Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how many people in his Department at each civil service grade have worked on the application process for investment zones since the announcement of that policy.

Further to the announcement made at Autumn Statement, policy development and application process work was delivered by existing civil servants as part of their usual work in the department. Both my predecessor and I make best use of our officials within the parameters set by our budget settlement. Details are published annually in departmental accounts.