Greg Smith
Main Page: Greg Smith (Conservative - Mid Buckinghamshire)Department Debates - View all Greg Smith's debates with the Cabinet Office
(2Â weeks ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Watch Debate Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
John Lamont (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk) (Con)
Greg Smith (Mid Buckinghamshire) (Con)
The Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office (Dan Tomlinson)
No. 10 North will drive growth in every postcode of the country, working alongside mayors, council leaders and businesses from across Britain. The costs of setting up and running No. 10 North are covered by existing Cabinet Office budgets.
Dan Tomlinson
For me, as a north London MP, visiting Manchester is very much going north, but it is fantastic to go up there and meet local businesses when I do so. On the hon. Member’s specific question, the expenditure on No. 10 North will of course be published in the usual way, along with the Cabinet Office accounts.
Greg Smith
Can the Minister be really specific? How many civil servants and special advisers are due to be permanently staffed at No. 10 North, and once they are all in place and working there, will the Government publish statistics for their attendance at the office?
Dan Tomlinson
As permanent teams are formed, and they will be formed, we will ensure that those who live nearby and at a commutable distance are encouraged to apply, and we hope they will do so. There are already some 80,000 civil servants working in the north-west of England, and I think it is a fantastic change, introduced by this Government, that more civil servants and more people from more parts of the country can contribute, at the heart of Government, to building the change that this Government want.