Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.
If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.
If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).
Ban Water Companies discharging raw sewage into water courses.
Gov Responded - 5 May 2021 Debated on - 15 Nov 2021 View Grahame Morris's petition debate contributionsEnsure Water companies treat the sewage they are responsible for. Not discharge it into rivers and water courses. After all what goes into the ocean comes back as the fish we eat.
Ban Animal Testing - Fund, accept & promote alternatives to animal testing
Gov Responded - 4 Aug 2021 Debated on - 25 Oct 2021 View Grahame Morris's petition debate contributionsWe would like the Government to ban all animal testing UK, including for the development of cosmetics, household products and medicines. Alternatives need to be actively funded. Many products that are tested on animals end up not being suitable for humans. Animal testing is outmoded and should end.
Plan to phase out animal experiments
Gov Responded - 4 Aug 2021 Debated on - 25 Oct 2021 View Grahame Morris's petition debate contributionsThe Government must recognise the urgent need to use animal-free science and publish a clear and ambitious action plan with timetables and milestones to drive the phase-out of animal experiments. As well as preventing animal suffering, this will benefit public health and business.
Protect Retail Workers from Abuse, Threats and Violence.
Gov Responded - 15 Sep 2020 Debated on - 7 Jun 2021 View Grahame Morris's petition debate contributionsEnact legislation to protect retail workers. This legislation must create a specific offence of abusing, threatening or assaulting a retail worker. The offence must carry a penalty that acts as a deterrent and makes clear that abuse of retail workers is unacceptable.
End child food poverty – no child should be going hungry
Gov Responded - 11 Nov 2020 Debated on - 24 May 2021 View Grahame Morris's petition debate contributionsGovernment should support vulnerable children & #endchildfoodpoverty by implementing 3 recommendations from the National Food Strategy to expand access to Free School Meals, provide meals & activities during holidays to stop holiday hunger & increase the value of and expand the Healthy Start scheme
Give all key workers a 100% tax and Nat. Ins. holiday through COVID-19 crisis
Gov Responded - 27 Apr 2020 Debated on - 14 Dec 2020 View Grahame Morris's petition debate contributionsThe government is helping private firms to protect jobs by paying up to 80% of staff wages through this crisis. If it can do this why can it not help key workers who will be putting themselves/their families at risk and working extra hard under extremely challenging and unprecedented circumstances.
Give government workers a fair pay rise
Gov Responded - 16 Oct 2020 Debated on - 14 Dec 2020 View Grahame Morris's petition debate contributionsDuring the pandemic government workers have delivered vital public services and kept our country safe and secure. After ten years in which the real value of civil service pay has fallen, many face hardship. The Government must start to restore the real value of their pay with a 10% increase in 2020.
Fund research for childhood cancers with the worst survival rates
Gov Responded - 24 Mar 2020 Debated on - 7 Dec 2020 View Grahame Morris's petition debate contributions12 kids in the UK are diagnosed with cancer daily. 1 in 5 will die within 5 years, often of the deadliest types like DIPG (brainstem cancer) - fatal on diagnosis & other cancers on relapse. Yet there has been little, or no, funding for research into these cancers and little, or no, progress.
These initiatives were driven by Grahame Morris, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.
A Bill to establish a duty on Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service and private prison operators to minimise violence in prisons; and for connected purposes.
A Bill to amend the Freedom of Information Act 2000 to apply its provisions to private healthcare companies and other bodies seeking health service contracts; and for connected purposes.
The Bill failed to complete its passage through Parliament before the end of the session. This means the Bill will make no further progress. A Bill to amend the Freedom of Information Act 2000 to apply to private healthcare companies; and for connected purposes.
State Pension Age (Compensation) Bill 2023-24
Sponsor - Alan Brown (SNP)
Consumer Protection (Double Charging) Bill 2021-22
Sponsor - Huw Merriman (Con)
Workers (Definition and Rights) Bill 2019-21
Sponsor - Chris Stephens (SNP)
Education (Guidance about Costs of School Uniforms) Act 2021
Sponsor - Mike Amesbury (Lab)
Problem Drug Use Bill 2019-21
Sponsor - Tommy Sheppard (SNP)
Disabled Facilities Grants (Review) Bill 2019-21
Sponsor - Liz Twist (Lab)
Assaults on Retail Workers (Offences) Bill 2019-21
Sponsor - Alex Norris (LAB)
National Minimum Wage Bill 2019-21
Sponsor - Paula Barker (Lab)
Workers (Definition and Rights) Bill 2017-19
Sponsor - Chris Stephens (SNP)
Universal Credit Sanctions (Zero Hours Contracts) Bill 2017-19
Sponsor - Chris Stephens (SNP)
Trade Union (Access to Workplaces) Bill 2017-19
Sponsor - Faisal Rashid (Lab)
Bus Drivers (Working Hours on Local Routes) Bill 2017-19
Sponsor - Matt Western (Lab)
Food Insecurity Bill 2017-19
Sponsor - Emma Lewell-Buck (Lab)
Youth (Services and Provisions) Bill 2017-19
Sponsor - Lloyd Russell-Moyle (LAB)
Private Landlords (Registration) Bill 2017-19
Sponsor - Phil Wilson (Lab)
Voyeurism (Offences) Bill 2017-19
Sponsor - Wera Hobhouse (LD)
Government Services (Telecommunication Charges) Bill 2016-17
Sponsor - Chris Stephens (SNP)
The House Administration wants to enable schoolchildren across the UK to have the opportunity to visit Parliament. It has therefore been actively considering the impact of rising travel costs and revised constituency boundaries on the Education Travel Subsidy.
In June 2023, the Finance Committee considered and agreed proposals to increase the subsidy in light of rising travel costs. This was implemented in September 2023, but the Committee asked for additional increases to be considered. A further proposal was brought to the Finance Committee in November 2023 and the Commission in December 2023 to amend some elements of the subsidy and implement further increases. These were agreed and will be applied from April 2024. The changes are expected to increase visit numbers from outside the south-east.
The Commission noted in December 2023 that a deep dive review of the Education Travel Subsidy programme would take place in the third quarter of 2024/25 which would take account of constituency boundary changes.
The travel subsidy allows eligible state-funded schools to claim between 50 and 75 per cent of travel costs back, subject to maximum claim caps. Constituencies are set into three geographic based bands, A, B or C to determine eligibility. Further information is given on the Parliamentary website: Travel Subsidy - Parliament UK Education. Recent changes to subsidy level are given below.
Travel subsidy in 2022
Travel subsidy as of 1 September 2023
Travel subsidy changes for 1 April 2024 will be announced to Members in the coming weeks.
The table below outlines an estimate of the cost to the public purse of parliamentary scrutiny of sections of HS2 that have since been cancelled. The costs of committee visits, the transcription of committee hearings, reports by the Independent Assessor and additional staffing have all been taken into account.
| Select Committee on the High Speed Rail (West Midlands – Crewe) Bill | Select Committee on the High Speed Rail (Crewe – Manchester) Bill | |||
Committee visits | £2,620 | £4,006.89 | |||
Transcription of Committee hearings | £54,313 | £24,811.50 | |||
Reports of the Independent Assessor | £184,760.58 | £175,712.40 | |||
Staffing | N/A | £184,826 | |||
Total | £241,693.58 | £389,356.79 | |||
| £631,050.37 |
|
|
Under Private Business Standing Order 224A(6)(a)(ii) (‘Comments on environmental statements’), the examiner of petitions for private bills is required to appoint an independent assessor to produce a report on responses to the public consultation on an environmental statement.
Three reports were published by the independent assessor on the High Speed Rail (West Midlands – Crewe) Act 2021, relating to consultations held on the Environmental Statement, the Supplementary Environmental Statement which accompanied Additional Provision 1, and the Supplementary Environmental Statement which accompanied Additional Provision 2.
Two reports have so far been published by the independent assessor on the High Speed Rail (Crewe – Manchester) Bill, relating to consultations held on the Environmental Statement and the Supplementary Environmental Statement 1 and Additional Provision 1 Environmental Statement.
Under Private Business Standing Order 224A(10), the costs of the process of appointing an independent assessor, incurred by the House, shall be reimbursed by the government.
The House of Commons Commission has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Arrangements for the Victoria Tower are the responsibility of the House of Lords. The Commission understands there are currently no plans to illuminate the Union Flag on Victoria Tower.
The Government is committed to ensuring effective access to judicial and/or administrative procedures in the courts for everyone, including disabled people, who think they have experienced discrimination.
As with all civil law in Great Britain, enforcement of the Equality Act 2010 falls to the individual or their agent or representative and the question of cost is one of the factors that must be weighed in their decision whether to proceed.
Legal aid for legal advice and representation may be available, subject to means and merits tests, for cases alleging unlawful discrimination, harassment or victimisation under the Equality Act 2010. The Equality and Human Rights Commission has powers to assist someone bringing a case under the Equality Act 2010, and uses these powers to intervene in cases which it considers to be of strategic importance. Any individual who requires advice on disability issues generally or in relation to service provision can contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service for free bespoke advice provision. The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) also provides free and impartial advice to disabled employees/candidates in relation to employment-related disability cases.
The Government has no plans to commence Section 1 of the Equality Act 2010 in England. We have stated on many occasions that this duty, which requires a public body, in taking strategic decisions, to have due regard to the desirability of exercising them in a way that is designed to reduce the inequalities of outcome which result from socio-economic disadvantage, would be ineffectual. As merely a “due regard” duty, it requires no specific action from the public body concerned, and risks becoming a tick-box exercise, complied with to minimise the risk of litigation rather than to promote real change in society. The duty is also wrongly focussed on equalising socio-economic outcomes rather than opportunities.
The Government’s preferred approach is to progress specific policies and practical actions that will deliver real change. We are promoting social mobility and tackling inequality through a range of initiatives – for example in education, through reforms to the welfare system, and by giving greater developmental devolution in England and rebalancing the economy through schemes such as the Towns Fund.
The House authorities have met with representatives of the trade unions (including PCS) for staff in the House of Commons and PDS formally at least once per week since the beginning of March 2020, and with representatives of MPSA and Unite as representatives of Members’ staff.
All trade unions recognised by the House were provided with the opportunity to comment on the covid-19 risk assessments.
Where data is recorded in relation to House of Commons staff, a total of 86 positive test results have been recorded for the period of March 2020–January 2021. The data held does not distinguish between staff working on the estate or from home.
Levels of sickness absence are regularly reviewed and discussed weekly in the Covid operations group and in the weekly Trade Union meetings.
Sickness data is recorded for staff where they are unavailable to work due to illness. As the estate has seen different levels of required staff attendance over the last 12 months, comparison between periods is of limited use.
Absence rates have been reviewed against those from other areas of the public sector. Increases in absence can be identified in March 2020, December 2020 and January 2021.
The absence rates in the House have remained at comparable levels to previous years and below the wider public sector.
Description | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL | AUG | SEPT | OCT | NOV | DEC |
Average working days lost per employee | 5.09 | 4.94 | 4.71 | 4.66 | 4.58 | 4.43 | 4.33 | 4.23 | 5.39 |
% long term sick | 58.55% | 59.24% | 59.09% | 61.33% | 62.01% | 62.10% | 63.68% | 66.06% | 52.61% |
Please note the data is based on a rolling 12-month period, so the data for December 2020 is from 01/01/2020 to 31/12/2020.
The average working days lost per employee is the number of working days lost in the rolling 12-month period divided by the staff headcount.
The % long term sick is the percentage of sickness absences which were part of a period of absence of over 28 calendar days in the rolling 12-month period.
The health and safety of all those who work for, or visit the House, continues to be a key priority of the House of Commons Commission. This has included the creation of a safety and security at work module, covering health and safety and the routes to raise concerns, mandatory training which all Parliamentary staff are required to complete on an annual basis.
Staff are actively encouraged to report safety queries or concerns through their line manager, safety coordinator, a trade union safety representative or one of the safety advisers in the Parliamentary Safety Team.
All passholders on the estate are expected to follow the behaviour code, which are designed to protect and support all those on the estate. Should a member of staff have concerns that this would not be the case a fully independent process exists for raising safety concerns through the whistleblowing policy.
During the pandemic, the criminal justice system developed digitally enabled remote hearing capability, at pace, so that court-related activity could continue to the greatest degree possible.
The CPS has a fully digital casework process, and previously invested in a robust technology infrastructure which has enabled CPS staff to work remotely and engage virtually in court proceedings during this challenging period.
Recognising that listing is a judicial function, the continued development of technology, and its use to facilitate remote attendance in appropriate circumstances, presents an opportunity for gains in efficiency and flexibility in the deployment of work and people.
The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) does not have any non-executive directors sitting on its board. Whilst the AGO aligns its governance structures as closely as possible to Cabinet Office guidance, the appointment of non-executive directors would not be proportionate given the size of the AGO (headcount 54).
The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) does not have any non-executive directors sitting on its board. Whilst the AGO aligns its governance structures as closely as possible to Cabinet Office guidance, the appointment of non-executive directors would not be proportionate given the size of the AGO (headcount 54).
The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) does not have any non-executive directors sitting on its board. Whilst the AGO aligns its governance structures as closely as possible to Cabinet Office guidance, the appointment of non-executive directors would not be proportionate given the size of the AGO (headcount 54).
As has been the case under successive Administrations, it is not government policy to comment on security procedures in government buildings.
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 12 December is attached.
Written parliamentary questions allow MPs and Peers to ask Ministers for information on the work, policy and activities of Government departments. Parliament has a right to hold Ministers to account and it is a recognised right of Parliament that Members receive full and timely responses. Where it is not possible to provide a Named Day answer in full on the specified date, a holding response should be provided to the MP to explain this.
It is the responsibility of individual departments to provide timely answers to Parliamentary Questions from Members. The requested information is not centrally held by the Cabinet Office, and complying with this request would incur a disproportionate cost to the Department.
I refer the Member to the answer I gave on 20 July 2023 (UIN 194409).
Groups representing the media were invited to its inaugural meeting held on 4 July 2023.
This Government is committed to transparency and we want to strengthen how the Freedom of Information Act works across the entire public sector. The Information Rights User Group is being established following a commitment made in the Open Government Partnership Network Action Plan 5. Further details of this commitment can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-national-action-plan-for-open-government-2021-2023/uk-national-action-plan-for-open-government-2021-2023#commitment-8-freedom-of-information
The final membership of the Group is yet to be finalised. Groups representing journalists, local authorities, campaign groups, think tanks, civil society, academics and the Information Commissioner’s Office were present at its inaugural meeting held on 4 July 2023.
The Employment Relations Act 1999 (Blacklists) Regulations 2010 prohibit the compilation, usage, sale or supply of blacklists. The Public Contracts Regulations 2015 contain exclusion grounds which allow contracting authorities to exclude suppliers from procurements where their tender does not comply with labour law or where the supplier is guilty of grave professional misconduct. A breach of the Blacklists Regulations on a particular tender would render the supplier liable to exclusion and a breach more widely may amount to grave professional misconduct.
In all cases, individual departments and other public sector bodies are responsible for their own decisions on these matters
The Procurement Bill introduced by the Government, currently in the final stages of debate in Parliament, builds on and clarifies the exclusions measures in the existing regime. This includes specific measures enabling the exclusion of suppliers for labour market misconduct and professional misconduct.
The Social Value Model launched in January 2021 (PPN 06/20) by this Conservative Government, standardises the assessment of bidder’s proposals for delivering social value outcomes, including tackling economic inequality, creating new businesses, jobs and skills, as well as increasing supply chain resilience and fighting climate change. The Model takes into account factors such as the number of local jobs or apprenticeships a contractor will provide, or the number of SMEs involved in their wider supply chain.
At the same time, the Procurement Bill we are introducing also confirms that while value for money remains paramount during contracting, buyers should take into account other relevant wider social and environmental considerations the supplier may bring.
As part of this Government’s drive to end veterans homelessness this year, Launchpad received over £800,000 through the Reducing Veteran Homelessness Programme to deliver addiction and mental health psychotherapy, intensive training and employment support to veterans.
Whilst a geographical breakdown of spend is not yet available, the Programme is expected to go live in September, and will report over the following months.
The Cabinet Office, the Financial Conduct Authority and the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) have been working with Capita to understand any risks to government data following the incident in March. Capita has acknowledged that some data was exfiltrated from less than 0.1% of its server estate; our understanding to date is that this includes a very limited impact to public sector data.
The Cabinet Office is committed to complying with the Public Records Act 1958 and has released records to The National Archives (TNA) up to 2002.
Records listed on TNA’s online catalogue Discovery include details to reflect exemptions, if they have been applied, to closed or retained records. If paper files that are open at TNA contain minor redactions, details to reflect exemptions being applied are included on a Dummy Card, which replaces the closed or retained extracts within the record. A process is in place to re-review closed and retained records at the 10-year point or when the agreed closure or retention period is about to expire.
The most recent Information Management Assessment published by The National Archives (https://cdn.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documents/cabinet-office-ima-reassessment-report.pdf) gave the Cabinet Office an assurance rating of Green. There are no plans to change the record keeping practices of the Department.
The Cabinet Office is committed to complying with the Public Records Act 1958 and has released records to The National Archives (TNA) up to 2002.
Records listed on TNA’s online catalogue Discovery include details to reflect exemptions, if they have been applied, to closed or retained records. If paper files that are open at TNA contain minor redactions, details to reflect exemptions being applied are included on a Dummy Card, which replaces the closed or retained extracts within the record. A process is in place to re-review closed and retained records at the 10-year point or when the agreed closure or retention period is about to expire.
The most recent Information Management Assessment published by The National Archives (https://cdn.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documents/cabinet-office-ima-reassessment-report.pdf) gave the Cabinet Office an assurance rating of Green. There are no plans to change the record keeping practices of the Department.
The Cabinet Office is committed to complying with the Public Records Act 1958 and has released records to The National Archives (TNA) up to 2002.
Records listed on TNA’s online catalogue Discovery include details to reflect exemptions, if they have been applied, to closed or retained records. If paper files that are open at TNA contain minor redactions, details to reflect exemptions being applied are included on a Dummy Card, which replaces the closed or retained extracts within the record. A process is in place to re-review closed and retained records at the 10-year point or when the agreed closure or retention period is about to expire.
The most recent Information Management Assessment published by The National Archives (https://cdn.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documents/cabinet-office-ima-reassessment-report.pdf) gave the Cabinet Office an assurance rating of Green. There are no plans to change the record keeping practices of the Department.
The Cabinet Office is committed to complying with the Public Records Act 1958 and has released records to The National Archives (TNA) up to 2002.
Records listed on TNA’s online catalogue Discovery include details to reflect exemptions, if they have been applied, to closed or retained records. If paper files that are open at TNA contain minor redactions, details to reflect exemptions being applied are included on a Dummy Card, which replaces the closed or retained extracts within the record. A process is in place to re-review closed and retained records at the 10-year point or when the agreed closure or retention period is about to expire.
The most recent Information Management Assessment published by The National Archives (https://cdn.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documents/cabinet-office-ima-reassessment-report.pdf) gave the Cabinet Office an assurance rating of Green. There are no plans to change the record keeping practices of the Department.
The Cabinet Office is committed to complying with the Public Records Act 1958 and has released records to The National Archives (TNA) up to 2002.
Records listed on TNA’s online catalogue Discovery include details to reflect exemptions, if they have been applied, to closed or retained records. If paper files that are open at TNA contain minor redactions, details to reflect exemptions being applied are included on a Dummy Card, which replaces the closed or retained extracts within the record. A process is in place to re-review closed and retained records at the 10-year point or when the agreed closure or retention period is about to expire.
The most recent Information Management Assessment published by The National Archives (https://cdn.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documents/cabinet-office-ima-reassessment-report.pdf) gave the Cabinet Office an assurance rating of Green. There are no plans to change the record keeping practices of the Department.
The Cabinet Office does not hold a register of retained documents. Collecting this data would require physical examination of many files and would exceed the cost threshold.
In accordance with the requirements of the Public Records Act 1958, most Cabinet Office records of the 1984-85 miners’ strike have been transferred to The National Archives and are open to the public.
I refer the Hon. member to the answer given to PQ 133739 on 3 February 2023.
Additionally, we recognise the enormous trust that the public have in local media and the important role that local media therefore play in spreading our messages. As well as local and regional advertising, Government campaigns also make use of a full range of low and no cost channels in order to reach local communities.
The channels selected for government paid marketing campaigns are driven by the target audience. Local media channels such as print and radio are often used in campaigns to help reach particular audiences in a specific region. No matter the form of communication, we constantly and regularly evaluate the effectiveness of our campaigns, including the role local media plays, to ensure that we reach the right audience in the most efficient way.
I refer the hon Member to the statement I made in the House on 15 December where I announced that the moral case for compensation was formally accepted. I also set out the work being carried out across government in consideration of the compensation framework study - which included specific reference to those groups who were not able to claim interim compensation.
This work is intended to ensure that the Government is prepared to act swiftly in response to Sir Brian Langstaff’s final report when it is delivered.
HM Treasury leads on all public sector pension scheme policy making and sets clear parameters within which pension scheme rules must be set, including the pension age for public servants.
The Cabinet Office is responsible for making the Civil Service pension scheme regulations. This pension scheme covers the overwhelming majority of civil servants in active service, including prison officers, and must be delivered within the wider HM Treasury policies.
Finally, the Ministry of Justice leads on local policy relating to prison officer terms and conditions. It may consider utilising employment, retirement and pension flexibilities for particular groups, if affordable and as they deem appropriate.
Details of Government contracts above £10,000, and £25,000 in the wider public sector, are published on Contracts Finder: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Search
The Terms and Conditions of Prison Officers, including any proposals to change their retirement provisions, are matters on which the Ministry of Justice lead.
Departments have been asked to consider the key equalities impacts when setting out their initial scenario plans for workforce reductions, which will include departments completing equality impact assessments, should proposals be agreed following a robust assessment. Civil Service bodies in developing their plans were also reminded that early and continuing trade union engagement should be taking place. Alongside that, Civil Service HR will continue to update unions at the national level.
The grounds for exclusion of bidders from public procurement procedures are set out in the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, and allows for the exclusion of suppliers from bidding for procurements where they have been convicted of, or there is evidence of, bribery, fraud, money laundering and tax evasion.
Procurement Policy Note 04/21 provided supplementary guidance in relation to applying exclusions and managing conflicts of interest. It is for individual contracting authorities to consider whether suppliers must or may be excluded from each procurement.
The Procurement Bill, introduced to Parliament on 11 May, broadens and strengthens the exclusion grounds. We are increasing the time period within which misconduct can lead to exclusion from 3 years to 5; bringing subsidiary companies into scope of exclusion; and making the rules clearer so that contracting authorities can undertake exclusions with more confidence.
The Government has not placed any restrictions or limits to the number of energy rebate applications that may be submitted for bank verification.
The Government’s due diligence risking tool has no limit to the number of applications councils are able to check per day.
The Government has not placed any restrictions or limits to the number of energy rebate applications that may be submitted for bank verification.
The Government’s due diligence risking tool has no limit to the number of applications councils are able to check per day.
Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations and individuals are published on the gov.uk website.
More generally, I refer the Hon. Member to the response by my Rt Hon Friend, the Transport Secretary of Official Report, 21 March 2022, Col. 43.
The UK has access to some of the most advanced weather forecasting systems in the world.
An established three-tier weather warning system is used by the Met Office. Government departments will often use the warning system to determine and activate a proportionate crisis management response posture, including consideration of military support.
As a matter of policy, the Government does not comment on matters related to COBR.
However, we can confirm that Ministers and officials from across government took several measures in response to Storm Arwen.
The Defence Secretary oversaw the deployment of 297 military personnel to support civil authorities in the response. These personnel helped two Local Resilience Forums in the provision of welfare in northeast England, and assisted the Scottish Government in their response in the Grampian region.
The Prime Minister spoke to the chief executive of Northern Powergrid to discuss the ongoing work to restore power in the affected areas. He also spoke with local community leaders in Northumbria, Durham and Darlington, and Lt Col Mark Steed, who coordinated the military involvement in the response in northeast England.
Further to this, The Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy gave a statement to Parliament at the time and The Minister for Energy, Clean Growth and Climate Change responded to an Urgent Question on 6 December.
Last week, the Government published an interim report on Storm Arwen review: Government publishes interim report on Storm Arwen review - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have, therefore, asked the Authority to respond.
As referenced in my answer to PQ 5182 on 26 May 2021, the Civil Service has not applied any legislation which is not binding on the Crown as if it were so binding. Paragraph 5 simply makes clear that departments must fully comply with legislation that binds the Crown. There is no guidance covering when legislation that does not bind the crown should be applied as if it did so.
As referenced in my answer to PQ 5182 on 26 May 2021, the Civil Service has not applied any legislation which is not binding on the Crown as if it were so binding. Paragraph 5 simply makes clear that departments must fully comply with legislation that binds the Crown. There is no guidance covering when legislation that does not bind the crown should be applied as if it did so.
The Government Property Agency contracts with Mitie for the provision of Total Facilities Management services for some of the Whitehall estate and London, 10 South Colonnade.
The Government Property Agency has not currently undertaken a formal assessment of Mitie’s internal policies nor specifically raised concerns about Mitie’s treatment of their staff. Mitie has assured us that they are consulting with their employees and recognised representatives about the proposed changes and that a solution can be found through negotiation and agreement.
An informal assessment indicates that Mitie holds an annual all employee engagement survey and local activities such as staff newsletters, town halls and engagement forums. They have consulted with their employees working at 10 South Colonnade on the proposed pay harmonisations and held meetings with those affected. This is consistent with principle six of the Cabinet Office Principles of Good Employment Practice.
GPA has a Social Value Plan in development that will, amongst other things, ensure social value is properly taken into account in the award of new GPA contracts.
The Government Property Agency contracts with Mitie for the provision of Total Facilities Management services for some of the Whitehall estate and London, 10 South Colonnade.
The Government Property Agency has not currently undertaken a formal assessment of Mitie’s internal policies nor specifically raised concerns about Mitie’s treatment of their staff. Mitie has assured us that they are consulting with their employees and recognised representatives about the proposed changes and that a solution can be found through negotiation and agreement.
An informal assessment indicates that Mitie holds an annual all employee engagement survey and local activities such as staff newsletters, town halls and engagement forums. They have consulted with their employees working at 10 South Colonnade on the proposed pay harmonisations and held meetings with those affected. This is consistent with principle six of the Cabinet Office Principles of Good Employment Practice.
GPA has a Social Value Plan in development that will, amongst other things, ensure social value is properly taken into account in the award of new GPA contracts.