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country’. At the time Balfour issued it, the man who had painted his portrait three years earlier, Philip de László, was (despite having become a British citizen, with the former Prime Minister as one of his sponsors) interned, having been arrested on suspicion of treason on account of letters he had written to family members in Austria. As the historian Giles MacDonogh has noted, it appears ‘the fact that de László was born of Jewish parents had some bearing on the case’; his interrogation by Special Branch dwelt on his Jewish ancestry, and an unsympathetic biography included in the recommendation from MI5 to the Home Secretary that he be interned noted that de László was the ‘son of a Jew tailor’. In May 1919, his case was raised in a debate in Your Lordships’ House; the following month, it was brought before the Certificates of Naturalisation (Revocation) Committee, which took just fifteen minutes to throw it out and exonerate him.

It is thanks to portraits like this that such fascinating insights into our past can be gleaned.

I have spoken to the Vice-Master of Trinity College following the attack, and hope that this magnificent portrait can be swiftly repaired and shared with students and visitors to the college for many years to come.

The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport issued a Public Interest Intervention Notice on 30 November 2023 in relation to the anticipated acquisition of the Telegraph Media Group by RedBird IMI on the grounds of the need for accurate presentation of news, and free expression of opinion, in newspapers.

The Notice triggers a requirement for the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to report to the Secretary of State on jurisdictional and competition matters, and for Ofcom to report on the specified media public interest considerations. Ofcom and the CMA have now both launched invitations for public comment, and will report to the Secretary of State on the issues specified in the Notice by midnight on 26 January 2024.

Ofcom will carry out such investigations as it considers appropriate. Exactly how it undertakes its role to report to the Secretary of State on the public interest is a matter for Ofcom.

On 1 December 2023, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport made an Order under Schedule 7 to the Enterprise Act 2002 for the purpose of preventing pre-emptive action relating to the anticipated acquisition of the Telegraph Media Group by RedBird IMI.

This Order has been made to prevent actions by the parties to the merger which might prejudice the process or impede the Secretary of State’s ability to protect the public interest during the period in which the Public Interest Intervention Notice issued under the Order in relation to the proposed acquisition is in force. The Order prohibits the transferral of the ownership of the business without the Secretary of State’s prior written consent. It also requires the parties to ensure that steps are not taken to integrate the business with any other enterprise, to take action to ensure that no significant changes are made to the management and oversight of the business, and to do what is within their power to ensure that key editorial staff in the business are not removed or transferred without the Secretary of State’s prior written consent, or that they are at least encouraged to remain.

HM Government has not employed any organisation with regard to enforcing the terms of this order.

The Public Interest Intervention Notice only applies to the anticipated acquisition of Telegraph Media Group. The Notice triggers a requirement for the Competition and Markets Authority to report to the Secretary of State on jurisdictional and competition matters, and for Ofcom to report to her on the specified media public interest considerations. These are the need for accurate presentation of news, and free expression of opinion, in newspapers.

The legislation provides that Ofcom will carry out such investigations as it considers appropriate. Exactly how Ofcom undertakes its role to report to the Secretary of State on the public interest is a matter for Ofcom.

The evaluation of the UNBOXED programme (formerly known as Festival UK* 2022) is led and managed by the company Festival 2022 Ltd. Festival 2022 Ltd has commissioned KPMG (in collaboration with Sound Diplomacy) to oversee, project-manage, and lead the evaluation of UNBOXED.

As part of this evaluation, KPMG will consider seven major outcomes. These include the creation of engagement opportunities and shared experiences, increasing social cohesion across the four nations of the UK, and supporting international collaboration as well as enhancing our reputation abroad.

KPMG will evaluate each UNBOXED project against these outcomes. Preliminary findings from this evaluation will be published in early 2023.

The government has no plans to make changes to the VAT regime for independent schools. The VAT regime does not treat school fees differently based on whether schools have charitable status or not. All school fees are exempt from VAT.

The government has made no assessment of the scope under existing law for levying VAT on the fees charged by independent schools with charitable status. Other organisations, including EDSK, Baines Cutler Consulting, and Oxford Economics have published their own assessments related to this issue.

It is also worth noting that in practice, VAT on school fees would be passed on to parents. Schools would be required to pay the difference between the VAT they have charged to parents and the VAT they have themselves paid to other businesses.

The number of school playing fields disposed of in 2020, either by way of sale or grant of a long lease was 21. The number of playing fields disposed of in 2021, either by way of sale or grant of a long lease was 14.

Further disposals that meet specific criteria can be made under a General Consent Order (GCO). GCOs can be used for transactions that represent no net loss of playing field land to the school estate or where the loss is temporary. Disposals made under a GCO are not published by the department and are not included in the figures above.

In instances of schools wishing to sell playing fields, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, requires applicants to demonstrate a sporting and/or playing benefit as part of any mitigation measures, and that any loss has been minimised both in quantum and quality of the land disposed of. No open school has been allowed to sell all its playing fields.

The Secretary of State for Education is keen to protect school playing fields. Schools are only able to sell or otherwise dispose of playing fields when they can demonstrate to the Secretary of State that they have explored all possible alternatives to the disposal, and that the disposal does not adversely impact upon the school’s curriculum.

The department periodically updates a playing field disposal list, accessible here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-land-decisions-about-disposals.

The next update to this will be in May 2022. The list was last updated in July 2021. The department is currently collating data for this update.

The National Tutoring Programme is delivered using high-quality tutoring organisations that have been selected against a robust set of criteria, including ‘safeguarding’, ‘understanding schools working and challenges’, and ‘excellence in delivery’, following applications from hundreds of organisations. Further information on these criteria is available here: https://nationaltutoring.org.uk/tuition-partners/.

As well as working through established tutoring providers, the programme is happy to accept applications from other organisations, for example, associations of independent schools, who meet the necessary criteria.

Following feedback from schools, funding has also been provided directly to state-funded schools so that they can use their own staff for tutoring. Potential tutors are required to be qualified teachers or undertake bespoke training. Schools may engage tutors from their local networks, including from independent schools through new or pre-existing partnership arrangements.

A summary of a project commissioned by the department to understand fees paid by local authorities for children’s homes in England was published in November 2020. It can be found at this link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/analytical-associate-pool-summary-of-projects.

This reports a mean average fee for children’s homes of £3,962 per week.

The department does not collect data on the cost of boarding schools for children in care.

Since 17 May, all out of school settings, which includes youth residentials and summer camps, have been able to undertake residential visits for children. From 21 June, these settings have been able to do so in groups of 30 children, in line with the position for school residential visits. The Department has provided updated guidance on ‘Protective measures for holiday or after-school clubs and other out-of-school settings for children’, which sets out how providers can conduct residential visits safely. The guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/protective-measures-for-holiday-or-after-school-clubs-and-other-out-of-school-settings-for-children-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak.

Throughout the COVID-19 outbreak, the Government has listened carefully to the views of the scientific community, in particular from the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) and its subgroups, when taking decisions on the best way to tackle the COVID-19 outbreak. Gathering in larger groups, including as part of residential visits, does increase the risk of transmission. COVID-19 spreads more easily indoors, especially over prolonged periods, for example in shared sleeping arrangements, which increases the risk of residential visits. The Department continues to keep these restrictions under constant review and will ensure they remain proportionate to the threat to public health posed by COVID-19.

It is important that education and childcare settings continue to be supported with appropriate guidance on safety measures. The Department remains committed to ensuring that schools and colleges can effectively manage risks, create an inherently safer environment, and that we can maximise face-to-face education wherever possible. As new evidence or data emerges, the Government will act accordingly to ensure that all settings have the right safety measures in place.

The advice on residential visits will be reviewed again in advance of Step 4.

Rule 66 of the Highway Code recommends that bells are fitted and used as necessary. All bicycles are required at point of sale to be “fitted with a bell which is of a category intended for use on bicycles”. The Regulations do not compel cyclists to keep a bell fitted to the bicycle after purchase. The Government has no plans to make bells for bicycles mandatory.

The Department for Transport is rapidly developing plans for e-scooter trials, having recently consulted on this. Electric scooters used in trials will be required to have a bell or horn.

We are aware of reports of internal civilian displacement in the provinces of Papua and West Papua following recent violent clashes between separatists and Indonesian security forces. The UK fully respects the territorial integrity of Indonesia, including the provinces of Papua and West Papua. Within this framework, we strongly support the efforts of the Indonesian authorities and civil society to address the legitimate concerns of the people of Papua and West Papua provinces, including strengthening human rights protections, providing humanitarian assistance and ensuring that all Papuans benefit from the sustainable and equitable development of their province. We support the proposed visit of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to Papua and encourage both sides to agree on dates for a visit.

We are aware of reports of internal civilian displacement in the provinces of Papua and West Papua following recent violent clashes between separatists and Indonesian security forces. The UK fully respects the territorial integrity of Indonesia, including the provinces of Papua and West Papua. Within this framework, we strongly support the efforts of the Indonesian authorities and civil society to address the legitimate concerns of the people of Papua and West Papua provinces, including strengthening human rights protections, providing humanitarian assistance and ensuring that all Papuans benefit from the sustainable and equitable development of their province. We support the proposed visit of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to Papua and encourage both sides to agree on dates for a visit.

Of the 47 Member States of the Council of Europe, 46 have signed and ratified Protocol 15 amending the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. Italy is the only Member State that has signed but not yet ratified the protocol. I understand that the Government of Italy has assured the Council of Europe that the parliamentary procedures required for ratification are currently in progress, and that a date for discussion of Protocol 15 at the plenary of the Senate will be decided in due course.

We do not usually publish records of conversations - doing so may set a precedent whereby Her Majesty's Government is pressured to publish further conversations.

We are aware of the protests by students on 28 September 2020 at Cenderawasih University in Papua. We have not raised this specific case with the Indonesian authorities, but we regularly press them to address legitimate human rights concerns, including upholding the right of peaceful protest. The former Minister for Asia and the Pacific, Heather Wheeler, raised Papua with the Indonesian Deputy Foreign Minister, Mahendra Siregar, during her visit to Jakarta in January 2020.