Kenny MacAskill Portrait

Kenny MacAskill

Alba Party - East Lothian

First elected: 12th December 2019


Justice Committee
2nd Mar 2020 - 25th May 2021
Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Justice Team Member)
7th Jan 2020 - 29th Mar 2021


Division Voting information

During the current Parliament, Kenny MacAskill has voted in 398 divisions, and never against the majority of their Party.
View All Kenny MacAskill Division Votes

Debates during the 2019 Parliament

Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.

Sparring Partners
Graham Stuart (Conservative)
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
(18 debate interactions)
Michael Gove (Conservative)
Minister for Intergovernmental Relations
(13 debate interactions)
Boris Johnson (Conservative)
(12 debate interactions)
View All Sparring Partners
Department Debates
Home Office
(37 debate contributions)
Cabinet Office
(35 debate contributions)
Scotland Office
(22 debate contributions)
HM Treasury
(19 debate contributions)
View All Department Debates
View all Kenny MacAskill's debates

East Lothian Petitions

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).

Petition Debates Contributed

We want the Government to abandon the planned implementation of affordability checks for some people who want to place a bet. We believe such checks – which could include assessing whether people are ‘at risk of harm' based on their postcode or job title – are inappropriate and discriminatory.

We want the UK to be neutral in the conflict between Israel and Palestine, and withdraw offers of support for Israel.

We want the Government to seek a ceasefire and also seek to address the root cause of the current conflict by promoting dialogue and advocating for the end of Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The UK Government should urge the Israeli Government to stop the blockade of Food, Fuel and Electricity to the already impoverished city of Gaza

The HMRC mileage rate for reimbursing the use of private cars (e.g. for employees but also volunteers) has been fixed at 45p/mile (up to 10,000 miles) since 2011. The lack of any increase since then is a serious disincentive to volunteer drivers particularly as fuel has gone up again recently.


Latest EDMs signed by Kenny MacAskill

18th April 2024
Kenny MacAskill signed this EDM as the primary signatory on Thursday 18th April 2024

The Broc Bar

Tabled by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
That this House congratulates The Broc Bar, situated in The Bonnie Badger in Gullane, East Lothian, on being named the best bar in East Lothian at the National Pub and Bar Awards for the third consecutive year; understands that the business was recognised by judges for demonstrating excellence across a …
1 signatures
(Most recent: 18 Apr 2024)
Signatures by party:
Alba Party: 1
18th April 2024
Kenny MacAskill signed this EDM as the primary signatory on Thursday 18th April 2024

Harry McWhinnie and the Dwarf Sports Association UK

Tabled by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
That this House congratulates eight-year-old Harry McWhinnie from Prestonpans in East Lothian on raising almost £800 for Dwarf Sports Association UK by swimming 62 lengths in an hour; understands that Harry is a member of Musselburgh Amateur Swimming Club, and successfully doubled the number of lengths after completing his first …
1 signatures
(Most recent: 18 Apr 2024)
Signatures by party:
Alba Party: 1
View All Kenny MacAskill's signed Early Day Motions

Commons initiatives

These initiatives were driven by Kenny MacAskill, 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.


1 Urgent Question tabled by Kenny MacAskill

Wednesday 25th January 2023

5 Adjournment Debates led by Kenny MacAskill

2 Bills introduced by Kenny MacAskill


A Bill to expand the list of sporting events that must be made available for broadcast by free-to-air television channels to include all qualifying matches played by the Scotland men’s and women’s national football teams in the World Cup and the UEFA European Football Championship; and for connected purposes.

Commons - 20%

Last Event - 1st Reading
Tuesday 20th February 2024
(Read Debate)
Next Event - 2nd Reading
Friday 21st June 2024
Order Paper number: 14
(Unlikely to be Debated - would require unanimous consent to progress)

A Bill to abolish higher standing charges for customers with pre-payment meters; to require energy companies to provide social tariffs for low income customers; and for connected purposes.

Commons - 20%

Last Event - 1st Reading
Wednesday 19th October 2022
(Read Debate)

Latest 50 Written Questions

(View all written questions)
Written Questions can be tabled by MPs and Lords to request specific information information on the work, policy and activities of a Government Department
13 Other Department Questions
7th Dec 2023
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether she has had recent discussions with Cabinet colleagues on reducing the gender pension gap.

On the 5th June, this year, DWP published an official measure of the Gender Pensions Gap.
The Government has committed to annual reporting on this measure, which will help track efforts of government, industry, and employers to close the Gender Pensions Gap and ensure women can look forward to the retirements they’ve worked so hard for.

Mims Davies
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
20th Apr 2023
What recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on the protection of women's rights on the female prison estate.

In January we published our Female Offender Strategy Delivery Plan, including commitments on delivering both better outcomes and better physical conditions for women in custody. The Delivery Plan emphasises the importance of a trauma informed and responsive approach to effectively meet the needs of women in the female prison estate.

Damian Hinds
Minister of State (Education)
20th Jul 2022
To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the House of Commons Commission, how much the corporate officer of the House of Commons has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

The House has spent the following amounts on external consultants in each of the last five financial years:

FY 2017/18 - £1,024,000
FY 2018/19 - £1,360,000
FY 2019/20 - £2,530,000
FY 2020/21 - £3,701,000
FY 2021/22 - £3,232,000

The Clerk has implemented a policy governing the use of consultants including requirements for justification of the use of consultants and maximum daily rates.

The total spend on consultancy per year is consistent with analysis provided in the published House of Commons Administration Annual Report and Accounts.

The information has been compiled in the table attached showing the relevant and requested data over the last five financial years.

a) Amount paid to each consultancy contracted is provided in ‘Amount paid’ columns for each year

b) Name of each consultancy contracted is provided in ‘Consultants’ column

c) Specific matters on which they were consulted is provided in ‘Consultation matters’ columns for each year.

15th Jun 2022
To ask the hon. Member for Perth and North Perthshire, representing the Members Estimate Committee, if he will publish the amount of (a) short money and (b) other additional parliamentary support funding provided to each political party on an annual basis since 2015.

Since 2016–17 it has been a requirement to publish the amounts paid for each financial year and these can be found on the Parliament website. The short money and Representative Money provided to each political party on an annual basis since 2015 can be found in the pdf attachment.

The Short Money and Representative Money allocations scheduled to be paid for the current financial year (1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023) are as follows:

Short/Representative Money Allocations 2022/2023

Party

1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023

Main Allocation

Travel Budget

Democratic Unionist Party (DUP)

£202,484.60

£5,018.85

Green Party

£187,111.20

£4,637.76

Labour Party

£6,812,568.25

£146,451.25

Liberal Democrats

£929,590.70

£23,040.69

Plaid Cymru

£110,875.00

£2,748.13

Scottish National Party (SNP)

£1,149,355.15

£28,487.72

Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP)

£110,875.00

£2,748.13

Sinn Fein *

£171,032.15

£4,239.21

* Representative Money

Information on previous budget allocations for Short Money and Representative Money can also be found on the App3 tab here:

Data sheets for Library briefing on Short Money (44 KB, Excel Spreadsheet)

8th Jun 2022
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what recent steps she has taken to promote equality of opportunity for young people from low income and deprived backgrounds.

I have rebooted our university access regime to focus on real social mobility.

Universities are being asked to set new targets on improving attainment in schools, reducing drop out rates and increasing degree apprenticeships.

We are also launching a new National State Scholarship for high achieving young people from lower income households, helping them to fulfil their dreams at university, at a college or in an apprenticeship.

Michelle Donelan
Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
15th Oct 2021
To ask the President of COP26, what estimate he has made of the amount of emissions that will be produced from cruise liners berthed on the River Clyde during COP26.

To bolster the available accommodation for some of our contractors supporting the operational delivery of COP26, we have procured two ferries which will be berthed on the outskirts of Glasgow.

There will be no delegates or accredited visitors staying on the vessels.

COP26 is targeting carbon neutral using the standard PAS206. The carbon footprint analysis for this will incorporate all emissions generated from activities that are integral to hosting the event, including those of the two cruise ships.

Alok Sharma
COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
15th Oct 2021
To ask the President of COP26, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) delegates and (b) accredited visitors that will be staying on cruise liners berthed in Glasgow and on the Clyde while attending COP26.

To bolster the available accommodation for some of our contractors supporting the operational delivery of COP26, we have procured two ferries which will be berthed on the outskirts of Glasgow.

There will be no delegates or accredited visitors staying on the vessels.

COP26 is targeting carbon neutral using the standard PAS206. The carbon footprint analysis for this will incorporate all emissions generated from activities that are integral to hosting the event, including those of the two cruise ships.

Alok Sharma
COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
15th Oct 2021
To ask the President of COP26, how many cruise liners will be berthed (a) in Glasgow and (b) on the Clyde for COP26.

To bolster the available accommodation for some of our contractors supporting the operational delivery of COP26, we have procured two ferries which will be berthed on the outskirts of Glasgow.

There will be no delegates or accredited visitors staying on the vessels.

COP26 is targeting carbon neutral using the standard PAS206. The carbon footprint analysis for this will incorporate all emissions generated from activities that are integral to hosting the event, including those of the two cruise ships.

Alok Sharma
COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
15th Oct 2021
To ask the President of COP26, whether any compensation or payment will be made to local authorities where cruise liners being used to house delegates to COP26 will be berthed.

To bolster the available accommodation for some of our contractors supporting the operational delivery of COP26, we have procured two ferries which will be berthed on the outskirts of Glasgow.

There will be no delegates or accredited visitors staying on the vessels.

COP26 is targeting carbon neutral using the standard PAS206. The carbon footprint analysis for this will incorporate all emissions generated from activities that are integral to hosting the event, including those of the two cruise ships.

Alok Sharma
COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
6th Jul 2021
To ask the President of COP26, whether his Department will make a financial contribution to the costs incurred by the Scottish Government or City of Glasgow Council relating to the attendance of its police officers and security service staff at COP26 in Glasgow.

Accommodation and incidental costs for police officers and security staff directly involved in the delivery of COP26 will be drawn from the Cabinet Office COP26 budget.

The UK Government is working closely with the Scottish Government and Glasgow City Council across all planning for COP26. Any additional policing or security costs that are directly attributable to COP26 will be met by the UK Government.

Alok Sharma
COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
6th Jul 2021
To ask the President of COP26, from which departmental or public body's budget the accommodation and incidental costs will be taken of police officers and security service staff assigned to COP26 in Glasgow.

Accommodation and incidental costs for police officers and security staff directly involved in the delivery of COP26 will be drawn from the Cabinet Office COP26 budget.

The UK Government is working closely with the Scottish Government and Glasgow City Council across all planning for COP26. Any additional policing or security costs that are directly attributable to COP26 will be met by the UK Government.

Alok Sharma
COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
24th Jun 2021
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what recent discussions the Government has had with the Scottish Government on the implementation of the Equality Act 2010.

Details of Ministerial meetings are published quarterly on the gov.uk website. In line with the practice of successive administrations, details of internal discussions are not usually disclosed.

Kemi Badenoch
President of the Board of Trade
20th Jul 2022
To ask the Attorney General, how much her Department has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if she will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For the last five years, The Attorney General’s Office has had a nil spend for external consultants*

Details of all Government contracts awarded from 2016 above £10,000 and £25,000 in the wider public sector are published on Contracts Finder. Each award notice provides information on the name of the supplier, value of the contract, its purpose and information on the type of awarding procedure used. Government departments, their individual agencies and Arm’s Length Bodies are required to publish all spend against individual suppliers above £25,000 on GOV.UK.

All Government Departments and their individual ALBs and agencies are required to follow the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 in awarding contracts.

* Whilst preparing this response the department have not considered the use of specialist counsel or short-term contractor contracts as consultancy.

20th Jul 2022
To ask the Attorney General, how much the Serious Fraud Office has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if she will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

The spend on externally contracted consultancy services for the Serious Fraud Office in each of the last five years is shown in the table below.

2020/21

2019/20

2018/19

2017/18

2016/17

£95,000

£42,000

£0

£0

£0

Details of all Government contracts awarded from 2016 above £10,000 and £25,000 in the wider public sector are published on Contracts Finder. Each award notice provides information on the name of the supplier, value of the contract, its purpose and information on the type of awarding procedure used.

Government departments, their individual agencies and Arm’s Length Bodies are required to publish all spend against individual suppliers above £25,000 on GOV.UK.

All Government Departments and their individual ALBs and agencies are required to follow the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 in awarding contracts.

20th Jul 2022
To ask the Attorney General, how much HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if she will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For the last five years, HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate has had a nil spend for external consultants.

20th Jul 2022
To ask the Attorney General, how much the Government Legal Department has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if she will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

The Government Legal Department (GLD) spent the following amounts on external consultants over the past five financial years. This information is available in the public domain and is as follows:

2017/18

2018/19

2019/20

2020/21

2021/22

£79,000

£101,000

£144,000

£111,000

£342,000

The breakdown of this consultancy spending by each firm contracted is as follows:

Name of consultancy firm

Amount paid to firm

Specific matters on which they were consulted

North Highland

£80,000

Productivity improvements in legal activity delivery

Quo Imus Ltd

£20,000

Work on a review of shared service communications across AGO, GLD and HMCPSI

AMEO Professional Services Ltd

£99,000

Improvements to GLD's recruitment and resourcing strategy and processes

TPX Ltd

£228,000

Improvements to GLD's recruitment and resourcing strategy and processes

Ixia Consultancy Ltd

£40,000

Design work on programme to enhance GLD’s Leadership capability

Mike Curtis Reward Solutions Ltd

£137,000

Support to the development of a new pay framework for GLD

Incendium Consulting Ltd

£57,000

Provision of specialist legal market analysis to development of GLD’s future accommodation strategy

Alexander Mann Solutions Ltd

£32,000

A review of corporate services capability and design for GLD and its shared service customers

Rainmaker Solutions

£79,000

Development of cloud analytical solutions

Various

£5,000

Short-term project and consultancy support

Michael Tomlinson
Minister of State (Minister for Illegal Migration)
20th Jul 2022
To ask the Attorney General, how much the Crown Prosecution Service has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if she will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

The spend on externally contracted consultancy services for CPS in each of the last five years, as recorded in the CPS’ published accounts, is shown in the table below:

2020/21

2019/21

2018/19

2017/18

2016/17

£219,000

£64,000

£0

£0

£0

Details of all Government contracts awarded from 2016 above £10,000 and £25,000 in the wider public sector are in the public domain and published on Contracts Finder. Each award notice provides information on the name of the supplier, value of the contract, its purpose and information on the type of awarding procedure used. Government departments, their individual agencies and Arm’s Length Bodies are required to publish all spend against individual suppliers above £25,000 on GOV.UK.

Michael Tomlinson
Minister of State (Minister for Illegal Migration)
3rd Feb 2021
To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the Answer of 28 January 2021 to Question 143130, what the total legal costs were in the (a) Scottish Courts and (b) Supreme Court in respect of litigation relating to the prorogation of Parliament in 2019.

The Government defended a petition for Judicial Review in relation to the prorogation of Parliament in 2019 raised by Joanna Cherry QC MP and others in (1) the Outer House in the Court of Session, (2) the Inner House of the Court of Session, and (3) the Supreme Court where it was joined with R (on the application of Miller) (Appellant) v The Prime Minister (Respondent).

The Office of the Advocate General and Government Legal Department have determined that the total legal costs incurred by the Government in relation to the Cherry litigation in the Outer and Inner Houses of the Court of Session was £83,715 (net of VAT). The total legal costs incurred by the Government in the Supreme Court in relation to Cherry was £83,715 (net of VAT), and in relation to Miller was £142,590. These figures include Counsel fees, Government Legal Department litigator costs and court dues.

The Government also incurred £30,000 in adverse costs in relation to the Cherry proceedings. It is not possible to attribute these costs between proceedings in the different courts.

25th Jan 2021
To ask the Attorney General, what the cost to the public purse was of the Government defending cases in the Scottish courts relating to the prorogation of Parliament in 2019.

The Government defended a petition for Judicial Review in relation to the prorogation of Parliament in 2019 raised by Joanna Cherry QC MP and others in (1) the Outer House in the Court of Session, (2) the Inner House of the Court of Session, and (3) the Supreme Court, where it was joined with R (on the application of Miller) (Appellant) v The Prime Minister (Respondent).

The Office of the Advocate General and Government Legal Department have determined that the total costs of defending this litigation were £127,062.33 (net of VAT). This figure includes Counsel fees, Government Legal Department litigator costs and court dues. The Government also incurred £30,000 in adverse costs.

12th Mar 2024
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, on how many occasions Ministers have settled defamation or libel proceedings in their official capacity as a Minister of the Crown since 2001; and whether there has been a cost to the public purse of settlements in such cases.

I refer the Hon. Member to my answer on 12th March 2024 (UIN 17709).

Alex Burghart
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
25th Jan 2024
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Government's policy papers entitled (a) Summary of the UK Government Legal Position: The legality of UK military action to target Houthi facilities in Yemen on 12 January 2024, published on 12 January 2024 and (b) Summary of the UK Government Legal Position: The legality of UK military action to target Houthi facilities in Yemen on 22 January 2024, published on 23 January 2024, if the Government will publish the full legal advice on the military action of (i) 11 and (ii) 22 January 2024.

The Government published a summary of its legal position on the legality of UK military action to target Houthi facilities in Yemen on 12 January 2024. It published a further summary on 23 January 2024 following further military action, which confirmed that the legal basis for the further military action remains the same. These are available on the gov.uk website and I have placed a copy in the Libraries of the House.

We acted fully in line with international law, in self-defence and in response to a persistent threat. The strikes were limited to carefully selected targets, with maximum care taken to protect civilian lives.

John Glen
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
25th Jan 2024
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Prime Minister's Oral Statement of 23 January 2024 on Action against Houthi Maritime Attacks, Official Report, column 155, when the Government plans to publish the legal advice.

The Government published a summary of its legal position on the legality of UK military action to target Houthi facilities in Yemen on 12 January 2024. It published a further summary on 23 January 2024 following further military action, which confirmed that the legal basis for the further military action remains the same. These are available on the gov.uk website and I have placed a copy in the Libraries of the House.

We acted fully in line with international law, in self-defence and in response to a persistent threat. The strikes were limited to carefully selected targets, with maximum care taken to protect civilian lives.

John Glen
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
19th Jan 2024
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what procurement rules apply to a (a) devolved and (b) commissioning authority seeking to tender for the construction of lifeline ferries.

Reserved Public Procurement in the UK, as well as devolved Welsh and transferred Northern Ireland procurement, is regulated in the UK by the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, the Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016 and the Concession Contracts Regulations 2016 and, in some cases, specific rules relating to specialist sectors.

While the provisions in these main regulations extend to the whole of the UK, they do not cover procurement by devolved Scottish authorities in respect of devolved matters. Legislation governing devolved Scottish procurement includes the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015 in combination with the Procurement Reform (Scotland) Act 2014.

Alex Burghart
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
14th Jun 2023
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department is taking steps to compile a list of public buildings affected by construction with Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete.

The Cabinet Office’s Office of Government Property is establishing a Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete Working Group. Objectives include understanding the scale of the issue, developing a register of Government buildings impacted, and sharing remedial best practices. Responsibility for safety of individual buildings remains with departments, their arms-length bodies and wider organisations.

To address property condition and safety issues such as RAAC more widely, in September 2022 the Office of Government Property established the Better Buildings programme on behalf of the Government Property Function.

Alex Burghart
Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
14th Mar 2023
To ask the Prime Minister, when he plans to respond to the letter of 14 February 2023 from members of both Houses of Parliament on ongoing human rights concerns in Bahrain.

A reply has been sent. The United Kingdom opposes human rights abuses and the death penalty in all circumstances and in all countries, and we continue to reiterate this to the Government of Bahrain. Our long-standing bilateral relationship with Bahrain allows us to assist and encourage continuing human rights reforms.

Rishi Sunak
Prime Minister, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service, and Minister for the Union
22nd Nov 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 22 November 2022 to Question 89037 on Julian Assange, when and what was the nature of the work that his officials were involved in.

Operation Pelican was the Metropolitan Police Service’s (MPS) response to the continued presence of Julian Assange in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, and the maintenance of a police presence in the vicinity. Officials in the Cabinet Office, along with other relevant departments, liaised on that response, the operational details of which are a matter for the MPS.

16th Nov 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether anyone employed by his Department were involved in Operation Pelican.

Seven officials in the Cabinet Office were involved in Operation Pelican.

16th Nov 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether (a) he or (b) officials in his Department have met with US officials to discuss Julian Assange.

I have not met with US officials to discuss Julian Assange.

The Government has discussed aspects of this matter as part of our routine diplomatic engagement with a number of countries, including the US. Cabinet Office officials routinely meet with US counterparts to discuss a range of issues, which may, in the past, have included Mr Assange. The Cabinet Office does not hold a central record of meetings between officials and their US counterparts.

Extradition cases are handled by the Home Office.

21st Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Government Estates Management has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

This information is not held centrally. GEM is responsible for providing solutions to specialist estates management issues across government.

21st Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

21st Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Government Equalities Office has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

21st Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Equality Hub has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

21st Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Commissioner for Public Appointments has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

21st Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Social Mobility Commission has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

21st Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Senior Salaries Review Body has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

21st Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Security Vetting Appeals Panel has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

20th Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Crown Commercial Service has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

Spend on externally contracted consultancy services for the CCS in each of the last five years is shown in the table below.

2020/21

2019/21

2018/19

2017/18

2016/17

£1,281,622

£2,199,349

£2,220,563

£3,191,422

£6,679,277

Details of all Government contracts awarded from 2016 above £10,000 and £25,000 in the wider public sector are published on Contracts Finder. Each award notice provides information on the name of the supplier, value of the contract, its purpose and information on the type of awarding procedure used. Government departments, their individual agencies and Arms Length Bodies are required to publish all spend against individual suppliers above £25,000 on GOV.UK.

All Government Departments and their individual ALBs and agencies are required to follow the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 in awarding contracts.

20th Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the House of Lords Appointments Commission has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

20th Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Committee on Standards in Public Life has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

20th Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

20th Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Equality and Human Rights Commission has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

20th Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Civil Service Commission has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

20th Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Government Property Agency has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

20th Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Prime Minister’s Office has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

For reporting purposes the Prime Minister’s Office, Government Property Agency, Civil Service Commission, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, Committee on Standards in Public Life, Security Vetting Appeals Panel, Senior Salaries Review Body, Social Mobility Commission, Equality Hub, Government Equalities Office, Commissioner for Public Appointments, Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests and House of Lords Appointments Commission are an integral part of the Cabinet Office and consolidated as part of our group expenditure.

Expenditure on consultancy is published annually in our annual report and accounts and I refer the hon Member to my answer to PQ 22549 on 23 June, where our spend is outlined.

Details of consultancy contracts, including the supplier, above £10,000, are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder)

20th Jul 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the UK Statistics Authority has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) amount paid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted.

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

A response to the hon. Member’s Parliamentary Question of 20th July is attached and below.

Professor Sir Ian Diamond | National Statistician

Kenny MacAskill MP
House of Commons
London
SW1A 0AA

12 August 2022

Dear Mr MacAskill,

As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking how much the UK Statistics Authority has spent on external consultants in each of the last five years; and if we will publish a breakdown of the (a) amountpaid to each consultancy contracted, (b) name of each consultancy contracted and (c) specific matters on which they were consulted (40939).

Table 1 provides the spend on externally contracted consultancy services for the UK Statistics Authority in each of the last five years.

Table 1: Spend on externally contracted consultancy services for the UK Statistics Authority in each of the last five years

2021/21

2019/20

2018/19

2017/18

2016/17

£6,065,000

£11,207,000

£12,028,000

£6,259,000

£924,000

Details of all Government contracts awarded from 2016 above £10,000 and £25,000 in the wider public sector are published on Contracts Finder[1]. Each award notice provides information on the name of the supplier, value of the contract, its purpose and information on the type of awarding procedure used. Government departments, their individual agencies and Arm’s Length Bodies are required to publish all spend against individual suppliers above £25,000 on GOV.UK[2].

All Government Departments and their individual ALBs and agencies are required to follow the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 in awarding contracts.

Yours sincerely,

Professor Sir Ian Diamond

Footnotes:

[1] https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder

[2] https://www.gov.uk/

21st Feb 2022
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans his Department has to establish an information warfare unit; and if he will publish the (a) official title and (b) budget of such unit.

The new Government Information Cell (GIC) draws together expertise from across government including but not limited to FCDO, DCMS, MoD and CO experts in assessment and analysis and counter-disinformation. The GIC was set up to identify and counter Russian disinformation targeted at UK and international audiences.

The staff deployed into the Cell continue to be paid for by their home departments - there are no additional staffing costs. The running and programme costs are being established but will be within existing budgets, including from the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund.

15th Dec 2021
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish (a) arrangements for reimbursement of expenses and (b) the financial terms of the retiral of the Permanent Secretary to the Scottish Government.

Upon her retirement from the Civil Service, the outgoing permanent secretary will receive payments under the terms of the Civil Service Pension Scheme. Details of all relevant payments will be published by the Scottish Government in their 2021-22 annual accounts in due course.