Gregory Stafford

No10 North is central to the Prime Minister’s commitment to get good growth in every postcode, drive devolution, and bring Government closer to the communities it serves. Mayors, employers, councils, and public services, will work in equal partnership with central government so that decisions about this country’s economic future are no longer only taken in Westminster. The cost of establishing No 10 North is covered by existing departmental budgets. Staffing costs are regularly published as part of the Cabinet Office’s Organogram, available on gov.uk. The Prime Minister splits his time between Downing Street and No10 North as part of his commitment to making government work for every part of the country. Further details were made available on the Government's Machinery of Government changes, including the establishment of No10 North, in the First Secretary of State's Statement on the 02 September, Official Report, Column 173-196.

No10 North is central to the Prime Minister’s commitment to get good growth in every postcode, drive devolution, and bring Government closer to the communities it serves. Mayors, employers, councils, and public services, will work in equal partnership with central government so that decisions about this country’s economic future are no longer only taken in Westminster. The cost of establishing No 10 North is covered by existing departmental budgets. Staffing costs are regularly published as part of the Cabinet Office’s Organogram, available on gov.uk. The Prime Minister splits his time between Downing Street and No10 North as part of his commitment to making government work for every part of the country. Further details were made available on the Government's Machinery of Government changes, including the establishment of No10 North, in the First Secretary of State's Statement on the 02 September, Official Report, Column 173-196.

No10 North is central to the Prime Minister’s commitment to get good growth in every postcode, drive devolution, and bring Government closer to the communities it serves. Mayors, employers, councils, and public services, will work in equal partnership with central government so that decisions about this country’s economic future are no longer only taken in Westminster. The cost of establishing No 10 North is covered by existing departmental budgets. Staffing costs are regularly published as part of the Cabinet Office’s Organogram, available on gov.uk. The Prime Minister splits his time between Downing Street and No10 North as part of his commitment to making government work for every part of the country. Further details were made available on the Government's Machinery of Government changes, including the establishment of No10 North, in the First Secretary of State's Statement on the 02 September, Official Report, Column 173-196.

Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder. Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023, which came into force on 24 February 2025, are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service.

Arm’s Length Bodies (ALBs) are accountable to their sponsoring Minister and parent department. Their annual Reports and accounts are typically laid before Parliament.

Value for money in Arm's Length Bodies (ALBs) is primarily assessed by their sponsoring department. The Accounting Officer (typically the Chief Executive Officer) is directly accountable for the use of public funds.

ALBs are also scrutinised by Parliament and subject to independent audit, including value for money examinations, by the National Audit Office (NAO).

The UK government budgeted £369.78 billion for arms length bodies in the financial year 2023-24. 67% of this went to NHS England and the Education and Skills Funding Agency, which will both be repatriated to their parent departments.

I refer to my predecessor’s answer for 100338, published 23 December 2025. There are no plans to publish this internal-facing framework to the public domain, as it constitutes HR-to-HR guidance designed for departments to integrate into their respective policies and processes.

The Cabinet Office acknowledges the potential tax implications regarding pension arrears. For the vast majority of members, receiving arrears will not result in a higher tax liability as they will remain within the same tax band across the relevant years. However, where an arrears payment causes a member to move into a higher tax bracket in the year of receipt, individuals may request a schedule from the scheme administrator (Capita) to submit to HMRC.

This schedule allows HMRC to assess the tax on an accruals basis, spreading the income back to the years in which it was due to ensure the member pays the correct amount of tax.

Capita took over the administration on 1 December 2025. Since then, Capita has completed pension payments to approximately 730,000 retired members on time. However, some civil servants and pension scheme members are facing unacceptable delays in accessing their pension payments.

While Capita inherited a significant backlog of cases from the previous provider, MyCSP, this is now worse and we are urgently addressing that. In response, we have set up a dedicated team to work urgently with Capita, with 650 full time staff across Government and Capita clearing critical cases by the end of February and restoring normal service as soon as possible.

We have agreed a clear recovery plan with Capita, which includes specific milestones and accountability targets for delivery. This includes specific commitments to restore service levels for priority cases, deploy additional resources, and improve communication with affected colleagues, so that staff, both former and serving, receive the quality of service and support they deserve.

There are a wide variety of public appointments which are made by Ministers. A person appointed to such a position is an office holder, whose appointment is defined by the office itself, not a contract.

An office holder’s terms of engagement will set out a Minister’s authority to terminate an appointment at any time with or without notice. Office holders do not receive payment in lieu of notice or severance for loss of office because they are not employees with contractual rights.

The Minister for the Cabinet Office has not had any recent discussions with the Advertising Standards Authority specifically relating to this topic.

Information on third-party organisations and quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisations that charge for facilitating access to services provided free of charge is not held by the Cabinet Office.

It is for those departments providing services to the public to ensure that third parties do not mislead citizens into making additional or unnecessary payments for accessing those services.

It is for those departments providing services to the public to ensure that third parties do not mislead citizens into making additional or unnecessary payments for accessing those services.

It is for those departments providing services to the public to ensure that third parties do not mislead citizens into making additional or unnecessary payments for accessing those services.

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

A response to the Hon Gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 4th October 2024 is attached.

Funding is provided to British Steel under the provisions of the Steel Industry (Special Measures) Act. This funding is intended to ensure the safe and continued operation of the blast furnaces. The intervention is a temporary measure and work is continuing to determine the best long-term sustainable future for the site.

We are committed to providing up to £2.5bn for steel which is being delivered in part through the National Wealth Fund.

At the Spending Review, the Chancellor confirmed that we will invest in the long-term future of Scunthorpe. We have been clear that private investment to modernise British Steel will also be required and work continues at pace to develop the optimal approach. Over £100m of funding has been provided to British Steel to ensure continued operation of the blast furnaces.

The government is conducting a range of assessments and analysis to inform future options for British Steel and our strategy for the steel industry. Matters relating to national security are under constant review. We do not comment on the timing or content of any assessments.

The Department for Business and Trade meets the reasonable legal costs of postmasters in applying to its Horizon redress schemes, and encourages claimants to take up this offer. Legal cost frameworks and tariffs for each scheme delivered by the Department have been agreed and published following discussions with claimants’ legal representatives. Post Office provides funding for reasonable legal fees to help claimants on the Horizon Shortfall Scheme to consider offers made by the independent panel, with further legal support available should they choose to dispute or appeal their offer.

As of 2 June 2025, over £1 billion has been paid to over 7,300 claimants across the 4 horizon schemes. This represents a fourfold increase since July 2024, with more than 4,500 victims receiving compensation for the first time.

Claims for Horizon redress are assessed by applying the specific facts of the individual cases to established legal principles and any other factors which support reaching a fair outcome. Across each scheme, claimants have the option of accepting a fixed-sum offer or requesting a detailed assessment. Where a claimant is not satisfied with an offer for redress, the offer may be appealed. On the Group Litigation Order scheme, disputed offers would be assessed by an independent panel and in some circumstances, an independent reviewer.

We continue to seek options to speed up redress, in discussion with the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board.

Claims for Horizon redress are assessed by applying the specific facts of the individual cases to established legal principles and any other factors which support reaching a fair outcome. Assessment criteria for the individual redress schemes are published by the Department for Business and Trade and the Post Office.

Across each scheme, claimants have the option of accepting a fixed-sum offer or requesting a detailed assessment.

Where a claimant is not satisfied with an offer for redress, the offer may be appealed. On the Group Litigation Order (GLO) scheme, disputed offers would be assessed by an independent panel and in some circumstances, an independent reviewer.

As of 2 June 2025, over £1 billion has been paid to over 7,300 claimants across the 4 horizon schemes.

It would be a breach of the Steel Industry (Special Measures) Act for British Steel to be put into liquidation while the special measures are in place. Prior to the Act becoming law, the Government undertook assessments of the potential cost to the public purse should British Steel enter insolvency. These assessments would be updated in the unlikely event that liquidation became a serious prospect.

Creditors of British Steel whose credit predates the special measures are protected by the security interests they obtained at the time their credit was advanced. Any parties wishing to extend credit to British Steel during the currency of the special measures will need to consider the most suitable arrangements upon which they would be willing to do so. British Steel management and DBT can discuss any such proposals as the need arises.

It would be a breach of the Steel Industry (Special Measures) Act for British Steel to be put into liquidation while the special measures are in place. Prior to the Act becoming law, the Government undertook assessments of the potential cost to the public purse should British Steel enter insolvency. These assessments would be updated in the unlikely event that liquidation became a serious prospect.

Creditors of British Steel whose credit predates the special measures are protected by the security interests they obtained at the time their credit was advanced. Any parties wishing to extend credit to British Steel during the currency of the special measures will need to consider the most suitable arrangements upon which they would be willing to do so. British Steel management and DBT can discuss any such proposals as the need arises.

If required, the Government would provide an indemnity from any possible wrongful trading liability to any company director appointed by Government under the Steel Industry (Special Measures) Act 2025, or who had followed instructions from the Secretary of State for Business and Trade given pursuant to that Act. Whilst we recognise that there is a theoretical possibility of a wrongful trading claim against any such individuals relating to the period of special measures, it is not the intention of the Government that British Steel enters liquidation, which is the circumstance in which a wrongful trading claim could arise.

Any company directors not appointed by Government, and/or who had not had access to company systems and processes by direction of the Secretary of State under the Steel Industry (Special Measures) Act 2025, would very likely have a good defence to any claim for wrongful trading brought later by a liquidator relating to any period when the company was under special measures. It is a matter for those directors to seek advice and take whatever steps they consider appropriate in the circumstances.

DBT has a team dedicated to supporting the UK-Sri Lanka trade and investment relationship. Officials have regular contact with Sri Lankan authorities through the annual UK-Sri Lanka Strategic Dialogue to promote areas of mutual interest, including bilateral discussions on trade and investment.

My officials use programmes and levers to strengthen business relations for UK companies, including working closely with the Council for Business with Britain to support the removal of barriers to trade, and the Developing Countries Trading Scheme, which cuts tariffs and simplifies trading rules for Sri Lankan exports to the UK.

For most off-grid properties, transitioning to clean heat will involve installing a heat pump as these are cost-effective, proven technologies. The Government expect sustainable biomass to be prioritised where there are limited alternatives for decarbonisation. Renewable liquid heating fuels are also much more expensive to use than other heating solutions.

Before taking decisions on whether to support the use of renewable liquid fuels in heating, the Government would require stronger evidence on their affordability for consumers, and the availability of sustainable feedstock.

The tax treatment of renewable liquid fuels is a matter for Treasury.

The Government is considering reforms through the Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA) to transition to a secure and decarbonised electricity system at lowest cost and pass through the benefits of cheaper renewables to consumers.

We will provide an update in due course.

The Government is not in favour of using Solar Radiation Modification. Given the significant uncertainty around the possible risks and impacts of deployment on the climate and environment, the Government is not deploying SRM and has no plans to do so.

The Department works closely with the research community to evaluate the latest research on the potential impact of solar radiation modification on the environment.