Asked by: Lord Norton of Louth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Statement by Lord Hanson of Flint on 22 January (HLWS374), what plans they have to encourage other Departments to emulate the Home Office in (1) undertaking detailed post-legislative scrutiny of Acts, (2) engaging with key government and operational stakeholders, and (3) in making written statements when memoranda are produced and laid as Command Papers.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Cabinet Office has written to departments reminding them of the importance of post-legislative scrutiny.
It is a matter for each department to determine whether a written statement should accompany publication, and which stakeholders to engage when conducting post-legislative scrutiny.
While all bills that have reached Royal Assent are eligible for post-legislative scrutiny, it can be agreed between the department and the relevant Commons departmental select committee that a memorandum is not required.
Asked by: Lord Norton of Louth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what percentage of state secondary schools currently have teachers who have qualified as citizenship education teachers, and what plans they have to increase the number of schools with such teachers.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
Delivering the government’s objective to break down the barriers to opportunity for every child relies on a highly skilled workforce in schools, with high quality teaching the in-school factor that makes the biggest difference to a child’s outcomes.
There are now 468,693 full time equivalent teachers in state-funded schools in England but numbers have not kept pace with demand. Of the 3,435 state-funded secondary schools in England, 71.2% employed a teacher with a relevant qualification in citizenship. This figure relates to schools that supplied teacher qualification data. In some cases, teachers with a qualification in another subject may also teach citizenship in the school.
We are focused on the need to boost teacher numbers in priority subjects across the country. This is why the government has set out the ambition to recruit 6,500 new expert teachers across our schools, both mainstream and specialist, and colleges over the course of this Parliament.
Measures will include getting more teachers into shortage subjects, tackling retention issues and supporting areas that face recruitment challenges. The government will continue to work alongside the sector as we develop our delivery plan and seek to re-establish teaching as an attractive profession.
We have made good early progress towards this key pledge by ensuring teaching is once again an attractive and respected profession, key to which is ensuring teachers receive the pay they deserve. That is why this government has accepted in full the School Teachers’ Review Body’s recommendation of a 5.5% pay award for teachers and leaders in maintained schools for 2024/25.
Alongside teacher pay, we have made £233 million available from 2025/26 recruitment cycle to support teacher trainees with tax-free bursaries of up to £29,000 and scholarships of up to £31,000 in shortage subjects. The department has also expanded its school teacher recruitment campaign, ‘Every Lesson Shapes a Life’, and the further education teacher recruitment campaign ‘Share your Skills’.
Asked by: Lord Norton of Louth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker how many items of postal correspondence were received in the Palace of Westminster in 2024; and, of those, how many were received in the House of Lords.
Answered by Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall
The Senior Deputy Speaker has asked me, as Chair of the Services Committee, to respond on his behalf. 856,751 mail items were received on the Parliamentary Estate in 2024. The Administration does not count which House each item goes to but estimates that approximately 10 to 15 per cent of these items were destined for the House of Lords. These figures do not include courier items or internal mail.
Please note that this figure refers to the whole Parliamentary Estate, not just the Palace of Westminster.
Asked by: Lord Norton of Louth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what mechanisms they have introduced to monitor compliance by each government department with section 3(6) of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Civil Service Code sets out the responsibility of civil servants to advise ministers in accordance with section 3(6) of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010. The Government takes seriously its commitment to uphold and support our constitutional arrangements including the conventions which underpin the relationship between Government and Parliament. The Leaders of both Houses are responsible for representing the interests of Parliament in Government and ensuring that the customs and principles that make Parliament unique are properly represented. The Parliamentary Capability Team provides training for civil servants which emphasises the importance of these constitutional principles. Each Government department has a parliamentary team which works with civil servants to give advice on how parliament works.
Asked by: Lord Norton of Louth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure that Acts of Parliament are subject to post-legislative review by sponsoring government departments three to five years after enactment.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
It continues to be Government policy that all bills that have reached Royal Assent are eligible for post-legislative scrutiny three to five years after enactment. It can be agreed between the department and the relevant Commons select committee that a review is not required. Post-legislative scrutiny memoranda have been published on GOV.UK where Acts have undergone the process.
Asked by: Lord Norton of Louth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure that a training barracks remains within a two-hour drive for members of the Army Reserve.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Shadow Minister (Defence)
The cohesive collective element is a key component of being part of the Reserve, and the Army is reviewing the Reserve Forces and Cadets Estate to ensure local hubs maintain a visible and accessible Army Reserve footprint. Travel distances are being assessed alongside wider considerations relating to output, the employment of Smarter Ways of Working and personal preferences including cap badge affiliation and specialist capabilities.
As a Ministry of Defence asset, any changes to the Volunteer Estate would be made in consultation with all the Services, to enable alignment of strategic and fiscal priorities.
Asked by: Lord Norton of Louth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Neville-Rolfe on 13 September 2023 (HL10154), what steps the Deputy Prime Minister has taken to ensure that senior ministers are aware of, and have regard to, the core principles of the UK constitution, and what consultation there has been with the Lord Chancellor to ensure that the rule of law is upheld.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
As set out in the Ministerial Code, there is an overarching duty on all ministers to comply with the law. Ministers are personally responsible for deciding how to conduct themselves in light of the Code.
Asked by: Lord Norton of Louth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Neville-Rolfe on 8 February (HL1937), whether they will list the 19 non-statutory and 23 statutory inquiries established under the Inquiries Act 2005, along with the (1) length, (2), cost, and (3) sponsoring department, for each of those inquiries.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
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 and non-statutory inquiries established since 2005 in the table below.
In some cases, information in the table below has come from reports from outside the Government. We have not included the costs for ongoing inquiries, which are published at different frequencies on inquiry or departmental websites, and we have not included the details for any investigations commissioned by NHS England (some of which were counted in the total number of non-statutory inquiries in our previous response, answered on 8th February 2024, UIN HL1937). It has been noted where the publicly available information provides the cost excluding VAT.
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 | - |
Cranston Inquiry | DfT | Non-statutory | 2023 | Ongoing | - |
Andrew Malkinson Inquiry | MoJ | Non-statutory | 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 | - |
Fuller Inquiry | DHSC | Non-statutory | 2022 | Ongoing | - |
Angiolini Inquiry | HO | Non-statutory | 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 |
The Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review | Department of Health | Non-statutory | 2018 | 29 | £1.7m |
Independent Inquiry into the issues raised by Ian Paterson | Department of Health | Non-statutory | 2018 | 26 | £1.9m |
Grenfell Tower Inquiry | Cabinet Office | Inquiries Act 2005 | 2017 | Ongoing | - |
Infected Blood Inquiry | Cabinet Office | Inquiries Act 2005 | 2017 | Ongoing | - |
Independent inquiry into the award of the Magnox decommissioning contract by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) and its subsequent termination | BEIS | Non-statutory | 2017 | 48 | [unknown] |
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 | - |
Gosport Independent Panel | Department of Health | Non-statutory | 2014 | 42 | £13m |
The Litvinenko Inquiry | HO, FCO and 3 x Intelligence Agencies | Inquiries Act 2005 | 2014 | 18 | £2.4m (exc. VAT) |
Harris Review / Independent review of self-inflicted deaths of young adults in custody aged between 18 and 24 | MoJ | Non-statutory | 2014 | 17 | £0.2m |
The Morecambe Bay Maternity and Neonatal Services Investigation | Department of Health | Non-statutory | 2013 | 18 | £1.1m |
Daniel Morgan Independent Panel | HO | Non-statutory | 2013 | 97 | £17.6m |
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 Detainee Inquiry | Cabinet Office | Non-statutory (Committee of Privy Counsellors) | 2010 | 45 | £2.3m (exc. VAT) |
The Hillsborough Independent Panel | HO | Non-statutory | 2009 | 33 | Less than £5m |
The Al Sweady Inquiry | MoD | Inquiries Act 2005 | 2009 | 61 | £24.9m (exc. VAT) |
Independent Inquiry into care provided by Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust January 2001 – March 2009 | Department of Health | Non-statutory | 2009 | 7 | - |
The Iraq Inquiry / The Chilcot Inquiry | Cabinet Office, FCO, DfID | Non-statutory (Committee of Privy Counsellors) | 2009 | 85 | £13.1m |
The Bernard (Sonny) Lodge Inquiry | MoJ | Inquiries Act 2005 | 2009 | 10 | £0.4m |
The Baha Mousa Inquiry | MoD | Inquiries Act 2005 | 2008 | 39 | £13m |
Inquiry into Human Tissue Analysis in UK Nuclear Facilities / Redfern Inquiry | DTI - BERR - DECC | Non-statutory | 2007 | 43 | - |
Contaminated Blood and Blood Products Inquiry | Department of Health | Non-statutory | 2007 | 48 | £75k |
Asked by: Lord Norton of Louth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many statutory and non-statutory inquiries they have undertaken since 2005, and what were their (1) length, (2) cost, (3) sponsoring department, and (4) subject matter.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
Since 2005, our records show that His Majesty’s Government has established 19 non statutory inquiries and 23 statutory inquiries under the Inquiries Act 2005 on a broad range of subject matters. 28 of the total 42 inquiries have been completed. Several of these statutory inquiries had previously been established as non statutory inquiries or inquests. The length of completed inquiries in this period ranges from 7 to 99 months and published costs vary significantly from between £0.2m and £194m. Most Whitehall departments have sponsored public inquiries. Further information can be found on inquiry and departmental websites and in the National Archives.
Asked by: Lord Norton of Louth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to undertake post-legislative review of (1) the Business and Planning Act 2020, (2) the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020, (3) the Trade (Disclosure of Information) Act 2020, and (4) the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020, in line with the policy of reviewing Acts three to five years after enactment.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston
All bills that have reached Royal Assent are eligible for post-legislative scrutiny three to five years after they are enacted.
The Trade (Disclosure of Information) Act 2020 was repealed by the Trade Act 2021 and is no longer in force.
There is no planned timetable for post legislative scrutiny of the other bills mentioned in the question.