Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether non-corporate communications including private email accounts are in scope of the Humble Address of 4 February 2026.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
I refer you to the Government's response to the Written Ministerial Statement in the name of the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister on 12 February, and Oral Statement on the 23 February which set out an update on the Government's process for complying with the Humble Address motion.
I also refer you 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.
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 4 March 2026 to Question 116167 on Peers, what information his Department holds on whether the Duke of York requested that he was removed from the Roll of the Peerage.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
On 17 October 2025, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor voluntarily confirmed he would no longer use his title or the honours which had been conferred upon him. On 5 November 2025 he was removed from the Roll of the Peerage. The Government supports this decision taken by His Majesty The King.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - Arbroath and Broughty Ferry)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, for what reason emails of 4 February 2026 were published as part of their release of documents around the appointment of Peter Mandelson; and whether more context for their inclusion will be provided.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
I refer you 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.
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 27 January 2026 to Question HL13539 on Special Advisers: Email, whether guidance or advice has been given to (a) officials and (b) special advisers on whether information held on non-corporated advices remains in scope of the Freedom of Information requests after they leave Crown Service.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Officials and special advisers are directed to guidance on use of Non Corporate Communication Channels on appointment and leaving of Crown Service.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 3 March 2026 to Question 111950, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of its data-collection arrangements; and what steps he is taking to ensure that his Department is made aware of all high-value and cross-departmental contracts.
Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
Strategic suppliers are selected based on the scale, scope and criticality of the services they provide, and are overseen centrally to observe their performance in the delivery of public services. Palantir is not a strategic supplier to government and there are no plans to classify the company as a strategic supplier at this time.
The two largest UK public sector contracts with Palantir are the NHS Federated Data Platform contract (FDP) and the MOD Palantir Enterprise Agreement (EA). These contracts were initially awarded by the previous government.
Further information on Crown Representatives and the strategic suppliers they work with is published on gov.uk. This list is under regular review and suppliers are added or removed as part of larger supplier segmentation exercises.
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.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 3 March 2026 to Question 111950 on Palantir: Contracts, what data his Department collects on the cumulative cost to the public purse of suppliers not classified as strategic that have contracts with more than one Government department with a total value in excess of £100 million.
Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
Strategic suppliers are selected based on the scale, scope and criticality of the services they provide, and are overseen centrally to observe their performance in the delivery of public services. Palantir is not a strategic supplier to government and there are no plans to classify the company as a strategic supplier at this time.
The two largest UK public sector contracts with Palantir are the NHS Federated Data Platform contract (FDP) and the MOD Palantir Enterprise Agreement (EA). These contracts were initially awarded by the previous government.
Further information on Crown Representatives and the strategic suppliers they work with is published on gov.uk. This list is under regular review and suppliers are added or removed as part of larger supplier segmentation exercises.
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.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 3 March 2026 to Question 111950, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of designating Palantir Technologies a strategic supplier.
Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
Strategic suppliers are selected based on the scale, scope and criticality of the services they provide, and are overseen centrally to observe their performance in the delivery of public services. Palantir is not a strategic supplier to government and there are no plans to classify the company as a strategic supplier at this time.
The two largest UK public sector contracts with Palantir are the NHS Federated Data Platform contract (FDP) and the MOD Palantir Enterprise Agreement (EA). These contracts were initially awarded by the previous government.
Further information on Crown Representatives and the strategic suppliers they work with is published on gov.uk. This list is under regular review and suppliers are added or removed as part of larger supplier segmentation exercises.
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.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he plans to assign Palantir Technologies a Crown Representative.
Answered by Chris Ward - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
Strategic suppliers are selected based on the scale, scope and criticality of the services they provide, and are overseen centrally to observe their performance in the delivery of public services. Palantir is not a strategic supplier to government and there are no plans to classify the company as a strategic supplier at this time.
The two largest UK public sector contracts with Palantir are the NHS Federated Data Platform contract (FDP) and the MOD Palantir Enterprise Agreement (EA). These contracts were initially awarded by the previous government.
Further information on Crown Representatives and the strategic suppliers they work with is published on gov.uk. This list is under regular review and suppliers are added or removed as part of larger supplier segmentation exercises.
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.
Asked by: Graham Leadbitter (Scottish National Party - Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the estimated cost per minute is for members of the public to contact the Civil Service Pension Scheme telephone helpline.
Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Cabinet Office awarded the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme (CSPS) to Capita in November 2023 under the previous government.
The issues and delays facing a number of civil servants and pension scheme members in receiving their pension quotes are unacceptable. I want to reassure you that this Government has taken firm action to help put things right as soon as possible. We have agreed a clear recovery plan with Capita, which includes specific milestones and accountability targets for delivery. For priority cases, we have deployed additional resources and improved communication with affected colleagues, so that staff, both former and serving, receive the quality of service and support they deserve.
As of the 2 March 2026 recovery update, performance at the contact centre has improved significantly following the deployment of additional helpline advisers. During the final week of February, more than 90% of calls were answered within 30 seconds. The overall call answer rate has now reached 99%.
The Cabinet Office utilises 0300 numbers for the CSPS in line with government-wide standards for public bodies. This model ensures that calls are treated as standard geographic numbers, making them free to the vast majority of the public who use inclusive minute plans. Transitioning to a free-to-caller 0800 number would incur significant additional administrative costs for the taxpayer; the department is instead focused on maintaining swift answer rates to ensure costs for all callers remain minimal.
The latest position of the Civil Service Pension Recovery Plan Update (2 March 2026) is available at this weblink: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-pension-recovery-plan-updates/civil-service-pension-recovery-plan-update-2-march-2026
Asked by: Euan Stainbank (Labour - Falkirk)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what consideration has been made to exercise his contract termination rights on Clause 33.1 and 33.2 as outlined in the Pension Scheme Administration and Related Services Agreement between the Government and Capita Pensions Solutions Ltd.
Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The issues and delays facing a number of civil servants and pension scheme members in receiving their pension quotes are unacceptable. Although the contract was awarded to Capita in 2023, under the previous Government, I want to reassure you that this Government has taken firm action to help put things right as soon as possible. We have agreed a clear recovery plan with Capita, which includes specific milestones and accountability targets for delivery. For priority cases, we have deployed additional resources and improved communication with affected colleagues, so that staff, both former and serving, receive the quality of service and support they deserve.
Existing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) have been enhanced and strengthened to deliver improved performance and higher penalties for failure, including financial penalties. These have already applied in respect to Capita’s performance with recent issues and delays in administering the Civil Service Pension Scheme.
The Cabinet Office will continue to use all available commercial levers to hold Capita to account and ensure they deliver the contractual service levels.
Furthermore, any further service failures by Capita will attract financial penalties, which will reduce the overall cost of the contract.
While at this time there are no plans to exercise contract termination rights on Clause 33.1 and 33.2 as outlined in the Pension Scheme Administration and Related Services Agreement between the Government and Capita Pensions Solutions Ltd. Our full focus is on stabilising the service and supporting any members experiencing hardship. We will conduct a full review once this has been achieved.