Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many of the 91,000 civil service jobs that they intend to cut are based in the Home Office.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
The Prime Minister has tasked the Chancellor, CDL, the Minister for Government Efficiency and the Cabinet Secretary to work together on producing a plan for returning the Civil Service workforce numbers to 2016 levels over the next three years. This work will be overseen by the Efficiency and Value for Money Cabinet Committee. Secretaries of State will lead the drive for reductions within their departments and the Civil Service organisations for which they have responsibility.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Prime Minister is planning to visit Rwanda; and if so, when.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
Our new migration and economic development partnership is a world first, which will tackle head-on the imbalance between illegal and legal migration routes. It will ensure that those who are in genuine need of protection will be safe and secure in a host country recognised globally for its record on welcoming and integrating migrants. And it will disrupt the business model of organised crime gangs and deter migrants from putting their lives at risk.
As has been the practice under successive Administrations, for security reasons, future engagements by the Prime Minister are announced as and when appropriate.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when they will publish the full Sue Gray report into alleged gatherings on government premises during the period of COVID-19 restrictions.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
I refer the noble Lord to the Cabinet Office update from the Second Permanent Secretary which has been published on GOV.UK and placed in the Library of the House.
It would not be appropriate for the Government to comment further while the Metropolitan Police Service’s investigation is ongoing. At the end of the process, the Prime Minister will ask the Second Permanent Secretary to update her findings, which will be published in line with the Terms of Reference.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what processes they have in place to ensure that ministerial statements have support across Government.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
The principle of collective responsibility applies to all Government Ministers. The Ministerial Code sets out the expectations for ministers with regards to both collective responsibility and making announcements to Parliament.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they take to ensure that ministerial statements are checked for accuracy.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
Civil servants support Ministers in providing information to Parliament. When providing advice and briefing, civil servants are subject to the professional standards set out in the Civil Service Code and internal clearance procedures.
Ministers are accountable to Parliament for the statements they make to the House. Parliament has long-established mechanisms for the record to be corrected should any errors be identified.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what cyber security precautions organisations are required to take when selling software or providing software as a service to the Government.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
Each government department is responsible for managing security risk when procuring any service based on their own risk appetite. Cabinet Office and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) provides guidance on how to do this including through the provision of commercial frameworks which include cyber security clauses. This is made clear in the Minimum Cyber Security Standard for Government which state that “Departments shall understand and manage security issues that arise because of dependencies on external suppliers or through their supply chain”.
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) provides extensive guidance and recommended security frameworks that apply to a wide range of digital services. Buying organisations are encouraged to use these in determining their requirements to ensure that appropriate security controls are specified according to risk.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of how many operators of Critical National Infrastructure have used the National Cyber Security Centre’s new 'Knowledge Base' tool to map the UK’s Critical National Infrastructure and its interdependencies.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
Personnel with a responsibility for Critical National Infrastructure sectors from Lead Government Departments and agencies have been engaging closely with the National Cyber Security Centre to develop the Knowledge Base tool and provide validation of the content.
This work will enable government to better understand risks to CNI and prioritise efforts more effectively. The majority of departments responsible for CNI sectors have already been able to benefit from the Knowledge Base’s analytical capabilities through the support provided by NCSC.
Lead Government Departments have primary responsibility for the designation and governance of Critical National Infrastructure in their respective sectors, and will have access to the Knowledge Base tool, along with other relevant parts of HM Government. Due to the sensitivity of the amalgamated information stored within the tool, operators and companies will not have direct access.
It is not possible to not share further details around usage of the tool due to security considerations.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government who are the members of the ministerial group tasked with cohering cyber decision-making across Government, as set out in The Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy, published in March 2021.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
The Ministerial Cyber Steering Group is chaired by the First Secretary of State. Other members are the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (currently delegated to the Paymaster General), the Home Secretary, the Defence Secretary and the Culture Secretary. Other ministers are invited to attend depending on the topics being discussed and senior officials from intelligence and law enforcement also attend. The meeting is supported by the National Security Unit in the Cabinet Office.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to update the National Cyber Security Strategy, last published on 11 November 2016.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
The Government's Integrated Review set out an objective to cement the UK's position as a leading responsible and democratic cyber power. To support this, the Government intends to adopt a new comprehensive cyber strategy, considering the full range of our capabilities and critical cyber technologies, as well as international action to influence the future of cyberspace. Work is well underway to develop this strategy and it will be published later this year, succeeding the National Cyber Security Strategy 2016-21.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much money they are spending on the (1) development, and (2) construction, of a Situation Centre in 70 Whitehall.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
£9.3m has been allocated in the 2021/22 spending review for development of a National Situation Centre, spanning establishing a permanent team, data and analytic capabilities, and physical build.