Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Haltemprice and Howden)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the results of 16 polls on public opinion on covid-19 conducted or commissioned by his Department which took place on Sundays between March and July 2020, which covered public opinion on Covid-19.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to PQs 82315 and 82316 on 9 September 2020, and PQ 156454 on 2 March 2021.
Covid-19 polling for the cross-government public information campaign has been conducted regularly since the start of the pandemic. This work allows the Cabinet Office to optimise campaign messaging and maximise effectiveness, ensuring vital public health information reaches as many people as possible. The insight gathered continue to inform the Government’s ongoing communications strategy and response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and so shall not be published at this time.
The Cabinet Office publishes details of all contracts over £10,000 on Contracts Finder and spend over £500, including on public information campaigns, on a rolling basis. This will include expenditure on this campaign and will be broken down by supplier.
Asked by: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, which polling organisations his Department commissioned in 2020; and how much his Department has paid to each of those organisations for each service.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
As has been the case with successive administrations, Government routinely works with suppliers to provide polling and market research work so as to understand public attitudes and behaviours to inform our vitally important campaigns and policies. This enables us to deliver strong, national, cross-government communications campaigns, including to support the UK’s response and recovery from the pandemic. Internal policy development work is not normally disclosed.
Details of departmental expenditure and contracts are published on GOV.UK.