Cabinet Office

Information on the number of civil servants working at SCS level employed on a full-time equivalent basis is published annually by Cabinet Office as part of the accredited official statistics publication ‘Civil Service Statistics’. Data as at 31 March each year for the years 2021 to 2025 can be accessed through the ‘Civil Service Statistics data browser’ for each of these five years using the links below:

https://civil-service-statistics.jdac.service.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/data_browser_2025/Responsibility_level_grouped/index.html

https://civil-service-statistics.jdac.service.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/data_browser_2024/Responsibility_level_grouped/index.html

https://civil-service-statistics.jdac.service.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/data_browser_2023/Responsibility_level_grouped/index.html

https://civil-service-statistics.jdac.service.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/data_browser_2022/Responsibility_level_grouped/index.html

https://civil-service-statistics.jdac.service.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/data_browser_2021/Responsibility_level_grouped/index.html

I refer to my predecessor’s answer for 100338, published 23 December 2025. There are no plans to publish this internal-facing framework to the public domain, as it constitutes HR-to-HR guidance designed for departments to integrate into their respective policies and processes.

The Government’s policy of non-engagement with the Muslim Council of Britain has not changed.

Public authorities throughout the United Kingdom were given an opportunity to apply for a free portrait of His Majesty The King if they wanted to display it in their building. This was a voluntary scheme to mark the accession of His Majesty The King. The announcement was originally made on 1 April 2023 and the scheme was launched in November that year and closed for applications in August 2024.

As it was a voluntary scheme, there was no obligation for public authorities to apply for a portrait. There may also be a variety of reasons as to why an institution did not order a portrait, such as suitable location or whether they had an existing portrait. It would therefore be inappropriate to release a simple list of individual authorities and institutions which did or did not order a free portrait.

I refer the Honourable Member to the information published on GOV.UK on 28 November 2024 which provided a summary of the His Majesty The King Official Portrait Scheme, including the number of portraits provided and the total cost of the scheme: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/conclusion-of-his-majesty-the-kings-free-portrait-scheme

The HMK Portrait scheme was launched on 14th November 2023 and, including two extensions of scope, ran until 15th August 2024. A total of 20,565 orders were received, the cost of which, including delivery, was £2,710,705.50 with an average price of £131.81 per portrait.

It would not be appropriate to disclose this information for security reasons.

The Government does not comment on private meetings held by officials.

The campaigns in France and the United States are GREAT Audacious Kingdom and GREAT USA.

These campaigns are used to promote the UK internationally.

The Government works closely with its creative agency to ensure all partnerships with creators comply with Advertising Standards Authority guidance. This requirement is built into creators' contracts.

A related police investigation is underway. The Government will support the police in whatever way it can.

I refer you to the Government's response to the Urgent Question tabled on 12th February, the Written Ministerial Statement in the name of the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister that same day, and the Oral Statement on the 23rd February, in the name of the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, which set out an update on the Government's process and that Departments have been instructed to retain material that may be relevant to the motion.

Staff from across the Cabinet Office including but not limited to the Public Inquiry Response Unit and the Propriety and Constitution Group are involved in compliance with the Humble Address motion as necessary.

Staff from across the Cabinet Office including but not limited to the Public Inquiry Response Unit and the Propriety and Constitution Group are involved in compliance with the Humble Address motion as necessary.

I refer the Hon Member to the Government's statement and release of information on 11th March, providing an update on the response to the Humble Address. The Government is working to ensure that Parliament’s instruction is met with the urgency and transparency that it deserves.

I refer the Hon Member to the Government's statement and release of information on 11th March, providing an update on the response to the Humble Address. The Government is working to ensure that Parliament’s instruction is met with the urgency and transparency that it deserves.

I refer the Hon Member to the Government's statement and release of information on 11th March, providing an update on the response to the Humble Address. The Government is working to ensure that Parliament’s instruction is met with the urgency and transparency that it deserves.

I refer the Hon Member to the Government's statement and release of information on 11th March, providing an update on the response to the Humble Address. The Government is working to ensure that Parliament’s instruction is met with the urgency and transparency that it deserves.

I refer the Hon Member to the Government's statement and release of information on 11th March, providing an update on the response to the Humble Address. The Government is working to ensure that Parliament’s instruction is met with the urgency and transparency that it deserves.

The Honorable Member for Makerfield is no longer serving as a Minister following his resignation on 28 February 2026.

Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder. Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023, which came into force on 24 February 2025, are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service.

I refer you to the Oral Statement on the 23rd February, in the name of the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister.

A related police investigation is underway. The Government will support the police in whatever way it can.

To clarify, it was not a meeting, and so minutes were not taken, therefore no reward was made.

The Cabinet Office awarded the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme to Capita in November 2023 under the previous government.

The issues and delays facing a number of civil servants and pension scheme members in accessing their pensions is unacceptable.

Angela MacDonald, Deputy Chief Executive at HMRC, is working with the Cabinet Office and Capita to lead and support delivery of a full recovery plan. This includes commitments, with milestones, to immediately deal with priority cases, restore service levels and improve communication with affected members.

In response, we have set up a dedicated team to work urgently with Capita, with 650 full time staff across Government and Capita and with an aim to restoring normal service as soon as possible. We have agreed a clear recovery plan with Capita, which includes specific milestones and accountability targets for delivery.

Capita has prioritised the most urgent cases and by the end of February, all death in service cases were either settled or progressed to the final stage or awaiting a member response. A similar position will be reached for ill health retirement applications by mid-March.

Alongside these arrangements, Capita has prioritised payment of tax-free pension lump sums for members who had received quotations but were not in receipt of their benefits, with the vast majority of these having been paid in February.

Since 26 January, the recovery team has received detailed data on all the outstanding cases, allowing us to track progress and actively manage the most urgent situations.

The pension scheme continues to make monthly pension payments to approximately 730,000 existing pensioner members on time.

No former civil servant should be facing financial hardship as a result of delays to their pension and we are supporting government employers to provide direct support to people facing delays in their first payments.

The Cabinet Office awarded the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme to Capita in November 2023 under the previous government.

The issues and delays facing a number of civil servants and pension scheme members in accessing their pensions is unacceptable.

Angela MacDonald, Deputy Chief Executive at HMRC, is working with the Cabinet Office and Capita to lead and support delivery of a full recovery plan. This includes commitments, with milestones, to immediately deal with priority cases, restore service levels and improve communication with affected members.

In response, we have set up a dedicated team to work urgently with Capita, with 650 full time staff across Government and Capita and with an aim to restoring normal service as soon as possible. We have agreed a clear recovery plan with Capita, which includes specific milestones and accountability targets for delivery.

Capita has prioritised the most urgent cases and by the end of February, all death in service cases were either settled or progressed to the final stage or awaiting a member response. A similar position will be reached for ill health retirement applications by mid-March.

Alongside these arrangements, Capita has prioritised payment of tax-free pension lump sums for members who had received quotations but were not in receipt of their benefits, with the vast majority of these having been paid in February.

Since 26 January, the recovery team has received detailed data on all the outstanding cases, allowing us to track progress and actively manage the most urgent situations.

The pension scheme continues to make monthly pension payments to approximately 730,000 existing pensioner members on time.

No former civil servant should be facing financial hardship as a result of delays to their pension and we are supporting government employers to provide direct support to people facing delays in their first payments.

The Resilience Action Plan sets out the Government’s strategic approach to how we will strengthen our domestic resilience and invest to protect the nation. Cabinet Office officials regularly attend meetings to discuss the implementation of the Resilience Action Plan as well as matters of national security and defence.

The Cabinet Office coordinates the Home Defence Programme working closely with the MoD and other departments. This is led by the COBR Director and COBR Directorate, with oversight by the Deputy National Security Advisor (DNSA) for Intelligence, Defence and Security.

I refer the Hon Member to the Government's statement and release of information on 11th March, providing an update on the response to the Humble Address. The Government is working to ensure that Parliament’s instruction is met with the urgency and transparency that it deserves.

The scope of the digital ID scheme is still in development and we are inviting the public to have their say in the consultation as we develop an inclusive, trusted and useful system.

This Government recognises that around 1.5 million people in the UK are digitally excluded. That’s why we will deliver an ambitious inclusion programme working closely with employers, trade unions, civil society groups, the devolved governments, and other stakeholders.

Wider inclusion work is already underway - we set out a range of first steps in the Digital Inclusion Action Plan published in February last year and are working across government to reduce exclusion. There are no plans to make the national digital ID a requirement to access public services.

The PFI expiry date is 2nd April 2031. It is anticipated an option will be called to allow the property to revert to His Majesty’s Government ownership from that date.

The Government is committed to ensuring we attract, develop and retain talented people from a diverse range of backgrounds to help deliver on our priorities.

Neither the Cabinet Office or Government People Group has given additional guidance to Departments in relation to the use of temporary appointments. Decisions on the use of temporary recruitment are delegated to departments.

The Cabinet Office awarded the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme to Capita in November 2023.

The delays facing scheme members are unacceptable, and no former civil servant should face financial hardship as a result. There is a robust recovery plan in place to ensure normal service can resume as soon as possible.

Arrangements are in place for interest-free bridging loans of up to £5,000 (and up to £10,000 in exceptional cases) to most recent retirees facing payment delays. This is alongside interim lump sum payments being made to provide immediate funds to retiring members.

Interest will be paid on delayed benefits to avoid financial loss by members. In addition, the existing statutory complaints process evaluates claims for financial losses, as well as distress and inconvenience caused, on a case-by-case basis to determine whether compensation is due. This ensures that any retiree who provides evidence of extra costs, such as bank penalties or interest charges caused by the delay, is fairly assessed. This process is run in accordance with the standards set by the Pensions Ombudsman. The Cabinet Office is working with Capita to ensure this process is applied as efficiently as possible.

Information on property registered in England and Wales is available to the public by following the following link to HM Land Registry undertaking a search and paying the necessary fees - Search for land and property information

https://www.gov.uk/search-property-information-land-registry

The Government Property Agency (GPA), an executive agency of the Cabinet Office, holds Admiralty House following an administrative transfer in April 2018, and is responsible for the administration and payment of any tax liabilities.

Individual Government departments are responsible for measuring and collecting greenhouse gas emissions data from their own estates. This data is reported to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) which coordinates the Greening Government Commitments (GGC) framework and publishes the annual GGC report. Validation of the data is conducted by DEFRA and its technical contractors at a cross-government level, while individual departments are responsible for the accuracy of their own underlying data.

To fulfill the statutory duty under Section 86 of the Climate Change Act 2008, the Cabinet Office utilises this data as part of its annual State of the Estate report on the efficiency and sustainability of the government estate.

The £239 million contract with Capita covers the day-to-day management of the Civil Service Pension Scheme, but it does not include the specific cost of resolving the remaining McCloud remedy cases. The Cabinet Office is funding this complex rectification work through a separate, dedicated project, Remedy Project 7, at an additional cost of £45 million.

As scheme manager, the Cabinet Office is meeting this cost directly to fulfil its legal obligation to resolve the age discrimination identified by the courts. By treating this as a distinct project, the department ensures greater accountability for the remedy's delivery while preventing these complex legacy cases from impacting "business as usual" pension services for other members.

The Cabinet Office awarded the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme to Capita in November 2023 under the previous government.

The delays faced by pension scheme members in accessing their pensions are unacceptable.

Arrears payments made by Capita Pension Solutions Ltd to retired members are usually made by BACS. However, these may be made by CHAPS, where a case has been escalated due to vulnerabilities such as financial hardship.

The government grants register is published on GOV.UK. The latest publication, for 2023/24, makes no reference to lobbying under the purpose of any scheme listed.

The Procurement Act 2023, introduced by the previous Government, empowers contracting authorities to terminate their contracts for serious breaches of contract or poor performance. It also now makes it a statutory requirement for contracting authorities, where appropriate, to set and publish at least three key performance indicators for public contracts with an estimated value of more than £5 million.

Additionally, the Cabinet Office provides guidance on the selection and use of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) through the Sourcing Playbook. This guidance provides that all new projects should include relevant and proportionate performance measures designed to incentivise delivery.

While specific grounds for termination are subject to individual contract terms, it is the responsibility of each contracting authority to manage supplier performance.

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

Please see the letter attached from the Permanent Secretary for the Office of National Statistics.

The Rt Hon. the Lord Freybeg

House of Lords

London

SW1A 0PW

02 March 2026

Dear Lord Freyberg,

As Permanent Secretary of the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking a) further to the Written Answer by Lord Livermore on 17 February (HL14181), whether the Office for National Statistics has assessed the feasibility and statistical acceptability of aggregating multiple Standard Occupational Classification codes that individually fall below publication thresholds into higher-level sector groupings for publication purposes; and if so, what conclusions were reached (HL14677); and b) what statistical disclosure control techniques, including aggregation, rounding, banding or noise adjustment, are available to the Office for National Statistics to enable publication of sectorlevel occupational data derived from low-count Standard Occupational Classification categories (HL14679).

The Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes are routinely used for statistical outputs. SOC codes are designed with a hierarchical structure, ranging from 1-digit codes for the broadest categories, 2 = ‘Professional occupations’ for example, to 4-digit codes for the most detailed categories, 2451 = ‘Architects’ for example. The SOC ‘nested’ structure means multiple Standard Occupation Classification codes are aggregated into higher-level groupings by design. The use of these standard groupings allows for better comparisons over time and with other data sources. Statistical outputs that the ONS produces will use an appropriate level of detail of SOC codes, aiming to balance the need for detailed occupation information, with the possibility of smaller categories falling below the publication threshold. Further information about the SOC classification can be found on the ONS website. There is currently a consultation to update SOC2020 because of the continual evolution of occupations, and to ensure that SOC reflects significant changes in the labour market. Submissions to the consultation are live until 11 May 2026.

All the disclosure control techniques you reference in your question are available to use. Aggregation and banding are the most used methods to increase the number of contributors. The choice of disclosure method depends on the source of data, user needs, disclosure risk and other related factors. The disclosure control methods applied are always designed to maximise the usefulness of the data whilst protecting the confidentiality of the contributors.

Yours sincerely,

Darren Tierney

https://www.ons.gov.uk/methodology/classificationsandstandards/standardoccupationalclassificationsoc/soc2020/soc2020volume1structureanddescriptionsofunitgroups

https://consultations.ons.gov.uk/external-affairs/soc2020-revision-consultation/

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

Please see the letter attached from the Permanent Secretary for the Office of National Statistics.

The Rt Hon. the Lord Freybeg

House of Lords

London

SW1A 0PW

02 March 2026

Dear Lord Freyberg,

As Permanent Secretary of the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking a) further to the Written Answer by Lord Livermore on 17 February (HL14181), whether the Office for National Statistics has assessed the feasibility and statistical acceptability of aggregating multiple Standard Occupational Classification codes that individually fall below publication thresholds into higher-level sector groupings for publication purposes; and if so, what conclusions were reached (HL14677); and b) what statistical disclosure control techniques, including aggregation, rounding, banding or noise adjustment, are available to the Office for National Statistics to enable publication of sectorlevel occupational data derived from low-count Standard Occupational Classification categories (HL14679).

The Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes are routinely used for statistical outputs. SOC codes are designed with a hierarchical structure, ranging from 1-digit codes for the broadest categories, 2 = ‘Professional occupations’ for example, to 4-digit codes for the most detailed categories, 2451 = ‘Architects’ for example. The SOC ‘nested’ structure means multiple Standard Occupation Classification codes are aggregated into higher-level groupings by design. The use of these standard groupings allows for better comparisons over time and with other data sources. Statistical outputs that the ONS produces will use an appropriate level of detail of SOC codes, aiming to balance the need for detailed occupation information, with the possibility of smaller categories falling below the publication threshold. Further information about the SOC classification can be found on the ONS website. There is currently a consultation to update SOC2020 because of the continual evolution of occupations, and to ensure that SOC reflects significant changes in the labour market. Submissions to the consultation are live until 11 May 2026.

All the disclosure control techniques you reference in your question are available to use. Aggregation and banding are the most used methods to increase the number of contributors. The choice of disclosure method depends on the source of data, user needs, disclosure risk and other related factors. The disclosure control methods applied are always designed to maximise the usefulness of the data whilst protecting the confidentiality of the contributors.

Yours sincerely,

Darren Tierney

https://www.ons.gov.uk/methodology/classificationsandstandards/standardoccupationalclassificationsoc/soc2020/soc2020volume1structureanddescriptionsofunitgroups

https://consultations.ons.gov.uk/external-affairs/soc2020-revision-consultation/

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

Please see the letter attached from the Permanent Secretary for the Office of National Statistics.

The Rt Hon. the Lord Freybeg

House of Lords

London

SW1A 0PW

02 March 2026

Dear Lord Freyberg

As Permanent Secretary of the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking whether the Transformed Labour Force Survey (TLFS) records secondary occupations or ongoing professional identities when someone has more than one type of work; and what assessment they have made of how recording only a person’s main job may affect sectors where many people have portfolio careers, such as crafts and the visual arts (HL14678).

The TLFS does collect information on a respondent’s secondary occupation. Where the respondent has a portfolio career such as those mentioned, they can self-determine this as their main or second job. The data collected includes for example, whether this is in an employed or self-employed capacity, the hours usually and actually worked, the pay received and the industry and occupation code of the position. This data is used for a variety of statistical, legislative and policy purposes by a broad range of stakeholders.

Information is collected for up to two jobs. There has previously been a question as to whether information on more than two jobs should be collected. However, there must be a careful balance achieved between data users need, and the respondent burden caused by survey length. While we are not currently in a position to capture more than two jobs, this issue will be thoroughly explored within future developments of the TLFS.

The TLFS also collects data on casual working roles so that those in more informal situations are also captured.

Yours sincerely,

Darren Tierney

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

Please see the letter attached from the Permanent Secretary for the Office of National Statistics.

The Rt Hon. the Lord Mott OBE

House of Lords

London

SW1A 0PW

02 March 2026

Dear Lord Mott,

As Permanent Secretary of the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking what assessment has been made of the number of UK hospitality businesses that have ceased trading since November 2024 (HL14742).

Information on the number of businesses which have ceased trading is best obtained from the ONS’s annual business demography release, which has the Inter-Departmental Business Register as its data source. However, the latest year for which figures are available from this data source is 2024.

The ONS publishes more up-to-date estimates of business closures via our quarterly business demography release. The figures in this release are regarded as ‘official statistics in development’. It is not possible to separately identify the hospitality industry in the quarterly data, but figures are available for accommodation and food as a whole. Table 1 shows the number of business closures in the United Kingdom (UK), from the fourth quarter of 2024 to the fourth quarter of 2025.

Table 1: Number of business closures for accommodation and food businesses

Source: Official for National Statistics

Yours sincerely,

Darren Tierney

The Hon Member will be aware that as under successive administrations, the Cabinet Office does not routinely publish responses to FOI requests.

Freedom of Information statistics for all central government departments and other monitored bodies are published on a quarterly and annual basis on Gov.UK at www.gov.uk/government/collections/government-foi-statistics

The Government has now launched a public consultation on the digital ID where we want to hear as wide a range of views as possible.

The scope of the digital ID system is still in development and we are inviting the public to have their say in the consultation as we develop a useful, inclusive and trusted system.

Through this consultation we are asking the public what age they think is appropriate to have digital ID.

The public consultation is now open and I encourage you and your constituents to respond.

The design and delivery of digital ID are subject to the consultation outcomes. The feedback from the consultation will inform our final approach and enable a more accurate assessment of costs.

As the Government has stated previously, any costs in this Spending Review period will be met within existing settlements.

The information requested is not held centrally by the Cabinet Office.