Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, with reference to the press release, "Emergency Alert to be sent to England and Wales as Government steps up wildfire response with funding, military support and BBQ ban", 14 August 2026, what was the statutory basis for the retail ban on disposable barbecues.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)

Statutory guidelines on the supply of disposable barbeques were published on 18 August. They were made by the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade under regulation 6(3)(c) of the General Product Safety Regulations 2005. The guidelines will be reviewed when the risks to public safety are sufficiently reduced.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will set out the type of permission, contract or leave of absence that allowed Grace Pritchard to work on the Labour Party campaign for the Makerfield by-election.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

As per the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers, where a special adviser wishes to undertake work for a political party which does not arise out of government business they may do this either in their own time, outside office hours, or under a separate contract with the Party, working part-time for the Government. They may not use annual or unpaid leave for this purpose. Individual contractual arrangements are a confidential matter.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the press release, "Emergency Alert to be sent to England and Wales as Government steps up wildfire response with funding, military support and BBQ ban", 14 August 2026, how many mobile phones in England received (a) two alerts, (b) three alerts, (c) four alerts and (d) five or more alerts.

Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security) (Jointly with the Cabinet Office)

The Emergency Alerts capability is delivered through cell broadcast technology. This means that the Government does not gather information about individual handsets, including whether or not an individual received an alert. It is therefore not possible to verify how many phones received two or more alerts.

Receiving multiple duplicate alerts is a known technical issue, and we acknowledge that receiving multiple alerts can be distressing. This is more likely if you are moving, such as by car or train, as your phone will connect to multiple different cell masts, or if you have multiple SIMs linked to one device. This is due to each network operator being sent a single activation for their connected devices.

In Wales and along the Welsh border, alerts were broadcast in both English and Welsh, in line with our legal responsibilities under the Welsh Language Act.

The Cabinet Office and Government Digital Service are working closely with all Mobile Network Operators to identify mitigation measures to reduce the frequency of duplicate Alerts. The government is committed to continuously improving the Emergency Alerts service.

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, with reference to his written statement of 9 March 2026 and the linked Terms of Reference for the Patrick Finucane Inquiry, when he will set out an updated timeframe for the publication of the referenced plan, timeline and budget.

Answered by Sarah Owen - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Northern Ireland Office)

Following the publication of its terms of reference in March 2026, The Patrick Finucane Inquiry has been legally established. It held its preliminary hearing in June 2026, with a further hearing scheduled in September.

The Inquiry is an independent statutory public inquiry, established under the Inquiries Act 2005 to complete an Article 2 ECHR compliant investigation into the murder of Patrick Finucane. As the sponsoring department, my officials continue to work closely with the Inquiry whilst ensuring its independence is maintained. The Inquiry is still in its early stages and further work is required before detailed plans can be published. The Chair has been clear that the Inquiry will be rigorous, and will work as quickly and effectively as possible .

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether (1) Ministerial and (2) Civil Service oversight of the (a) Government Property Agency, (b) Government People Group and (c) Artificial Intelligence Taskforce will be undertaken by (i) the Office of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, (ii) Cabinet Office or (ii) OneGov.

Answered by Mark Ferguson - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Prime Minister has established the new Office of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (OPMC), which includes No10, No10 North and Cabinet Office teams directly serving the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Oversight of the OPMC is by the Prime Minister and Cabinet Office Ministers.

The AI Taskforce is led by AI Minister Kanishka Narayan and is based in the OPMC. The Government People Group’s (GPG) responsibilities will be divided between the OPMC and the OneGov Delivery Agency. The Future Civil Service Group, within the OPMC, brings together reform and people policy functions formerly within GPG, whilst operational service functions formerly within GPG will be delivered by the OneGov Delivery Agency, including the Government Recruitment Service and the pensions response team. The Government Property Agency continues to be one of the executive agencies of the Cabinet Office, overseen by Cabinet Office Ministers.

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, with reference to the Answer of 14 July 2026 to Question HL1786 on United Kingdom: Northern Ireland, whether other proposals from the Safeguarding the Union policy paper have been discontinued since July 2024.

Answered by Sarah Owen - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Northern Ireland Office)

The Government is continuing to implement the Safeguarding the Union command paper and to support Northern Ireland's place in the Union: this includes the East-West Council meeting again in January 2026; the allocation of £2.25 million for Intertrade UK over the next three years; the announcement of a pilot twinning programme between schools in England and Northern Ireland; and the launch of the Northern Ireland Defence Growth Deal in April 2026, which includes a £50 million investment to support well-paid and highly-skilled jobs.

I would also refer the Honourable Member to the answer provided by my Noble Friend Baroness Anderson to HL2297 on 28 July, which further outlined how Safeguarding the Union commitments are embedded throughout the work of the Government.

Question to the Leader of the House:

To ask the Leader of the House, if he will ensure that answers to written Parliamentary Questions provide relevant hyperlinks.

Answered by Alan Campbell - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons

It is important that Members receive full and helpful responses to parliamentary questions.

The Guide to Parliamentary Work (available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guide-to-parliamentary-work), published by my office, states that “if referring to documents in the public domain, you should include the relevant extracts in your written response as well as the relevant hyperlink”.

I note the Procedure Committee’s report on Written Parliamentary Questions published today (available at: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5902/cmselect/cmproced/49/report.html), which makes reference to the use of hyperlinks. The Government will respond to the Committee’s report in due course.

In addition, I encourage Hon. Members to raise any specific issues they may have with myself.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the answer of 27 January 2025, to Question 25755, on Emergencies: Mobile Phones, if she will place the One Year Evaluation Report in the Library.

Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security) (Jointly with the Cabinet Office)

The One Year Evaluation delivered in September 2024 contains detailed information regarding the operation and processes of the Emergency Alerts system. The capability represents a key part of the UK’s crisis response ability and therefore is unable to be shared publicly in order to maintain the integrity of the system.

Question

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, Further to the written ministerial statement, Driving Opportunity in Every Postcode, 9 September 2026, HCWS322, what is the timetable for the commencement of the Social-Economic Duty.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

This Government is committed to ensuring that everyone, no matter their background, can thrive. To support this, we will commence the socio-economic duty. We are currently working towards commencement, which includes drafting statutory guidance that will clarify how the duty can be applied effectively. We will provide an update in due course.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the document, Frequency Asked Questions about Emergency Alerts, published by the Cabinet Office in 2023, what are the latest criteria for use of the Emergency Alert service in relation to (a) localised alerts and (b) nationwide alerts.

Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security) (Jointly with the Cabinet Office)

The threshold considerations for issuing an emergency alert include considering whether there is a risk to life, and whether those receiving the message need to take urgent action.

There is no separate criteria for issuing alerts locally and nationally.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which department is now the lead department for the Defending Democracy Taskforce.

Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security) (Jointly with the Cabinet Office)

The Defending Democracy Taskforce, which I chair as Security Minister, drives a whole of government approach to the threats we face to our democracy.

The Permanent Secretary of the Home Office has recently been appointed by the Cabinet Secretary as the lead for Defending Democracy. The Taskforce is supported by a dedicated Secretariat in the Home Office who help co-ordinate this work across government.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the OneGov Delivery Agency will charge departments for its services.

Answered by Sally Jameson - Parliamentary Secretary and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The services transferring to the OneGov Delivery Agency are expected initially to continue to charge other government departments in accordance with existing agreements or Memoranda of Understanding. Work to establish OneGov has commenced and will consider issues such as longer-term funding models and scope of service delivery.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance (a) her Department and (b) NHS England has given on whether socio-economic background of the patient can be a material consideration by the NHS when prioritising patients for elective care; and what use the NHS makes of social value judgments when prioritising.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

All waiting lists are subject to clinical prioritisation at a local level. The National Health Service triages patients waiting for elective care, including surgery, so that the order in which they are seen reflects clinical judgement of need as well as taking into account overall wait time.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Home Office's transparency data entitled Small boat arrivals: last 7 days, updated on 9 September 2026, has the status of official statistics; and whether the UK Statistics Authority has reviewed data reporting by the Home Office.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with HM Treasury)

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

A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 10th September is attached.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many special advisers in Government have the title of Chief of Staff.

Answered by Mark Ferguson - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Lead Special Advisers in departments may be titled ‘Chief of Staff’ to their appointing minister. Therefore there are approximately 17 Special Advisers with the title of ‘Chief of Staff’.

This does not change these individuals’ terms of employment. As per paragraph 2 of the Model Contract for Special Advisers (Job title and duties) which can be found on GOV.UK, the formal job title of all special advisers is ‘Special Adviser’.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether all (a) departments and (b) arm’s length bodies, including NHS England, are to act in line with the Government’s revised approach to prioritising British jobs and growth in public procurement; and whether (i) the Department of Health and Social Care and (ii) NHS England (A) have or (B) will have any exemption from that approach with regard to NHS England’s 2027 carbon reduction plan requirements.

Answered by Mark Ferguson - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The government has been clear that all departments should use public procurement to deliver jobs and skills opportunities.

Procurement Policy Notes (PPNs) are applicable to Central Government Departments, Executive Agencies and Non-Departmental Public Bodies unless otherwise stated in the PPN.

All other public bodies are routinely encouraged to adopt PPNs.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, Further to the written statement of 1 September 2026, HCWS296, on Canada’s entry I to force with the UK in CPTPP, what steps are being taken to ensure that the EU/UK reset supports the ability of the United Kingdom to maintain its existing free trade deals and sign new ones with non-EU countries and organisations.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK and EU are committed to building a closer relationship and are negotiating agreements that will boost trade, enhance energy security and create opportunities for young people. The government will ensure that these agreements are consistent with its wider international obligations.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 8 September 2026 to Question 20855 on Civil Service Commission: Conflict of Interests, whether the Civil Service Commission informed the Minister for the Civil Service that responsibility for determining complaints under the Recruitment Principles, Civil Service Code appeals and departmental audit scores had been delegated to the Chief Executive.

Answered by Mark Ferguson - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

I refer the hon. Member to the response to Question 20845.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the answer of 19 March 2026, to Question 116770, whether Cabinet Office's Direct Ministerial Appointments portal entries on gov.uk should be amended once the Direct Ministerial Appointment leaves their post.

Answered by Mark Ferguson - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The responsibility for the publication of information on Direct Ministerial Appointments on the announcement portal rests with individual sponsor departments. The primary function of the portal is to bring together, into a central resource, announcements of new Direct Ministerial Appointments from across government. While the portal records the expected length of term of individual new appointments, it does not record actual end dates for those appointments that come to an end. Questions about the status of individual appointments would be for sponsor departments.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether any unused Ministerial residences in Admiralty House are paying the empty homes council tax premium to Westminster City Council.

Answered by Mark Ferguson - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Council tax premiums for empty homes do not apply to the Ministerial residences in Admiralty House.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, Pursuant to the answer of 7 September 2026, to Question 20824, on Civil Servants: Nationality, what was the nationality of each (a) job applicant, and (b) employed applicant, for roles in the EU Relations Secretariat in the period for which information is held.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Individual data regarding the nationality of job applicants and successful appointees cannot be provided, as this information is confidential. However, data on the wider Civil Service, including nationality, is published regularly on gov.uk.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether any Mission Boards are operational.

Answered by Mark Ferguson - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Mission Boards were established under the previous administration and their operation was the responsibility of the lead Secretaries of State.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answers of 7 September 2026 to Question 19361 on Public Appointments: Equality and of 8 September 2026 to Question 20975 on Civil Service Recruitment, whether the socio-economic background of an applicant is a material consideration or determining factor in the appointment process for civil servants through the (a) Civil Service Masterclass and (b) the listed Going Forward into Employment recruitment schemes.

Answered by Mark Ferguson - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Socio-economic background is one of the considerations that determines whether individuals can apply for the Going Forward into Employment pathways listed below.

• DCMS Learn & Grow Pathway

• DWP Social Mobility Apprenticeship

• Crown Prosecution Service Diversifying CPS Careers

• MHCLG Masterclass Pathway (sometimes referred to as the Civil Service Masterclass)

• Home Office Pathway to Employment

More information on GFiE Pathway opportunities for people from Low Social Mobility Backgrounds can be found on the GFiE Civil Service Careers site: https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/gfie-pathways/#social-mobility. This site is visible in the public domain.

Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 28 July 2026 to Question HL2133, on International Court of Justice, whether the Government made oral arguments to the International Court of Justice once the 2023 statement was withdrawn.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)

The Government strongly supports the International Labour Organization’s work and values its role in upholding and enhancing workers’ rights globally. We also fully respect the independence of the International Court of Justice and its vital role in upholding the rule of law.

On 7 October 2025, the Government delivered its oral statement before the International Court of Justice in the oral proceedings concerning the right to strike under ILO Convention No. 87, the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention 1948.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 7 September 2026 to Question 16041, on Treasury: Furniture, what comparative assessment HM Treasury’s PFI team has made of the value for money of the cost of the picnic and outdoor furniture (a) purchased via the PFI company and (b) purchased directly from a retailer such as B&Q.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with HM Treasury)

HM Treasury occupies accommodation at the Government Offices Great George Street, which is managed by the Government Property Agency (GPA). Decisions relating to the procurement of furniture for shared areas are a matter for the GPA.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the OSCAR II database holds information on departmental spending on communications, marketing and advertising.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with HM Treasury)

Financial information explicitly recording Communications and Advertising expenditure is not held centrally within OSCAR. OSCAR records Marketing expenditure against the Chart of Accounts code "EXP - PURCHASE OF GOODS/SERVICES - MARKETING & MEDIA".

There are no separate expenditure codes specifically attributed to Communications or Advertising activity; however, departments may include these items of spend within this aggregate account on OSCAR.

Individual departments may hold more detailed information on expenditure recorded against this code, or the specific items of expenditure being enquired about, within their own finance systems.

The most recent OSCAR data are published as part of the OSCAR annual release: November 2025 - GOV.UK, which can be accessed online.

Found: Alex Burghart MP, on behalf of HM Official Opposition, told us that “there are times when one just wants

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether any concerns were identified regarding Capita's suitability to administer the CSPS during the procurement and approval processes.

Answered by Sally Jameson - Parliamentary Secretary and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Cabinet Office awarded the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme to Capita in November 2023 under the previous government. The current delays facing scheme members are entirely unacceptable, and this Government has taken firm action to resolve them through a clear recovery plan with strict delivery milestones. We have deployed additional resources to expedite priority cases, ensuring that serving and former staff receive the high standard of service they deserve. Regular progress updates remain available to members via the pension portal and GOV.UK.

While Capita committed to a complete return to standard contractual service levels by the end of June 2026, they have failed to meet this critical milestone. The Government is taking robust action to hold Capita to account. This includes withholding £9.9 million in contract payments for undelivered milestones, alongside confirmation that the Government surge team costs will be recovered directly from Capita. To enforce strict compliance, independent auditors are being deployed to conduct a technical systems review, and an on-the-ground Remedial Adviser has been appointed at Capita’s expense. Further commercial, legal, and operational options remain on the table during the consideration of long-term structural delivery options.

During the procurement and approval process, the then Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office, Jeremy Quin MP, had overall responsibility for Civil Service workforce matters at the time and confirmed that the Cabinet Office should proceed to award the contract to Capita. This was further subject to the Cabinet Office’s controls process for which the then Parliamentary Secretary to the Cabinet Office, Alex Burghart MP, had oversight.

The contract awarded in November 2023 followed a standardised procurement process with an evaluation process, centred on the core criteria of quality, cost, and social value.

Quality compromised 65% of the assessment, cost 25% and Social Value 10%. The Quality assessment evaluated Capita's response, which included previous experience of transitioning and administering pension schemes.

Found: Esther McVey MP 7,920 Alex Burghart MP 5,593 Johnny Mercer MP 7,920 The Rt Hon.

Found: Esther McVey MP 7,920 Alex Burghart MP 5,593 Johnny Mercer MP 7,920 The Rt Hon.