John Healey

The Prime Minister’s announcement of longer term reductions in Civil Service numbers is a reiteration of the policy announced by the Chancellor in October 2023. The longer term reductions will build on the shorter term headcount cap put in place through to March 2025, and the detail of how individual organisations will be affected by the return to pre-pandemic numbers will form a key part of the next comprehensive spending review.

Non-campaign photography tasks are undertaken by internal staff as part of their routine work and everyday roles and do not get billed separately. This service comes at no extra cost to the taxpayer.

The Cabinet Office does pay external organisations to provide photography and videography for our various cross-government communication campaigns. However isolated spend data on these specific services is not split out from wider campaign costs.

The UK has made an ambitious and generous commitment to help at-risk people in Afghanistan and, so far, we have brought around 24,600 people to safety, including over 21,600, people eligible for the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) and the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) schemes, as of September 2023. The Government is committed to relocating all eligible persons who remain in Pakistan and third countries as soon as possible.

These tasks are undertaken by internal staff as part of their routine work and everyday roles. They do not get billed separately. This service comes at no extra cost to the taxpayer.

The £10 million of funding for the Veterans’ Places, Pathways, and People Programme is additional money and is not from the Department’s pre-existing budget. This funding will be used to increase support to a significant community of vulnerable veterans throughout the UK, and will be spent over three financial years.

The £10 million commitment to support veterans is new funding for the Veterans’ Places, Pathways and People Programme, which will increase support to a significant community of vulnerable veterans throughout the UK. The funding will be spent over three financial years 2024-2025, 2025-2026 and 2026-2027.

The £10 million commitment to support veterans is new funding for the Veterans’ Places, Pathways and People Programme, which will increase support to a significant community of vulnerable veterans throughout the UK. The funding will be spent over three financial years 2024-2025, 2025-2026 and 2026-2027.

To date, the Government has committed nearly £30m towards ending veteran homelessness, including:

• £20m capital housing fund over three years to provide extra housing for veterans through the development of new builds and the refurbishment of social and charitable housing.

• £500k to fund Op FORTITUDE, a dedicated referral scheme to provide a single central point for local authorities, charities and housing providers to support homeless and rough sleeping veterans, in addition to over £7.2m to fund specialist help for veterans in more than 900 veteran supported housing units.

To date, the Government has committed nearly £30m towards ending veteran homelessness, including:

• £20m capital housing fund over three years to provide extra housing for veterans through the development of new builds and the refurbishment of social and charitable housing.

• £500k to fund Op FORTITUDE, a dedicated referral scheme to provide a single central point for local authorities, charities and housing providers to support homeless and rough sleeping veterans, in addition to over £7.2m to fund specialist help for veterans in more than 900 veteran supported housing units.

To date, the Government has committed nearly £30m towards ending veteran homelessness, including:

• £20m capital housing fund over three years to provide extra housing for veterans through the development of new builds and the refurbishment of social and charitable housing.

• £500k to fund Op FORTITUDE, a dedicated referral scheme to provide a single central point for local authorities, charities and housing providers to support homeless and rough sleeping veterans, in addition to over £7.2m to fund specialist help for veterans in more than 900 veteran supported housing units.

It has been the standard practice of successive Administrations not to publish granular information relating to ministerial meetings. I remain committed to engaging with colleagues across government to support Afghans who have been resettled in the UK to access independent accommodation.

The Cabinet Office takes personal data breaches very seriously. As part of standard procedure, the Cabinet Office advises that all Cabinet Office employees must immediately report breaches to the Security Team and Data Protection Officer. Any breach that meets the legal tests set out in UK GDPR will be reported to the Information Commissioner or data subjects within the statutory deadlines.

It is our policy that data subjects will usually be notified of any incident pertaining to their personal data. Agreements with delivery partner(s) and 3rd party suppliers must stipulate the arrangements and obligations for ensuring that there is an established, effective and timely process to identify and report any actual or suspected losses of data/information by the ‘provider’.

The Cabinet Office, the Financial Conduct Authority and the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) are working with Capita to understand any risks to government data following the incident in March. Investigations, including client consultation, are ongoing and it would not be appropriate to comment on the detail for security reasons.

I refer my Rt Hon. Friend to the answer given to his question on 2nd May 2023 (182778).

The Cabinet Office, the Financial Conduct Authority and the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) are working with Capita to understand any risks to government data following the incident in March. Investigations, including client consultation are ongoing and it would not be appropriate to comment on the detail for security reasons.

The Cabinet Office, the Financial Conduct Authority and the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) are working with Capita to understand any risks to government data following the incident in March. Investigations, including client consultation are ongoing and it would not be appropriate to comment on the detail for security reasons.

The Cabinet Office, the Financial Conduct Authority and the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) are working with Capita to understand any risks to government data following the incident in March. Investigations, including client consultation are ongoing and it would not be appropriate to comment on the detail for security reasons.

The Cabinet Office, the Financial Conduct Authority and the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) are working with Capita to understand any risks to government data following the incident in March. Investigations, including client consultation are ongoing and it would not be appropriate to comment on the detail for security reasons.

The Cabinet Office, the Financial Conduct Authority and the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) are working with Capita to understand any risks to government data following the incident in March. Investigations, including client consultation are ongoing and it would not be appropriate to comment on the detail for security reasons.

The Cabinet Office, the Financial Conduct Authority and the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) are working with Capita to understand any risks to government data following the incident in March. Investigations, including client consultation are ongoing and it would not be appropriate to comment on the detail for security reasons.

The Minister for Veterans’ Affairs has held various meetings with ministers, advisors and officials regarding Afghan resettlement since February 2023, and continues to engage with colleagues across government as we intensify our support to Afghans who have been resettled in the UK to access independent accommodation.

On 28 March, I set out the Government’s intention to increase our support to Afghans who have been resettled in the UK to access independent accommodation and thereby end the use of temporary bridging hotels for this cohort.

Recognising that this will require a sustained cross-Government effort, on 2 February 2023, the Prime Minister asked me to lead on convening departments that are responsible for the delivery of this work from within the Cabinet Office. Secretaries of State and Ministers remain accountable for their respective policy briefs.

On 28 March, I set out the Government’s intention to increase our support to Afghans who have been resettled in the UK to access independent accommodation and thereby end the use of temporary bridging hotels for this cohort.

Recognising that this will require a sustained cross-Government effort, on 2 February 2023, the Prime Minister asked me to lead on convening departments that are responsible for the delivery of this work from within the Cabinet Office. Secretaries of State and Ministers remain accountable for their respective policy briefs.

As the Chancellor set out in the Autumn Statement, the Government is updating the Integrated Review. The date of publication for this will be confirmed in due course.

The Defence Industrial Adviser was a temporary role appointed in September 2022 which came to an end in December last year, and which was created under the previous administration. As planned, the responsibilities have reverted back to the previous office holders.

We intend to publish early in 2023.

The Government has decided to continue with the Integrated Review refresh. The date of publication will be confirmed in due course.

My hon. Friend, the Member for Wealden (Nusrat Ghani), is the Minister of State (Minister for Science and Investment Security) at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and has responsibility for these matters. A summary of her responsibilities can be found on gov.uk here: Minister of State (Minister for Science and Investment Security) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

The National Security Council is a committee of the Cabinet. It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place in Cabinet and its Committees, and how often they have met, is not normally shared publicly.

The National Security Council is a committee of the Cabinet. It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place in Cabinet and its Committees, and how often they have met, is not normally shared publicly.

The Integrated Review, published in March 2021, set a goal to strengthen the UK’s national resilience. The Integrated Review also committed to the development of a new Resilience Strategy to set out a new vision and approach to support improvements to our national resilience. Following a successful Call for Evidence in the summer of last year, the government plans to publish the Strategy in spring 2022.

The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Secretary of State for Defence have commissioned an independent Review into the impact of the pre 2000 ban on homosexuality in the Armed Forces. The Review will look at the experiences of former LGBT service personnel, and make evidence-based recommendations, including on how the Government can better tailor support to the LGBT veteran community. An independent Chair will be announced shortly, after which the full terms of reference will be published and the Review can commence. As the Review is independent, we cannot comment on potential findings and recommendations that it may make.

The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Secretary of State for Defence have commissioned an independent Review into the impact of the pre 2000 ban on homosexuality in the Armed Forces. The Review will look at the experiences of former LGBT service personnel, and make evidence-based recommendations, including on how the Government can better tailor support to the LGBT veteran community. An independent Chair will be announced shortly, after which the full terms of reference will be published and the Review can commence. As the Review is independent, we cannot comment on potential findings and recommendations that it may make.

The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Secretary of State for Defence have commissioned an independent Review into the impact of the pre 2000 ban on homosexuality in the Armed Forces. The Review will look at the experiences of former LGBT service personnel, and make evidence-based recommendations, including on how the Government can better tailor support to the LGBT veteran community. An independent Chair will be announced shortly, after which the full terms of reference will be published and the Review can commence. As the Review is independent, we cannot comment on potential findings and recommendations that it may make.

The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Secretary of State for Defence have commissioned an independent Review into the impact of the pre 2000 ban on homosexuality in the Armed Forces. The Review will look at the experiences of former LGBT service personnel, and make evidence-based recommendations, including on how the Government can better tailor support to the LGBT veteran community. An independent Chair will be announced shortly, after which the full terms of reference will be published and the Review can commence. As the Review is independent, we cannot comment on potential findings and recommendations that it may make.

The Office for Veterans’ Affairs (OVA) was set up in October 2019 and annual spending has been as follows:

2019/20: £50k (actual spend)

Represents initial set-up costs following the OVA’s establishment in October 2019, part-way through the financial year.

2020/21: £1.6m (actual spend)

Reflects expenditure on building OVA capability and capacity during this period, and the impact of the COVID pandemic on delivery.

2021/22: £4.4m (forecast spend)

In addition to full year expenditure, the OVA is working with the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust to distribute a further £5 million through the Afghanistan Veterans Fund, as announced by the Prime Minister in September 2021.

The budgets for 2022-23 and future years are not yet confirmed and will be set in accordance with the department's annual process of business planning. The OVA will also deliver the £5m Veterans Health Innovation Fund in 2022/23, as announced at the Budget in October 2021.

The budget allocated to the OVA represents only part of the Government's wider support for veterans. The Veterans’ Strategy Action Plan, launched on 19 January 2022, outlines over 60 commitments funded by over £70 million from departments across Government, including initiatives on health and wellbeing, employment opportunities, digitalisation of services, and enhanced research and data. These commitments build on recent progress and support including the National Insurance contribution holiday for employers of Service leavers, and the introduction of the Veterans Railcard.

The £5 million additional funding for Armed Forces charities is being delivered via the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust through an open competition. Applications opened on 13 December 2021 and will close on 17 January 2022. Applications will be assessed after this date and the successful charities will be notified in due course. Charities who wish to submit applications can do so via https://covenantfund.org.uk/.

Current evidence does not show that veterans are more likely to become homeless or sleep rough than the general population.

Less than 1% (0.9%) of households sleeping rough and seeking government support in England in 2020/21 have at least one household member who has served in the Armed Forces.

The government has put support in place to help veterans to access housing. The government has produced new guidance for Local Authorities to ensure veterans are not disadvantaged by their service when applying for social housing, as well as removing the local connection test to assist the transition into civilian accommodation.

This information is not held centrally.

For the first time, a question was added to the England and Wales census asking respondents if they have previously served in the UK Armed Forces. A range of new statistics on the veteran population will be published by the Office for National Statistics once the data collected from the census is analysed, including the total number of veterans residing in England and Wales. In Scotland, the census will be carried out in 2022, and will also include a question asking respondents whether they have previously served. In Northern Ireland, the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) will collect data on the total number of veterans in Northern Ireland and the 11 Local Government Districts.

It is for each public sector organisation to remediate vulnerabilities in their systems and this information is not held centrally. This is achieved through activities such as designing systems to be secure, regularly patching, continuous monitoring, security testing and vulnerability disclosure programmes. The NCSC and Cabinet Office provide expert advice and guidance to help public sector organisations address critical vulnerabilities.

The civil service does not provide policy, administrative or advisory support to select committees.

The Government supports the work of select committees by providing information and evidence to their inquiries.