Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister for the Cabinet Office on 5 June (HC3788), whether civil servants in the Cabinet Office Propriety and Ethics Team who worked on Lord Mandelson’s due diligence recused themselves from involvement in the response to the Humble Address on Lord Mandelson.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)

I refer the Noble Lady to the answers given to House of Commons questions UIN 115826, 115828 and 120374: “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.”

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 23 June (HL740), what occupational socio-economic classification the Office for National Statistics and the Social Mobility Commission applies to (1) Ministers of the Crown, and (2) the Prime Minister.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)

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

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

Baroness Finn

House of Lords

London

SW1A 0PW

1 July 2026

Dear Lady Finn,

As Permanent Secretary of the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 23 June (HL740)[1], what occupational socio-economic classification the Office for National Statistics and the Social Mobility Commission applies to (1) Ministers of the Crown, and (2) the Prime Minister (HL1331).

The ONS classifies Ministers of the Crown and the Prime Minister to the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) 2020 code 1112, which corresponds to ‘Elected officers and representatives’. Under the simplified National Statistics Socio-economic classification (NS-SEC) framework, this occupation is classified as analytic class 1: Higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations.

There are 8 analytic classes in the NS-SEC used by the ONS. The Social Mobility Commission group these into 5 categories, as per Table 1 in the supporting Annex below.

Yours sincerely,

Darren Tierney

1. https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2026-06-08/hl740

Annex

Table 1: NS-SEC analytic classes and Social Mobility Commission groups

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Parliamentary Secretary to the Cabinet Office on 9 June (6091), whether the (1) Cabinet Office, and (2) Civil Service People Group, have made estimates on changes to the overall annual cost of facility time to (a) the Cabinet Office, and (b) the Civil Service.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)

The updated Civil Service Facility Time Framework and Guidance recommends that facility time expenditure remains limited to 0.1% of a department’s pay bill, and that trade union representatives spend at least 50% of their time delivering their official Civil Service role.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, in light of the Cabinet Office press release Civil Service continues commitment to minimum 60% office attendance, published on 24 October 2024, what assessment have they made of whether civil servants who declare they are attending the workplace attend (1) for the full working day, and (2) in person and in the office; and what assessment have they made of practices seeking to disguise or mislead online monitoring of actual workplace attendance.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)

Departments manage their own arrangements for monitoring workforce attendance. Heads of departments have agreed that 60% minimum office attendance for most staff continues to be the best balance of working for the Civil Service.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 4 June (HL367), whether guidance was provided to departments in the past three months regarding the inclusion of party political references in HMG publications; and if so, (1) whether it reflects a change from any previous guidance, and (2) what prompted it.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)

It is longstanding practice not to comment on the provision of internal advice, including whether or not particular advice has been provided. The Propriety and Ethics Guidance for Government Communicators is published on gov.uk.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister for the Cabinet Office on 23 June (HC10645), whether their position that there will be no return to the European Union Customs Union includes a policy of not joining the Customs Union in part for certain goods or services.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)

This government remains committed to reducing barriers to trade and cutting red-tape with our largest trading partner, and this is why we’re negotiating a food and drink deal and linking our emissions trading systems. However, the government’s red lines are clear: there will be no return to the Single Market or the Customs Union.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 24 June (HL611), whether the absence of a constitutional principle specifically addressing the suspension of Ministers means that a Prime Minister cannot suspend a Minister.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)

The Ministerial Code sets out that the Prime Minister is responsible for the overall organisation of the executive. Ministers only remain in office for so long as they retain the confidence of the Prime Minister.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Economic Secretary to the Treasury on 28 May (2785), whether they will publish the (1) Prime Minister's, (2) Deputy Prime Minister’s, and (3) Chancellor of the Exchequer's, tax return for 2024–25 prior to changes in administration.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)

Publication of tax returns is a matter for individual ministers. Any such publication would be made in the usual way.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister for the Cabinet Office on 23 June (HC8596), whether the agreement of revisions to the Cabinet Manual requires collective Cabinet agreement or is a decision for the Prime Minister alone.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)

The revisions to the Cabinet Manual are a matter for the Prime Minister.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 10 March (HL15268) and 26 February (HL14697 and HL14633), and in light of the Cabinet Office response to a Freedom of Information request issued on 10 April (FOI2026/04972) stating that an error was made in referencing various pieces of guidance, whether they intend to issue a correction in line with paragraph 1.6(c) of the Ministerial Code.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)

Please refer to the answer to PQ3290.

PQ3290: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Cabinet Office Freedom of Information Act response of 10 April 2026 FOI reference: FOI2026/04972, if he will make it his policy to issue a Ministerial Correction to the Answer of 20 February to Question 112174 on Government: Policy.

Answer: The answer to Question 112174 is correct.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the then-Minister for the Armed Forces on 12 March (HC117754), what is the status of the updates being made to the Exchange of Notes between the UK and USA to facilitate the UK's primary legislation on the Agreement concerning the Chagos Archipelago including Diego Garcia.

Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

The UK continues to engage closely with the United States and Mauritius on the way forward for the UK-Mauritius Agreement. The existing Exchange of Notes between the UK and the USA remains in force and there has been no change to the day-to-day operation of the joint UK-US military base on Diego Garcia.

Found: Letter dated 01/07/2026 from Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent to Baroness Finn regarding a correction