Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many new public bodies they intend to establish as a result of the UK leaving the EU; how many of those bodies they plan to be located outside London and the south east of England; how many people they expect those people to employ in (1) London and the south east of England, and (2) elsewhere in the UK; and when they expect any such bodies to be established.

The Government is clear the administration of government needs to be less London-centric. The Cabinet Office has established the Places for Growth programme to drive the necessary planning and preparation within departments and public bodies to locate roles and bodies out of London in the regions and nations of the United Kingdom.

The programme has introduced a presumption against the creation of new public bodies with a base in London. As such, 15 new public bodies have been established out of London since 2017.

Plans are focusing on the relocation of roles, through natural churn and new recruitment, rather than relocation of staff in post. It is intended that the majority of relocated roles will be recruited from local labour markets, offering career progression for civil servants throughout the UK.