Question

To ask the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent and Rhymney, representing the House of Commons Commission, pursuant to the Answer of 28 April 2025 to Question 44585 on Winston Churchill: Artworks, which Members’ offices removed the portrait of Churchill; and whether the decision was requested by the hon. Member.

Answered by Nick Smith

Artworks are removed from offices during dissolution and the General Election to mitigate risk to the collection during this busy period and to ensure availability of suitable works to meet Member requests for office hangs upon their election.

Between June and October 2024, the Heritage Collections team moved over 1100 artworks to facilitate dissolution works and election changes. This included seven portraits of Churchill: four from offices of Members, or their staff, who were not returned at the election; two from Members who were returned at the election; and one for conservation. Those removals were not, therefore, requested by the Members who had previously been allocated those offices. One of those works has subsequently been requested for another Member’s office; the other five remain available for Members to request.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 2 May 2025 to Question 48042 on Great British Energy: Staff, if he will publish the declaration of interests of each of those appointments; and which of those appointments are regulated public appointments.

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

All appointments were direct appointments, based on Great British Energy’s (GBE) set-up phase needs.

All appointees have declared their interests to the Department as part of the appointment process. The Department and GBE are both committed to transparent and accountable governance and will publish expectations to this end in GBE's framework document later this year.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department has taken to improve transparency in the decision making process for foreign acquisitions of UK firms under the National Security and Investment Act 2021.

Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Transparency is a crucial part of the National Security and Investment (NSI) Act 2021, whilst also balancing commercial and national security considerations.

Information related to publication of final orders is available on GOV.UK. The government also publishes annual reports to provide information about the transactions that it has been notified about and those it subsequently called in for a national security assessment.

Extensive guidance is available on GOV.UK to help those interested understand how they may be affected by the Act, including the NSI Section 3 Statement, which sets out how the government expects to exercise its call-in power under the NSI regime.

Decisions made under the Act may be subject to judicial review.

By providing businesses and investors with legally defined timelines and processes for decisions on acquisitions, the Act seeks to protect the UK’s national security whilst giving businesses the certainty they need to invest and help to grow the economy.

We keep the NSI Act under regular review to ensure it is working effectively.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the records of the (a) Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals, (b) Royal Visits Committee and (c) Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures are reviewed for permanent preservation under section 3 of the Public Records Act 1958; and whether their transfer to the National Archives is governed by an Operational Selection Policy agreed with the Keeper of Public Records in each case.

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

The Cabinet Office's Records Selection policy, which has been agreed with The National Archives, has been published on the Cabinet Office website. (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/679108aeb1e4f5cbd3a34dfd/Cabinet_Office_Records_Selection_Policy.pdf)

This sets out the criteria for selecting Cabinet Office records for permanent preservation.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 10 April 2025 to Question HL6032 on Arms Length Bodies, for what reason the Answer refers to 26 proposed public bodies.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Cabinet Office works closely with departments that are developing proposals for new arm's-length bodies (ALBs) and the list referenced in the answer on 10 April 2025 is the list of proposals which may end up going through the ALB approval process. Not all proposals will go forward or meet the requirements to successfully be established as an ALB.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Government has amended its risk assessment criteria for foreign-state linked acquisition companies under the National Security and Investment Act since 5 July 2024.

Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Transparency is a crucial part of the National Security and Investment (NSI) Act 2021, whilst also balancing commercial and national security considerations.

Information related to publication of final orders is available on GOV.UK. The government also publishes annual reports to provide information about the transactions that it has been notified about and those it subsequently called in for a national security assessment.

Extensive guidance is available on GOV.UK to help those interested understand how they may be affected by the Act, including the NSI Section 3 Statement, which sets out how the government expects to exercise its call-in power under the NSI regime.

Decisions made under the Act may be subject to judicial review.

By providing businesses and investors with legally defined timelines and processes for decisions on acquisitions, the Act seeks to protect the UK’s national security whilst giving businesses the certainty they need to invest and help to grow the economy.

We keep the NSI Act under regular review to ensure it is working effectively.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department plans to expand the methods by which UK companies can appeal decisions made by the Government under the powers of the National Security and Investment Act 2021.

Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Transparency is a crucial part of the National Security and Investment (NSI) Act 2021, whilst also balancing commercial and national security considerations.

Information related to publication of final orders is available on GOV.UK. The government also publishes annual reports to provide information about the transactions that it has been notified about and those it subsequently called in for a national security assessment.

Extensive guidance is available on GOV.UK to help those interested understand how they may be affected by the Act, including the NSI Section 3 Statement, which sets out how the government expects to exercise its call-in power under the NSI regime.

Decisions made under the Act may be subject to judicial review.

By providing businesses and investors with legally defined timelines and processes for decisions on acquisitions, the Act seeks to protect the UK’s national security whilst giving businesses the certainty they need to invest and help to grow the economy.

We keep the NSI Act under regular review to ensure it is working effectively.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 10 October 2024 to Question 5278 on Cabinet Office: Departmental responsibilities, whether he plans any further changes.

Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Any such changes would be announced in the normal way.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Prime Minister has scheduled a meeting with the Intelligence and Security Committee.

Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Prime Minister has written to the Intelligence and Security Committee inviting members to a meeting at 10 Downing Street. Cabinet Office officials are working with the Office of the Intelligence and Security Committee to arrange a suitable date.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he plans to increase the level of (a) staffing and (b) other support to the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament.

Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

We are engaging constructively with the Intelligence and Security Committee and will continue to do so over the coming months.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many permanent civil servants in her Department are staff without assigned posts; and how many are placed in an equivalent (a) people action team, (b) priority movers list, (c) redeployment register, (d) talent pool and (e) skills match hub in the most recent period for which data is available.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

There are 11 permanent civil servants in The Department for Work and Pensions without assigned posts as of 15/05/2025.

These are all held on a priority movers list to enable matching against suitable roles and are also on the redeployment register which is shared with Other Government Departments to seek redeployment.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 7 April 2025 to Question 40621 on DHSC: Translation Services, if he will list the foreign languages that were translated into in that year; and what publications were translated into foreign languages.

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

During 2024, translation services work by the Department, for languages other than English, comprised a translation of the Health and Care Act 2022 from English into Welsh and a translation of the consultation document for the Healthy Start initiative from English into Welsh.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of redundancies arising from the abolition of NHS England.

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

Ministers and senior Department officials will work with the new executive team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to lead the formation of a new joint centre.

The abolition of NHS England will strip out the unnecessary bureaucracy and cut the duplication that comes from having two organisations doing the same job. We will empower staff to focus on delivering better care for patients, driving productivity up, and getting waiting times down. As part of these changes, we intend to reduce the headcount across the Department and NHS England, with further details to become available as we take the programme forward.

These changes are no reflection of the tireless work carried out by talented professionals across the health sector. These changes are about forming a more agile and efficient system, in the interests of patients and the public.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has provided guidance to the police on pro-Palestinian encampments at universities.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)

The College of Policing is responsible for providing guidance to police.

The College’s Public Order Public Safety authorised professional practice covers a wide range of events and operations, including protests and disorder.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 28 April 2025 to Question 44594 on Ministers: Aviation, how many of the five tasks were (a) domestic flights within Great Britain and (b) flights from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.

Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

None. All tasks were outside of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many RAF Envoy IV flights have been provided to (a) the Prime Minister and (b) other Ministers for domestic travel since 4 July 2025.

Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

It has been the practice of successive administrations not to publish granular information relating to the official movements of Ministers and those accompanying them within the United Kingdom. Information about official overseas travel is published as part of the Cabinet Office transparency returns and made available on the GOV.UK website.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many (a) Permanent Secretary and (b) Second Permanent Secretary roles are (i) being advertised through open and fair competition, (ii) have advertised but the recruitment is now closed and the appointment has not yet been made, (iii) are being advertised only internally and (iv) are unfilled with no recruitment process.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

There are six Permanent Secretary roles currently being advertised through fair and open competition: five have closed and waiting final interviews, and one is live on CS Jobs.

There is one Permanent Secretary level role that has been advertised internally only (Secret Intelligence Service).

There is one Second Permanent Secretary role (DSIT) that is currently unfilled with no recruitment process underway.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many civil service roles for the Mission Boards are unfilled.

Answered by Ellie Reeves - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

Delivering the Missions is a task for the entire government. The Prime Minister has established five Mission Boards which bring together ministers from across government to drive progress on missions. They are chaired by the respective lead Secretaries of State, and attendance varies depending on the topic being discussed by the Board. As such, there are no unfilled civil service roles for the Mission Boards.

Directors General (DGs) have been appointed as Senior Responsible Officers for each of the Missions. Relevant departments are responsible for resourcing the delivery of policies and programmes related to the Missions. The Cabinet Office’s Mission Delivery Unit works in partnership with the Missions to support delivery and drive progress.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what (a) discussions and (b) correspondence staff in 10 Downing Street have had with (i) Tony Blair and (ii) the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change on (A) identity cards and (B) climate change since July 2024.

Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Relevant meetings are declared in transparency publications.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the (a) electricity, (b) gas and (b) water utilities of the Admiralty House residences are individually metered.

Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Utilities in Admiralty House residences are not individually metered.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 7 May 2025 to Question 48564 on Advisory Committee on Business Appointments and House of Lords Appointments Commission, what his planned timetable is for the recruitment of permanent members to those bodies.

Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Ministers are considering the next steps for the recruitment of a permanent Chair to the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments and for the recruitment of independent members to the House of Lords Appointments Commission. Updates on these campaigns will be made in due course.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether trade union activity must be declared by people who are appointed to regulated public appointments.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Governance Code on Public Appointments requires that candidates for regulated public appointments must be asked to declare potential conflicts of interest in their application. It is the responsibility of the Advisory Assessment Panel to satisfy itself that all candidates for appointment can meet the standards set out in the Seven Principles of Public Life and have no conflicts of interest that would call into question their ability to perform the role. All potential conflicts of interest and how they might be managed must be discussed with an individual during the interview. A potential conflict should not preclude a candidate from being shortlisted or appointed provided that appropriate arrangements are made.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 10 April 2025 to Question HL6032 on Arm's Length Bodies, whether the Child Protection Authority for England will be a new public body.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for the Home Office, Minister Jess Phillips, announced on 8 April that the Government will establish a new Child Protection Authority which will be delivered from within the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel. It is not currently planned to be an arm’s-length body.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of China General Nuclear Power Corporation’s involvement in the construction of Hinkley Point C on cyber-security.

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

To build and operate a nuclear site, a security plan, which includes cyber security, must be put in place and approved by the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR). The ONR, an independent regulator, then ensures that plan is effectively enforced.

The security of nuclear facilities will continue to remain paramount for ONR and Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 10 April 2025 to Question 42045 on Cabinet Office: Buildings, what the condition is of the building at 36 Whitehall.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

36 Whitehall requires major repairs to bring back into use. Options for the future use of the building continue to be discussed as part of plans for the Government’s London office estate, with any final decisions being made as part of the ongoing Spending Review process.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 1 May 2025 to Question 48561 on Data, Statistics and Research on Sex and Gender Independent Review, if he will ask the (a) National Statistician and (b) Chief Executive of UK Statistics Authority to publish a response to the recommendations once they have considered the report.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The UK Statistics Authority (UKSA), including the Office for National Statistics (ONS), is a Non Ministerial Department and is accountable to the UK Parliament, the Scottish Parliament, the Sennedd and the Northern Ireland Executive.

As an independent statutory body, it is a matter for the UKSA and the ONS as to how they choose to respond to the independent review of data, statistics and research on sex and gender that was published by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology on 19 March 2025.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his Department's guidance entitled Non-Executive Board Member declaration of interests process, published on 28 November 2024, para 37, when he plans to publish the interests of board members.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Non-Executive Board Member interests will be published in the coming weeks. The most recent publication of interests was in November 2024 (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-register-of-board-members-interests-2023-to-2024/cabinet-office-register-of-board-members-interests-2023-to-2024)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which public bodies are affiliated to the Government Communication Service.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Government Communication Service (GCS) is the professional body for public service communicators working across central Government, Arms Length Bodies, Agencies, and other public bodies. The role of GCS is to support ministers' priorities, enable effective operation of public services, and ensure people have access to the information they need from the Government.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what information his Department holds on the number of civil servants who are (a) EU and (b) Turkish nationals.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

While pre-employment right to work checks verify civil servants meet the Civil Service Nationality Rules, which includes permitting the right to work in the UK Civil Service to certain EEA and Turkish nationals, once that process is complete we do not retain this information.

However, Civil Service workforce data including sex, religion, ethnicity, and more, is stored, and is published annually in the Statistical bulletin - Civil Service Statistics on GOV.UK.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many civil servants are (a) EU and (b) Turkish nationals.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

While pre-employment right to work checks verify civil servants meet the Civil Service Nationality Rules, which includes permitting the right to work in the UK Civil Service to certain EEA and Turkish nationals, once that process is complete we do not retain this information.

However, Civil Service workforce data including sex, religion, ethnicity, and more, is stored, and is published annually in the Statistical bulletin - Civil Service Statistics on GOV.UK.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people have been recruited to the Civil Service in roles that permit full-time home working in the last 12 months.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Cabinet Office does not hold this data as decisions about their workforce and working arrangements are delegated to individual departments.

Civil Service leaders are clear that civil servants should be in the workplace where needed to drive delivery and they should adhere to their contractual obligations. Workplace attendance has an important role in effective service delivery to the public as reflected in the 60% office attendance expectation for all office based civil servants.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Answer of 10 April 2025 to Question HL6032 on Arms Length Bodies, what the target date is for each of the proposed public bodies to be operational.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Individual departments are responsible for completion of the approval process and any necessary legislation for proposed arm’s-length bodies (ALBs) to become operational. The Cabinet Office does not collect projected launch dates for new bodies.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Cabinet Office Public Bodies Team has assessed the Ethics and Integrity Commission against the requirement that the creation of a new arm's-length body should only be considered as a last resort; and whether his Department has provided evidence that alternative delivery models are being considered.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Any proposals to create new public bodies will be considered by the government’s ongoing review of all ALBs, announced on 7 April. This review is part of the government’s plan to streamline the state by closing, merging or repatriating public bodies into departments unless their separate existence can be strongly justified.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 6 May 2025 to Question 49055 on Government Departments: Equality, if he will publish the facility time framework.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

A copy of the Facility Time Framework and its supporting guidance has been deposited in the House Library.

Question

To ask the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent and Rhymney, representing the House of Commons Commission, pursuant to the Answer of 23 April 2025 to Question 44587 on Parliamentary Estates: Artworks, what the (a) nature, (b) title and (c) artist is of each item that was (i) installed and (ii) removed since (A) dissolution of the previous Parliament and (B) 4 July 2024.

Answered by Nick Smith

The attached data provides detail of individual artworks falling under the following categories:

iA) artworks installed between dissolution and 4 July 2024 (40 artworks)

iiA) artworks removed between dissolution and 4 July 2024 (80 artworks)

iB) artworks installed since 4 July 2024 (185 artworks)

iiB) artworks removed since 4 July 2024 (375 artworks)

In collating this data, so far as possible we have included neither artworks which were temporarily removed to allow for maintenance works and have since been rehung in the same location, nor artworks which were briefly off display and then moved location with a Member’s office.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether a Data Protection Impact Assessment has been undertaken on the Gov.UK One Login system.

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

A Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) has been undertaken for GOV.UK One Login. We continually develop our DPIA to take into account the new identity verification journeys, such as the no photo ID route.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 29 April 2025 to Question 45907 on Department for Education: Official Hospitality, if she will make an assessment of the value for money of the event.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

This event was held to enable my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education to outline the new government’s priorities for education and social care to a wide range of partners and stakeholders, building the relationships needed for new Ministers to work closely and effectively with them, so as to support delivery of the government’s Mission to break the link between a child’s background and their future success.

Rather than outsourcing the event, it was delivered in-house by civil servants and used existing departmental suppliers to deliver audio visual services and modest catering options. In line with similar events held under previous governments, it was delivered to the lowest possible cost.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he plans to publish an updated Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Yes, we are currently developing a new strategy. A further update will be provided in due course.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 14 May 2025 to Question 50224, on Pay: Publicity, what the total cost is for Millions get a pay rise campaign; whether it was approved under communications spending controls; and what the cost was for the beer mats.

Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The 2025 National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage campaign is running until 31 May 2025 and is budgeted to cost up to £650,000. This was approved under Cabinet Office’s advertising, marketing and communications spending controls. The cost to advertise in pubs using beer mats was £35,580, which was approved at Official level.

The 2024 campaign saw an increase in reach to eligible workers. However, recognition remained low, reinforcing the need for bolder, more engaging formats for the 2025 campaign, which expected to deliver an estimated 3.2 million impressions.

It offered a unique opportunity to engage audiences in a social, high-dwell environment where financial conversations naturally occur. This setting encourages discussion and word-of-mouth sharing about rate changes and offers an effective nudge for audiences to "check their pay."

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 14 May 2025 to Question 50224 on Pay: Publicity, which advertising channels were used to promote the Millions got a pay rise campaign.

Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The advertising channels used for the National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage campaign include radio, community radio, paid search, online video, paid social, programmatic digital display, digital influencer activity, and out-of-home advertising such as bus and train advertising panels, gym advertising panels and hospitality environments. Our channels are planned and carefully considered to ensure we can reach the right audiences, including using the learnings from previous campaigns.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many properties owned by central Government are unoccupied according to information held by (a) the Government Property Agency and (b) the Electronic Property Information Mapping Service; and what the address is of each of these properties.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Cabinet Office, through the Office of Government Property (OGP), does not centrally collect data on whether individual properties owned by central government departments are entirely unoccupied.

InSite, the system that replaced the legacy ePIMS (Electronic Property Information Mapping Service), allows departments to record floor space as vacant, but this does not confirm whether an entire property is unoccupied. InSite does not hold a central record of wholly unoccupied properties or their addresses. Figures on vacant space across the government estate, aggregated from departmental submissions, are published annually in the State of the Estate report. This includes total square metre figures by department, but not individual property-level occupancy or address data.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he plans to establish a Social Value Council.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Government is determined to ensure the £385 billion of public money spent on public procurement annually delivers economic growth, supports small businesses, champions innovation, creates good jobs and skills opportunities across the country, and maximises social value.

To build on progress made to date and the Government’s new National Procurement Policy Statement, we will consult with stakeholders on further reforms to public procurement to drive economic growth.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 6 May 2025 to Question 48180 on 10 Downing Street: Flags, whether (a) Downing Street and (b) the Government Property Agency own a NATO flag.

Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Yes. NATO is the cornerstone of our security and our commitment to the alliance is unshakeable. As a founding signatory, the UK plays a leading role, having contributed to every NATO mission. By increasing defence spending to 2.5% of GDP, we will continue to strengthen our capabilities and contribution to NATO. To mark NATO Day, the NATO Flag was flown above the FCDO and above the MoD Main Building on 4th April 2025.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department has received payments from the Labour Party since 4 July 2024.

Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Cabinet Office has received three payments from the Labour Party since 4 July 2024. Each of these payments was for use of Government Car Service.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 14 May 2025 to Question 50224 on Pay: Publicity, if he will place a copy of the business case for the Millions got a pay rise campaign in the Library.

Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

My department’s final stage impact assessment (IA) in respect of The National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Regulations 2025, was laid in draft before Parliament on 4 February and is available on GOV.UK. It provides the high-level rationale for the campaign, which is to increase awareness and understanding of the changes to the rates that came into effect on 1 April 2025. The campaign supports the policy objectives by minimising compliance costs and ensuring that the benefits are realised, including a direct pay rise for over 3 million workers.

The Impact Assessment can be viewed here: The National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Regulations 2025 - Impact Assessment

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 14 May 2025 to Question 50224 on Pay: Publicity, how his Department distributed the 500,000 beer mats to pubs.

Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

For the National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage awareness campaign, 500,000 beer mats were distributed to 1,000 pubs across the country. Distribution targeted areas with high concentrations of minimum and living wage workers, identified through HMRC underpayment complaint data and ONS data on pay. Our distribution partners delivered directly to selected venues in these priority locations to maximise campaign effectiveness and reaching those directly eligible for the increase in the wage and those who could share this important information with friends and family members.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of (a) section 21 and (b) other provisions within the Renters' Rights Bill on fixed-term asylum accommodation procured by her Department.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office keeps all aspects of the immigration system under regular review, in consultation with a wide range of experts and stakeholders.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister for School Standards of 28 April 2025, Official Report, column 7, if she will make an estimate of the proportionate pay rise that could be provided to teachers with the additional £400 million of funding.

Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)

On 18 March, the department published the Schools’ Costs Technical Note, which forecast the headroom in schools’ budgets in the 2025/26 financial year, and set out what pay rise, for both teachers and support staff, would be affordable on that basis.

Mauritius Treaty

Found: Tracy Gilbert (Labour, Edinburgh North and Leith) (added 4 Nov 2024) 9 of 10 (90.0%) Mr Richard Holden

Found: Danny Kruger Mark Garnier Alex Sobel Mr Alistair Carmichael Sir John Hayes Jesse Norman Mr Richard Holden

Found: Danny Kruger Mark Garnier Alex Sobel Mr Alistair Carmichael Sir John Hayes Jesse Norman Mr Richard Holden

Found: on product regulation, they have every reason to accept amendment 20 and make that clear.78 Richard Holden

Found: Danny Kruger Mark Garnier Alex Sobel Mr Alistair Carmichael Sir John Hayes Jesse Norman Mr Richard Holden