Asked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 10 February 2025 to Question 27757 on DHSC: cost of external public affairs, how many communications staff work in his Department.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department had 90 full-time equivalent staff in post working in the Communications Directorate at the end of January 2025; this is a reduction from a headcount of 110 in July 2021. Staff in this Directorate cover a broad range of communications roles including media relations, marketing and branding, public health and prevention campaigns, internal communications and external publishing on GOV.UK.
Asked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much (a) her Department and (b) each of its arm’s length bodies has spent on external communications through (i) Crown Commercial Service agreement RM6125 and (ii) other agreements since 5 July 2024; and which firms have received funding.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice does not hold any active contracts awarded under Crown Commercial Service (CCS) agreement RM6125, nor have any contracts been awarded under this agreement in the time period specified.
Asked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what progress her Department has made on implementing the Long-Term Plan for Towns funding for Dumfries.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Chancellor confirmed at the Budget on 30 October that the Long-Term Plan for Towns will be retained and reformed as part of a new regeneration programme.
A revised prospectus for the programme will be published in due course, confirming the associated timelines and a new set of strategic objectives aligned to this government’s missions.
All 75 towns have now received an initial £250,000 of capacity funding. A further £200,000 of capacity funding will be issued in the 2025/26 financial year, to support the development of plans in line with our new objectives.
Asked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its arm’s length bodies has spent on external communications through (i) Crown Commercial Service agreement RM6125 and (ii) other agreements since 5 July 2024; and which firms have received funding.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
To identify the information requested would require a manual review of all transactions made in communications related account categories in the Home Office’s financial system since 5 July 2024, to confirm if they related to Crown Commercial Service agreement RM6125 and other agreements, and then to collate and verify relevant data.
This could only be done for the purposes of answering this question at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its arm’s length bodies has spent on external communications through (i) Crown Commercial Service agreement RM6125 and (ii) other agreements since 5 July 2024; and which firms have received funding.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Contracts awarded by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) are available via ContractsFinder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder) and Find-a-Tender-Service (https://www.gov.uk/find-tender). FCDO spend above £25,000 is available via https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fcdo-departmental-spending-over-25000, and summary figures are available via the FCDO's Annual Report and Accounts (the latest report is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fcdo-annual-report-and-accounts-2023-to-2024).
The FCDO is not responsible for procurement on behalf of our arm's length bodies.
Asked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department is taking steps to ensure that retired police officers affected by the 2018 McCloud judgment receive a Remediable Service Statement by the 31 March 2025.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
While the Home Office has responsibility for overarching policy and legislative changes to the police pension regulations in England & Wales, the police pension scheme is locally administered by individual police forces. The Home Office is working with the policing sector to support the effective implementation of the McCloud remedy for all affected individuals.
It is for each Chief Constable, in their role as scheme manager for their force, to determine their administrative timetable. This includes the timetabling of when scheme members’ Remediable Service Statements will be distributed, which are produced for each scheme member by the relevant scheme administrator.
The devolved governments have overarching policy and legislative responsibility in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Asked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, how much (a) her Department and (b) each of its Arm’s Length Bodies has spent on external public relations since 5 July 2024; and which firms that funding went to.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Public relations activity is a subset of communication spend. As such, this data is not held for the Office for Equality and Opportunity or the Social Mobility Commission. The Government Communication Service encourages the prioritisation of low and no cost public relations activities wherever possible.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is an independent arm’s length body. Questions on their spend would need to be directed to the EHRC.
It is recommended that all external communications support should be procured through approved government frameworks, with strict controls in place to ensure cost-effectiveness.
Asked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much (a) her Department and (b) each of its Arm’s Length Bodies has spent on external public relations since 5 July 2024; and which firms that funding went to.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Public relations activity is a subset of communication spend. As such, this data is not held. The Government Communication Service encourages the prioritisation of low and no cost public relations activities wherever possible. It is recommended that all external communications support should be procured through approved government frameworks, with strict controls in place to ensure cost-effectiveness.
Asked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its Arm’s Length Bodies has spent on external public relations since 5 July 2024; and which firms that funding went to.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Figures are available only for the total cost of external public relations support to paid campaigns incurred by the Department for the period 5 July 2024 to 3 February 2025. This cost is £474,763.33. All spend has been through a single contract with Mullen Lowe.
Asked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its Arm’s Length Bodies has spent on external public relations since 5 July 2024; and which firms that funding went to.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
A full Departmental response is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. Public Relations spend is managed locally across the various departments within the Ministry of Defence, and Arms Lengths Bodies within their own individual budgets. Public relations activity is a subset of communication spend. As such, this data is not held. The Government Communication Service encourages the prioritisation of low and no cost public relations activities wherever possible.