Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what guidance has been issued to employers by (a) his Department and (b) the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service on whether staff who are on strike are permitted to work for other employers during periods of industrial action.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

No specific guidance has been issued to employers by the Department for Business and Trade or the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service on whether staff who are on strike are permitted to work for other employers during periods of industrial action.

The liability of a worker taking industrial action and working for another employer is likely to depend on their contract with their first employer and on how its terms apply to the circumstances.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the Freedom of Information Act disclosure reference FOI2025/09531 of 16 September 2025, whether payments have been made to Mr Money Jar for social media activity since July 2024, other than for the Living Wage campaign.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Since July 2024, no payments have been made by the Department for Business and Trade to Mr Money Jar for social media activity, other than the National Minimum and Living Wage campaign.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 11 September 2025 to Question 74315 on DBT: Social Media, how much has been spent since 4 July 2025; on what campaigns; and through what influencers.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Since 4 July 2025, no money has been spent on influencers by the Department for Business and Trade.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 11 September 2025 to Question 73349, on Unite: Conference Centres and Hotels, if he will publish a copy of the report that the Certification Officer received in the Library.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Certification Officer has no plans at present to publish the report authored by BDO auditors due to ongoing work. The report was provided to him in order to assist him in delivering his statutory obligations.

The Certification Officer has appointed an inspector to investigate the financial affairs of Unite the Union, including in respect of certain matters raised in the report referred to. Upon conclusion of the inspection, the Certification Officer will publish the inspector's report on his website.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will place in the Library copies of each HR Connect newsletter issued since 1 January 2025.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

HR Connect is an internal staff digital newsletter which provides updates and news relevant to civil servants in the People Function. As was the case under the previous administration, it is an internal document and therefore not intended for external publication

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the Public Office (Accountability) Bill on (a) the (i) processing and (ii) public interest considerations of Freedom of Information Act requests and (b) how Ministers reply to written Parliamentary Questions.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The provisions in the Public Office (Accountability) Bill are not intended to have any impact on the processing or public interest considerations of Freedom of Information Act requests. The Bill does not alter the existing law or guidance about how public authorities are required to respond to freedom of information requests or the expectations on ministers in replying to written Parliamentary Questions.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the (a) National Security Adviser or (b) his Deputies have discussed the Chinese Embassy with the Chinese Government.

Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)

The government has a clear and consistent policy not to comment on any of the NSA’s, or his deputies’, meetings with external parties, for obvious reasons to protect sensitive information pertaining to this country’s national security. This has been the case under successive governments.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to paragraph 2.43 of the Spring Statement 2025, CP 1298, published on 26 March 2025, how many civil servants have left through the employee exit scheme.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

Information on the number of civil servants that have left under employee exit schemes is not held centrally.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Government Response to the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament Report 'IRAN', published in September 2025, CP 1403, what information the Government holds on whether hostile actors from Iran have infiltrated Parliament through parliamentary staffers.

Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)

HMG does not routinely comment on the details of operational matters or specific threats.

However, we take all threats to national security, including those from Iran, incredibly seriously. Whilst the security of Parliament is a matter for the Parliament, HMG will do whatever is needed to help keep our democratic institutions safe from foreign interference and espionage threats.

This includes protecting them from malign Iranian influence activity in the UK, including placing the whole of the Iranian State- including Iran’s intelligence services- on the enhanced tier of the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme. This means that those who are directed by Iran to conduct activities in the UK must register that activity, whatever it is, or face 5 years in prison.

On 13 October, MI5’s National Protective Security Authority published new guidance to better protect the UK’s democratic institutions from all foreign interference and espionage threats.The guidance is designed to help MPs, peers, councillors, Parliamentary staff and candidates understand the threat and take simple, effective steps to protect themselves, their teams, and the integrity of the UK’s democracy.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to Answer of 11 September 2025 to Question 73326 on NHS: Strikes, whether more detailed guidance has been provided by (a) NHS England and (b) his Department on this matter.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Further guidance is provided for employers by NHS Employers and doctors should reference the Good Medical Practice Guide outlined by the General Medical Council (GMC) when making decisions about working during periods of strike action.

Information for employers can be found here:

https://www.nhsemployers.org/articles/industrial-action-guidance-resources-and-faqs

Information for doctors can be found here:

https://www.gmc-uk.org/professional-standards/ethical-hub/industrial-action

The GMC guidance states that if a doctor is due to work but is not attending due to strike action, it is advised that the doctor still prepares and remains available during their scheduled working hours to respond appropriately if circumstances change during a period of industrial action.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 3 in the section entitled Civil Servants of the the Cabinet Office publication entitled Annual party conferences 2025, updated on 8 September 2025, how many civil servants in her Department have been permitted to attend (a) Labour Party Conference, (b) Conservative Party Conference, (c) Liberal Democrat Party Conference, (d) SNP Party Conference and (e) Reform Party Conference this year.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Permanent Secretary’s Office did not receive any requests to grant permission to attend any party conferences from HMT officials in 2025, in either an official or personal capacity.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 11 September 2025 to Question 73348 on Companies: Registration, for what reason Companies House recognised Palestinian as a nationality before the UK Government formally recognised the state of Palestine; and what is the wider policy of Companies House for what nationalities are recognised where there is no formal recognition by the UK Government.

Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

‘Palestinian’ has been included in the Companies House list of nationalities for many years. This guidance was last reviewed in 2017, at which point Palestinian was retained on the list.

Nationalities and countries for company filings - GOV.UK

The current policy is to accept a nationality which matches a nationality on this list.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has had discussions with (a) Larry Ellison and (b) Oracle on Digital ID Cards.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

We are not talking to Larry Ellison or Oracle about digital ID.

Throughout the development of the new digital ID, the Government will work closely with expert stakeholders, including civil society groups, technology companies and industry bodies to make it as effective and inclusive as possible.

The Digital ID will be designed, built and run by government digital teams. Any additional specialist external services that may be needed to support delivery will be subject to the usual competitive processes.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the US Government will be charged for use of the military base on Diego Garcia under the terms of the draft UK-Mauritius Treaty.

Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK does not charge the US Government for the use of the military base on Diego Garcia and does not intend to do so. The US pays for the significant operating and maintenance costs of the base and the UK benefits considerably from this arrangement.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the incidence of B-Corp status resulting in financial divestment in the defence industry.

Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

HM Treasury is aware that, in particular, SMEs and startups operating in the defence sector face barriers to accessing finance and MOD contracts, which is why the recent Defence Industrial Strategy established a new Defence Office for Small Business Growth to improve access to finance, set up a dedicated SME Commercial Pathway, and set ambitious targets for increasing MOD spending with SMEs.

The recent deal with Norway worth £10bn is testament to the UK’s global competitiveness.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many (a) disciplinary actions and (b) dismissals of HMRC officials have there been for unauthorised access to personal data since 1 July 2024.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

HMRC takes the security of customer data extremely seriously. Its Systems Audit and Data Analyst (SADA) team have robust systems in place to monitor staff use of systems and to identify any unauthorised access.

When staff are inducted, HMRC gives them clear guidance and information on the use of corporate systems. There are clear processes and policies published that remind staff of their continuing obligations. HMRC also provides annual mandatory learning for all its staff on data security to remind them of their obligations.

HMRC take unauthorised access and the protection of customer data very seriously. When a case of unauthorised access is identified, it is automatically investigated as potential gross misconduct, which means it could lead to the employee’s dismissal (a single offence can result in dismissal).

Since 1^st July 24 to 15^th October 2025 there have 81 cases concluded with a case category of unauthorised access. This has resulted in:

22 resignations

52 dismissals

6 final written warning

1 first written warning

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 9 September 2025 to Question 71234 on Cabinet Office: Electronic Purchasing Card Solution, for what reason her Department organised a training event for 70 Philippines officials in Manila; and what was the topic of the training.

Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

The training showcased British expertise and standards in sustainable infrastructure, shared UK best practice in infrastructure planning, design, finance and delivery, demonstrating the quality and innovation of British approaches that are helping to drive growth and opportunity at home. By sharing proven UK standards, the event strengthened the UK's position as a trusted infrastructure partner whilst exploring opportunities for future collaboration that could benefit British businesses, expertise and economic interests.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish any guidance issued to departments on producing internal Outcome Delivery Plans.

Answered by Josh Simons - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

As part of this year’s Spending Review, we committed to a new planning and performance framework by the Autumn Budget. This will confirm our approach to how departments should plan and manage performance in the future.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 2 September 2025 to Question 70506 on Cabinet Office: Contracts, whether the Crown Commercial Service has made an estimate of the number of suppliers increasing prices as a result of the increase in National Insurance.

Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Crown Commercial Service (CCS) does not hold information that would show whether suppliers have increased prices in response to the April 2025 National Insurance rise, so cannot make an estimate. Pricing under CCS arrangements is determined at contract level by contracting authorities.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether digital ID cards will have centralised logging and verification; and whether public bodies will have access to metadata logs.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government has announced plans for a new digital ID to be available to UK citizens and legal residents aged 16 and over. It will be designed with privacy at its core and will follow existing industry standards for security. This includes established standards for cyber security, counter-fraud and data storage.

The new service will follow UK GDPR and privacy principles to only collect and store the minimum data required. The Government will start a public consultation on the new digital ID by the end of the year to further inform our approach.

Following the Machinery of Government changes of 23/10/2025 policy responsibility now sits with the Cabinet Office.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his Department's press release entitled Civil Service staff networks to only meet outside working hours and have all events signed off by senior managers, published on 23 September 2025, whether guidance on staff diversity networks will be issued to (a) local government, (b) the police, (c) the NHS, (d) the armed forces and (e) other parts of the public sector.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

The Cabinet Office does not have responsibility for public sector organisations outside of the Civil Service.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his Department's press release entitled Civil Service staff networks to only meet outside working hours and have all events signed off by senior managers, published on 23 September 2025, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of that policy on the provisions on trade union equality representatives in the Employment Rights Bill.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

Civil Service staff networks are separate to trade union activities and duties carried out by trade union representatives in the Civil Service. As such the Civil Service Staff Network Policy does not apply to its trade union representatives.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 2 September 2025 to Question 69366 on 9 Downing Street: Repairs and Maintenance, what the provisional cost of the works approved is.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

A one-off refresh of the facility was undertaken in December 2024. This has restored the room back to its original politically neutral state. The indicative cost of these works was up to £80,000, as was reported at the time of undertaking the work. The final cost of these works will be published in due course in Cabinet Office transparency returns, when the invoice is submitted and paid.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 25 September 2025 to Question 74509 on Members: Pay, whether the pay freeze for ministers who continue to claim a lower salary to their entitlement under law will be maintained for Ministers who are Members of the (a) House of Commons and (b) House of Lords for the rest of this Parliament.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

The pay freeze for ministers remains in place.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 3 September 2025 to Question 70476 on UK Multi-Stakeholder Forum for Open Government, for what reason that forum has not met in 2025.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

The next MSF is being organised to take place before the end of 2025. There have been no meetings of the MSF thus far in 2025 due to a Machinery of Government change which moved the former Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO) from Cabinet Office to the Department for Science Innovation and Technology. CDDO was the business unit previously responsible for open government policy, but this responsibility has now transferred to the Civil Service Strategy Unit within Cabinet Office.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of section 1 of the Public Office (Accountability) Bill on judicial reviews of (a) public bodies and (b) Ministerial decisions.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

Clause 1 of the Public Office (Accountability) Bill sets out that the purpose of the Bill is to ensure that public authorities and public officials at all times perform their functions (a) with candour, transparency and frankness, and (b) in the public interest. Clause 1 then sets out how the remainder of the Bill achieves that purpose.

Clause 1 does not in itself establish new obligations subject to judicial review.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the National Audit Office's report entitled Government exits and redundancies, published in September 2025, if he will publish the latest dataset on civil service exit scheme applications provided to the National Audit Office by his Department.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

Data contained in the current National Audit Office’s (NAO’s) Good Practice Guide was provided to the NAO to help explain the context of the guidance that the NAO has issued.

There are no plans to publish further data as this information is held by individual departments, and will be reported in their Annual Report and Accounts.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to page 169 of the Home Office Annual report and accounts 2024-25, HC 1133, published in July 2025, and page 170 of the Home Office Annual report and accounts 2023-24, HC 184, published in July 2024, what was the business case for the increase (a) in trade union facility time from £1,134,980 in 2023-24 to £1,424,127 in 2024-25, and (b) to FTE numbers of 387 facility time staff; and whether ministers authorised the increase.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The number of Home Office employees elected/appointed to trade union representative positions is for individual trade unions to determine. Additionally, there is no requirement for ministers to authorise increases in the cost of facility time, but, in line with a facility time framework provided to Civil Service departments under the previous administration, if the cost of facility time were to exceed 0.1% of the paybill that would require Secretary of State approval. The cost of facility time in the Home Office in percentage terms was the same in 2024-25 as it was in 2023-24 (0.05%).

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 10 September 2025 to Question 76302 on Lord Mandelson, whether Lord Mandelson's mailbox during his time as Business Secretary, held by Integrated Corporate Services, holds (a) information and (b) correspondence relating to (i) Jeffery Epstein and (ii) the sale of Sempra Commodities to JP Morgan.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Integrated Corporate Services (ICS) do not hold any records of information or correspondence from Lord Mandelson’s mailbox relating to Jeffrey Epstein or the sale of Sempra Commodities.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the minimum level of security vetting is for people taking part in civil service internship schemes.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

All Fast Stream Summer Interns will complete the Baseline Personal Security Standard (BPSS) checks as part of their onboarding. Candidates will be put forward for higher levels of clearance if their placement requires it. It is a condition of employment that candidates are required to successfully obtain all necessary levels of clearance prior to taking up their placement.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to page 91 of his Department’s Annual Report and Accounts 2024-25, published on 15 September 2025, HC 1274, for what reason was facility time increased from £49,777 in 2023-24 to £69,892 in 2024-25; what was the increase in facility time as a proportion of the pay bill; and what assessment he has made of the potential merits of funding trade union activities from facility time.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The increase results from an increased headcount and pay bill in the department; ongoing transformation work necessitating high levels of Trade Union engagement and increased engagement following the change of Government in July 2024.

The increase in pay bill from 2023/24 to 2024/25, accounted for 0.0058% of the 2024/25 paybill.

No assessment has been made.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what data sources have been used to train the Parlex AI tool on forecasting parliamentary reactions; and whether a data privacy impact assessment has been produced.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Parlex tool has not been trained as a new AI model, nor does it involve the development of a novel forecasting system. Instead, it is a search and analysis tool that enables users to research existing parliamentary records to support policy development and parliamentary handling.

Parlex uses only publicly available parliamentary data, including Hansard transcripts, Parliamentary Questions, and Select Committee materials. All tools developed by the Incubator for AI, including Parlex, are assured in line with government guidelines, which include data protection assessments.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions he has had with Ofcom on the use of third-party providers to (a) assess, (b) index and (c) identify disinformation.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

DSIT’s National Security Online Information Team (NSOIT) leads the operational response to information threats, including disinformation, capable of posing a risk to UK public safety and national security. Information on contracts awarded by the department to third-party contractors to support this activity is available on GOV.UK.

Details about Ministerial meetings are published quarterly on GOV.UK.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether his Department uses third-party providers to (a) assess, (b) index and (c) identify disinformation.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

DSIT’s National Security Online Information Team (NSOIT) leads the operational response to information threats, including disinformation, capable of posing a risk to UK public safety and national security. Information on contracts awarded by the department to third-party contractors to support this activity is available on GOV.UK.

Details about Ministerial meetings are published quarterly on GOV.UK.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what is the statutory basis of the work of the National Security and Online Information Team.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The National Security Online Information Team (NSOIT) leads the department’s operational response to information threats which present a public safety or national security risk to UK audiences, working closely with other departments including the Home Office and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

The team's remit and work is kept under review by DSIT ministers who remain accountable to parliament, including regarding the work of the NSOIT.

Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Solicitor General, whether the law officers plans to seek to negotiate reforms of the European Convention of Human Rights at Council of Europe level.

Answered by Ellie Reeves - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)

As the Prime Minister has made clear, the United Kingdom will not withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights. To leave would be entirely contrary to this country’s national interest.

We need to work with our friends and partners in Europe to tackle all our major issues from irregular migration to combatting climate change. The solutions to these problems will not be met by isolating ourselves from our allies. But the status quo is not an option, and we are looking at various options to modernise our approach both domestically and internationally to the Convention.

As Chief Legal Advisors to Government, any advice that might be given by the Law Officers would be protected by the Law Officers’ Convention.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Government Response to the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament Report on Iran, published on 4 September 2025, what is the timetable for the review on vetting policy by the Government Security Group.

Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)

Security vetting policy and processes are kept under constant review by the Government Security Group (GSG) in the Cabinet Office. This ongoing review is designed to ensure security vetting policy and processes are fit for purpose, to provide the greatest possible assurance for all individuals, including parliamentary staffers.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what is the Office for National Statistics’ National Statistics Socio-economic classification of (a) Members of Parliament and (b) peers in receipt of the Writ of Summons.

Answered by Josh Simons - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Questions of 21st October is attached.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether (a) the Social Mobility Commission and (b) Office for National Statistics classifies police officers as (i) working class.

Answered by Josh Simons - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Questions of 21st October is attached.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the award of Contract_17123 for the Test, Learn and Grow Strategic Delivery Partner, what portion of the contract is retained by Bloom Procurement Services Ltd in (a) management fees, (b) commission and (c) administrative charges.

Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Cabinet Office appointed Bloom Procurement Services Ltd as a Strategic Sourcing Partner for the Professional Services Category in September 2023, under the previous government. A Managed Services Fee of 5% is applicable for all Work Orders procured through this framework.

The Cabinet Office procured this contract following a full options analysis and value for money exercise of all potential routes to market.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the security of A2P messaging used for two-factor authentication by gov.uk websites.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Security is a key priority for all government services, alongside accessibility and inclusion (i.e. points 4, 5 and 9 of the Service Standard). There isn't a cross-government standard or mandate, as use of A2P depends on the particular needs and user base of individual services. While there are more secure methods of 2FA / MFA, use of A2P for 2FA significantly reduces the risk of account compromise and ensures the widest compatibility and usability across all user bases.

Though we note that the NCSC has affirmed it's acceptable as a second factor in certain cases.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether the Climate Change Committee is subject to (a) the Civil Service Code and (b) guidance from the (i) Cabinet Office and (ii) Government Communication Service on political impartiality.

Answered by Katie White - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

As an independent, statutory body, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) is not subject to the Civil Service Code. Board Members are expected to adhere to the Cabinet Office's code of conduct for Board Members of public bodies, as well as other central guidance around conduct. Staff are subject to the CCC's own code of conduct. There is a long-standing principle that public bodies must be politically impartial, and all public bodies must comply with the rules on lobbying, attendance at party conference, advertising, marketing and PR.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the ContractFinder entry entitled Disinformation Analysis Software awarded to Storyzy, award date 1 July 2025, for what reasons does her Department use this software.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

DSIT leads the operational response to information threats by analysing narratives and trends from publicly available information online, within its ministerially defined remit - public safety or national security risk to the UK.

This does not include the monitoring of individuals.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to transparency data on FCDO ministerial meetings, April to June 2025, published on 25 September 2025, if she will publish the minutes of the ministerial meeting with the TUC on 16 June 2025; and whether the recognition of Palestine was discussed in that meeting.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

As has been the case under successive governments, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office does not routinely publish the details of meetings with external bodies.

Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Solicitor General, whether the Attorney General held discussions with the (a) CPS and (b) Director of Public Prosecutions on the available evidence prior to the decision not to proceed with prosecution in the case on Chinese espionage.

Answered by Ellie Reeves - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)

Decisions to prosecute are, rightly, made independently of Government by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

Consent was given by my predecessor on 3 April 2024. Following that date, no Law Officer intervened in the case at any stage.

Where a case can no longer proceed because of evidential reasons, as in this case, then the requirement is that the CPS informs the Attorney General of the decision as soon as it is taken.

The decision to offer no evidence was a decision made by the CPS, without any political influence, by the Attorney General or me, as the CPS has already confirmed.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 3 September 2025 to Question 70517 on Government Departments: Directors, which departments did the five leave from; and what was the cost to the public purse of exit packages.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

Although the directors may have left their post, they have not necessarily left their organisation, or the Civil Service.

The Government Departments were:

• Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

• Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

• Department for Education

• Department for Business and Trade

• Department for Science, Innovation and Technology

Any cost to the public purse would not be centrally held as directors are directly employed by their department.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answers of 26 September 2025, to Questions 75632, 74515, 74202, on Civil Service: Unpaid Work, whether the Office for National Statistics classifies the occupations of (a) tool-makers, (b) factory owners, (c) Members of Parliament, (d) Ministers of the Crown and (e) civil servants as working class under the NS-SEC framework.

Answered by Josh Simons - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 22nd October is attached.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 7 July 2025 to Question 63340 on Civil Servants: Location, if he will publish the Civil Service relocation policy released by Cabinet Office under the Freedom of Information Act, ref: FOI2025/12570 of 28 August 2025.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

We will place a copy of the Cabinet Office's relocation policy, as released in FOI2025/12570, in the Library of the House. The policy in question applies only to Cabinet Office staff rather than the wider Civil Service.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 16 September 2025 to Question 75447on Trade Union Officials: Facility Agreements, whether the Cabinet Office guidance on facility time has changed since July 2024; what is the maximum permitted amount of facility time as percentage of the overall paybill.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

The Cabinet Office guidance on facility time has not changed since July 2024. The guidance states that facility time costs in the Civil Service should not represent more than 0.1% of a department’s paybill.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his Department's press release entitled Civil Service staff networks to only meet outside working hours and have all events signed off by senior managers, published on 23 September 2025, what approvals have been given in (a) his Department and (b) the Office for Equality and Opportunity since 23 September 2025.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

The cross Civil Service Network Policy applies as published to all cross-Civil Service Staff Networks only.

However it also acts as a model policy for Departments to adopt or adapt depending on business needs for their departmental networks. The Cabinet Office is now working to be able to adopt this policy for internal departmental networks and will carry out their own engagement with internal stakeholders to be able to adopt the policy.

The sign off and approval process for events will be part of this policy development for the Cabinet Office.The guidance will apply to all networks in Cabinet Office.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 21 July 2025 to Question 67904 on Universities: Fees and Charges, whether the European Commission has requested that EU students be given home fee status under the proposed UK-EU youth mobility scheme.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

We have agreed, under the UK-EU Common Understanding, that we will work towards the establishment of a balanced youth experience scheme with the EU. We have agreed that any scheme will be capped and participants’ visas time-limited. We have not agreed to offer home fee status to EU students. We have also been clear that it should be in line with the UK’s existing schemes with countries like Australia and New Zealand. The exact parameters are subject to discussion and we cannot give a running commentary of ongoing negotiations.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether any guidance has been issued to (a) Ministers and (b) special advisers on (i) ministerial and (ii) special adviser conduct during the Labour Party deputy leadership contest in addition to existing (A) ministerial and (B) special adviser codes.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

Ministers, special advisers and civil servants are expected to adhere to their respective codes of conduct at all times and a reminder of these obligations in the context of the deputy leadership elections was provided.

Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Solicitor General, if she will publish legal advice provided to the Crown Prosecution Service on the case relating to the alleged breach of Official Secrets Act on behalf of China.

Answered by Ellie Reeves - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)

Decisions to prosecute are, rightly, made independently of Government by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

Consent was given by my predecessor on 3 April 2024. Following that date, no Law Officer intervened in the case at any stage.

Where a case can no longer proceed because of evidential reasons, as in this case, then the requirement is that the CPS informs the Attorney General of the decision as soon as it is taken.

The decision to offer no evidence was a decision made by the CPS, without any political influence, by the Attorney General or me, as the CPS has already confirmed.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of (a) the cyber-security of services provided to the Government by Global Switch, (b) the potential implications of its Chinese ownership for national security and (c) the decision of the Australian Government to stop using the company.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

We do not comment on specific national security cases or specific companies.

Ensuring the security of UK data is a priority for the government. When the government procures any service, cybersecurity is a paramount requirement. Government departments conduct thorough cybersecurity checks on all suppliers before sharing data and continuously monitor their compliance with these requirements throughout the contract's duration. If there is evidence of threats to our data, including in relation to data centres, we will not hesitate to take the necessary action to protect our national security.

We have taken decisive action to monitor, and mitigate, potential future threats to data centres. Last year this Government designated data centres as Critical National Infrastructure, putting them on a level footing with emergency services systems. We work closely with industry to understand risks and manage threats to the UK’s infrastructure.

We do not comment on the security decisions of other governments.

Question

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, with reference to the style guide entitled Writing about ethnicity, updated in October 2024, for what reason references to travellers were capitalised.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

In October 2024, the style guide ‘Writing about ethnicity’ on the Ethnicity facts and figures website was updated. While the guide makes no direct reference to the capitalisation of references to Travellers, a capital letter was used to align with the Government Analysis Function's harmonised standard for ethnicity, based on the 2011 Census.

This standard is also followed by the Office for National Statistics in its service manual.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will publish the letter of 16 May 2025 from FCDO staff to the former Foreign Secretary on HM Government's Middle East policy.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

It is a long-standing principle that Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office staff should be free to express their views internally without concern that their views will be made public.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 14 October 2025 to Question HL10630, on Lord Mandelson, what role her Department played in the due diligence undertaken prior to the appointment of the former Ambassador to the United States.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer provided on 22nd September to question 74188.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether Inter-Mediate has received funding from the Government for work on (a) China and (b) North Korea.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the answer he was provided on 25 September to Question 70454.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make it his policy to review his Department's guidance entitled Government Function: People – Continuous Improvement Assessment guidance, in the context of the judgment of the Supreme Court in For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers [2025] UKSC 16.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

A Continuous Improvement Assessment Framework is a management tool designed to provide consistent, comparable management information that supports functional assurance and continuous improvement.

We will review and update policy wherever necessary to ensure it complies with the latest legal requirements.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the Model Contract for Senior Civil Servants.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

Contracts for SCS are not published publicly, so we will not be publishing a model contract.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the recruitment process was for her Department's new Permanent Secretary; and whether he plans to publish any declarations of interest.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The new Permanent Secretary for the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, was recruited under a fair and open competition managed by the Cabinet Office. Any declarations of interest will be made, published and updated in accordance with Cabinet Office guidance.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether Policy Lab will fund the MANIFEST programme in 2025-26.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

There are currently no commitments by Policy Lab to fund the MANIFEST programme further in 2025/26.