Asked by: Baroness Smith of Llanfaes (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the statement by the Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office on 6 February on EU–UK relations (HC Deb cols 963–4), what is the breakdown by department of the 70 direct engagements between UK ministers and EU counterparts.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Responsibility for UK-EU Relations lies with the Cabinet Office and the Paymaster General and Minister for the Constitution and EU Relations Nick Thomas-Symonds, who has spoken with his counterpart Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič seven times. The Prime Minister has spoken with Commission President von der Leyen six times and with Council President Costa twice. Ministers across Government also regularly engage with their EU counterparts, including meetings held by FCDO, DSIT, DBT, DESNZ, HMT, HO, DEFRA, DCMS and others.
Asked by: Julian Lewis (Conservative - New Forest East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will list each Department which (a) continues to and (b) no longer provides telephone numbers to Members of Parliament for its (i) Parliamentary Branch and (ii) for its Correspondence Section to pursue constituents' concerns; and whether it is government policy to prevent parliamentarians being able to speak directly to ministers' Private Office staff.
Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The List of Ministerial Responsibilities, published on GOV.UK, provides Members of Parliament with contact details for each Government department. It provides a single point of contact for each department, through which all Members of Parliament can pursue constituents’ concerns. This policy has been in place since October 2023 and was introduced following security advice. As outlined in the Guide to Handling Correspondence, also published on GOV.UK, the default method of correspondence with Government departments is via official departmental email addresses.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department is taking to remove barriers to young people in the UK wishing to study and work in the EU.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Government recognises the value to young people of the opportunity to experience different cultures and work or study elsewhere. UK nationals can travel visa-free to the EU, for example for short-term study, for up to 90 days in a rolling 180-day period. If travelling for the purposes of work, they may need permission from the relevant Member State.The Government introduced the Turing Scheme in 2021, which provides grants for students to study and work anywhere in the world, including Europe, supporting tens of thousands of UK students since its launch.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Government plans to hold discussions with the EU on enabling UK citizens to extend their stay in the Schengen Area for more than 90 days in a 180 day period; and if he has made an assessment of the potential merits of a six month visa waiver for UK citizens in the Schengen Area.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The UK and the EU allow for visa-free short-term travel in line with their respective arrangements for third country nationals. The UK allows EU citizens short-term visa-free travel for up to six months. Meanwhile, the EU allows for travel within the Schengen Area for up to 90 days in any rolling 180-day period; this is standard for third countries travelling visa-free to the EU. UK nationals planning to stay longer will need permission from the relevant Member State. This may require a visa and/or permit.The UK Government will continue to listen to and advocate for UK nationals.
Asked by: Damien Egan (Labour - Bristol North East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department is taking with (a) local authorities and (b) community organisations to strengthen national resilience.
Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government is currently undertaking a review of UK national resilience which is expected to conclude in Spring 2025. It is being informed by the voices of local leaders, the devolved governments, businesses, voluntary and community sector representatives and academics. It is also considering the recommendations from public inquiries into Covid-19 and the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
We are also working closely with MHCLG who are developing Stronger Local Resilience Forum Trailblazers and taking forward the Devolution Bill which will help to strengthen local leadership, increase democratic accountability, and integrate resilience into place based policy decisions.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make it his policy to ensure that the criteria which define when impact assessments can be released are the same for Freedom of Information requests and Parliamentary Questions.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
All freedom of Information requests are considered on their individual merits and in accordance with the legislation in all circumstances. Section 9 of the Ministerial Code sets the standard of conduct expected of ministers in relation to Parliament and how they discharge their duties, including for government responses to written parliamentary questions.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Reform UK - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an estimate of how many people in the UK do not speak English as a first language.
Answered by Georgia Gould - 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 13th February is attached.
Asked by: Damien Egan (Labour - Bristol North East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent discussions he has had with his international counterparts on strengthening national resilience.
Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
Working with international partners is a core strand of the UK’s efforts to strengthen our national resilience. My officials regularly discuss national resilience with their international counterparts - multilaterally within the auspices of NATO and our longstanding FiveEyes partnerships, and bilaterally with other key partners. In November, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster addressed the NATO Cyber Defence Conference - hosted in London - where he underlined the importance of continuing to work together as NATO Allies against the growing cyber threat to our collective resilience.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing a UK-EU youth mobility scheme.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Government set out clear priorities for the reset with the EU in the manifesto. There are no plans for a Youth Mobility Scheme.
Asked by: Baroness Neville-Rolfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 27 November 2024 (HC14946), which specific department and programme reductions to Government Communication Service spending expect to save £85 million.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
I refer the noble Lady to the answer provided to Question HC25685 on 30 January 2025:
PQ25685: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the answer of 10 January 2025, to Question 20957 on Government departments: communication and public consultation, if she will list the (a) Department, (b) theme and (c) estimated saving of each of the campaigns (i) that were cancelled, (ii) continuing with reduced budgets and (iii) aiming to reduce their expenditure by 25%.
Minister Gould’s answer: There are currently no plans to publish this list in detail. The comprehensive communications Spending Review identified 39 campaigns that were cancelled, 46 campaigns continuing with reduced budgets and 46 campaigns aiming to reduce their expenditure by 25%. The combined savings from these measures total £85 million in 2024-25 and up to £96 million in 2025-26.