Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what proportion of civil servants in his Department have flexible working arrangements; and how many of those work compressed hours.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) is committed to supporting flexible working practices. Employees may request alternative working patterns to help balance their professional and personal responsibilities, as long as business requirements are met. Compressed hours enable an individual to complete their contracted full-time weekly hours across longer daily working hours over fewer days, with no change to their salary.

In most instances, staff are not required to record flexible working arrangements within the central HR Management system, as these agreements are managed directly with their line manager. Consequently, we are unable to provide the numbers.