Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the contract agreed by his Department with Enterprise Rent-A-Car on 19 April 2024, procurement reference CCVH23A01, which public bodies are covered by the scope of that contract; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of that contract on the number of (a) journeys that will be made and (b) miles that will be travelled by hire car rather than public transport.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The contract with Enterprise Rent-A-Car covers the Cabinet Office and its Agencies.
The Cabinet Office is obliged to report car hire journeys and the miles travelled when that hire car journey meets the criteria as laid down in the Greening Government Commitments. However, the department favours travel by public transport where most practical. Cabinet Office policy is that vehicle hire should only be used if travelling by car is deemed to be the most economical travel method for legitimate business journeys, and is cheaper than public transport. When hiring a vehicle, drivers should select the smallest and cheapest vehicle suitable for the journey.
Asked by: Matt Rodda (Labour - Reading East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the guidance by the Central Digital and Data Office entitled Guidance on the Legacy IT Risk Assessment Framework, published on 29 September 2023, how many red-rated IT systems are used by his Department; and how many red-rated IT systems have been identified since 4 December 2023.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO), in the Cabinet Office, has established a programme to support departments managing legacy IT. CDDO has agreed a framework to identify ‘red-rated’ systems, indicating high levels of risk surrounding certain assets within the IT estate. Departments have committed to have remediation plans in place for these systems by June next year (2025).
It is not appropriate to release sensitive information held about specific red-rated systems or more detailed plans for remediation within Cabinet Office’s IT estate, as this information could indicate which systems are at risk, and may highlight potential security vulnerabilities.
Asked by: John Penrose (Conservative - Weston-super-Mare)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he plans to reply to the correspondence of (a) 4 March and (b) 3 April 2024 from the hon. Member for Weston-super-Mare on digital exclusion on behalf of a constituent.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government attaches great importance to the effective and timely handling of correspondence. As per the Cabinet Office’s Guide to Handling Correspondence on gov.uk, departments and agencies should aim to respond to correspondence within a 20 working day target deadline.
Following transfer on 7 May of the Hon. Member’s correspondence of 4 March and 3 April 2024 from the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology to the Cabinet Office, I can confirm a response has now been issued, on 13 May.
Asked by: Gordon Henderson (Conservative - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which Government departments plan to make it a requirement in their procurement processes that potential suppliers meet net zero targets in their global operations by (a) 2045 and (b) 2050.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
Since October 2021, all Central Government Departments, their ALBs and Non-Departmental Public Bodies have required suppliers bidding for relevant major public procurements (of £5m or more) to commit their UK operations to achieving Net Zero by 2050. This aligns with the UK’s own legally binding Net Zero target.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the Prime Minister's announcement that 70,000 civil service jobs will be cut to finance extra defence spending, whether those civil servants are doing work that is unnecessary; and what are the functions that will no longer be carried out.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The Prime Minister’s announcement of longer-term reductions in Civil Service numbers is a reiteration of the policy announced by the Chancellor in October 2023. The longer-term reductions will build on the shorter-term headcount cap put in place through to March 2025. The detail of how the return to pre-pandemic numbers will be delivered will form a key part of the next comprehensive spending review.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will publish the guidance provided to Ministers on recusing themselves from decision making; and what plans they have, if any, to review that guidance.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
As set out in the Ministerial Code, there is an established regime in place for the declaration and management of interests held by ministers. This ensures that steps are taken to avoid or mitigate any potential or perceived conflicts of interest. Under the terms of the Ministerial Code Ministers must ensure that no conflict arises or could reasonably be perceived to arise, between their ministerial position and their private interests, financial or otherwise. The Ministerial Code is the responsibility of the Prime Minister. There are no current plans to update the Ministerial interests’ provisions in the Code.
Chapter 7 of the Ministerial Code provides detail on the procedure ministers must follow regarding their private interests. In particular it states, “it is the personal responsibility of each Minister to decide whether and what action is needed to avoid a conflict or the perception of a conflict”.
More information about the process by which ministerial interests are managed is available in the Annual Report of the Independent Adviser on Ministers’ Interests and the List of Ministers Interests. These are available on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what information his Department holds on the average number of workdays lost in each strike action in each (a) week and (b) month of 2024 as of 30 April 2024.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
A response to the Hon. Member’s parliamentary question of 30/04/24 is attached.
Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what information his Department holds on the average number of workdays lost in each strike action in each month in 2023.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
A response to the Hon. Member’s parliamentary question of 30/04/24 is attached.
Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many meetings the Minister for Veterans Affairs had with (a) local councillors and (b) Members of Parliament on the future of the Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions site since January 2023.
Answered by Johnny Mercer - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister for Veterans' Affairs)
The Office for Veterans’ Affairs have and will continue to engage with Stoll regarding the sale of Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions and the support being provided to residents during the transition period.
I am committed to ensuring that no veteran is sleeping rough due to a lack of provision, which is why the Government has dedicated nearly £30 million towards the provision of veteran housing.
This includes the single referral pathway for homeless veterans, Op FORTITUDE, that received £500,000 of funding, which is part of a broader £8.55 million of funding for specialist help and wrap-around support for veterans in more than 900 supported housing units.
This Government remains committed to making the UK the best place in the world to be a veteran.
Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many (a) emails and (b) phone calls the Office for Veterans Affairs has received from (i) the Stoll Foundation and (ii) veterans housed at Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions since January 2023.
Answered by Johnny Mercer - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister for Veterans' Affairs)
The Office for Veterans’ Affairs have and will continue to engage with Stoll regarding the sale of Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions and the support being provided to residents during the transition period.
I am committed to ensuring that no veteran is sleeping rough due to a lack of provision, which is why the Government has dedicated nearly £30 million towards the provision of veteran housing.
This includes the single referral pathway for homeless veterans, Op FORTITUDE, that received £500,000 of funding, which is part of a broader £8.55 million of funding for specialist help and wrap-around support for veterans in more than 900 supported housing units.
This Government remains committed to making the UK the best place in the world to be a veteran.