Zubir Ahmed

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

The issues and delays facing a number of civil servants and pension scheme members in receiving their pension benefits are unacceptable. We want to reassure you that this Government has taken firm action to help put things right as soon as possible. We have agreed a clear recovery plan with Capita, which includes specific milestones and accountability targets for delivery. For priority cases, we have deployed additional resources and improved communication with affected colleagues, so that staff, both former and serving, receive the quality of service and support they deserve.

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.

To provide immediate financial support to those who may need it, including those who have left under the compensation scheme, arrangements are in place for interest-free bridging loans of £5,000 and up to £20,000 in exceptional cases - to most recent retirees facing payment delays. This is alongside interim lump sum payments being made to provide immediate funds to retiring members. The pension scheme continues to make monthly pension payments to approximately 730,000 existing pensioner members on time. It should be noted that these loans are provided by the employer and not the Cabinet Office. There is no provision in the contract for cost recovery from Capita as the loan will be fully repaid directly by the member on receipt of their pension payment.

To mitigate member hardship, employers have issued £16.2 million in Transitional Support Loans to 2,932 members and these arrangements continue to be in place.

Interest will be paid on delayed benefits to avoid financial loss by members. In addition, the existing statutory complaints process evaluates claims for financial losses, as well as distress and inconvenience caused, on a case-by-case basis to determine whether compensation is due. This ensures that any retiree who provides evidence of extra costs, such as bank penalties or interest charges caused by the delay, is fairly assessed. This process is run in accordance with the standards set by the Pensions Ombudsman.

Existing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) have been enhanced and strengthened to deliver improved performance and higher penalties for failure, including financial penalties. These have already been applied in respect to Capita's performance falling short of expected standards and delays in administering the Civil Service Pension Scheme.

Capita were instructed to prioritise and clear the most urgent cases such as Death in Service and Ill-Health during February and March. While Capita previously assured us that performance standards for Death in Service and Ill-Health were being met by mid-March, recent information continues to demonstrate unacceptable delays in some ill-health retirement and death-in-service cases. We have urgently escalated this to Capita, who are actively investigating the underlying data and reasons for these continued delays.

Capita has made lump sum payments to 19,362 members, the majority of whom have retired but are not yet receiving their pension.

Regular updates on the work to recover the service, continue to be posted on the Civil Service Pensions member portal and on Gov.Uk.

The Government recognises that the end of ECO4 will present challenges for businesses and workers across the home upgrades supply chain, including in Scotland. Through the Warm Homes Plan, we have committed £15 billion for home upgrades and are supporting the workforce to access new opportunities in clean heat and energy efficiency.

We have also established the Warm Homes Plan Workforce Taskforce with trade unions and industry, to support the transition and build resilience in the workforce including assessing the impacts of ECO4 closure.

Energy efficiency is largely devolved, and Warm Homes Plan funding for England generates Barnett consequentials for the Scottish Government; it is for Scottish Ministers to allocate this funding to their own programmes. The Department continues to engage the Scottish Government on the transition.

The Government continues to pursue policies which deliver tangible improvements to the everyday lives of people across the whole of the United Kingdom, harnessing the benefits and opportunities of the transition. We work closely with the Devolved Governments in the development of these policies.

A delivery plan setting out how Carbon Budget 7 will be met will be published as soon as is reasonably practical, in line with the Climate Change Act 2008.

The Government is committed to ensuring the UK is the fastest AI adopting country in the G7, and to making sure the benefits are felt in every part of the country.

The Government has committed more than £200 million to help companies in Britain adopt AI, including through an expansion of Innovate UK’s BridgeAI programme. In June, the Government published the AI Champions’ AI Adoption plans, including the Professional and Business Services AI Adoption Plan, which sets out recommendations to accelerate AI adoption across the sector, including encouraging adoption amongst SMEs. The Government is continuing to work with the AI Champions to help turn these plans into action.

The Government is committed to ensuring that people across the UK can benefit from the opportunities created by artificial intelligence, including those who are not currently in education, employment or training.

Through the £187 million TechFirst programme, we are creating new pathways into technical and AI-related careers. This includes TechLocal, which is helping employers across UK communities fill or create technical jobs and supporting the development of AI-focused professional courses, graduate traineeships and work experience opportunities.

The Government is also delivering the national AI Skills Boost campaign to upskill 10 million workers, which provides free access to foundational AI training and is designed to be accessible to people across the UK, including those who may otherwise face barriers to acquiring AI skills.

These programmes are available across the UK, including in Scotland, and we will continue to work with employers, training providers and local partners to support participation from under-represented groups and help ensure that opportunities created by AI are accessible to people in constituencies such as Glasgow South West.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Bolton South and Walkden on 10 July 2026, PQ UIN 15938 and the answer given on 14 July 2026 to the hon. Member for North West Norfolk, PQ UIN 17025.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 14 July 2026 to the hon. Member for North Devon, PQ UIN 17121.

Network Rail is investing £2.6 billion in activities and technology that will help it better cope with extreme weather and climate change between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2029. Network Rail published its regional weather resilience and climate change adaptation plans for 2024-2029 which explain how weather, including high temperatures, and climate change can affect its infrastructure at a more targeted, local level, and how they are managing those risks. The plans for Scotland and North West and Central cover the West Coast Main Line. In addition, publicly owned train operators including Avanti, developed weather resilience and climate change adaptation plans in early 2026, focusing on risks and impacts to operations, staff and customers as well as infrastructure.

The Department for Work and Pensions is committed to helping autistic and neurodivergent people to enter and remain in work.

DWP delivers the GB-wide (England, Scotland and Wales) Disability Confident scheme, encouraging employers to create disability inclusive workplaces and to support disabled people to get work and get on in work. It provides employers with the knowledge, skills, and confidence they need to attract, recruit, retain and develop disabled people in the workplace. Disability Confident reforms, announced in January 2026, will introduce clearer standards, improved verification mechanisms, and embed lived experience at the heart of the process. Test and learn activity has started, with a strengthened scheme launching later in the year and further enhancements to follow.

Practical workplace support is available through Access to Work, a demand-led, personalised discretionary grant delivered across Great Britain. It supports workplace adjustments that go beyond an employer’s responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010. The scheme is available to people with disabilities or health conditions, including neurodivergent conditions, where these affect their ability to work. Since September 2013, Access to Work has provided funding for the in-work support needs of young disabled people participating in a Department for Education Supported Internship or the Scottish and Welsh equivalent programs.

In England and Wales, our specialist Supported Employment programme, Connect to Work, is for anyone who is disabled, has a health condition or is experiencing non-health related barriers to work. Participants are given a dedicated specialist employment support adviser who works alongside them to understand their career goals and help them to address any specific barriers to employment. Connect to Work has a specialist pathway for neurodivergent and learning-disabled participants, using the Supported Employment Quality Framework (SEQF).

In 2025, DWP launched an independent advisory panel of academics with expertise and lived experiences of neurodiversity to advise us on boosting neurodiversity awareness and inclusion at work. The panel considered the reasons why neurodivergent people often have poor experiences in the workplace, and a low overall employment rate. Their findings and the Department’s response will be published in due course.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has produced public-facing guidance on Keeping warm and well: staying safe in cold weather which sets out who might be more vulnerable to cold weather and why, advice on how to keep homes warm, links to energy saving tips, energy efficiency measures, Government support available for those on low incomes, and links to further information from the Met Office, Age UK, and NHS England.

UKHSA has also produced guidance for those caring for and working with the most vulnerable during cold periods, including for adult social care managers and healthcare professionals. Action cards are available for commissioners, health and social care providers, and the voluntary and community sector.

UKHSA also holds winter preparedness webinars to support partners to assess risks to their most vulnerable residents and put measures in place to support them ahead of cold periods.

The UK Health Security Agency’s (UKHSA’s) Adverse Weather and Health Plan (AWHP) brings together guidance and key actions for local and national partners to prepare, build, and respond to adverse weather events, including cold periods. It includes guidance for keeping homes warm in cold weather, and links to the UKHSA’s Keeping warm and well: staying safe in cold weather guidance which recommends keeping commonly used rooms at a minimum of 18 degrees.

The plan is regularly reviewed based on the latest evidence, our experience in implementing the plan, feedback from users of the plan, and the recommendations of the AWHP reports.

The Government carefully considered the recommendations of the Joint Committee on Human Rights’ report on transnational repression (TNR) and responded formally on 30 October 2025.

The Government’s approach to TNR is designed to capture the full range of behaviours and victims, ensuring flexibility in responding to the threat and avoiding the risk of stigmatising communities. The Government agrees that the approach to TNR must remain responsive to the evolving nature of the threat and that it keeps this under regular review, informed by operational insights and ongoing engagement with civil society organisations and trusted networks.

GOV.UK guidance has recently been updated, alongside guidance issued by the National Security Protective Authority, providing practical advice for individuals who believe they may be at risk, including steps to help keep them safe both physically and online.

The visa brake is being kept under regular review. It is not intended to be permanent, and will be released once the government considers it appropriate to do so.

The government has no current plans to introduce any exceptions to the visa brake. However, the government has recently announced the development of new safe and legal routes to offer sanctuary to those fleeing war and persecution from around the world. We will ensure that these routes will be sustainable, well-managed and in line with UK capacity to support new refugees. It is expected that the student refugee route will be open for applications from Autumn 2026, with the first students arriving in Autumn 2027.

It is an offence in England and Wales, under section 1 of the Prevention of Crime Act 1953, for any person to have with them in a public place any article made, or adapted, for causing an injury to a person without lawful authority or reasonable excuse. The maximum penalty, on conviction or indictment, is four years in prison, a fine or both.

On 12 March 2026, alongside the launch of the Scotland Defence Growth Deal, we announced a £10 million investment to support the creation of two Defence Technical Excellence Colleges, including one in the West of Scotland. The colleges are being developed in partnership with Colleges Scotland.

We remain in consultation with Colleges Scotland about the priorities, resources and location of the colleges.

We are also awaiting a response from the Scottish Government regarding match-funding the UK Government’s £10 million investment. We hope discussions on securing match funding for Scotland’s second Defence Technical Excellence College can start soon.

The financial inheritance - the worst inherited by any incoming Government since World War 2 - was compounded by the unforeseen £22 billion black hole in spending left by the previous Government. This means we face hard choices we didn’t expect or want to make to fix the foundations of our economy.

What the previous Government did - spending the Treasury reserves three times over by July - was reckless and unforgivable. They also for the first time excluded an affordability clause from the Pay Bodies and the SNP had no set pay back either.

The Scottish Government is responsible for public sector pay awards for devolved workforces. Barnett consequentials and Supplementary Estimates for 2024-25 will be confirmed at the budget in October and the Spending Review will set block grant funding up to at least 2027-28. This will allow the devolved governments to financially plan over a longer period of time.