Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 27 May (HL7225), who authorises exemptions that allow newly created arm's-length bodies to be headquartered in London; what criteria apply to those exemptions; and which bodies have received exemptions in the past 12 months.

Places for Growth is supporting thriving civil service communities in locations across the UK. As part of that, no new ALBs will be created in London unless by exception. Cabinet Office Ministers are able to grant exemptions for new ALBs to be headquartered in London based on their workforce and operational requirements and these requests are dealt with on a case by case basis. In the last 12 months no exemptions have been issued to allow new ALBs to be based in London.