Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 3 December 2024 to Question HL2771 on Civil Servants: Recruitment, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of crown servant internships not being open those of white British backgrounds on community relations, in the context of Section 149 of the Equality Act 2010.

Individual departments are responsible for recruitment decisions and they are required to meet all obligations of relevant legislation, including the Equality Act 2010. If a department wants to restrict an internship programme to a specific group or groups, it would be expected to ensure that it complies with the relevant legislation. As each case will be unique, a generic assessment would not be appropriate. This approach has not changed since when the Rt Hon member was a minister in the department.