Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the document, The Approvals Process for the Creation of New Arm’s-length Bodies what steps he is taking to ensure that Arms-length Bodies including (a) CMS and (b) UKVI, are adequately (i) resourced, (i) operating effectively, and (iii) performance managed to deal with hon Member’s casework in a timely manner.

Individual sponsor departments are ultimately responsible for the resourcing and performance management of their arm's length bodies (ALBs). All ALBs are subject to a tailored review or equivalent at least once in the lifetime of a Parliament. The Cabinet Office's tailored review guidance sets out the principles for government departments to use when reviewing ALBs. These principles aim to ensure ALBs remain fit for purpose, well governed and properly accountable for what they do.

The Child Maintenance Service and UK Visas and Immigration are operational units of the Department for Work and Pensions and the Home Office respectively and so are not ALBs.

The Cabinet Office classification guidance sets out what is classified as an ALB (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/classification-of-public-bodies-information-and-guidance).