Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
These initiatives were driven by Lord Wills, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
A Bill to establish a public Advocate to provide advice to, and act as data controller for, representatives of the deceased after major incidents
A bill to establish a public Advocate to provide advice to, and act as data controller for, representatives of the deceased after major incidents.
A Bill to establish a public Advocate to provide advice to, and act as data controller for, representatives of the deceased after major incidents
First reading took place on 11 June. This stage is a formality that signals the start of the Bill's journey through the Lords.Second reading - the general debate on all aspects of the Bill - is yet to be scheduled.The 2014-15 session of Parliament has prorogued and this Bill will make no further progress. A Bill to establish a public advocate to provide advice to, and act as data controller for, representatives of the deceased after major incidents.
Lord Wills has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting
CSHR commissions departments annually to provide an overview of cases investigated formally through their whistleblowing procedures.
Data is provided based on a number of categories set out in the Civil Service annual data return and so does not align directly with the categories set out in the question; financial wrongdoing, sexual misconduct, national security, misleading Parliament and other.
Please note the caveat that national security whistleblowing data is a matter for the United Kingdom Security & Vetting team and is therefore not captured in these summaries.
2019/2020 - 33 cases were formally raised, investigated and upheld in government departments, falling into the following categories:
Breach of Civil Service code - 3
Breach of security / information policy - 4
Bullying and harassment - 1
Danger to environment/health and safety - 1
Deceiving/misleading Ministers, Parliament and others - 0
Discrimination - 1
Failure to comply with legal obligations - 3
Fraud - 12
Frustrating implementation of policy -0
Influence by improper pressure/personal gain - 1
Misuse of official position - 0
Other/Blank - 7
2020/2021 - 13 cases were formally raised, investigated and upheld in government departments, falling into the following categories:
Breach of Civil Service code - 1
Breach of security / Information Policy - 0
Bullying and harassment - 0
Danger to environment/health and safety - 6
Deceiving/misleading Ministers, Parliament and others - 0
Discrimination - 1
Failure to comply with legal obligations - 0
Fraud - 1
Frustrating implementation of policy - 1
Influence by improper pressure/personal gain - 0
Misuse of official position - 1
Other - 2
2021/2022 - 30 cases were formally raised, investigated and upheld in government departments, falling into the following categories:
Breach of Civil Service code - 0
Breach of Security / Information Policy- 2
Bullying and harassment - 0
Danger to environment/health and safety - 3
Deceiving/misleading Ministers, Parliament and others - 3
Discrimination - 1
Failure to comply with legal obligations - 5
Fraud - 6
Frustrating implementation of policy - 1
Influence by improper pressure/personal gain -0
Misuse of official position - 4
Other - 5
CSHR commissions departments annually to provide an overview of cases investigated formally through their whistleblowing procedures.
Data is provided based on a number of categories set out in the Civil Service annual data return and so does not align directly with the categories set out in the question; financial wrongdoing, sexual misconduct, national security, misleading Parliament and other.
Please note the caveat that national security whistleblowing data is a matter for the United Kingdom Security & Vetting team and is therefore not captured in these summaries.
2019/2020 - 383 cases were formally raised and investigated in government departments, with the concern upheld in 33 cases. They fell into the following categories:
Breach of Civil Service code - 23
Breach of security / information policy - 23
Bullying and harassment - 4
Danger to environment/health and safety - 13
Deceiving/misleading Ministers, Parliament and others - 2
Discrimination - 11
Failure to comply with legal obligations - 22
Fraud - 148
Frustrating implementation of policy - 7
Influence by improper pressure/personal gain - 14
Misuse of official position - 39
Other/Blank - 77
2020/2021 - 245 cases were formally raised and investigated in government departments, with the concern upheld in 13 cases. They fell into the following categories:
Breach of Civil Service code - 14
Breach of security / information policy - 8
Bullying and harassment - 1
Danger to environment/health and safety - 44
Deceiving/misleading Ministers, Parliament and others - 4
Discrimination - 7
Failure to comply with legal obligations - 12
Fraud - 96
Frustrating implementation of policy - 9
Influence by improper pressure/personal gain - 6
Misuse of official position - 19
Other - 25
2021/2022 - 311 cases were formally raised and investigated in government departments, with the concern upheld in 30 cases. They fell into the following categories:
Breach of Civil Service code - 0
Breach of Security / information policy - 14
Bullying and harassment - 4
Danger to environment/health and safety - 23
Deceiving/misleading Ministers, Parliament and others - 13
Discrimination - 5
Failure to comply with legal obligations - 19
Fraud - 131
Frustrating implementation of policy - 4
Influence by improper pressure/personal gain -10
Misuse of official position - 38
Other - 50
We are made aware by departments annually, who also report on behalf of their agencies, of cases raised formally through whistleblowing procedures.
In 2019/20, 383 cases were formally raised and investigated in government departments. The concern was upheld in 33 cases.
In 2020/21, 245 cases were formally raised and investigated in government departments. The concern was upheld in 13 cases.
In 2021/22, 311 cases were formally raised and investigated in government departments. The concern was upheld in 30 cases.
We do not ask departments for reports of informal cases.
Government departments have delegated authority for Whistleblowing policies. However, all have confirmed they have policies in place which meet the standards that are set out centrally by Civil Service HR.
The Postal Services Act 2011 designates Ofcom as the independent regulator for the postal sector with the powers to impose and enforce regulatory requirements on postal operators to fulfil its functions in relation to postal services.
Ofcom decided to take targeted and proportionate steps to address consumer issues identified in its review of postal regulation in 2022. Ofcom committed to ongoing monitoring of the new provisions and considering enforcement action, or further regulation to protect consumers, if progress is not made.
The Government remains committed to ensuring the universal postal service, through the universal service obligation, remains affordable and accessible to all users.
Ofcom, as the UK’s designated independent regulator of postal services, is carrying out a review of the future regulatory framework for post which it aims to complete in 2022. As part of this review, Ofcom is considering whether extra consumer protections may be required and has sought views on the future regulation of the parcel delivery market. A Call for Inputs was launched on 11 March 2021 and closed on 20 May 2021. Ofcom intends to publish a full consultation on the future regulation of postal services later this year.
Through the Consumer Right Act 2015 and other legislation, the Government ensures that consumers have specified rights when shopping online. Furthermore, the Government has consulted on measures to boost these online rights further, including proposals to prevent consumers being misled by fake reviews and preventing online exploitation of consumer behaviour. The consultation is now closed and the Government response will be published in due course.
Ofcom is the UK’s independent regulator of postal services. It monitors competition and consumer protection in the sector. Ofcom is currently conducting a review of postal regulation so that it remains relevant and fit for purpose in the light of market changes. It intends to publish a consultation later this year before concluding the review next year.
The Employment Rights Act 1996, amended by the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998, already gives legal protection to those who speak up in the public interest. The legislation is intended to build openness and trust in workplaces by ensuring that workers who hold their employers to account are treated fairly, and to provide means of redress for a worker who suffers detriment at the hands of their employer after ‘blowing the whistle’. In many cases, employers respond appropriately when concerns are raised by their employees. Where they do not, employees can take their case to an Employment Tribunal, who can award compensation.
In order to qualify for the protections, a worker must make their disclosure either to their employer or other responsible person or a ‘prescribed person’ as set out in the Prescribed Persons Order. Prescribed persons are most often organisations with a regulatory responsibility for the sector in which the worker works, or for the type of wrongdoing that is being disclosed. Disclosures can also be made to a legal advisor or an MP.
The Government recognises how valuable it is that whistleblowers are prepared to shine a light on wrongdoing, and believes that they should be able to do so without fear of recriminations.
The Government has continued to make reforms to the whistleblowing regime to enhance the role of prescribed persons. The most recent reform was a new legislative requirement for most prescribed persons to produce an annual report on whistleblowing disclosures made to them by workers and how they were taken forward. Relevant prescribed persons were required to publish the second of these reports by the end of September 2019. The duty increases confidence in the actions taken by prescribed persons through greater transparency about how disclosures are handled.
Alongside the new duty, the Government published guidance for prescribed persons to help them understand their role and provide advice on complying with legal requirements as well as practices beyond the whistleblowing legislation.
The Government has committed to reviewing the whistleblowing framework once the recent reforms have built the necessary evidence of their impact.
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency does not hold details of all non-GB driving licence holders and there are no plans for such a database to be created.
The National Health Service is working in partnership with private hospitals in the United Kingdom to combat the outbreak of COVID-19. The Department and NHS England and NHS Improvement have worked with the Independent Healthcare Providers Network and with independent sector providers themselves to secure all appropriate inpatient capacity and other resource across England.
The addition of around 6,500 additional beds has increased NHS capacity and ensured that facilities are available for patients diagnosed with COVID-19 whilst ensuring continuity of service for non-COVID-19 patients requiring elective activity, including cancer and other urgent treatment.
It is not possible to make an assessment of the impact since March of any underutilisation of independent sector capacity on postponed diagnoses or treatment.
A national agreement is in place between NHS England and NHS Improvement in collaboration with the Independent Healthcare Providers Network and independent sector providers to ensure National Health Service patients benefit from an unprecedented partnership with private hospitals as we battle the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Department and NHS England and NHS Improvement have worked with the independent sector to secure all appropriate inpatient capacity and other resource across England.
To maximise total elective activity, NHS England and NHS Improvement worked with independent providers to identify best of use of capacity, based on local need. From the end of March to June 2020 both equipment and staffing from independent sector providers were deployed by NHS trusts in order to ensure delivery of services for NHS patients. Since June, the use of independent sector sites has been focused on assisting the NHS to restore services and increase elective capacity.
As part of preparing for winter, the Government has provided an additional £3 billion to the NHS. This includes additional funding to the NHS to allow them to continue to use additional hospital capacity from the independent sector, and to maintain the Nightingale hospitals, in their current state, until the end of March 2021.
A national agreement is in place between NHS England and NHS Improvement in collaboration with the Independent Healthcare Providers Network and independent sector providers to ensure National Health Service patients benefit from an unprecedented partnership with private hospitals as we battle the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Department and NHS England and NHS Improvement have worked with the independent sector to secure all appropriate inpatient capacity and other resource across England.
To maximise total elective activity, NHS England and NHS Improvement worked with independent providers to identify best of use of capacity, based on local need. From the end of March to June 2020 both equipment and staffing from independent sector providers were deployed by NHS trusts in order to ensure delivery of services for NHS patients. Since June, the use of independent sector sites has been focused on assisting the NHS to restore services and increase elective capacity.
As part of preparing for winter, the Government has provided an additional £3 billion to the NHS. This includes additional funding to the NHS to allow them to continue to use additional hospital capacity from the independent sector, and to maintain the Nightingale hospitals, in their current state, until the end of March 2021.
A national agreement is in place between NHS England and NHS Improvement in collaboration with the Independent Healthcare Providers Network and Independent Sector providers to ensure National Health Service patients benefit from an unprecedented partnership with private hospitals as we battle the COVID-19 outbreak. The Department and NHS England and NHS Improvement have worked with the independent sector to secure all appropriate inpatient capacity and other resource across England.
The addition of around 6,500 additional beds has increased NHS capacity and ensured that facilities are available for patients diagnosed with COVID-19 whilst ensuring continuity of service for non-COVID patients requiring elective activity, including cancer and other urgent treatment. Latest collected information shows that over 215,000 patient contacts had taken place under the contract.
A national agreement is in place between NHS England and NHS Improvement in collaboration with the Independent Healthcare Providers Network and Independent Sector providers to ensure National Health Service patients benefit from an unprecedented partnership with private hospitals as we battle the COVID-19 outbreak. The Department and NHS England and NHS Improvement have worked with the independent sector to secure all appropriate inpatient capacity and other resource across England.
The addition of around 6,500 additional beds has increased NHS capacity and ensured that facilities are available for patients diagnosed with COVID-19 whilst ensuring continuity of service for non-COVID patients requiring elective activity, including cancer and other urgent treatment. Latest collected information shows that over 215,000 patient contacts had taken place under the contract.
Following cancer treatment, patients will move to a Personalised Stratified Follow-Up pathway that suits their needs and ensures they can get rapid access to clinical support if they are worried that their cancer may have recurred. This stratified follow-up approach is expected to be established in all trusts for breast cancer in 2019, for prostate and colorectal cancers in 2020 and for other cancers where clinically appropriate by 2023.
HMRC publishes quarterly and annual Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) statistics. Between 2016-17 and 2020-21 there were 5,284,000 residential SDLT transactions. The full report can be found on the gov.uk website.
Of these, 4,779,000 were transactions by individuals.
The SDLT relief for first time buyers was introduced in 2017. Since introduction, 576,900 transactions have claimed this relief. The full report can be found on the gov.uk website.
This figure does not accurately represent the number of first-time buyers because the temporary SDLT holiday, which ran from July 2020 until September 2021, meant that it was not necessary for first time buyers to claim this relief. In addition, first time buyers who purchase a property above £500,000 or below £125,000 are unable to claim the relief and will not be reflected in these statistics.
The Higher Rates for Additional Dwellings SDLT Surcharge (HRAD) was introduced in 2016 and applies to transactions where the purchaser already owns property. Between 2016-17 and 2020-21, 1,127,500 transactions were liable to HRAD. This figure includes transactions that would subsequently sell their previous main residence and receive a refund of the surcharge paid. 115,400 transactions were refunded between 2016-17 and 2020-21.
HMRC follow Government guidelines on social distancing and safe workplaces. HMRC’s current estate capacity is therefore reduced. Use of that space is prioritised for the delivery of services that cannot be completed effectively at home, or for staff who are unable to work at home for personal reasons.
About 5,000 colleagues have been working in HMRC offices throughout the COVID-19 response. Within the limited capacity available, HMRC expect to increase the number of colleagues safely using their offices from August in order to deliver their full range of tax and customs functions and support a returning economy.
In cases of fraudulent claims in respect of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, HMRC will seek to recover funds from the claimant employer.
Using powers that are before this House in the Finance Bill, where the employer is an insolvent company and an individual with management responsibility knowingly made an excessive claim, HMRC will be able to seek to recover funds from that individual.
Whistleblowers can be confident that HMRC will act to protect their confidentiality, and that they will not be liable for recovery. This does not include cases where the employer and employee conspire to defraud the scheme.
Employees can report their suspicions of fraud on HMRC’s tax evasion form, available through GOV.UK.
The HMRC fraud hotline service has already been updated explicitly to include the facility for the public to report fraud in relation to all relevant coronavirus relief schemes. The service has two main referral routes; the telephony service and the online reporting tool hosted on GOV.UK. HMRC took the decision to close the telephony arm of this service as a result of Government guidelines in response to the COVID-19 pandemic; the online reporting service can be used until such time as the telephony service can resume.
The online service is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and can be completed with the same level of complete confidentiality as the telephony service. HMRC are currently exploring options to safely reopen the hotline telephony service and will do so as soon as is practicable.
The Government views any allegation of misuse of Interpol’s systems very seriously and continues to work closely with Interpol to ensure the integrity of its systems. In November 2019, a senior UK lawyer was seconded to Interpol to support the work of its Notices and Diffusions Taskforce, a multidisciplinary unit which ensures legal compliance and prevents abuse of Interpol systems.
We continue to monitor the effectiveness of existing safeguards and will not hesitate to recommend further reforms to Interpol as necessary.
Interpol also has an independent review body, the Commission for the Control of Files (CFF), which seeks to ensure that the processing of personal information by Interpol is in compliance with Interpol’s regulations.
Interpol is a crucial organisation for the UK enabling police to police cooperation between 194 member countries.
Any misuse of Interpol is taken very seriously by the government. The Home Office continues to work with Interpol and the National Crime Agency (NCA), which acts as the UK’s National Central Bureau for Interpol, on this matter and strongly supports Interpol’s efforts to ensure systems are in place that protect individuals’ human rights.
Article 3 of Interpol’s Constitution forbids the organisation from undertaking any intervention or activities of a political, military, religious or racial character.
Interpol is a crucial organisation for the UK enabling police to police cooperation between 194 member countries.
Any misuse of Interpol is taken very seriously by the government. The Home Office continues to work with Interpol and the National Crime Agency (NCA), which acts as the UK’s National Central Bureau for Interpol, on this matter and strongly supports Interpol’s efforts to ensure systems are in place that protect individuals’ human rights.
Article 3 of Interpol’s Constitution forbids the organisation from undertaking any intervention or activities of a political, military, religious or racial character.
The Government views any allegation of misuse of Interpol’s systems very seriously and continues to work closely with Interpol to ensure the integrity of its systems. In November 2019, a senior UK lawyer was seconded to Interpol to support the work of its Notices and Diffusions Taskforce, a multidisciplinary unit which ensures legal compliance and prevents abuse of Interpol systems.
We continue to monitor the effectiveness of existing safeguards and will not hesitate to recommend further reforms to Interpol as necessary.
Interpol also has an independent review body, the Commission for the Control of Files (CFF), which seeks to ensure that the processing of personal information by Interpol is in compliance with Interpol’s regulations.
Interpol is a crucial organisation for the UK enabling police to police cooperation between 194 member countries.
Any misuse of Interpol is taken very seriously by the government. The Home Office continues to work with Interpol and the National Crime Agency (NCA), which acts as the UK’s National Central Bureau for Interpol, on this matter and strongly supports Interpol’s efforts to ensure systems are in place that protect individuals’ human rights.
Article 3 of Interpol’s Constitution forbids the organisation from undertaking any intervention or activities of a political, military, religious or racial character.
The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) is facing high demand to register Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) applications, including overcoming a backlog created during the pandemic. OPG is advising customers that the processing time for LPA applications is currently up to 20 weeks, including the statutory four-week waiting period.
Delays in processing LPAs have not led to any increased fee for customers who make an LPA application. OPG aims to achieve 100% cost recovery every year. In 2018/19 and 2019/20, OPG achieved 100.7% cost recovery. If full cost recovery is not achieved, then OPG’s costs are underwritten by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). In the past few years full cost recovery has not been achieved, driven by low demand for LPAs during the pandemic. In 2020/21, MoJ provided £18.9m of taxpayer funds, and £9.16m in 2021/22. This financial position is improving and OPG is waiting for the audit to be concluded for financial year 2022/23, which will be published in due course in the OPG annual report.
The Government fully understands that delays in registering and dispatching LPA applications are frustrating for customers. To return to processing times achieved before the pandemic, extra staff have been hired, staff are working overtime and across multiple shift patterns, and process efficiencies have been introduced. The government is also supporting the Powers of Attorney Bill sponsored by Stephen Metcalfe MP. The Bill will enable modernisation of the process for making and registering an LPA, bringing in a new digital channel and improving the paper one. This will create a faster and simpler service for customers and make the system more resilient to future disruption.
The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) is facing high demand to register Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) applications, including overcoming a backlog created during the pandemic. OPG is advising customers that the processing time for LPA applications is currently up to 20 weeks, including the statutory four-week waiting period.
Delays in processing LPAs have not led to any increased fee for customers who make an LPA application. OPG aims to achieve 100% cost recovery every year. In 2018/19 and 2019/20, OPG achieved 100.7% cost recovery. If full cost recovery is not achieved, then OPG’s costs are underwritten by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). In the past few years full cost recovery has not been achieved, driven by low demand for LPAs during the pandemic. In 2020/21, MoJ provided £18.9m of taxpayer funds, and £9.16m in 2021/22. This financial position is improving and OPG is waiting for the audit to be concluded for financial year 2022/23, which will be published in due course in the OPG annual report.
The Government fully understands that delays in registering and dispatching LPA applications are frustrating for customers. To return to processing times achieved before the pandemic, extra staff have been hired, staff are working overtime and across multiple shift patterns, and process efficiencies have been introduced. The government is also supporting the Powers of Attorney Bill sponsored by Stephen Metcalfe MP. The Bill will enable modernisation of the process for making and registering an LPA, bringing in a new digital channel and improving the paper one. This will create a faster and simpler service for customers and make the system more resilient to future disruption.
The Government is committed to supporting bereaved families after public disasters and during public inquests.We have consulted on proposals to establish an independent public advocate and will publish a response in due course.