Ben Wallace

20 civil servants are working in the Department at the level of director general who are employed by the Cabinet Office as of 30 September 2023.

As of the same date the number of civil servants at the director general level from other Departments working in the Cabinet Office is less than 5 so we are unable to answer this as it would disclose personal data of the civil servants involved.

321 civil servants from other Departments are working in the Cabinet Office and on Cabinet Office payroll, on a Loan or Secondment as of 30 September 2023.

20 civil servants are working in the Department at the level of director general who are employed by the Cabinet Office as of 30 September 2023.

As of the same date the number of civil servants at the director general level from other Departments working in the Cabinet Office is less than 5 so we are unable to answer this as it would disclose personal data of the civil servants involved.

321 civil servants from other Departments are working in the Cabinet Office and on Cabinet Office payroll, on a Loan or Secondment as of 30 September 2023.

20 civil servants are working in the Department at the level of director general who are employed by the Cabinet Office as of 30 September 2023.

As of the same date the number of civil servants at the director general level from other Departments working in the Cabinet Office is less than 5 so we are unable to answer this as it would disclose personal data of the civil servants involved.

321 civil servants from other Departments are working in the Cabinet Office and on Cabinet Office payroll, on a Loan or Secondment as of 30 September 2023.

Please see the Government Annual Civil Service Statistics published online to show how many FTE civil servants have been employed by the Cabinet Office.

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/civil-service-statistics

From 2015 to present day the Cabinet Office has grown to absorb a number of other functions. For example, the whole of the Civil Service Fast Stream headcount now sits in the Cabinet Office although the large majority do not work in the Cabinet Office. The establishment of a Government Digital Service, Government Recruitment Service and functional specialities like the Government Commercial Function have all resulted in an increase to the number of FTE employed by Cabinet Office although value and efficiencies are delivered across the Civil Service.

The Cabinet Office is committed to driving efficiencies as directed by the Chancellor.

UCAS have recently expanded their service so students can easily see the different options open to them, including apprenticeships. Having apprenticeships showcased in this way boosts the profile of apprenticeships to school leavers and is a huge step forward in putting apprenticeships on an equal footing with traditional university degrees. Over 200 degree-level apprenticeship vacancies are currently being advertised on the UCAS website for people to consider.

This month the Department, in partnership with UCAS, will launch a pilot that aims to test different ways to connect even more students to apprenticeship opportunities. The pilot will run in 3 regions throughout the 2023/24 academic year – Lancashire, the North East and Greater London – engaging employers and providing students with access to additional support designed specifically for those interested in exploring and applying for apprenticeships alongside their other options (including undergraduate courses). The pilot will be followed by an evaluation in October 2024, including an assessment of the impact of having apprenticeship vacancies listed on the UCAS student hub. In 2024, students will be able to apply for apprenticeships through UCAS alongside an undergraduate degree application. The assessment of the impact of this will then follow at a later date.

We have seen year-on-year growth of degree-level apprenticeships with over 195,550 starts since their introduction in the 2014/15 academic year. To ensure that the supply of degree apprenticeship opportunities available meets demand, we are allocating an additional £40 million over the next two years, supporting degree apprenticeship providers to expand, on top of the £8 million investment in 2022/23.

The New Hospital Programme (NHP) scheme for Royal Preston Hospital and Royal Lancaster Infirmary is at the early stages of development and the trusts are currently exploring options for sites, including investment at Furness General Hospital. This will include a public consultation, expected in 2024. The trusts have received an overall indicative funding allocation for their scheme to support planning, and up to the end of the 2022/23 financial year, the trusts have received £11.36 million in fees and funding for the development of their scheme.

We are working closely with Preston and Lancaster on how our national standardised approach, Hospital 2.0, can support their plans using standardised designs to streamline approvals and speed up construction. This will deliver improvements for patients and staff whilst driving cost reduction and decreasing overall development timescales.

The government has committed to re-invest every penny that is saved from the cancelled phases of HS2 into alternative transport projects through Network North.

This means that every penny of the £19.8 billion committed to the Northern leg of HS2 will be reinvested in the North; every penny of the £9.6 billion committed to the Midlands leg will be reinvested in the Midlands; and the full £6.5 billion saved through our rescoped approach at Euston will be spread across every other region in the country.

Departmental Expenditure Limits in 2024-25 are published at the relevant Estimates in the usual way. Departmental budgets beyond 2024-25 will be set as part of the next Spending Review.

The Department runs an Annual Budget Cycle (ABC) every year. However, this is not solely for in year spending adjustments, it is a financial planning exercise to review the Department's ten-year forecast.

The most recent ABC conducted in 2023 reviewed the ten-year forecast from 2023-24 to 2032-33 and the current ABC process underway is reviewing the ten-year forecast from 2024-25 to 2033-34. This will reflect the recent announcement of our planned trajectory to spend 2.5% of GDP on defence.

The department runs an Annual Budget Cycle (ABC) every year.

I refer the right hon. Member to the answers I gave on 30 April 2024 to the right hon. Member for Rayleigh and Wickford (Mark Francois), to Question 23416; and on 29 April 2024 to the right hon. Member for Garston and Halewood (Maria Eagle), to Question 23108.

The Future Cruise / Anti-Ship weapon programme is in the third year of the assessment phase and joint Anglo-France work is designing novel technological advances in missile capability. Significant progress has been made on suitable candidate weapon systems to fulfil the Naval and Air requirements. At this stage of the programme, work is focused on reducing technical and schedule risk, prior to the potential Demonstration and Manufacturing phases, and preparations are underway to prepare towards Full Business Case. Additionally, progress is also being made to explore bringing Italy on board as a partner nation, with a Letter of Intent signed in June 2023.

The Department is reviewing its forward spending plans following the Government's announcement that defence spending will reach 2.5% of GDP in 2030.