Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what information his Department holds on what leadership and promotion schemes run by the Civil Service are restricted to people (a) from ethnic minorities and (b) with other protected characteristics.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
Promotion in the Civil Service is through fair and open competition and is overseen by the Civil Service Commission.
The Cabinet Office is responsible for centrally managed leadership development programmes for staff at G7 to DD (the Accelerated Development Schemes). Recruitment to these programmes is guided by the same principles. Participation in the Accelerated Development Schemes is not restricted to ethnicity or other protected characteristics.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 1 December 2025 to Question 93375 on Government Departments: Facilities Agreements, whether his department holds information on which departments have given agreement to allow paid time to be used for trade union activities.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Cabinet Office does not hold any central records on which departments have given agreement to allow paid time to be used for trade union activities.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, further to his Department's publication entitled Public-sector trade union facility time data, updated on 27 November 2025, how many and what proportion of public bodies required to submit facility time data did not submit data, including data by (a) civil service, (b) education, (c) local authorities, (d) NHS, (e) police and (f) other bodies in (i) 2023-24 and (ii) 2024-25.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
A list of the Public Bodies which are required to submit facility time data can be found in Schedule 1 of The Trade Union (Facility Time Publication Requirements) Regulations 2017.
The public-sector trade union facility time data for the year 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025 has been published on .gov.uk.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 9 December 2025 to Question 95640 on Senior Civil Servants: Redundancy Pay, what was the legal basis for the previous Cabinet Secretary being given an exit payment.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Employment Rights Act 1996 defines contracts and employee rights for pay, leave, dismissal and other employment rights.
The model Permanent Secretary contract mentioned in the answer of 9 December 2025, states the terms and conditions and is used for Permanent Secretary level appointments including the Cabinet Secretary.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 26 November 2025 to Question 92016 on Civil Service: Management, for what reason the Terms of Reference are not subject to external publication.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Corporate governance in central government departments: code of good practice (2017) does not require publication of board and committee 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 remarks by the Prime Minister on 12 November (HC Deb col 148), whether (1) the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, or (2) his special advisers, had any involvement in media briefings.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
No.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 2 December 2025 to Question 93002 on Devolution, and with reference to his Department's joint press release entitled UK Minister vows to work with devolved nations to deliver growth in first visit to Northern Ireland, published on 3 October 2024, for what reason the press release referred to the devolved nations.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Reminders on terminology have been issued to relevant teams and departments.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the correspondence from the Permanent Secretary to his Department to the Hon Member for Thirsk & Malton of 24 November 2025.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
There are no plans to publish this correspondence.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether civil servants who act as coaches within the Internal Coaching Service are permitted to provide coaching sessions during their contracted working hours.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
Civil servants who act as coaches within the Internal Coaching Service are permitted to provide coaching sessions during their contracted working hours. Participation in the coaching service often forms an additional work objective, and coaches are responsible for discussing their participation with their line managers.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 1 December 2025, to Question 93384 on Permanent Secretaries: Redundancy Pay, if he will publish that list.
Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
I refer to my answer for 93384. Payments are published in departmental Annual Reports and Accounts for the financial years in which they were made. These are available on GOV.UK