Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Environment Agency's job vacancy, Strategy and Government Relations Advisor, reference 32597, closing date 4 January 2026, what is his policy on public bodies hiring advisors to engage with the Government.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Environment Agency is a Non-Departmental Public Body, and does not form part of HM Civil Service. Non-Departmental Public Bodies are expected to engage with a range of stakeholders, including relevant Government departments, Parliamentarians across both Houses, Parliamentary Select Committees, and other key stakeholders pertinent to their work.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the report entitled Civil Service sickness absence, 2025 published on 16 December 2025, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of Civil Service (a) long-term and (b) short-term sickness rates.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
Civil Service sickness absence data, published on 16 December 2025, indicates a rise in both long-term and short-term sickness absence across the Civil Service, both since the previous year and over the past decade.
(Source: Civil Service sickness absence data published on 16 December 2025)
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, Pursuant to the answer of 9 December 2025, to Question 92614, on Deputy Prime Minister: Admiralty House, if he will publish the Government Property Agency letter of June 2025.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
Communications between officials and third parties are not published as their disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the effective conduct of public affairs. The release of individual names would also be a breach of data protection under the General Data Protection Regulations.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department is taking to provide households with information on emergency preparedness in (a) Surrey and (b) Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
Advice for the general public on how to prepare for emergencies is published at GOV.UK/Prepare. The website provides simple and effective steps that individuals, households and communities can take to be more prepared for a range of emergencies.
Specific risk and preparedness advice aimed at Surrey residents can be found on the ‘Surrey Prepared’ pages of Surrey County Council’s website.
The government continues to work with our local and national partners, including organisations from the voluntary, community and faith sectors, to highlight the importance of preparing for emergencies.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 16 January 2026 to Question 103826 on BSL Assurance Suppliers, which Deaf-led agencies and language service providers are available to engage through Crown Commercial Service's digital purchasing frameworks.
Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
Deaf-led BSL suppliers play an important role in supporting Deaf communities right across the country.
Customers can access BSL services through agreements RM1557.14 G-Cloud 14 and RM6302 Language Services.
CCS has approved funding to support an ‘AI for BSL’ project, led by the Royal National Institute of the Deaf (RNID) partnership with ScienceWise. The initiative ensures that Deaf communities can directly influence the development of future tools to guarantee their safe and effective application.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the resilience of critical national infrastructure that relies on software or data platforms supplied by Palantir.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The government works closely with critical national infrastructure operators, alongside our national technical authorities and industry partners, to ensure preparedness for the diverse range of threats and risks the UK faces.
The government does not generally comment on national security matters, including the resilience of individual suppliers into CNI.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if the Government will prepare an updated version of a cross-Whitehall Government War Book.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
Developing plans for civilian assistance to the military in a time of conflict is a key component of the Cabinet Office’s Home Defence Programme. It is an evolving and enduring programme of work which provides defence, security and resilience planning, focused on aligning military and civil effort in the event of a period of crisis and international hostilities affecting the UK. This work is informed by and reflects the recommendations from government strategies, including the Strategic Defence Review, National Security Strategy and Resilience Action Plan.
Asked by: Jack Rankin (Conservative - Windsor)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether any former Cabinet Ministers who are not former Prime Ministers retain access to the Government Car Service.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The Government Car Service (GCS) does not provide services to any former Cabinet Ministers.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, for what reason the Cabinet committee on Science and Technology has been replaced with a committee on Digital and Technology; and how matters related to science will be considered.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The membership and terms of reference of Cabinet committees is decided by the Prime Minister, as set out on gov.uk and the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology is a member of the Digital and Technology Committee. Matters related to science may be considered by a range of committees as relevant to their terms of reference.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 16 December 2025 (HL12632), what is the public interest rationale for not disclosing information that is not routinely published to Parliament about public spending on the Downing Street flats.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
I refer the Noble Lord to the answer of 16 December 2025, Official Report, PQ HL12632.
PQ HL12632 Lord Jackson of Peterborough: To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by the Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office on 4 November (HC85501) and Lord True on 23 April 2021 (HL14191), and with regard to paragraph 1.6(d) of the Ministerial Code, what is the public interest argument for not releasing details to Parliament of public spending on the Downing Street flats.
Cabinet Office response: As was the case under successive administrations, an itemised list is not routinely published. Total expenditure from the Prime Minister’s allowance on their official residence is disclosed in the Cabinet Office Annual Report and Accounts.