Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 54826 on Senior Civil Servants: Training, whether external venues have been booked for away days since 6 April 2025.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
On 4 April, guidance was issued on restrictions to booking external venues. Departments were asked to put appropriate approval mechanisms in place. The guidance was clear that external venues for awaydays and events should only be used when space in government buildings is unavailable. When it is absolutely necessary to use an external venue, they should be procured through established procurement routes where available.
The Cabinet Office issued instructions on its intranet on 30 April 2025 that prior to booking any external venues approval must be obtained from the relevant Budget Holder and Finance Business Partner. Prior to this period, bookings may have been made which would have proved more costly to cancel, therefore some pre-booked events may still take place. However, this guidance is now live across the Department and is being implemented accordingly.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many suicides by police officers have been recorded in each of the last ten years, by local police force.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office does not currently collect or hold this information centrally. The Office for National Statistics publishes data on the number of suicides registered in England and Wales by occupation. The latest available data can be found here: Suicide by occupation in England and Wales: 2023 and 2024, provisional - Office for National Statistics
This Government has been clear that the health and wellbeing of our police workforce is a priority.
The National Police Wellbeing Service has created a national suicide action plan which aims to educate and support the workforce, reduce stress and improve data recording. In addition, the Service has put in place a 24/7 Mental Health Crisis Support Line to provide urgent support for our police when they need it the most.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average period of time taken was to conclude an investigation of misconduct against a police officer under the Police (Conduct) Regulations 2020 in each local police force area in each of the last five years.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office collects and publishes data on police misconduct proceedings, cases, and allegations on an annual basis in the ‘Police misconduct, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-misconduct-statistics.
The latest information covers cases finalised in year ending 31 March 2024. The data tables accompanying these statistics contain information on individuals referred to proceedings by proceeding type and Police Force Area (table MP1), and the subsequent misconduct finding level (table MP3).
Not all allegations are referred to misconduct proceedings. Tables PC6a and PC6b, CM5, and RC5 contain information on the number of allegations finalised by action (for example, referral to proceedings, or referral to reflective practice review process) and Police Force Area, for cases arising from complaints, conduct, and recordable conduct matters respectively.
Tables CM7a and RC7a contain information on the average (median) time to finalise conduct and recordable conduct matter cases, by Police Force Area. These statistics include all finalised cases, including those not referred to misconduct proceedings or where no action was deemed necessary. A case is considered finalised once all resultant actions have concluded, including criminal proceedings, appeals and any associated reviews.
These statistics are designated Official Statistics in Development to acknowledge that they should be interpreted with caution, particularly when comparing between years. Please see the user guide for further details https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/user-guide-to-police-misconduct-statistics/user-guide-to-police-misconduct-statistics.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many cases of (a) misconduct and (b) reflective practice under the Police (Conduct) Regulations 2020 have been referred for investigation in each of the last five years, broken down by local police force.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office collects and publishes data on police misconduct proceedings, cases, and allegations on an annual basis in the ‘Police misconduct, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-misconduct-statistics.
The latest information covers cases finalised in year ending 31 March 2024. The data tables accompanying these statistics contain information on individuals referred to proceedings by proceeding type and Police Force Area (table MP1), and the subsequent misconduct finding level (table MP3).
Not all allegations are referred to misconduct proceedings. Tables PC6a and PC6b, CM5, and RC5 contain information on the number of allegations finalised by action (for example, referral to proceedings, or referral to reflective practice review process) and Police Force Area, for cases arising from complaints, conduct, and recordable conduct matters respectively.
Tables CM7a and RC7a contain information on the average (median) time to finalise conduct and recordable conduct matter cases, by Police Force Area. These statistics include all finalised cases, including those not referred to misconduct proceedings or where no action was deemed necessary. A case is considered finalised once all resultant actions have concluded, including criminal proceedings, appeals and any associated reviews.
These statistics are designated Official Statistics in Development to acknowledge that they should be interpreted with caution, particularly when comparing between years. Please see the user guide for further details https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/user-guide-to-police-misconduct-statistics/user-guide-to-police-misconduct-statistics.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his Department's publication entitled Cabinet Office: Government Procurement Card spend over £500 - March 2025, published on 24 April 2025, what the spending to Berry Bros Rudd Limited was for.
Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The referenced entry relates to wine purchased for official business. The Government regularly hosts events and diplomatic occasions to bring together world leaders and other dignitaries, strengthen international relationships and deliver for the UK public.
Any hospitality purchases for these occasions are made with value-for-money for the taxpayer as a priority.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 24563 on Farms: Domestic Visits, how many farm visits he has made since the previous Answer; and where those farms were located.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We respect the privacy of those hosting visits to farms and so are unable to share this information.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance her Department has issued to (a) police forces and (b) local authorities on the use of facial recognition cameras in public places.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
When using facial recognition technology, all police forces and local authorities must comply with data protection, equalities and human rights laws. They must also comply with the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice.
Police forces are also required to comply with any published policing policies and in the case of live facial recognition, follow the College of Policing Authorised Professional Practice.
The government wants to ensure that facial recognition operates on a firm footing, providing maximum confidence to both the public and the police on the use of these tools. To that end, I have been listening carefully to stakeholders and partners and have held a series of roundtables with policing, civil society groups, regulators and others. Formal evaluation work on the impact of the technology is also underway, and we intend to set out our plans in the coming months.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the use of facial recognition cameras in public places on civil liberties.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
When using facial recognition technology, all police forces and local authorities must comply with data protection, equalities and human rights laws. They must also comply with the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice.
Police forces are also required to comply with any published policing policies and in the case of live facial recognition, follow the College of Policing Authorised Professional Practice.
The government wants to ensure that facial recognition operates on a firm footing, providing maximum confidence to both the public and the police on the use of these tools. To that end, I have been listening carefully to stakeholders and partners and have held a series of roundtables with policing, civil society groups, regulators and others. Formal evaluation work on the impact of the technology is also underway, and we intend to set out our plans in the coming months.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, with reference to the Office for Equality and Opportunity's press release entitled Government announces preferred candidate for Chair of Equality and Human Rights Commission, published on 5 June 2025, whether Dr Mary-Ann Stephenson has made a declaration of political activity.
Answered by Nia Griffith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Dr Stephenson has been selected as the Government Preferred Candidate for the next EHRC Chair, following a fair and open process, in line with the Governance Code for Public Appointments. As per the Code, all candidates were asked to declare any conflicts of interest they held as part of the interview process. We will continue to follow the Code as the process continues.
Asked by: Charlie Dewhirst (Conservative - Bridlington and The Wolds)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what his planned timetable is for responding to the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee's report entitled Lobbying and Influence HC 203, published on 2 May 2024.
Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
In addition to steps this Government has already taken to improve transparency, in particular through the introduction of the monthly register of ministers' gifts and hospitality, the Government continues to develop its broader work on ethics and standards and will update the Committee on the outcome of that work in due course.