Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the time taken by public inquiries investigating specific adverse events in the last five years on (a) analysing past errors, (b) making preventative recommendations for the future, and (c) attributing blame.

The Government is committed to righting past wrongs and working to ensure victims get answers. Inquiries shed light on injustices of the past, provide a means for victims and survivors to finally have their voices heard, and can help to rebuild trust in national institutions.

The Government recognises that there is growing criticism of Inquiry cost, duration and effectiveness.

The government is actively considering whether there are changes that could enable inquiries to deliver outcomes and enable lessons to be learnt more swiftly and at lower cost.

This is a substantial piece of work, led by the Cabinet Office, that will aim to improve how we identify wrongs, and get to the truth more quickly. We will continue to keep Parliament updated on this important subject.