Lord Agnew of Oulton Portrait

Lord Agnew of Oulton

Conservative - Life peer

Became Member: 19th October 2017


1 APPG membership (as of 28 Mar 2025)
Anti-Corruption and Responsible Tax
Industry and Regulators Committee
12th May 2022 - 30th Jan 2025
Minister of State (HM Treasury)
13th Feb 2020 - 24th Jan 2022
Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
13th Feb 2020 - 24th Jan 2022
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
28th Sep 2017 - 13th Feb 2020


Division Voting information

During the current Parliament, Lord Agnew of Oulton has voted in 40 divisions, and never against the majority of their Party.
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Debates during the 2024 Parliament

Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.

Sparring Partners
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Department Debates
Cabinet Office
(1 debate contributions)
Department for Education
(1 debate contributions)
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Legislation Debates
Lord Agnew of Oulton has not made any spoken contributions to legislative debate
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Lords initiatives

These initiatives were driven by Lord Agnew of Oulton, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.


3 Bills introduced by Lord Agnew of Oulton

Introduced: 8th September 2021

A Bill to make provision about the meaning of references to Article 23A benchmarks in contracts and other arrangements; and to make provision about the liability of administrators of Article 23A benchmarks

This Bill received Royal Assent on 15th December 2021 and was enacted into law.

Introduced: 8th September 2021

A Bill to make provision imposing a tax (to be known as the health and social care levy), the proceeds of which are payable to the Secretary of State towards the cost of health care and social care, on amounts in respect of which national insurance contributions are, or would be if no restriction by reference to pensionable age were applicable, payable; and for connected purposes.

This Bill received Royal Assent on 20th October 2021 and was enacted into law.

Introduced: 10th March 2021

A Bill to authorise the use of resources for the years ending with 31 March 2019, 31 March 2020, 31 March 2021 and 31 March 2022; to authorise the issue of sums out of the Consolidated Fund for the years ending 31 March 2020, 31 March 2021 and 31 March 2022; and to appropriate the supply authorised by this Act for the years ending with 31 March 2019, 31 March 2020 and 31 March 2021.

This Bill received Royal Assent on 15th March 2021 and was enacted into law.

Lord Agnew of Oulton has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting


Latest 50 Written Questions

(View all written questions)
Written Questions can be tabled by MPs and Lords to request specific information information on the work, policy and activities of a Government Department
19th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 17 February (HL4611), what are the 11 central government organisations that submitted business cases for pay flexibility under the Civil Service Pay Remit Guidance 2024–25, published on 29 July 2024; and which of those businesses cases (1) have been approved, (2) have been rejected, or (3) are still under consideration.

For 2024/2025, the Cabinet Office has now received 12 business cases. Of these, four have been approved to date, one has been rejected, and seven are ongoing.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
12th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to reform the Civil Service Compensation Scheme, and what the current timetables are for the publication of the final proposals and implementation of the changes.

The Government remains committed to ensuring that the Civil Service Compensation Scheme is fair to individuals and delivers best value for money for the taxpayer.

We are reviewing the consultation launched under the previous administration on reforms to the Civil Service Compensation Scheme, and will provide an update in due course.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
12th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 10 March (HL5055), how many other commitments in the Civil Service People Plan 2024–27 that are due for completion by the end of March have not yet been met; which specific commitments have not been delayed, downgraded or abandoned; what governance and accountability mechanisms have been used to track delivery; whether any funding allocated to undelivered commitments has been reallocated or returned to the Treasury; and what the revised implementation timelines are for each unmet commitment.

As committed to in the Civil Service People Plan, an Annual Review has been conducted to monitor its progress and to ensure effective delivery. We intend to publish the key findings of the review in due course.

Quarterly progress reports are also provided to the Cabinet Secretary and to the Civil Service People Board to ensure senior level oversight and scrutiny.

We are taking steps to ensure the Plan remains aligned to the government’s priorities and meets the evolving needs of the Civil Service.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
12th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Twycross on 28 January (HL3970), why the financial restatements in the Government Property Agency Accounts 2022–23 resulted in both an increase and a decrease in right of use assets; and whether there are any inconsistencies in the application of IFRS 16 across the head lease and sub-lease transactions.

The financial restatements of the Government Property Agency Accounts 2022/23 resulted in both an increase and a decrease in right of use assets because they related to two separate changes to lease terms for different properties at different stages of their lease lifecycle.

The surrender and grant of a new head lease in July 2022 related to a vacant property undergoing major refurbishment as part of the GPA’s Whitehall Campus Programme. The new head lease resulted in an increase to right of use assets because there was no corresponding finance sub-lease during the refurbishment. The GPA therefore retained all the risks and rewards incidental to ownership of the right of use asset.

The Deed of Variation in March 2023 to extend a sub-lease term by 12 years to align with the head lease resulted in the classification of the sub-lease being reassessed as a finance lease rather than an operating lease. This was because the sub-lease term now represented in excess of 75% of the expected useful economic life of the underlying right of use asset. The reclassification resulted in a decrease in right of use assets because the GPA derecognised the asset previously retained when the sub-lease was classified as an operating lease.

On that basis, we are satisfied that IFRS 16 has been applied appropriately across the head lease and sub-lease transactions.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
4th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 18 February (HL4855), given that the deed of variation amends Clause 1.1 of contract 2887470\5 to remove the UK-only restriction on training services, on what basis they consider that this modification does not materially change the contract’s scope; and if international training was already covered in the original tender, why it was necessary to amend Clause 1.1 to permit it.

The original Emergency Planning College Bidders’ Brief makes multiple references to international training and overseas markets and was subsequently covered within the initial contract.

The change within the deed of variation to amend the UK-only constraint was necessary to clarify that international training may require the delivery of face-to-face training at overseas locations, in order to fully meet the contractual requirements for international training.

The UK-only constraint continues to apply to services provided to the Authority under the contract.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
4th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government whether individual subcontract awards made under 'neutral vendor frameworks', 'managed service provider frameworks', 'prime contractor procurement models' or similar intermediary procurement models are subject to the same transparency and reporting requirements as contracts directly procured by public bodies.

Many intermediary procurement models are straightforward public contracts where there is no requirement to publish subcontracts under either the Procurement Act 2023 or the Public Contract Regulations 2015.

Where contracting authorities are awarding contracts using frameworks awarded under the Procurement Act 2023, they will need to follow the Act’s noticing provisions. In the case of most Public Contracts this will normally include publication of both a Contract Award and then a Contract Details Notice on the Find a Tender platform, which is the publicly available portal for all transparency information on procurement. Furthermore, notices contain linking information that allows notices to be connected- enabling detailed data analysis on how frameworks are being used. All this information on public procurement is in the public domain and can be searched by the citizen, free of charge in an accessible way.

Where contracting authorities are awarding contracts using framework agreements awarded under the previous procurement regime, they are required to publish an Awarded Opportunity Notice on the Contracts Finder platform.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
4th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the remit of the Procurement Review Unit includes oversight of subcontract awards under 'neutral vendor frameworks', 'managed service provider frameworks' and similar intermediary procurement models.

In accordance with section 10 of the Procurement Act 2023 ("the Act"), the Procurement Review Unit (“PRU”) only has oversight of the activities of contracting authorities under the Act.

Any procurement carried out under framework agreements managed under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 does not fall within the remit of the PRU.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
3rd Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 17 February (HL4608), which ministerial department failed to produce a strategic asset management plan (SAMP) in 2024; what consequences or enforcement measures are in place for departments that do not produce such a plan; and which departments are included in the Government Property Agency’s office portfolio SAMP instead of having their own standalone plans.

Departments are responsible for their own SAMPs, and required to update these plans yearly. Guidance and tools are provided to ensure consistency and effectiveness.

In the event an updated asset plan is not produced,the Government Chief Property Officer can write to the Principal Accounting Officer alerting them to the requirement.

Last year, all ministerial departments produced an updated asset plan except the Department for Business & Trade (DBT), although plans for the offices occupied by DBT were set out in the Government Property Agency’s office portfolio SAMP. DBT will produce a plan for 2025.

By agreement, HM Treasury and Department for Education did not produce a 'stand alone' departmental asset plan but featured in the Government Property Agency's office portfolio SAMP as onboarded clients.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
3rd Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Twycross on 20 February (HL4194), which of the Government Major Projects Portfolio projects have (1) increased in cost and by what percentage relative to their original budgets, (2) been delayed beyond their original delivery schedule and by how many months in each case, and (3) been reduced in scope.

The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. The Infrastructure and Projects Authority publishes details on the estimated budgets and delivery timescales for each of the Government Major Projects Portfolio projects as part of its annual report, from which the change in cost and schedule between years for individual projects can be calculated.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
24th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Twycross on 11 February (HL4476), how many departments have implemented the Central Employee Identifier; which departments have yet to do so; and what is the expected timeline for full implementation across government.

Currently no departments have implemented the Central Employee Identifier. We will provide an update on implementation timescales in due course.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
24th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government whether it is their intention that overpayments to the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme will be treated solely as a civil debt under regulation 80(4) of the draft Infected Blood Compensation Scheme Regulations 2025; whether the Infected Blood Compensation Authority has the power to escalate cases of deliberate fraudulent overpayment claims to criminal prosecution; and what policies and legal mechanisms exist to prosecute individuals who attempt to obtain payments unlawfully.

Regulation 80 (4) of the draft Infected Blood Compensation Scheme Regulations 2025 sets out that for where an overpayment of compensation is made by the Infected Blood Compensation Authority, the excess amount is recoverable as a civil debt. IBCA does not have any bespoke powers to prosecute suspected fraudulent claims, but will have the same tools as other public bodies to take action against fraudulent activity. The Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Bill, introduced to Parliament on 22 January 2025, proposes new powers granted to the Public Sector Fraud Authority, to be used upon referral of a case from a public body. This meets the Government’s commitment for the better recovery of money owed to the taxpayer where public money has been stolen or overpaid.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
24th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what investigatory powers for the Infected Blood Compensation Authority to detect and investigate fraudulent claims they intend to establish under the draft Infected Blood Compensation Scheme Regulations 2025; and how many full-time equivalent staff they intend to dedicate to fraud investigations.

The (draft) Infected Blood Compensation Scheme Regulations 2025 do not confer any criminal investigatory powers on the Infected Blood Compensation Authority (IBCA). However, a small team is being established to intervene where there are suspicious circumstances relating to a particular case, and IBCA will keep the size of that team under review.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
24th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, in relation to the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme, whether they completed an initial fraud impact assessment prior to the scheme’s launch; whether they have conducted a full Fraud Risk Assessment (FRA) to identify inherent fraud risks; whether they have conducted a thematic grouped fraud risk assessment to assess common fraud risks across similar compensation schemes; and whether the scheme has been incorporated into an organisational (enterprise) level FRA.

The Infected Blood Compensation Authority (IBCA) has worked closely with the Public Sector Fraud Authority to undertake comprehensive Fraud Risk Assessments for the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme. This will continue to be a key part of IBCA’s planning approach as it builds and expands its claims service.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
24th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Infected Blood Compensation Authority has signed, or intends to sign, a memorandum of understanding with HMRC.

There is no memorandum of understanding between the Infected Blood Compensation Authority (IBCA) and HMRC in place. However, the Cabinet Office worked closely with HMRC in the development of the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme, and HMRC passed regulations to exempt compensation payments from tax, as is standard for compensation schemes. The Government expects IBCA to continue to work closely with HMRC as required for the delivery of the scheme.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
10th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, with reference to regulation 72 of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 and the Deed of Variation to contract 2887470\5, published in the procurement notice on 24 January, what consideration they gave to conducting a new competitive procurement instead of extending a contract first awarded in 2010; and what assessment they made of whether the modification is permissible, including (1) whether the terms of the original contract explicitly provided for a £18.6 million increase, (2) whether the increase affects the contract’s nature or economic balance, and (3) whether the extension and changes to service provisions, including the introduction of training outside the UK, were envisaged within the original scope of the contract.

The Deed of Variation to contract 2887470\5, enables the transition of the Emergency Planning College (EPC) to the UK Resilience Academy from 15 April 2025 to deliver strategic national resilience training and exercising outcomes.

Given the complexities of the contract covering the management of the physical site, coupled with the provision of training services, the Authority determined that a medium-term permitted extension would allow for better development and planning for a new competitive procurement opportunity, whilst maintaining continuity of key services.

The contract provides for an extension of not less than 2-years and not more than 5-years, and does not include any financial values or thresholds. The extension does not change the economic balance of the Agreement in favour of the Contractor. International sales were covered within the Bidders' Brief as part of the original tender and subsequently the contract.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
10th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they are committed to a target for Government procurement spend with small and medium-sized enterprises, and if so, what percentage of annual procurement this represents.

The Government is determined to ensure the £400 billion of public money spent on public procurement annually delivers economic growth, supports small businesses, champions innovation, and creates good jobs and opportunities across the country.

On 13 February the Government published a National Procurement Policy Statement (NPPS), which sets out our priorities for public procurement and maximises the impact of every pound spent. New measures to support the transformation of public procurement and to deliver on the Government’s Plan for Small Businesses includes requiring all government departments, executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies to set three-year targets for direct spend with SMEs (from 1 April 2025) and VCSEs (from 1 April 2026) and publish progress annually.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
10th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government why they have not published data on central Government spend with small and medium-sized enterprises beyond the financial year 2021–22; and when they plan to publish figures for subsequent financial years.

On 13 February the Government published a National Procurement Policy Statement (NPPS), which sets out our priorities for public procurement and maximises the impact of every pound spent. New measures to support the transformation of public procurement and to deliver on the Government’s Plan for Small Businesses includes requiring all government departments, executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies to set three-year targets for direct spend with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from 1 April 2025, and Voluntary, Community, and Social Enterprises (VCSEs) from 1 April 2026, and publish progress annually.

Under this new policy, departments will be responsible for publishing their own spend with SMEs on an annual basis. Departmental SME Action Plans (published from 1 April 2025) will include SME spend targets approved by departmental Ministers and any previous financial years unpublished SME spend data.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
10th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the Crown Commercial Service (CCS) annual report and accounts 2023–24, published on 24 July, when they expect the Office for National Statistics to complete its review of the CCS classification status; whether they support reclassifying the CCS as a central government entity; and how such a reclassification might affect the trading fund model and the future financial freedoms of the CCS.

HM Treasury (HMT) and the Office for National Statistics (ONS) initiated a formal review of the sector classification in 2024 of CCS as part of their ongoing programme of assessments of the statistical and financial reporting classification of public sector bodies in the National Accounts. The ONS completed the final review in October 2024 and published the outcome on its website. It concluded that CCS’s existing sector classification as a public corporation is correct. This means that CCS will remain a Trading Fund.

https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/governmentpublicsectorandtaxes/publicsectorfinance/articles/developmentofpublicsectorfinancestatistics/september2024

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
10th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the publication of the Crown Commercial Service annual report and accounts 2023–24, published on 24 July, what criteria are used to determine which public bodies receive payments under the new Customer Payment Initiative; what administrative costs have and will be incurred in operating this scheme for the past and next financial year; and what assessment they have made of reducing the CCS levy rate instead of issuing payments under the Customer Payment Initiative.

Customers who have used CCS agreements in FY2022/23 were eligible to receive a payment in proportion to the amount of income collected by CCS from suppliers as result of those customers’ transactions.

Activity by customers on 231 frameworks has contributed to the distribution to individual customers, with the lowest value payment threshold being set at £1k, resulting in just under 1,500 customers being eligible to receive a payment. These payments are not part of any written agreement and are non-contractual.

CCS has not made an assessment of the administrative costs that have been, or will be, incurred in operating this scheme.

CCS is considering its opportunities to reduce its levy rates on a case by case basis as new agreements are put in place. Frameworks do not provide a level of committed spend and therefore reducing levy rates across the board would incur an unnecessary degree of risk into CCS’s financial planning. CCS’s levy rates are the lowest of all Public Sector Buying Organisations, at an average of 0.7% across the whole portfolio.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
4th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Twycross on 28 January (HL3970), why the reclassification of the sub-lease from an operating lease to a finance lease was not reflected in the 2022–23 accounts or identified during its 2022–23 audit, given that the deed of variation was agreed in March 2023; and why it was only corrected in the 2023–24 accounts.

The reclassification of the sub-lease from an operating lease to a finance lease arose due to a correction in a sub-lease extension which was identified during 2023/24.

A lease end extension that was agreed by both parties in February 2023 was not clearly documented in the Deed of Variation, resulting in GPA’s Horizon system incorrectly recording the lease end date as 2033. As a result, this was accounted for as an operating lease as at March 2023.

The error in the lease end date was identified during 2023/24 when the Deed of Variation needed updating for occupancy and rent setting changes. At this point, the Horizon system was updated to reflect the correct lease end date of 2045. Correcting the lease end date changed the classification from an operating lease to a finance lease.

GPA has strengthened its control processes as a result of identifying this error. Unambiguous data tables are now attached to each occupancy agreement and signed off by both Property and Finance teams to: prevent future misinterpretation of lease terms, ensure the accurate uploading of lease data onto the Horizon system, and ensure that the accounting for leases accurately reflects the agreed lease terms.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
4th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to prevent government procurement suppliers from facing legal or regulatory action for bidding for public procurement contracts while being investigated by authorities under the Procurement Act 2023.

The Procurement Act, which comes into force on 24 February 2025, will allow the Government to investigate high-risk suppliers on behalf of the entire public sector.

International debarment lists can be considered as part of a debarment investigation that determines whether an exclusion ground applies and enables a Minister of the Crown to decide whether the supplier should be placed on the debarment list.

A live debarment investigation does not prevent a supplier from bidding for public contracts or provide a basis for any further regulatory or legal action against the supplier.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
4th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government whether a supplier that has been debarred from rendering procurement services in a foreign jurisdiction is automatically debarred from UK public procurement; and what criteria are used to assess whether a foreign debarment should be recognised in the UK.

The Procurement Act, which comes into force on 24 February 2025, will allow the Government to investigate high-risk suppliers on behalf of the entire public sector.

International debarment lists can be considered as part of a debarment investigation that determines whether an exclusion ground applies and enables a Minister of the Crown to decide whether the supplier should be placed on the debarment list.

A live debarment investigation does not prevent a supplier from bidding for public contracts or provide a basis for any further regulatory or legal action against the supplier.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
4th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, in the light of the Government Commercial Function’s report Raising standards: our ambition (17 May 2024), whether they will publish the findings and recommendations of Procurement Review Unit investigations on Gov.uk; and what assessment they have made of the merits of requiring their publication by default, except where necessary to safeguard national security or sensitive commercial information.

In accordance with Part 10, the results of any investigations, including any s.109 recommendations and progress reports submitted by the contracting authority may be published, assessed on a case by case basis. Such documents will be published on GOV.UK. Any s.109 recommendations will be issued to support the contracting authority’s compliance with the requirements of the Act and follow a lessons learned approach in order for contracting authorities to reflect on their own approach to compliance and identify areas for improvement.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
4th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, in the light of the Government Commercial Function’s report Raising standards: our ambition (17 May 2024), whether the Procurement Review Unit has powers to compel disclosure of procurement-related documents and conduct on-site audits of contracting authorities; and if not, whether they have conducted an assessment of the feasibility of amending the Procurement Act 2023 to grant such powers.

The Procurement Review Unit (PRU) has been established to exercise the procurement oversight powers set out in Part 10 of the Procurement Act 2023 (the Act). Part 10 comprises three provisions (sections 108-110) which provide for the investigation of a contracting authority’s compliance with the requirements of the Act, the issuing of recommendations to a contracting authority following an investigation and the publishing of statutory guidance to all contracting authorities.

Under section 108 (procurement investigations) the PRU can formally request, via notice, that a relevant contracting authority provide documents and give assistance in connection with the investigation, as is reasonable. The contracting authority has 30 days to comply with the notice.

The conducting of on-site visits to aid investigations may fall under the scope of “give assistance” and would be by mutual agreement between the PRU and the contracting authority. The circumstances giving rise to an on-site visit would have to be proportionate and relevant to the investigation. On-site audits or visits are not currently contemplated as part of a standard PRU investigation, and nor are we considering an amendment to Part 10 of the Act to provide such powers, although the procurement oversight powers and processes will remain under review as the new regime embeds.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
3rd Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government how many central government organisations have submitted business cases for pay flexibility under the Civil Service Pay Remit Guidance 2024–25, published on 29 July 2024; and how many have been approved.

For 2024/2025, the Cabinet Office has received 11 business cases. Of these, two have been approved to date.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
3rd Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government how many government departments currently lack a strategic asset management plan; and what actions they are taking to ensure that all departments have one.

The UK Government Functional Standard for Property GovS 004 sets expectations for the management of government property - including mandating a forward-looking strategic asset management plan (SAMP).

Departments are responsible for their own asset plans, and the Office of Government Property in the Cabinet Office supports their planning as part of the assurance process for the property function. Departments are asked to share their ‘working copy’ plans each year, which provides the ‘functional centre’ with an overview of their strategic intentions to help inform the development of cross-government policy and programmes.

In 2024, all but one ministerial department produced an asset plan. By agreement, some departments did not produce a stand alone plan but are featured in the Government Property Agency’s office portfolio SAMP as its clients. The Government Chief Property Officer is currently writing to all Property Leaders in Departments reminding them of their responsibility to have an up to date strategic asset management plan.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
3rd Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government how many statutory public inquiries have been established under the Inquiries Act 2005; what were the names of each inquiry; what were the projected costs of each inquiry at the time of its establishment; and, for those that have concluded, what was the final cost of each inquiry upon its conclusion.

The Cabinet Office collects data on the duration and cost of inquiries from departments, inquiries’ own reports, and other publicly available information.

We have provided details on all statutory inquiries established since 2005 in the table below.

We do not hold information on projected costs; under section 17 of the Act, the procedure and conduct of an independent public inquiry are a matter for the Chair, including acting with regard to the need to avoid any unnecessary cost.

Inquiry

Sponsor Department

Legislative Basis

Year established

Duration in months (from announcement to publication of final report)

Reported final costs where publicly available

Jalal Uddin Inquiry

HO

Inquiries Act 2005

2023

Ongoing

-

Thirlwall Inquiry

DHSC

Inquiries Act 2005

2023

Ongoing

-

Inquiry into the preventability of the Omagh bombing

NIO

Inquiries Act 2005

2023

Ongoing

-

Independent inquiry relating to Afghanistan

Ministry of Defence

Inquiries Act 2005

2022

Ongoing

-

Dawn Sturgess Inquiry

HO

Inquiries Act 2005

2022

Ongoing

-

UK Covid-19 Inquiry

Cabinet Office

Inquiries Act 2005

2022

Ongoing

-

Lampard Inquiry

DHSC

Inquiries Act 2005

2021

Ongoing

-

Jermaine Baker inquiry

HO

Inquiries Act 2005

2020

29

£4.1m

Post Office Horizon IT inquiry

DBT

Inquiries Act 2005

2020

Ongoing

-

Manchester Arena inquiry

HO

Inquiries Act 2005

2019

41

£35.6m

Brook House Inquiry

HO

Inquiries Act 2005

2019

46

£18.7m

Grenfell Tower Inquiry

Cabinet Office

Inquiries Act 2005

2017

90

£177.6m

Infected Blood Inquiry

Cabinet Office

Inquiries Act 2005

2017

Ongoing

-

Anthony Grainger Inquiry

HO

Inquiries Act 2005

2016

40

£2.6m

The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse

HO

Inquiries Act 2005

2015

99

£192.7m (as of Dec 2022)

Undercover Policing Inquiry

HO

Inquiries Act 2005

2015

Ongoing

-

The Litvinenko Inquiry

HO, FCO and 3 x Intelligence Agencies

Inquiries Act 2005

2014

18

£2.4m (exc. VAT)

The Leveson Inquiry

DCMS and HO

Inquiries Act 2005

2011

16

£5.4m

The Azelle Rodney Inquiry

MoJ

Inquiries Act 2005

2010

40

£2.6m

Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust Inquiry 2013 / The Francis Inquiry

Department of Health

Inquiries Act 2005

2010

36

£13.7m

The Al Sweady Inquiry

MoD

Inquiries Act 2005

2009

61

£24.9m (exc. VAT)

The Bernard (Sonny) Lodge Inquiry

MoJ

Inquiries Act 2005

2009

10

£0.4m

The Baha Mousa Inquiry

MoD

Inquiries Act 2005

2008

39

£13m

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
30th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Twycross on 27 January (HL3974), whether contracting authorities that fail to publish pipeline notices under section 93 of the Procurement Act 2023 are subject to financial penalties; and if not, what consideration has been given to introducing such penalties to encourage compliance.

The Procurement Act 2023 does not contain financial penalties for failure to publish pipeline notices. There are sufficient remedies and processes in place to manage compliance and the Cabinet Office considers it would not be good use of public funds to introduce such a measure. As per the previous answer (HL3974), Cabinet Office is establishing the Procurement Review Unit which will play a big part in procurement oversight and any non-compliance will be monitored and potentially investigated in detail.

Baroness Twycross
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
30th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, with reference to pages 8 and 64 of the Sourcing Playbook, published in June 2023, how many suppliers are currently classified as "public sector dependent suppliers".

The Cabinet Office maintains a list of public sector dependent suppliers where the suppliers have a contractual obligation to confirm their status to us. 7 suppliers have currently notified us that they are public sector dependent suppliers. The Cabinet Office does not hold a list of all public sector dependent suppliers.

Baroness Twycross
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
28th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Civil Service People Plan 2024–2027, published on 10 January 2024, what was the cost to central government departments of ensuring 100 per cent of Senior Civil Servants achieved Chartered FCIPD status and 100 per cent of G6/G7 officials achieved Chartered MCIPD status by 1 April 2024.

There are several methods of gaining CIPD Membership including study options, apprenticeships and experiential routes. For experiential routes, there is a central Cabinet Office contract with the CIPD for departments to utilise. The costs associated with this accreditation to date are provided below:

Time PeriodFCIPDMCIPD
January 2024 - April 2024£8,090£67,725
May 2024 - January 2025£16,920

£197,615


Departments may also utilise other methods that are available for their SCS and Grade 6/7 HR professionals to gain CIPD membership that are not included in the central Cabinet Office contract

Baroness Twycross
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
28th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Civil Service People Plan 2024–2027, published on 10 January 2024, whether the Central Employee Identifier has been fully implemented across government.

No, the Central Employee Identifier has not been fully implemented across government. The capability to issue IDs is available but changing the legacy ERPs across government departments to hold this has been deemed inefficient with the new cluster ERPs about to commence rollout. These will be following the data standards laid out in the Nova model which includes holding the Central Employee Identifier.



Baroness Twycross
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
20th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of contracts awarded under the Government Major Projects Portfolio since 2020 have used single-source procurement.

This information is not centrally held and would come at disproportionate cost to the Government/Department in producing this information.

Baroness Twycross
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
20th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, with reference to Cabinet Office Government Major Projects Portfolio Data for March 2024, published on 16 January, what factors have led to the budget variance of 264 per cent for the Vetting Transformation Programme.

The figures for March 2024 contained in the Cabinet Office Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) data predate the closure of the programme. The baseline figure of £5.5m relates to expenditure in financial year (FY) 23/24. Actual expenditure in FY 23/24 was £5.7m which represents an overspend of 3.6%. The £20m cited in the GMPP reflected the original funding for the FY.

Baroness Twycross
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
20th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the total number of procurement frameworks currently in use across the public sector.

​Information is not centrally held by the Cabinet Office on the total number of procurement frameworks currently in use across the public sector.

Crown Commercial Service (CCS) analysis suggests there are approximately 2,275 frameworks in the public sector that compete with CCS agreements.

Under the Transforming Public Procurement reforms, there will be a requirement to register procurement frameworks on the central Transparency Platform. This will enhance transparency and provide greater visibility of frameworks in operation.

Baroness Twycross
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
20th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what percentage of Government Major Projects Portfolio projects have been re-baselined in the past year.

The Infrastructure and Projects Authority estimates that approximately 61% of Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) have been re-baselined between 31 March 2023 and 31 March 2024. This rate of change is explained by 3 reasons:

  1. Major projects report a cost baseline that factors in inflation expectations. Each year these expectations have to be revised as inflation forecasts are revised, which in turn leads to a cost baseline revision.

  2. Major projects are the most challenging, ambitious and innovative projects the UK has ever seen, with the scale and scope matching some of the biggest in the world. This challenge is therefore associated with a significant level of uncertainty, which leads to frequent cost baseline revision.

  3. A large number of projects are at the pre-delivery stage, where they are expected, and encouraged, to change their baseline when they are in order to ensure that their plans are correctly set out at the delivery stage.

Baroness Twycross
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
13th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what penalties or sanctions apply to contracting authorities that fail to publish pipeline notices under section 93 of the Procurement Act 2023.

Pipeline notices are required to be published under the Procurement Act 2023 (the Act). Where a contracting authority has a third-party spend of more than £100 million, it is required to publish a pipeline notice for every procurement with an estimated value of more than £2 million.

Information published in procurement notices will be viewable, free of charge, in an accessible format. It will be clear which contracting authorities are publishing the pipeline notice in the pipeline view on the central digital platform.

The Procurement Review Unit (PRU), established to exercise the procurement oversight powers in Part 10 of the Act, may investigate a contracting authority's compliance with the Act. Non-compliance, including failure to publish a pipeline notice, may lead to an investigation and the results may be published by the PRU. The PRU may make recommendations to the contracting authority in order for them to achieve compliance. The contracting authority must have due regard to these recommendations and may be required to submit a progress report if directed by the PRU.

Baroness Twycross
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
13th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, with reference to page 62 of the Cabinet Office’s Annual report and accounts 2023 to 2024, published on 12 December 2024, what specific changes to the lease terms for the two buildings identified by the Government Property Agency during 2023–24 were not reflected in the International Financial Reporting Standard 16 accounting for 2022–23; and what was the financial impact of these errors on the restated accounts.

Further information on the GPA prior year adjustments can be found on page 165 of the 2023/24 Cabinet Office Annual Report and Accounts.

In July 2022 a head lease was surrendered and a new head lease granted with a revised rent which extended the lease term by 20 years. The right of use asset and lease liability were not remeasured to reflect the extended lease term. The financial impact of this error on the restated 2022/23 accounts was as follows:

  • Right of use assets at 31 March 2023 increased by £81.5m

  • Lease liabilities at 31 March 2023 increased by £76.1m

  • Finance expense increased by £0.5m

  • Right of use asset depreciation expenditure decreased by £0.6m

  • (Gain)/loss on remeasurement of right of use assets decreased by £6.5m

In March 2023, a Deed of Variation was agreed with a client to extend the sub-lease term by 12 years to align with the head lease. The lease modification should have resulted in the GPA reclassifying the sub-lease from an operating lease to a finance lease in accordance with the GPA’s IFRS 16 accounting policies. The financial impact of this error on the restated 2022/23 accounts was as follows:

  • Right of use assets at 31 March 2023 decreased by £135.3m

  • Investment in sublease assets at 31 March 2023 increased by £154.5m

  • Lease incentive receivable assets at 31 March 2023 decreased by £19.2m

Baroness Twycross
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
30th Jul 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their assessment of potential unilateral recognition of EU standards to enable UK producers to satisfy EU requirements whilst continuing to sell the same products in the UK.

The UK currently recognises EU requirements, including the CE marking, for a range of products. This allows businesses to place goods on our market if they meet these rules, saving them time and money. The Product Safety and Metrology Bill will enable the UK to end recognition of EU product regulations, where it is in the best interests of UK businesses and consumers.

It will also enable the UK to make the sovereign choice to recognise new or updated EU product regulations where appropriate to prevent additional costs for businesses and support economic growth.

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
3rd Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of decommissioned offshore oil and gas infrastructure from the UK sector of the North Sea is currently processed in UK dismantling facilities.

This information is not held by government. External estimates suggest that 78% of the onshore dismantling of offshore oil and gas infrastructure is undertaken in the UK.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
3rd Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential for repurposing North Sea oil and gas infrastructure for carbon capture and storage, and what financial or regulatory incentives exist to encourage operators to pursue this option instead of full decommissioning.

The Government’s consultation in 2019 on the ‘re-use of oil and gas assets for carbon capture, usage and storage projects’ concluded that there is the potential for significant cost savings for some CCS projects which can re-use appropriate oil and gas infrastructure.

The Government has set out how change of use relief can be issued for certain re-purposed assets. Under this regime, oil and gas companies will be relieved of their decommissioning obligations for repurposed assets if certain conditions are met. Secondary legislation to clarify this process is being developed and is expected to be introduced in due course.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
3rd Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the feasibility of introducing a rigs-to-reefs programme in the UK sector of the North Sea, and what legal or regulatory barriers exist to such a programme under domestic and international law.

The OSPAR (Oslo and Paris convention for the Protection of the Marine environment of the North-East Atlantic) Convention prohibits the dumping or leaving in place of any disused offshore Oil and Gas installation in the marine environment. To re-purpose an installation, for example as a strategic compensation measure, installations would need to be re-classified and regulated by the relevant competent authority.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
25th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the economic impact of North Sea oil and gas decommissioning activities on UK coastal communities, including the estimated number of jobs created and the associated industrial opportunities.

The current overall cost estimate for North Sea decommissioning is approximately £40 billion, with UK suppliers in line to receive 70% of planned work in Supply Chain Action Plans submitted to the NSTA in 2022. The Government is currently consulting on the future of the North Sea and is seeking views on how we can seize the opportunities of the energy transition, including decommissioning.

Consultation launched on 5 March, last week.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
25th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the risk that oil and gas operators in the UK sector of the North Sea may default on their decommissioning obligations; and what measures are in place to prevent taxpayer liability in the event of an operator’s insolvency.

The ‘Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment and Decommissioning’ (OPRED) monitors North Sea operators’ financial and commercial activities to ensure Government has an accurate picture of industry capacity to honour its decommissioning liabilities. OPRED regularly undertakes decommissioning risk analysis in relation to North Sea offshore installations. The Petroleum Act 1998 provides the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, The Rt Hon Ed Miliband MP, with powers to serve legally binding notice on offshore operators to pay for their respective decommissioning programmes. If necessary, OPRED, on behalf of the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, can oblige operators to provide additional financial security to further minimise tax-payer liability.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
25th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government how many offshore oil and gas installations in the UK sector of the North Sea have been granted exemptions from full removal under OSPAR Decision 98/3 since 2000; and on what grounds these exemptions were approved.

Since 2000 there have been 7 derogations (exemptions) approved under the procedures set out under OSPAR Decision 98/3. Following an assessment of options and national and international consultations, HM Government was satisfied that leave in situ was the most appropriate solution on balance considering safety risks, environmental impact, technical feasibility, and economic and societal effects.

Details of all derogations are available via OSPAR’s public Inventory of Offshore Installations website.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
24th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 13 February (HL4576), what are the 29 government services that have reached the “great” standard under the Top 75 programme; and what is the classification of the remaining 46 services.

From a baseline of eight ‘great’ services, 29 of the top 75 services achieved the ‘great’ standard at the point of closing the Top75 Services Programme. In addition to the report provided to the Public Accounts Committee, GDS will shortly publish the list of the 29 ‘Great’ services along with conclusions and learnings from the programme.

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
5th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to Cabinet Office Senior Officials’ Expenses, July to September 2024, published on 30 January, what specific business justification was documented for Christine Bellamy, the Government Chief Product Officer, travelling business class for a domestic flight to Manchester between 20 and 25 October which totalled £1,693; what alternative or cheaper travel options were considered; and whether this expenditure complied with internal value-for-money guidelines.

There is an error in the data - this expense relates to a premium economy flight from Manchester, UK to Ottawa, Canada to enable Christine Bellamy to represent the UK Civil Service at the AccelerateGOV conference in Canada and attend a series of engagements recommended by the British High Commission. It was not a domestic, business class flight. Premium economy tickets are permitted within policy for flights longer than 5 hours - as was the case here.

Christine Bellamy represented the UK Civil Service as an expert speaker at the AccelerateGOV conference in Ottawa, Canada and while in-country undertook a series of engagements with - and on behalf of - the British High Commission. Meetings included with senior government counterparts from the Canadian Digital Service and Shared Services Canada; with the British Consul General and with a number of Canadian academic institutions and think tanks involved in GovTech, AI and civic society.

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
30th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, with reference to the 2022–2025 Roadmap for Digital and Data, published on 29 November 2023, how many of the 50 government services that were due to reach a “great” standard by 2025 have now met that standard; whether they remain committed to this target; and if not, why this commitment has been omitted from the Blueprint for Modern Digital Government, published on 21 January.

The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology has provided a report to the Public Accounts Committee on the closure of the 2022-25 Roadmap. The report indicates that 29 of the Top 75 Services have reached the ‘Great’ standard, an increase from 8 ‘Great’ services at baselining.

The Government Digital Service has established a Service Transformation team to drive delivery of the next phase of service transformation work set out in Blueprint for Modern Digital Government, building on the learnings from the Top75 Services Programme.

As set out in the Blueprint, the government will develop a detailed Government Digital & AI Roadmap alongside the second phase of the Spending Review, to be published in summer 2025. This will supersede the 2022-2025 Roadmap, and will include details of how we plan to measure progress through the next phase of digital transformation.

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
30th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government how many government departments met the April 2023 deadline to confirm an adoption strategy for One Login, as set out in the 2022–2025 Roadmap for Digital and Data, published on 29 November 2023; whether the Blueprint for Modern Digital Government sets a new deadline for full adoption; and if not, why no specific timeframe has been included in the strategy.

In the 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, Mission Two states that 'All departments will confirm an adoption strategy and roadmap for One Login by April 2023 and their services will have begun onboarding by 2025.'

In April 2023, 16 of the 17 departments in scope had a delivery plan and were working with GDS to onboard their first services. All departments in scope have now committed to onboarding services to GOV.UK One Login, and are actively implementing delivery plans. 59 services have onboarded to GOV.UK One Login, with an extensive roadmap of new services scheduled to onboard over the course of the next 12 months. They are supported by the GDS Onboarding and Engagement team who provide advice and assets to enable technical service teams to onboard their services smoothly.

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)