Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what guidance the (a) Civil Service Commission, (b) Cabinet Office Ethics and Propriety Team and (c) Cabinet Secretary has given to (i) Ministers and (ii) Permanent Secretaries and Accounting Officers on (1) the involvement of Ministers in Civil Service recruitment and (2) declaring political donations as a Ministerial interest and avoiding related conflicts of interest since 4 July 2024.

The Civil Service Recruitment Principles set out the parameters for ministerial involvement in Civil Service appointments. These have not changed since the Rt Hon member was a minister in the department.

In August 2024, the First Civil Service Commissioner and the Cabinet Secretary wrote to all ministers setting out this process under the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles - https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/letter-from-cabinet-secretary-and-first-civil-service-commissioner-to-new-ministers/ .

There is an established process in place for the declaration and management of ministers’ private interests.