Rachel Hopkins

I have seen first-hand how innovatively and resiliently criminal justice agencies have responded to the pandemic to boost court capacity – in June 2020, I observed virtual hearings conducted via the Cloud Video Platform in Bristol Magistrates’ Court.

I have also met with various CPS Areas to discuss their approach, and know that the CPS is committed to working closely with the courts service and judiciary on court recovery work. This is an unprecedented challenge, but I have been impressed with the truly collaborative approach criminal justice partners have taken.

The Veterans’ Gateway enables veterans and their dependents to access state and charity support services in areas including physical and mental health, financial support, assistance with independent living, housing, and employment.

In the financial year 2023-24, the Office for Veterans’ Affairs (OVA) has provided £250,000 of funding to support the service, which has already supported over a million veterans.

On 13 July 2023, it was announced that the Government had launched a refresh of the Veterans’ Gateway, with the service to be run by the OVA, at the heart of government, next year.

Funding for the financial year 2024-25 is yet to be confirmed.

The Veterans’ Gateway enables veterans and their dependents to access state and charity support services in areas including physical and mental health, financial support, assistance with independent living, housing, and employment.

Whilst the Government currently provides the Royal British Legion with funding to support delivery of this service which has already supported over a million veterans, the Veterans’ Gateway will be run by the Office for Veterans’ Affairs (OVA), at the heart of government, next year.

The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust (AFCFT) is responsible for administering the HM Treasury funded Veterans’ Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund. The Ministry of Defence is the sponsor department for the AFCFT.

The Veterans’ Places, Pathways and People (VPPP) programme is funded through the Veterans’ Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund, which awarded £9 million to 14 major projects through the VPPP programme.

The VPPP programme aims to deliver significant improvements in mental health and wellbeing services for veterans and also to ensure that the people who work with veterans, including paid staff and volunteers, can access good quality training and support themselves.

Nuclear Test Veterans played a valuable role towards developing a nuclear deterrent that has ultimately kept Britain safe for decades. This Government is committed to ensuring they receive the recognition they deserve.

That is why in November 2022, the Government hosted an event at the National Memorial Arboretum, at which a new commemorative medal to mark the contribution of Nuclear Test Veterans was announced by the Prime Minister.

The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust (AFCFT) are a charity and are classified as a Non-Departmental Public Body of the Ministry of Defence and look after the Armed Forces Covenant Fund, which is worth £10 million each year.

The AFCFT has worked with the OVA to help support programmes such as £499,471 for Op Fortitude, £5 million for the Afghan Veterans Fund and extra support for mental health programmes.

The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust (AFCFT) are a charity and are classified as a Non-Departmental Public Body of the Ministry of Defence and look after the Armed Forces Covenant Fund, which is worth £10 million each year.

The AFCFT has worked with the OVA to help support programmes such as £499,471 for Op Fortitude, £5 million for the Afghan Veterans Fund and extra support for mental health programmes.

This Government is committed to ensuring that the veterans of Britain’s nuclear testing programme are never forgotten.

We are therefore investing £450,000 into projects, including through the NTV Community Fund, which will commemorate and build further understanding of the experiences of this cohort who ultimately kept Britain safe for decades. Applications to the NTV Community Fund are being considered and the successful applicants will be announced in due course.

This Government is working towards ending veteran homelessness this year, with £8.55m in funding for specialist help for former armed forces personnel in more than 900 veteran supported housing units, and a referral pathway.

The Reducing Veteran Homelessness programme, which aims to address veterans homelessness and rough sleeping through the provision of specialist services, such as mental health or employment support, was launched in April.

This programme was open to veteran supported housing providers across the UK until 22 May and applications will be assessed by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust. Successful organisations are expected to start their projects in September 2023, and will be supplemented by Op FORTITUDE, the new referral pathway for veterans experiencing or facing homelessness.

This Government is working towards ending veteran homelessness this year, with £8.55m in funding for specialist help for former armed forces personnel in more than 900 veteran supported housing units, and a referral pathway.

The Reducing Veteran Homelessness programme, which aims to address veterans homelessness and rough sleeping through the provision of specialist services, such as mental health or employment support, was launched in April.

This programme was open to veteran supported housing providers across the UK until 22 May and applications will be assessed by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust. Successful organisations are expected to start their projects in September 2023, and will be supplemented by Op FORTITUDE, the new referral pathway for veterans experiencing or facing homelessness.

This Government is working towards ending veteran homelessness this year, with £8.55m in funding for specialist help for former armed forces personnel in more than 900 veteran supported housing units, and a referral pathway.

The Reducing Veteran Homelessness programme, which aims to address veterans homelessness and rough sleeping through the provision of specialist services, such as mental health or employment support, was launched in April.

This programme was open to veteran supported housing providers across the UK until 22 May and applications will be assessed by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust. Successful organisations are expected to start their projects in September 2023, and will be supplemented by Op FORTITUDE, the new referral pathway for veterans experiencing or facing homelessness.

A record of how many homeless veterans supported into accommodation is not held centrally.

Up to £8m has been committed to the Reducing Veteran Homelessness programme which launched on 21 April. This programme is designed to fund veteran supported housing providers across the UK to address veterans homelessness and rough sleeping through the provision of specialist services such as mental health or employment support.

An additional £500k was provided to support Op FORTITUDE, the new referral pathway for veterans experiencing or facing homelessness.

A record of how many homeless veterans supported into accommodation is not held centrally.

Up to £8m has been committed to the Reducing Veteran Homelessness programme which launched on 21 April. This programme is designed to fund veteran supported housing providers across the UK to address veterans homelessness and rough sleeping through the provision of specialist services such as mental health or employment support.

An additional £500k was provided to support Op FORTITUDE, the new referral pathway for veterans experiencing or facing homelessness.

The Reducing Veteran Homelessness programme launched on 21 April to offer funding to veteran supported housing providers across the UK, to address veterans homelessness and rough sleeping through the provision of specialist services such as mental health or employment support. The programme was open for organisations to apply for funding until 22 May and applications will be assessed by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust. Successful applicants are expected to start their projects in September 2023.

The Reducing Veteran Homelessness programme launched on 21 April to offer funding to veteran supported housing providers across the UK, to address veterans homelessness and rough sleeping through the provision of specialist services such as mental health or employment support. The programme was open for organisations to apply for funding until 22 May and applications will be assessed by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust. Successful applicants are expected to start their projects in September 2023.

‘Everything Net Zero’ is a framework, not a contract, which has been put together by the East of England Broadband Network, a regional consortium of local authorities and schools. It has not been put together by central government buyers. The framework is designed to help organisations, such as schools and local councils, find companies with whom they can work on sustainability projects, such as the installation of solar panels on schools.

The quoted £70 billion contract value is an estimate by the East of England Broadband Network of the highest possible maximum turnover the framework could generate over its lifetime. This is not money which has been awarded.

I will place a copy of the terms of reference and meeting minutes in the library of the House.

I will place a copy of the terms of reference and meeting minutes in the library of the House.

The Cabinet Office publishes results from the Civil Service People Survey on GOV.UK. In addition to the overall results, demographic breakdowns are published.

The demographic scores for the 2020 Civil Service People Survey were published on 31 March. This publication included scores for (a) engagement, (b) inclusion, (c) discrimination, and (d) bullying by ethnicity, disability status, gender and sexual orientation of civil servants’ responses.

Publication of the demographic scores of the 2021 Civil Service People Survey is scheduled for 30 June 2022 on GOV.UK. This will also include scores for (a) engagement, (b) inclusion, (c) discrimination, and (d) bullying by ethnicity, disability status, gender and sexual orientation of civil servants’ responses.

The Cabinet Office publishes results from the Civil Service People Survey on GOV.UK. In addition to the overall results, demographic breakdowns are published.

The demographic scores for the 2020 Civil Service People Survey were published on 31 March. This publication included scores for (a) engagement, (b) inclusion, (c) discrimination, and (d) bullying by ethnicity, disability status, gender and sexual orientation of civil servants’ responses.

Publication of the demographic scores of the 2021 Civil Service People Survey is scheduled for 30 June 2022 on GOV.UK. This will also include scores for (a) engagement, (b) inclusion, (c) discrimination, and (d) bullying by ethnicity, disability status, gender and sexual orientation of civil servants’ responses.

The Cabinet Office publishes results from the Civil Service People Survey on GOV.UK. In addition to the overall results, demographic breakdowns are published.

The demographic scores for the 2020 Civil Service People Survey were published on 31 March. This publication included scores for (a) engagement, (b) inclusion, (c) discrimination, and (d) bullying by ethnicity, disability status, gender and sexual orientation of civil servants’ responses.

Publication of the demographic scores of the 2021 Civil Service People Survey is scheduled for 30 June 2022 on GOV.UK. This will also include scores for (a) engagement, (b) inclusion, (c) discrimination, and (d) bullying by ethnicity, disability status, gender and sexual orientation of civil servants’ responses.

The Cabinet Office publishes results from the Civil Service People Survey on GOV.UK. In addition to the overall results, demographic breakdowns are published.

The demographic scores for the 2020 Civil Service People Survey were published on 31 March. This publication included scores for (a) engagement, (b) inclusion, (c) discrimination, and (d) bullying by ethnicity, disability status, gender and sexual orientation of civil servants’ responses.

Publication of the demographic scores of the 2021 Civil Service People Survey is scheduled for 30 June 2022 on GOV.UK. This will also include scores for (a) engagement, (b) inclusion, (c) discrimination, and (d) bullying by ethnicity, disability status, gender and sexual orientation of civil servants’ responses.

Since being appointed, the Minister for Brexit Opportunities and Government Efficiency has visited Glass Wharf, Bristol, on Friday 22 April. Travel was provided by the Government Car Service. No accommodation costs were incurred. Costs for printing in support of the visit were not outside that usually provided.

The Minister also regularly attends government offices within London for meetings as part of his duties. Travel is usually provided by the Government Car Service and printing costs did not materially differ from those usually incurred.

Every year, the Civil Service People Survey team publishes the Civil Service benchmark scores and the results for all participating organisations in the annual Civil Service People Survey on GOV.UK. The publication of the results for the Civil Service People Survey 2021 is scheduled for Thursday 28 April 2022.

These savings, £340,104, were generated through the Cabinet Office National Fraud Initiative (NFI) for London Councils rather than a Department. The NFI is a data matching exercise which involves 1200 organisations from across the UK. In this case, the NFI worked with London Councils, an organisation that represents and provides services for London’s 32 boroughs and the City of London, to identify where freedom passes or taxi cards were still live, and could be used, despite the holder having passed them on. This resulted in the cancellation of passes and cards with an associated value of £340,104. Although assigned to London Councils, ultimately these savings are realised by London Boroughs and the taxpayer.

Since its inception in 2015, the Debt Market Integrator has recovered over £2.9bn in debts from over 14 million accounts owed to the public sector. Due to the vast amount of accounts placed with the DMI, we are unable to provide a breakdown of the companies that debt was recovered from or the amount recovered for each private company, or how the debt accrued.

The DMI focuses on ethical collection strategies in line with Financial Conduct Authority Treating Customers Fairly Principles, to ensure that debt is recovered in a sustainable manner, taking individual consumer and business circumstances into account.

The Government efficiency savings technical note sets out the government’s assessment of savings made by cross-cutting government functions in their work with government departments and other central government organisations.

The Government Internal Audit Agency was engaged to audit the £3.4 billion of 2020/21 efficiency savings. We do not intend to publish further details about the efficiency savings relating to the Department of Health & Social Care’s Covid response as there may be associated commercial implications.

These savings, £63,602, were generated through the work of the Cabinet Office National Fraud Initiative (NFI) for private sector utilities companies, rather than government departments, as a result of proactive data analytics using government data. The NFI is a data matching exercise which involves 1200 organisations from across the UK. Since 1996, more than £2bn of fraud or error has been detected or prevented through the NFI.

In this particular case, information provided to the NFI, primarily for the prevention and detection of public sector fraud, has also been utilised to prevent fraudulent losses for private sector utilities companies. Fraudsters operate across the public and private sector. In order to best minimise government and private sector losses, it is important that we also collaborate across organisations and sectors wherever possible. These savings derive from a strategy to work across the public and private sector to deliver counter fraud benefits for the whole of the UK economy. This is aligned to the Government’s Economic Crime Plan that sets out how both sectors will work together to tackle economic crime.

As the Levelling Up White Paper set out, departments have committed to moving more than 15,000 Civil Service roles out of Greater London by 2025, and 22,000 by 2030. By the end of 2021, more than 2,000 Civil Service jobs had already been relocated from Greater London under the Places for Growth programme.

Questions relating to the closure of DWP offices should be addressed to my Rt Hon Friend, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.

As the Levelling Up White Paper set out, departments have committed to moving more than 15,000 Civil Service roles out of Greater London by 2025, and 22,000 by 2030. By the end of 2021, more than 2,000 Civil Service jobs had already been relocated from Greater London under the Places for Growth programme.

Questions relating to the closure of DWP offices should be addressed to my Rt Hon Friend, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.

The Department monitors and reports on its greenhouse gas emissions - information on this is published in the Greening Government Commitments Annual Report.

Any impact of increased home working during the COVID-19 pandemic will be included in the 2020/21 Greening Government Annual Report, which will be published in due course.

The Department is committed to reducing emissions and energy consumption wherever possible, as part of the UK’s transition to net zero. The Department’s current targets to make progress on reducing emissions have been published, as part of the Greening Government Commitments.

The Government published the Net Zero Strategy in October 2021, which sets out policies and proposals for decarbonising all sectors of the UK economy to meet our net zero target by 2050.

Greenhouse gas emissions are published annually in the Greening Government Commitments Annual Reports.

The Department is committed to reducing emissions and energy consumption wherever possible, as part of the UK’s transition to net zero. The Department’s current targets to make progress on reducing emissions have been published, as part of the Greening Government Commitments.

The Government published the Net Zero Strategy in October 2021, which sets out policies and proposals for decarbonising all sectors of the UK economy to meet our net zero target by 2050.

Greenhouse gas emissions are published annually in the Greening Government Commitments Annual Reports.

Like all government departments, the Cabinet Office has access to relevant learning from the Government Campus (formerly known as Civil Service Learning), which includes:

i) It’s your time to act: Net Zero

ii) Leaders, it’s your time to lead: Net Zero

The Cabinet Office does not have its own specific training programme.

A location’s potential to be a Government Hub is assessed against the following: Climate Resilience, Climate Adaptation, Flood Risk, Biodiversity and Sustainability.

The GPA adheres to the Government Buying Standards, which sets minimum acceptable Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) ratings, which are applied across the Government Hubs programme. These are summarised as:

• BREEAM New Construction 2018 at 70% or Excellent rating, or

• BREEAM Non-Domestic Refurbishment and Fit-Out 2014 at 55% or Very Good rating.

Yes. The new Government Curriculum will include modules on the implications of Net Zero, climate change and wider environmental issues for government. In the first phase, the Government Skills & Curriculum Unit (GSCU) is working with other Departments (including BEIS, DEFRA and FCDO) to create an awareness level training resource for all civil servants. This will be piloted from April 2022. In the next phases, GSCU will look at tailored provision for specific Functions and Professions, and will signpost the training and other resources on Net Zero which are already being provided internally at practitioner and expert levels by government Departments.