Michael Fabricant

At its meeting on 20 July 2020 the Commission agreed MPs and their staff could be offered office space in the former Department of Health building, Richmond House, initially for a minimum period of three years – to enable urgent refurbishment work to take place on the northern end of the Parliamentary Estate. At that meeting the Commission also agreed to look at a revised plan to use Richmond House as accommodation and to create better welfare facilities for staff.

Ministers and senior officials have raised the concerns of LGBT+ visitors with Qatari authorities at all levels, and will continue to engage on this issue during the World Cup. Qatar has repeatedly committed that "everybody is welcome" to the tournament. We will continue to encourage equal treatment and the respect of individual rights, and identify what action the Qatari authorities are taking to match their commitment.

The Government has engaged with a wide range of international counterparts including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, and Malta, to understand the approaches they have taken to ban conversion therapy. We will continue to engage with counterparts around the world that are committed to protecting everyone from conversion practices to share insight and develop our approach.

The Government has been liaising with territorial offices and the devolved administrations including the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive on this important issue.

Officials will continue to work with their counterparts across the devolved administrations to discuss the UK Government’s approach to protecting everyone in England and Wales from conversion therapy practices.

Since May 2022, the Government has launched a support service open to all victims or those at risk of conversion practices regardless of their background or circumstances. The Government has committed up to £360,000 over three years to this service. The service includes a helpline, instant messaging service, and website to enable people to get the support they need.

More widely, the Government remains committed to protecting everyone from these practices. We are carefully considering the responses to the public consultation which closed earlier this year and will respond in due course.

The Equality Hub Ministers and officials have met with healthcare professionals in developing the policy approach to protecting all individuals from conversion practices. Many such organisations responded to the public consultation that closed in February 2022.

We will continue to meet with healthcare professionals to inform our approach and will respond to the consultation in due course.

The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) is working with the Parliamentary Security Department to identify Members and staff who have reported the behaviour. This includes identifying those who are able and willing to provide a signed statement which with a statutory declaration can be used for criminal justice purposes. Officers are assessing each occasion that we are aware of, taking into account behaviour; the current law; and the latest guidance on protest from case law. This has taken time. Some witnesses do not want to give statements or are unwilling to go to court; without such testimony it makes any legal action very unlikely. In addition, some behaviour does not constitute a criminal offence when viewed in isolation; without witness statements, building a persuasive case around persistent behaviour is very difficult.

The Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation (PLaIT) are considering all options once they have identified what statements can be obtained, and assessing the evidence provided against the relevant legislation. PLaIT will work in consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), who are the ultimate decision maker on whether to prosecute and what for. It is worth noting that hearsay evidence is inadmissible in court, therefore statements need to be gathered from the principal witness, which outline the impact and can be tested in court. Even if a police officer witnessed the event, there would still need to be a victim statement which evidences the offences and impact.

There is a long history of protest outside Parliament and a number of pieces of statute legislation have been put in place to moderate protest activity. Article 9, 10 and 11 of the Human Rights Act 1998 gives the freedom of thought, expression and assembly/association, and these rights mean that protest legislation remains one of the most contested in the courts; the resulting case law provides an ever changing interpretation of the laws. Therefore the use of legislation, especially new legislation, which interferes in the rights to protest needs to be carefully considered, be proportionate and likely to succeed.

The Commission has not made an assessment of the potential merits of increasing external access to Richmond House and there are no plans to open the entrance into Richmond House from Whitehall. The House of Commons Commission’s decision to house Members and their staff in Richmond House was for three years from summer 2021, and the scope of this light refresh did not include opening up this entrance.

In order to open up access there would be a need for intrusive infrastructure works. There would also be an increase in operational costs as the entrance would need to be manned by Met Police. Any opening up of the Whitehall entrance would need to be evaluated against the decision of the Commission (for the three-year period) and other necessary changes to provide adequate physical security arrangements for passholders entering and exiting the building at this location would also be required.

The Elizabeth Tower and the Great Clock are currently undergoing the most extensive conservation project carried out in the 160 years since Big Ben and the quarter bells began to strike.

Following conservation off-site, the clock mechanism – which usually powers the hammers that strike the Great Bell (Big Ben) and the four quarter bells – is currently being re-installed in the Tower and tested.

Dusty works are still ongoing in the ventilation shaft of the Tower, which has required the hands of the West Dial to be kept stationary to prevent damage to both the hands and the mechanism itself.

The clock hands on the West Dial are scheduled to start operating again towards the end of Spring, once these works have completed. The illumination of the dials and the return of regular striking of the bells is set to resume before the conservation project completes in the Summer.

The Reverend Dave Male, Director of Evangelism and Discipleship for the Church of England, addressed the inaccuracies in The Spectator and subsequent articles, in a statement issued on 8th July: “I am very aware that some recent commentary in media and social media purporting to set out the future direction of Church of England has caused real anxiety, hurt and pain to many. Some of this has been based on a fundamental confusion between the Church of England’s own emerging Vision and Strategy for the 2020s and beyond, which we will be discussing at the upcoming meeting of General Synod, and a separate initiative called Myriad to create 10,000 new lay-led churches - which is not a national Church of England project. It has been claimed in some places that there is a plan to dissolve the parish system, sideline or even replace trained clergy, especially paid clergy, or to get rid of our beautiful, historic church buildings. So I want to make it abundantly clear that the Church of England is committed, now as always, to the ministry of the whole people of God including to ordained ministry in our parishes.” The full statement can be read here: https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/news-releases/clergy-and-parishes-heart-church-england-now-and-future

In his presidential address and in the subsequent debate on Vision and Strategy at the July General Synod, the Archbishop of York said that the Church needed more, not fewer vocations to ordination and that the limiting factor was the lack of vocations, not the valuable work of serving clergy across the country, of all forms of ministry.

The Archbishop of York’s presidential address can be read at https://www.archbishopofyork.org/news/latest-news/presidential-address-general-synod-july-2021 and his presentation on the Vision and Strategy is here: https://www.archbishopofyork.org/news/latest-news/vision-and-strategy-address-general-synod-july-2021

More information about Vision and Strategy itself can be found here: https://www.churchofengland.org/about/leadership-and-governance/emerging-church-england/vision-church-england-2020s

Parishes remain at the heart of the Church of England's mission and ministry to the nation and the Church is delighted that growing numbers of people are answering the call to the priesthood. This year 591 clergy have committed themselves to ordained ministry within the Church, the largest number in over thirteen years. More information about vocations can be found here: https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/news-releases/recommendations-stipendiary-ordained-ministry-training-highest

The Church of England wishes to welcome all couples eligible to be married in its churches. The Church provides yourchurchwedding.org as a resource to couples seeking information about all aspects of a church wedding, and this has proven to be a popular resource which is now used by over a million couples a year.

The General Synod and Parliament approve the fees charged by the parishes of the Church of England for these and other services via the Parochial Fees Order. Details of the current fees set for 2021 can be found here:

https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2020-11/Parochial%20Fees%20A4_21.pdf

The cost of getting married in a church remains very modest when compared to other locations. Weddings are bespoke services, and all churches have a basic charge that covers the ceremony, including the calling of banns, the banns certificate, marriage certificate, and administration cost. Should a couple wish to opt for bells, choir, organist and flowers, etc. they are arranged by the parish for an additional fee to cover people's time and additional administration costs. An incumbent priest also has the discretion to waive some of the fees for pastoral reasons.

The National Church Life Events team has worked with Archdeacons across the country to encourage all parishes to distinguish between the statutory fee and additional charges clearer. The local Archdeacon would be best placed to discuss any individual case.

The Speaker’s State Coach is currently on loan to the National Trust for display at their Carriage Museum at Arlington Court in Devon. The current loan contract is being renewed for two additional years to allow full consideration to be given to the future of the coach.

The Speaker has indicated that this is a matter for Members of the House of Commons. The House of Commons Commission will respond to any decision of the House on this matter. In the absence of any such decision, the Commission's position on the sounding of Big Ben remains unchanged.

For the Bell to ring on 31 January, the temporary striking mechanism used for Remembrance Sunday and New Year's Eve would need to be reattached and tested to ensure the timing is correct. Alongside this work, a temporary floor of the belfry where Big Ben is housed would also need to be installed, as extensive work is currently taking place in this area. The cost for the temporary floor and installing, testing and striking Big Ben would be approximately £120,000.

In addition to the set-up, the delay to work in the belfry would push back the planned programme of works by two to four weeks, with each week of delays costing approximately £100,000 a week. As such, the minimum cost of sounding Big Ben would be £320,000 but could be much higher (up to £500,000). These costs are based on a notice period of approximately two weeks. Should the project team be required to strike the bell with less notice, these costs would increase substantially.

No Parliamentary Press Gallery passes are currently on issue to RT or Russia TV.

The UK’s electoral registers are maintained by individual Electoral Registration Officers appointed by each local authority in Great Britain and by the Chief Electoral Officer in Northern Ireland. This means that it would not be feasible to identify duplicate entries between registers without considerable additional financial and operational resources. Providing a mechanism for EROs to compare information about electoral register entries more automatically across all 381 registers could help to further improve the accuracy and completeness of electoral registers and could also help to address the risk of voting more than once at a relevant election.

It is an offence under Section 61(2)(a) of the Representation of the People Act 1983, for an elector to cast more than one vote on their own behalf in a UK Parliamentary general election or at a referendum. This offence carries a fine which is unlimited in England and Wales, or a fine not exceeding £5,000 in Scotland.

Investigations into possible criminal offenses are a matter for the relevant police forces. The Electoral Commission has provided advice and guidance to UK police forces about how to investigate allegations that an individual may have voted twice, including obtaining from the relevant Returning Officers the marked copy of the register.

On 22 July 2016 Very Revd Charles Taylor announced his resignation from the Deanery of Peterborough with effect from 2 October 2016. His farewell service took place at the Cathedral on 1 October 2016. There has been no reason to review the appropriateness of procedures and practice relating to the resignation.

In July the Bishop of Peterborough announced his decision to hold a formal Bishop’s visitation of the cathedral to investigate and report on the financial management and the overall governance of the Cathedral. At the time the Bishop noted that “The Cathedral is going through a cash flow crisis. It is taking too long to pay some bills, and paying the staff at the end of the month has been a close thing twice recently.” In response to requests from the Bishop and cathedral Chapter the Church Commissioners have provided advice, support, and financial backup to help the cathedral in this situation. Whilst some progress is being made, this week the Commissioners intend to increase the loan facility they have made available to the cathedral.

The Department of Health has asked the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs to review the donor selection criteria for blood donation including those that relate to men who have sex with men.

The review is holding its third meeting this year in November and is on schedule to report in mid-2017.

Parliament flies three union flags on a permanent basis, on the Victoria Tower, and at 1 Parliament Street and Portcullis House. There are currently no plans to fly a flag at 14 Tothill Street.

The information requested could only be provided at disproportionate cost. However details of Ministers’ overseas travel are published quarterly on the Gov.uk website:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications?departments%5B%5D=department-for-business-innovation-skills&publication_type=transparency-data

Peerages are granted by the Sovereign on the advice of the Prime Minister and are not a matter for the Commission.

The costs incurred in the recruitment process for the Clerk of the House and Chief Executive were as follows:

(a) A fixed fee of £18,000 to Saxton Bampfylde for recruitment support and executive search services;

(b) A total of £10,244.26 in travel, hotel and subsistence costs incurred by applicants invited for interview;

(c) A total of £8,952 for recruitment advertising.

Costs are shown exclusive of VAT, except for travel and subsistence where VAT was inclusive and has been reimbursed by the House.

The post of Serjeant at Arms was last advertised in 2012. The successful applicant was Lawrence Ward. Candidates applied in confidence: it is not the Commission's practice to disclose the names of the unsuccessful applicants as this would breach their expectation of confidentiality.

The Commission acknowledges the challenges involved in changing the unique and complex system that serves over 2,200 screens across Parliament and 20 government departments, and commends the House Service for the smooth changeover. Engineering, project management, maintenance and commercial staff were involved, together with the suppliers and sub-contractors, and Parliament’s long-serving on-site Annunciator technicians. I have nothing to offer as reward beyond my heartfelt thanks.

The teams involved are delighted that this project has been singled out for acknowledgement by the hon. Member for Lichfield, and are grateful for his support in the early days of defining the system requirements, during his time on the Administration Committee.

For a number of years the House Service has run comprehensive management skills programmes which over 200 managers have attended. These programmes have been externally verified and offer nationally recognised qualifications for participants who wish to complete additional assignments. Under these schemes, nine managers have achieved a formal qualification from the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) since 2010. The House has given support through allowing them time to attend the programme, study leave and fully funding the training and the qualification. During the same period a further six managers have gained management qualifications such as MBAs from externally run programmes. These have all been supported by the House Service through allowing time to attend the programme, study leave and a range of funding from 50% to 100% of course costs.

(a) Leading for Parliament was a bespoke leadership course designed for senior leaders and managers in the House of Commons. It ran from 2012–2014 with 130 Commons staff attending, 32 of whom were SCS or Band A clerks. Total costs of design, delivery and materials was £375,000;

(b) Milestones for Management is a bespoke management development programme for more junior managers and staff moving into their first post with line management responsibility. It began in 2011 and will be completed in March 2015 with 73 managers participating. Of this number 12 were Band “A” staff, five of whom were clerks. Total costs of design, delivery and materials is £182,500;

Modules from both programmes have also been run as stand-alone sessions. These have been well attended by staff from all departments, particularly the modules on performance management and managing change.

Mr Speaker did not interview any internal or external candidates engaged in the selection process for the Clerk of the House and Chief Executive before their interviews with the selection panel.

Internal and external applicants selected for interview all took the opportunity for an informal meeting with Mr Speaker.

Following the interview panel a letter was sent to Ms Mills by Mr Speaker informing her that, in accordance with procedures, her name and approved biographical details had been sent to the Prime Minister so that he might present them to Her Majesty The Queen for approval.

The letter was not an offer of employment as the Clerk of the House is appointed by the Crown by letters patent, on the recommendation of the Speaker and the Prime Minister. House of Commons human resource staff did not provide advice on the content of this letter.

No external candidates were offered a meeting with the Speaker before they made their application.

Yes.

It is not the Commission’s practice to disclose details of the interview process; however, one panel member declared knowledge of two external candidates during the panel’s discussions.

It is not the Commission’s practice to disclose confidential personal information of this nature.

The House of Commons Nursery has the capacity to care for 40 children, of which no more than 15 can be under the age of two. In each of the last three years, average usage of the nursery was

2011/12: 25%;
2012/13: 31%;
2013/14: 41%.

Usage is highest at times of the week and times of the year when the House is sitting. Usage continues to increase with 14 new applications made at the end of July 2014.

The net cost of the Nursery was

2011/12: £120,160;
2012/13: £100,550;
2013/14: £32,170.¹

The increasing usage is expected to lead to the Nursery breaking even in this financial year.

¹ From 2013/14 some administrative work previously charged to the Nursery has been absorbed by the Diversity & Inclusion Team. This is estimated to have reduced the identified cost by some £12k.

The latest figures published by UCAS for the 2014 application cycle show that, as at the main UCAS deadline of 15 January, the application rate for young people from the most disadvantaged areas in England had risen to the highest ever level (20.7%). The detailed figures can be found at http://www.ucas.com/news-events/news/2014/2014-cycle-applicant-figures-january-deadline-2014

The latest data on ethnic background show that application rates for all ethnic groups rose in 2014, reaching new highs for most groups. The figures can be found at http://www.ucas.com/data-analysis/analysis-notes

I refer the hon. Gentleman to my answer of 5 September 2014, Official Report, column 345W, to the right hon. Member for Chelmsford.

Expressions of interest were not invited for persons to serve on the selection panel. The members of the panel were chosen by Mr Speaker to ensure political and gender balance and the need for external input. The panel composition was considered by the House of Commons Commission on 16 June. It would be inappropriate to publish a list of those considered and rejected for panel membership.

Panel members were not formally asked to declare previous contacts. However, during the interview process and as part of the panel discussion a number of panel members did declare their prior knowledge of external candidates.

The travel costs of the Speaker and the Members of Parliament and/or House Officials he travels with are routinely published on Parliament’s website. These costs may be found at:

http://www.parliament.uk/site-information/foi/transparency-publications/speakers-office/the-speakers-official-travel-expenses/

I refer the hon. Gentleman to my answer of 8 September 2014 to the hon. Member for Chelmsford (c430W).

The panel was not made aware of the investigations before reaching its conclusion.

There are no immediate plans to change the current method of connection. PICT is aware of the restriction that the current arrangement places on users, and will look afresh at the authentication needed for known users of the guest Wi-Fi service, “Internet Direct”.

I was very moved to read of the outstanding fundraising work carried out by Stephen and his passion to raise money for teenage cancer services to help others like him.

As part of Stephen's list of 50 things he wants to do, he came to Downing Street to give a speech in July last year. Although I was unable to meet him on that occasion I continue to be awe-struck by his enthusiasm, his determination and achievement.

His fund-raising is not only incredible in itself but is also an inspiration for young people and the wider community.