Written questions by Fox.

How many and what proportion of desks were occupied in each of (a) HMRC’s and (b) the Valuation Office Agency's offices in the most recent four weeks for which figures are available; and how many staff attended each office in person in the same period.

Heads of Department have agreed that 60% minimum office attendance for most staff continues to be the best balance of working for the Civil Service. Office occupancy data for the period July - September has been published, with further publications to now happen on a quarterly basis. The data is published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-hq-occupancy-data

How many civil servants are assigned to work in each of (a) HMRC’s and (b) the Valuation Office Agency offices; and how many desks are available in each office.

The table below sets out HMRC’s headcount and workspaces by location for September 2024. Table 1: HMRC Locations – Headcount and workspaces for September 2024LocationHeadcountWorkspaces100PS955516Belfast2,2081,030Birmingham3,3721,610Bradford1,193804Bristol1,262820Cardiff4,2082,281Croydon2,5551,469Dover196155East Kilbride1,9111,269Edinburgh1,9401,426Gartcosh283238Glasgow2,8721,447Ipswich451268Leeds3,7821,817Liverpool5,5962,753Manchester6,0143,214Newcastle8,0565,565Nottingham4,0611,855Portsmouth994913Preston1,419804Reading10178Stratford5,1122,717Swansea127140Telford1,059565Washington2,1351,944Worthing587712Total62,44936,410 The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) is an executive agency of HMRC and has 35 offices nationally (England, Scotland and Wales). Table 2 shows VOA’s Headcount and workspaces for September 2024 Table 2 VOA Locations – Headcount and workspaces for September 2024Location HeadcountWorkspacesAberdeen45Birmingham17084Bristol10260Cambridge3830Canary Wharf Hub325212Cardiff11160Carmarthen2214Colchester5654Croydon17786Durham409360Eastbourne4242Edinburgh208Exeter4430Folkestone2632Glasgow1815Hull5450Inverness56Lancaster1416Leeds273162Liverpool15070Manchester18084Newcastle233104Norwich4152Nottingham12780Oxford3424Plymouth437322Preston5330Sheffield5330Southampton5860St Austell1724Stoke-On-Trent6752Swansea7124Wembley11367Worthing Digital Centre23Wrexham5124Total3,5972,376 Our offices have different types of workspaces which allow people to match the task to the most suitable space. We therefore use workspaces rather than the number of desks.

How much was spent on (a) new furniture and fittings and (b) other refurbishment of Ministerial offices in her Department since the dissolution of the last Parliament; and on what items this was spent.

The department has spent £2.6k on new furniture, fittings, and other refurbishment since the dissolution of the last Parliament. This spending includes the installation of an exhibition in Number 11 Downing Street from the National Maritime Museum, office furniture, fittings and maintenance.

How many civil servants are assigned to work in each of her Department's offices; and how many desks are available in each office.

The table below uses September’s HR workforce data, and includes all staff. Site NameLocationCapacity (desk only)September HR Staff Data3 Glass Wharf (Bristol)Bristol122351Eastbrook House (Cambridge)Cambridge4049Cheylesmore House (Coventry)Coventry6941089Trafalgar House (Croydon)Croydon4053Bishopsgate House (Darlington)Darlington3236747/8 Wellington Place (Leeds)Leeds48130Sanctuary Buildings (London)London - Sanctuary Buildings9402080Piccadilly Gate (Manchester)Manchester4801136Newcastle Civic Centre (Newcastle)Newcastle51142Unity Square (Nottingham)Nottingham120365St Paul's Place (Sheffield)Sheffield7671447Clarendon Road (Watford)Watford2444Total143649 7560

How much was spent on (a) new furniture and fittings and (b) other refurbishment of Ministerial offices in her Department since the dissolution of the last Parliament; and on what items this was spent.

The data requested is not held centrally. The Office for Equality and Opportunity is not a standalone department, and Ministerial offices are located across various Government departments.

Communities and Local Government, how many and what proportion of desks were occupied in each of her Department's offices in the most recent four weeks for which figures are available; and how many staff attended each office in person in the same period.

Heads of Department have agreed that 60% minimum office attendance for most staff continues to be the best balance of working for the Civil Service. Office occupancy data for the period July - September has been published today, with further publications to now happen on a quarterly basis. The data is published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-hq-occupancy-data.

Communities and Local Government, how much was spent on (a) new furniture and fittings and (b) other refurbishment of Ministerial offices in her Department since the dissolution of the last Parliament; and on what items this was spent.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has spent £33,790.50 on the refurbishment of Ministerial offices since the dissolution of the last Parliament. This includes a spend of £16,554.89 to ensure Ministers are able to work outside of London.

Communities and Local Government, how many civil servants are assigned to work in each of her Department's offices; and how many desks are available in each office.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer to Question UIN 9071 on 28 November 2024.

Following her Department’s meeting with representatives of the WASPI Campaign on 5 September, whether there is an expected timeline for responding to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman report into changes to women’s State Pension age, published on 21 March 2024.

We need time to review and consider the Ombudsman’s report along with the evidence provided during the investigation. We need to consider the views that have been expressed on all sides including the points raised by representatives from the WASPI Campaign who I met on the 5th September. Once this work has been undertaken, the Government will be in a position to outline its approach.

What steps his Department is taking to support (a) local authorities and (b) integrated care boards to meet the requirements of Section 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983.

It is important that eligible individuals receive the aftercare they are entitled to under section 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983, in order for them to stay well and to prevent readmission or detention.The Discharge from Mental Health Inpatient Settings statutory guidance, published in January 2024, supports local authorities and integrated care boards to meet the requirements of section 117. It provides clarity in relation to how health and care systems can work together to support discharge from all mental health inpatient settings and ensure the right support in the community. It includes best practice on how patients and carers should be involved in discharge planning, and additional guidance on how budgets and responsibilities are shared to pay for aftercare under section 117. The guidance is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/discharge-from-mental-health-inpatient-settingsThis year the National Health Service and local authorities are receiving £1 billion through the Discharge Fund. Local authorities and NHS integrated care boards have the flexibility to spend this investment in ways they deem most appropriate for their local area.More broadly, we are committed to building consensus on the long-term reform needed to create a National Care Service based on consistent national standards. We will set out next steps for a process that engages with adult social care stakeholders, including cross-party and people with lived experience of care.

Communities and Local Government, when her Department plans to publish draft legislation on leasehold and commonhold reform for broad consultation and additional parliamentary scrutiny.

As set out in the King’s Speech, the Government intend to publish draft legislation on leasehold and commonhold reform in this parliamentary session.

Whether her plan to reform or replace the Work Capability Assessment will recognise the increased cost of living for those with physical disabilities.

The government is committed to reforming or replacing the Work Capability Assessment, alongside putting in place a proper plan to support disabled people into work. We will say more about this in due course. We want people to avoid poverty, and for this to happen we must ensure that disabled people with health conditions have the opportunity to work and save for as long as they wish and are able to. We will continue to engage with stakeholders to keep the views of disabled people and people with health conditions at the heart of what we do, as we consider our next steps.

What estimate he has made of the cost to the Care Quality Commission of (a) inspecting and (b) rating private care providers who have not been rated in the last four years.

The Care Quality Commission’s (CQC) cost over the last four years for fee funded activity was between £220 million and £230 million. The CQC doesn’t break down the cost of activity between private and public providers, however, as shown in the CQC’s Annual report and accounts 2022/23, approximately 50% of the CQC’s income comes from private providers, as specified on page 16 of the report. The CQC’s accounts report for 2022/23 is available at the following link:https://www.cqc.org.uk/annual-report-and-accounts-202223The CQC’s fees are for the cost of regulation, rather than solely for the volume of inspection activity, therefore, the information is not available in the format requested.We recognise that Dr Penelope Dash’s interim report says that updating ratings can be too slow. The CQC is working with Professor Sir Mike Richards and Professor Vic Rayner, the Chair of the Care Provider Alliance, to review longer-term improvements to their single assessment framework and how they use it. Other changes to the single assessment framework, such as how CQC score quality statements will allow the CQC to assess and inspect more services while ensuring their ratings are robust. Over the next four weeks the CQC will begin external engagement on aspects of the Single Assessment Framework that require rapid activity to ensure stakeholders are involved and shaping the CQC’s response to the recommendations.

Whether there will be any exceptions to the planned phasing out of gas boilers in favour of heat pumps in all homes by 2035.

The Government’s position is not to force anyone to rip out a working boiler and will incentivise moves to cleaner, affordable heating. The Government has started delivery of the Warm Homes Plan, which will offer grants and low interest loans to support investment in insulation, heat pumps and other home improvements to cut bills. More detail will be set out in due course.

Whether there will be cuts to the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund in the next Budget.

The department is continuing to hold Spending Review discussions regarding future funding for children’s social care with colleagues across government.

Whether the Local Power Plan will contain measures to increase the take up of cooperative energy schemes.

Yes. The aim of Great British Energy’s Local Power Plan (LPP) is to support a more decentralised and resilient energy system, with more local generation and ownership. By doing so, we are giving communities a stake in the transition to net zero as owners and stakeholders in clean power projects. The LPP will support Local and Combined Authorities, and Community Energy Groups, which could include energy cooperative schemes, to roll out small and medium-scale renewable energy projects. The LPP will increase the capability and capacity of these groups to build a pipeline of successful projects in their local areas, including through commercial, technical and project-planning assistance.

Whether she has had discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on expanding the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund.

The department is continuing to hold Spending Review discussions regarding future funding for children’s social care with colleagues across government.

Whether his Department plans to take steps to ensure that private care providers are Regularly (a) inspected and (b) rated by the Care Quality Commission.

The Department has taken steps to ensure that all providers registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), including private care providers are regularly assessed and rated by the CQC.The interim findings and recommendations made by Dr Penny Dash as part of her review include a clear need for the CQC to increase operational activity. Work is underway to increase the number of inspections the CQC carries out, this includes inspections of private care providers, so the public have an up-to-date understanding of quality and providers are able to demonstrate improvement.The CQC is working with Professor Sir Mike Richards and Professor Vic Rayner, the Chair of the Care Provider Alliance, to review longer-term improvements to their single assessment framework and how they use it. Other changes to the single assessment framework, such as how CQC score quality statements will allow the CQC to assess and inspect more services while ensuring their ratings are robust. This will also allow the CQC to produce better reports that are clearer about their judgements and ratings.The CQC reports to the Department regularly on their improvement work, and wider responses to the interim Dash review.

What his Department’s policy is on reducing electricity standing charges.

Although standing charges are a commercial matter for suppliers, and are regulated by Ofgem, we know that too much of the burden of the bill is placed on them. The Government has worked constructively with the regulator on the issue of standing charges, and we are committed to lowering the cost of them. Ofgem’s recently published discussion paper sets out the options for how standing charges could be reduced, including by moving some supplier operational costs off standing charges onto the unit rate, increasing the variety of tariffs available for consumer in the market, and in the longer term, reviewing how system costs are allocated. Ofgem's publication can be found here: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/call-for-input/standing-charges-domestic-retail-options.

What steps his Department is taking to raise awareness of the symptoms of Chiari malformation with NHS practitioners.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has produced guidance on the recognition and referral of suspected neurological conditions, which was last updated in October 2023. This guideline covers the initial assessment of symptoms and signs that might indicate a neurological condition, such as Chiari malformation. It helps non-specialist healthcare professionals to identify people who should be offered referral for specialist investigation.The Royal College of General Practitioners has also produced an e-learning module on the recognition and referral of suspected neurological conditions, to raise awareness of these conditions and their associated symptoms amongst general practitioners.At the national level, there are several initiatives supporting service improvement and better care for patients with neurological conditions such as Chiari malformation, including the Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology. NHS England has also established a Neurology Service Transformation Programme, a multi-year, clinically-led programme to develop a new model of integrated care for neurology services.