Asked by: Alex Burghart (Conservative - Brentwood and Ongar)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the appointment of the (a) chair and (b) members of the Ethics and Integrity Committee will be (i) a regulated public appointment and (ii) subject to Select Committee pre-appointment scrutiny.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
We are restoring confidence in government and the highest standards in public life and have already taken steps to improve probity and transparency, including through issuing a new Ministerial Code which highlights the importance of the principles of public life, by strengthening the terms of reference for the Independent Adviser, and by introducing a new monthly Register of Gifts and Hospitality.
An update on the Ethics and Integrity Commission will be provided in due course.
Asked by: Alex Burghart (Conservative - Brentwood and Ongar)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what metrics are tracked on his Department's internal dashboards; and if he will make it his policy to publish them on gov.uk.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Cabinet Office does not centrally record the total number of metrics captured. Our teams and business units maintain a wide array of dashboards tailored to their specific functions and business requirements. A precise, aggregated figure is not available. The dashboards contain internal management information, and it is not Cabinet Office policy to publish them.
Asked by: Alex Burghart (Conservative - Brentwood and Ongar)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will place in the Library a copy of the standard template for submissions to (a) Cabinet Office Ministers and (b) the Cabinet Office Permanent Secretary.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer on 17 February 2025 (PQ HL4631) and on 7 April 2025 (PQ 42819).
Asked by: Alex Burghart (Conservative - Brentwood and Ongar)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether Departments will be required to produce internal Outcome Delivery Plans (a) to monitor spending outlines in the Spending Review 2025 and (b) as part of the Mission Board delivery programme.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government has published its Plan for Change, which sets out clear and ambitious milestones to reach over this Parliament from each of the Government’s national missions. Detail on wider government commitments will continue to be provided by relevant departments.
Asked by: Alex Burghart (Conservative - Brentwood and Ongar)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of trade tariffs imposed on the EU by the United States on businesses in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
We have a strong and proud tradition over centuries of free trade here in the United Kingdom, and we will continue to make the case for that. With regard to our specific trading relationship with the United States, after conversations between the Prime Minister and the President in the Oval Office in February, we wish to deepen our trading relationship with the United States. We will continue to monitor the impact of any such policy on Northern Ireland and I continue to regularly discuss issues with my European counterpart Maroš Šefčovič.
Asked by: Alex Burghart (Conservative - Brentwood and Ongar)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make it his policy that the Civil Service Commission should be informed of recent political donations from people appointed to the Civil Service by exception.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Civil Service Commission’s prior approval is required for appointments by exception at SCS PB2 or above. Individual Civil Service departments and organisations have delegated authority to appoint by exception at grades below SCS PB2.
For appointments by exception delegated to departments, the department is responsible for both carrying out background checks on individuals who may be appointed, and addressing any potential propriety matters.
Asked by: Alex Burghart (Conservative - Brentwood and Ongar)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department plans to issue Outcome Delivery Plans.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government has published its Plan for Change, which sets out clear and ambitious milestones to reach over this Parliament from each of the Government’s national missions. Detail on wider government commitments will continue to be provided by relevant departments.
Asked by: Alex Burghart (Conservative - Brentwood and Ongar)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he plans to publish the civil service EDI dataset.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
We are considering the Civil Service Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Expenditure Review commissioned by the previous Government.
Asked by: Alex Burghart (Conservative - Brentwood and Ongar)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Answer of 18 September 2024 to Question HL835 on Government Departments: Remote Working, whether the Civil Service meets the requirement to attend the office or work face-to-face with colleagues at least 60% of the time.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Civil Service Headquarters (HQ) Occupancy statistics are published quarterly on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Alex Burghart (Conservative - Brentwood and Ongar)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, in what circumstances people in receipt of a civil service pension who re-join the civil service are subject to abatement.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The circumstances have not changed since the Rt Hon Gentleman was a Minister in the department, and can be found at https://www.civilservicepensionscheme.org.uk/.