Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure his Department complies with section 2.1.6 of the Civil Service Management Code; and whether that monitoring data gathered is shared with union representatives.

We are committed to making the step changes required to create a more inclusive environment, enabling everyone, irrespective of background, to deliver our Defence outputs, enhance our operational effectiveness and better defend and represent the nation we serve.

Policy and people decisions are only implemented following the satisfactory completion of an Equality Analysis which analyses any impact on staff, depending on their protected characteristics. The Ministry of Defence publishes a biannual diversity dashboard report on its civilian personnel. This information is published as Official Statistics, the latest of which provides data as at 1 October 2022: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/mod-diversity-dashboard-october-2022/civilian-personnel-biannual-diversity-dashboard-report-october-2022