Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, further to the Cabinet Office: spend data over £25,000, Expenditure Over £25,000 - May 2026 (Cabinet Office Core), published 25 June 2026, what the spending on PMO DOMESTIC VISITS with MGI LONDON LTD, Ref: 1037281342 was for.

Answered by Chris Ward

The referenced expenditure was for audio visual and broadcast services for domestic visits, in line with the approach taken by successive governments.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much has been spent on offsetting the Prime Minister’s (a) domestic and (b) international flights since July 2024.

Answered by Chris Ward

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 27 June 2025, Official Report, PQ 63326.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 29 June 2026 to Question 12161 on Digital ID Advisory Group, if he will publish the declared interests; and whether they were asked to declare political activity.

Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Members of the Digital ID Advisory Group have declared their interests in line with the principles set out in the Non-Executive Board Member declaration of interests process guidance, including declaring political activity. As per the guidance, interests held by group members which are assessed to be relevant to the work of the Cabinet Office will be published on gov.uk in due course.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 29 June 2026 to Question 11154 on Government Communication Service: Staff, in which month.

Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Data collection is scheduled to conclude in July 2026, after which the analysis phase will start.

Question

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether the Office for Equality and Opportunity has undertaken any expenditure on branded goods since the Government Chief Commercial Officer letter.

Answered by Seema Malhotra

The Office for Equality and Opportunity (OEO) has spent nothing on branded merchandise since April 2025, adhering strictly to guidelines that limit procurement to essential, value-for-money operational items.

The Social Mobility Commission, which is an advisory non-departmental public body within the OEO family, spent £1,152.69 in 2025 on the following one-off items to update its branding for its symposium:

• 9 roller banners
• 1 lectern cover

These items will be reused for future events.

Question

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, pursuant to the Answer of 30 June 2026, to Question 9614, on Equality: Impact Assessments, whether her Department plans to publish new guidance on the issue.

Answered by Seema Malhotra

The Government has committed to speeding up decision making and delivery for the British people. As part of this, a proportionate approach is being taken to equalities impact assessments, so that they improve policy and outcomes. Guidance for public authorities is already available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/public-sector-equality-duty-guidance-for-public-authorities/public-sector-equality-duty-guidance-for-public-authorities.

Question

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, pursuant to the Answer of 30 June 2026, to Question 9890, on Equality, whether she plans to undertake a public consultation on the statutory guidance on the socio-economic duty.

Answered by Seema Malhotra

This Government is committed to commencing the socio-economic duty. We are currently working towards commencement, which includes drafting statutory guidance that will clarify how the duty can be applied effectively. As part of this process and to maintain pace, we are engaging directly with listed public bodies to ensure the guidance supports them effectively.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether POLAR4 is intended to measure socio-economic background.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The Office for Students (OfS) publishes POLAR4 data and provides information on its website about this metric, available at: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/data-and-analysis/young-participation-by-area/about-polar-and-adult-he/.

The OfS states that POLAR is intended to measure how likely young people are to participate in higher education across different areas of the UK. It does not directly measure socio-economic background. The OfS additionally recommends the use of TUNDRA (Tracking Underrepresentation by Area) rather than POLAR where an area-based measure of young participation is needed, as it provides more precise targeting and improved consistency with other participation measures, although POLAR may still provide additional insights in some circumstances.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 6 July 2026 to Question 14931 on National Highways: Public Relations, what is the definition of lobbying for the purposes of the guidance on not using public funds to lobby.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds

The "Rules on lobbying for Non-Departmental Public Bodies" (NDPBs) guidance establishes an operational boundary for lobbying NDPBs. NDPBs must never employ external firms or consultants to influence or attempt to influence Parliament, Government, or political parties. This ban explicitly includes attempts to influence the awarding or renewal of contracts and grants and attempts to influence legislative or regulatory action.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 26 June 2026 to Question 11150 on Civil Service: Workplace Pensions, whether he has a timetable for setting a target date.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Cabinet Office awarded Capita the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme in November 2023 under the previous government.

The current delays facing scheme members are entirely unacceptable, and this Government has taken firm action to resolve them through a clear recovery plan with strict delivery milestones. We have deployed additional resources to expedite priority cases, ensuring that serving and former staff receive the high standard of service they deserve. Regular progress updates remain available to members via the pension portal and GOV.UK.

While Capita committed to a complete return to standard contractual service levels by the end of June 2026, they have failed to meet this critical milestone. The Government is taking robust action to hold Capita to account. This includes withholding £9.9 million in contract payments for undelivered milestones, alongside confirmation that the Government surge team costs will be recovered directly from Capita.

To enforce strict compliance, independent auditors are being deployed to conduct a technical systems review, and an on-the-ground Remedial Adviser is being appointed at Capita’s expense. Further commercial, legal, and operational options remain on the table during the consideration of long-term structural delivery options.

As before, the target date for 2024/25 Preserved pension statements (or current value statements) for deferred members has not yet been agreed. If a deferred member would like a current value statement they can contact Capita for a copy.

Deferred members can still register onto the pensions portal to check their personal information, contact details and death benefit nominations are correct. When digital enhancements are available, members will be informed on the Civil Service Pensions website.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, further to the Office for Equality and Opportunity's press release entitled UK to host European IDAHOT+ Forum 2027, published on 19 May 2026, if she will provide a breakdown of the grants to be given out from the £21 million funding package, who will receive grants, how much to each organisation, and for what purpose and terms of reference.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Details of individual grants will be published in the usual way on the Development Tracker website once they have been finalised.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, further to the Review into the Organisation, Performance and Transformation of the Permanent Civil Service, published on 1 July 2026, whether minutes, agendas and evidence submitted to the external expert advisory panel will be published.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds

The Cabinet Secretary has agreed with the Prime Minister that she will lead a review into the organisation, performance and transformation of the permanent Civil Service, with the aim of setting out a vision for its future as a world class institution serving the duly elected government of the day, building on its existing strengths. The review will report before summer 2027 and the report will be made available to the public.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department holds records on staff that (a) are seconded to it from and (b) have been seconded from it to external organisations.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

Yes we do hold information on secondments in and out at business unit level but we do not have a central record of all secondments in the Cabinet Office.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Answer of 26 March 2026 to Question 122146 on Lord Mandelson, whether the steps taken to retain material include (a) accessing tape backups and (b) turning off the autodelete policy on Number 10 computers.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds

I refer the Hon Member to the Government’s statement and release of information on 1st June, providing an update on the response to the Humble Address. The methodological note included in this publication provides a detailed overview of the information gathering process.

The documents published in the first and second tranches contain the entirety of the documents the Government has available for disclosure, except those being withheld at the request of the Metropolitan police.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department's Freedom of Information Team issues round robin guidance on answering Freedom of Information Act requests.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds

The Cabinet Office oversees the Freedom of Information round robin process and will issue guidance where appropriate.

Information on the FOI round robin process is publicly available on GOV.UK at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-and-freedom-of-information

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the trade union Partnership Framework published by the Cabinet Office on 30 June 2026, whether it is government policy to support an increase in trade union membership in the Civil Service.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The purpose of the Partnership Framework is to set out principles regarding how Cabinet Office will work with Civil Service trade unions centrally on matters that impact the workforce of the Civil Service. The framework makes no reference to an increase in trade union membership in the Civil Service and it is not intended to reflect government policy on this matter.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what was the cost to the public purse of her Department's summer reception held on 1 July 2026; and how much of the total cost was spent on (a) alcohol and (b) catering.

Answered by Seema Malhotra

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's summer reception is one of the key moments of the year for engagement with overseas diplomats based in the UK, and has been supported by successive governments for several decades. We are grateful to the many UK food and drink companies who offered to showcase their products at this year's reception, helping to reduce the costs of the event for the FCDO.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which organisation will replace MHCLG when it vacates the 2 Marsham Street offices for the Government Offices Great George Street; and what are the potential implications for the PFI liabilities of the Home Office for Marsham Street.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The "Plan for London" (PfL) will see a number of departments relocating to 2 Marsham Street enabled by MHCLG's move. Detailed planning is underway and will result in more efficient use of government property, creating opportunities to maximise synergies and collaboration across departmental boundaries. Home Office is enabling PfL by consolidating, thereby reducing its PFI liabilities.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 29 June 2026 to Question 10658 on Cabinet Office: Facilities Agreements, what the estimated expenditure on facility time was in the business unit of the Prime Minister’s office in 2025-26, and what the full time equivalent headcount was of the number of staff allocated trade union facility time.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

Time off for facility time is managed locally between the representative and their line manager and the Cabinet Office therefore does not hold a central record of the cost or full time equivalent headcount of those allocated any facility time.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many staff were allocated to the Office for Statistics Regulation election stand up team in the May 2026 elections.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

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

A response to the Parliamentary Question of 13th July is attached.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department has held discussions on the Epstein files released by the United States Department of Justice prior to their publication.

Answered by Seema Malhotra

We are not aware of any such discussions.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, further to the Review into the Organisation, Performance and Transformation of the Permanent Civil Service, published on 1 July 2026, whether the Cabinet Secretary will have sole responsibility for appointing members of the external expert advisory panel and whether appointments to the external expert advisory panel will be made through an open public appointments process.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds

The Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Civil Service will lead a wide-ranging, fundamental review into the constitution, organisation and performance of the permanent Civil Service, with the aim of setting out a vision for its future as a world class institution serving the duly elected government of the day, building on its existing strengths.

The review will draw on a wide range of expert advisers from academia, private, public, civil society, and international spheres. An external expert advisory panel will be constituted to inform the review.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the answer of 23 May 2025, to Question 52694, on Mission Boards: Senior Civil Servants, how many staff now work in the Cabinet Office Mission Delivery Unit.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The delivery of the Government's missions and priorities is being taken forward by an integrated team working across the Cabinet Office and No 10. This team operates in close collaboration with other delivery teams and departments across government.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many working days have been lost in the public sector due to strikes according to information held by ONS since July 2024.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

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

A response to the Parliamentary Question of 14th July is attached.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what information (a) his Department and (b) the Government Property Agency holds on which government offices are based in Greater Manchester, across which Departments and agencies.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister of State (Home Office)

The GPA holds information on all government offices in greater Manchester. The information includes tenure, lease dates, EPC information and occupiers. Buildings, Departments and ALB information listed below;

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his Department's report entitled Review into the Organisation, Performance and Transformation of the Permanent Civil Service, published on 1 July 2026, how will membership of the external expert advisory panel be determined.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds

The Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Civil Service will lead a wide-ranging, fundamental review into the constitution, organisation and performance of the permanent Civil Service, with the aim of setting out a vision for its future as a world class institution serving the duly elected government of the day, building on its existing strengths.

The review will draw on a wide range of expert advisers from academia, private, public, civil society, and international spheres. An external expert advisory panel will be constituted to inform the review.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department issues guidance to civil servants on the use of pronouns in email signatures.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

There is no mandatory or prescriptive policy regarding the use of pronouns in email signatures. General internal guidance on workplace communication simply notes that individuals may choose to include them, and any related conversations between colleagues should remain respectful and sensitive.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether Capita has restored full service delivery of the the Civil Service Pension Scheme as of the end of June 2026; and what steps his Department plans to take next.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Cabinet Office awarded Capita the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme in November 2023 under the previous government.

The current delays facing scheme members are entirely unacceptable, and this Government has taken firm action to resolve them through a clear recovery plan with strict delivery milestones. We have deployed additional resources to expedite priority cases, ensuring that serving and former staff receive the high standard of service they deserve. Regular progress updates remain available to members via the pension portal and GOV.UK.

While Capita committed to a complete return to standard contractual service levels by the end of June 2026, they have failed to meet this critical milestone. The Government is taking robust action to hold Capita to account. This includes withholding £9.9 million in contract payments for undelivered milestones, alongside confirmation that the Government surge team costs will be recovered directly from Capita.

To enforce strict compliance, independent auditors are being deployed to conduct a technical systems review, and an on-the-ground Remedial Adviser is being appointed at Capita’s expense. Further commercial, legal, and operational options remain on the table during the consideration of long-term structural delivery options.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 25 June 2026 to Question 9028 on Government Departments: Industrial Disputes, if he will list each live industrial dispute, by department and Arm’s Length Body, nature of the dispute and level of industrial action.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

There is no centrally held definitive list covering all industrial disputes within the civil service and its Arm’s Length Bodies.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether guidance was issued to the Civil Service in Scotland on pre-election purdah for UK Parliamentary by-elections.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds

I refer the Honourable Gentleman to my previous answer in PQ2754. The internal reminder provided to departments applied to UK Government civil servants based in Scotland.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the new Strategy Director in the National Security Secretariat was appointed by open and fair competition.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The new Strategy Director in the National Security Secretariat who took up post in April 2026 was appointed by an open and fair competition.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 1 July 2026 to Question HL58 on Government departments: Artificial Intelligence, how many consultations are currently open according to the AI tool.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds

The AI tool identifies statutory consultation duties, not open consultations. Open consultations can be found on gov.uk.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Cabinet Office Second Headquarters 2030 Strategy, published in June 2026, what the required weekly office attendance is for staff in the Glasgow office.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Cabinet Office Second Headquarters 2030 Strategy outlines the department’s long term vision for Glasgow. In line with wider Cabinet Office policy, staff based at our Second Headquarters in Glasgow are expected to spend at least 60% of their working time in the office.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 5 June 2026 to Question 4217 on Cabinet Office: Written Questions, whether any other codes are assigned to Parliamentary Questions other than those relating to (a) Commons or Lords, or (b) ordinary or named day classifications.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds

The Cabinet Office undertakes its management of Written Parliamentary Questions in line with the Guide to Parliamentary Work published on gov.uk.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what is the cost to the public purse of security and policing in relation to Downing Street.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Government does not disclose detailed information on protective security arrangements at specific sites, including funding levels. This reflects a long-standing policy designed to protect the integrity and effectiveness of security measures, as the release of such information could increase vulnerabilities and compromise site security.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what is the cost to the public purse of security and policing in relation to Chequers.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Government does not disclose detailed information on protective security arrangements at specific sites, including funding levels. This reflects a long-standing policy designed to protect the integrity and effectiveness of security measures, as the release of such information could increase vulnerabilities and compromise site security.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has taken steps in 2 Marsham Street to prevent the installation of unauthorised cameras.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

All security incidents are investigated in accordance with established procedures, but in line with the practice of successive administrations, the government does not comment on internal security arrangements.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what is the policy of the Government Communication Service on (a) departments and (b) Ministers posting on the X platform.

Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

All government paid advertising on X has been suspended since April 2023, meaning that no taxpayers money has been spent with the platform.

Individual departments manage their own organic accounts, ensuring that activity is proportionate, appropriate, and relevant to their audiences.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 3 July 2026 to Question 13197 on Sanctuary Counsel, if she will provide relevant hyperlinks and reference numbers to each of the payments made to Sanctuary Counsel; and if she will publish the contract.

Answered by Seema Malhotra

Details of Government contracts are routinely published on the Contracts Finder and Find-a-Tender Service websites. Details of payments over £25,000 made by Government departments are routinely published via transparency releases on GOV.UK. The information the Hon Member is seeking can be found online, and the Hon Member may wish to carry out subsequent research. All relevant information is currently available, or will be made available in future, via those sources.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 30 June 2026, to Question 12787, on Government Departments: Public Appointments, whether the approach on GDPR applies to declarations in relation to ministerial appointments.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds

Ministerial appointments are distinct to public appointments and subject to separate processes. Ministers are appointed by the Sovereign on the advice of the Prime Minister. The process for the declaration and management of ministers’ interests is set out in the Ministerial Code. Relevant interests are published in the List of Ministers’ Interests on a quarterly basis.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of swarms of drones on national security; and whether research has been commissioned on that issue.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

The Home Office coordinates the government’s homeland counter-drone policy and closely monitors how drones are being used in all threat areas. This includes organised crime, terrorism, and innovations coming out of conflict zones. We work closely with other Government departments and operational partners such as the police and the military, as well as the scientific community, to understand current and emerging drone and counter-drone technologies and the threats and opportunities they present, and to develop the necessary technical capabilities and legislation in response.

It would of course not be appropriate to comment on specific details of threat assessments.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether officials (a) in his Department and (b) in Policy Lab attended the Creative Bureaucracy Festival on 11 June 2026.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds

The Policy Lab sits in the Department for Education who have confirmed that no Policy Lab officials attended the Festival.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what the cost to the public purse of participation in (a) Horizon and (b) Copernicus is, in (i) 2025-26 and (ii) 2026-27.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology)

The UK contributes around £2 billion per year to Horizon Europe, providing UK businesses and researchers with access to curiosity driven research funding, world-class collaborations, and opportunities to grow and scale up their innovations. The UK's association agreement includes a mechanism under which the UK would be compensated if UK researchers and innovators receive significantly less funding from the programme than the UK contributes.

The UK's current annual contribution to participate in Copernicus is approximately £130 million per annum, which is tied to annual Gross Domestic Product metrics. This contribution provides UK users with access to Copernicus Earth observation data and services, and enables UK organisations to compete for industrial contracts to develop and operate the system and create value-added products and services.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 30 June 2026, to Question 10652, on Intelligence Services: Voluntary Work, whether there are SIS internships or voluntary work placements which are eligible for people who are white British.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

The schemes listed in the answer to Question 10652 are open to individuals who meet the eligibility criteria as set out on sis.gov.uk/how-to-apply/eligibility/. This includes individuals who are white British.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many civil service staff in his Department are assigned to work in the Darlington Campus.

Answered by Satvir Kaur - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

As of 30th June 2026, there are no Core Cabinet Office staff assigned to work in the Darlington Campus.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 16 June 2026 to Question 8067 on FCDO: Industrial Dispute, what is the request or ask of the PCS trade union that is the subject of the industrial dispute on the restructure process; and whether the PCS trade union has informed the department of future strike dates.

Answered by Seema Malhotra

The Public and Commercial Services (PCS) trade union has asked for an unconditional guarantee against compulsory redundancy. The department remains engaged in discussions with PCS regarding the restructuring programme and continues to seek to minimise the need for compulsory redundancies. No further strike dates have been notified beyond what is already announced.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, further to the Part of a Return to an Address of the Honourable the House of Commons dated 4 February 2026 relating to the appointment of Lord Mandelson as HM Ambassador to Washington, Volume 1, HC1774-I, 11 March 2026, page 107, what confidential undertakings were agreed.

Answered by Seema Malhotra

The settlement agreement between the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and Peter Mandelson was published as part of the Humble Address.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the answer of 5 June 2026, to Question 3763, on Government Communications Service: Staff, and of 19 January 2026, to Question 104195, on Government Communication Service: Staff, how many headcount staff in the department are (a) members of the Government Communication Network and (b) are embedded communicators but are not counted as members of the Government Communication Network.

Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

All embedded communicators are members of the Government Communication Service.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the answer of 4 June 2026, to Question 4161, on Government departments: marketing, how much has been spent on branded goods and merchandise by the department since the Government Chief Commercial Officer letter was sent; and on what items.

Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department uses the Government Commercial Agency contract with Banner for the purchase of branded goods and merchandise. The Banner contract manager has confirmed that no branded goods or merchandise has been bought by the department since the Government Chief Commercial Officer letter was sent.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the answer of 16 June 2026, to Question 4241, on Department for Education: Secondment, what information her Department holds on the reason for (a) staff having been seconded to Serco UK Limited and (b) what areas staff worked on while seconded to Serco UK Limited.

Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Secondments into and out of the Civil Service are a valuable means of sharing expertise and building capability to support delivery of government priorities. Recent secondments with Serco have supported building procurement, commercial and service delivery experience amongst other areas.