Written questions by Glen.

Whether the Special Adviser Remuneration Committee has met to (a) set policy, (a) amend the framework and (c) make individual decisions on special adviser pay since the general election.

Special advisers’ salaries are determined by the Special Adviser People Board, in line with the special adviser pay framework. The People Board is chaired by a senior official acting under delegated authority from the Prime Minister. The majority of Board members are senior officials. Members of the Prime Minister’s special adviser leadership team also attend, as has been the case under successive administrations.As special advisers cannot authorise expenditure of public funds, final decisions of special adviser salaries are made by civil servants. Information on Special Adviser numbers and costs will be published in the Annual Report on Special Advisers as per the requirements of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010, as was the case under the previous administration.

Pursuant to the Answer of 17 September 2024 to Question 4638, whether he plans to provide details of that individual's (a) name and (b) position in the next edition of his Department's organogram published on gov.uk.

The Cabinet Office senior staff organogram shows all roles at SCS1 level and above. As was the practice under the previous administration it does not include the names of individuals at SCS1 level (Deputy Director), which is the level of this post.

How many times each Mission Board has met since 4 July 2024.

It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place in Cabinet and its committees - including mission boards - their attendance, and how often they have met, is not normally shared publicly.

Pursuant to the Answer of 25 September 2024 to Question 5037 Special Advisers: Pay, if he will place a copy of the (a) special adviser pay framework and (b) associated documentation in the Library.

Special advisers’ salaries are determined by the Special Adviser People Board, in line with the special adviser pay framework. The People Board is chaired by a senior official acting under delegated authority from the Prime Minister. The majority of Board members are senior officials. Members of the Prime Minister’s special adviser leadership team also attend, as has been the case under successive administrations.As special advisers cannot authorise expenditure of public funds, final decisions of special adviser salaries are made by civil servants. Information on Special Adviser numbers and costs will be published in the Annual Report on Special Advisers as per the requirements of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010, as was the case under the previous administration.

What guidance his Department issues on the circumstances in which hospitality received by Ministers at party conferences should be declared.

The Ministerial Code sets out rules on the acceptance of gifts and hospitality in a ministerial capacity. Any hospitality, above the relevant thresholds, received by a minister in their capacity as MP or Peer should be declared on the parliamentary register, in line with the rules set by Parliament.

If he will take steps to ensure that consultant lobbying with special advisers is recorded by the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists.

The Government will consider whether any reforms are needed to the regulation of lobbying as part of its wider work on ethics and integrity.

Whether the appointment of the Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister was by open and fair competition.

The Cabinet Secretary recommended a range of candidates and the Prime Minister interviewed a number of them before selecting his Principle Private Secretary.

Pursuant to the Answers of 27 September 2024 to Questions 4998 and 4988 on Prime Minister: Communication, on which page of the Cabinet Office annual report and accounts 2022-23 is the information on (a) spending and (b) staff working on digital communications in Downing Street listed.

Information about overall departmental resourcing is set out in relevant annual reports (or published elsewhere in the relevant document). Annual reports do not include a breakdown by individual teams. This remains unchanged in size since the election.

What his policy is on virtual meetings for staff working in 10 Downing Street.

For management and staffing purposes the Prime Minister’s Office is part of the Cabinet Office. As was the case under the previous administration, there is no specific policy on virtual meetings.

How many people, other than special advisers, have been appointed to civil service posts in her Department without open competition since 4 July 2024; what their (a) job titles and (b) salary bands are; and on what basis each was appointed.

My Department has not made any appointments without a fair and open competition since 4 July 2024.

What (a) direct ministerial and (b) other public appointments to her Department and associated bodies have (i) been (A) removed from their posts and (B) asked to resign and (ii) been made since 4 July 2024.

No direct ministerial appointments to the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) or the Law Officers’ Departments (the Crown Prosecution Service, Serious Fraud Office, Government Legal Department, and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate) have been made or removed or asked to resign since 4 July 2024. While not direct ministerial appointments, the Law Officers and the Law Officers’ Departments routinely seek advice from outside experts on the law, including counsel, solicitors or academic specialists. Arrangements for using counsel, solicitors and academics are principally via panels of counsel, panels of law firms or their academic institutions.As regards public appointments, following an open competition, two non-executive directors were appointed by the Attorney General to the board of the Serious Fraud Office on 1 October 2024. More information can be found here: Serious Fraud Office welcomes two new non-executive directors - Serious Fraud Office (sfo.gov.uk).No other public appointments to the AGO and Law Officers’ Departments have been made or removed or asked to resign since 4 July 2024

How many people, other than special advisers, have been appointed to civil service posts in his Department without open competition since 4 July 2024; what their (a) job titles and (b) salary bands are; and on what basis each was appointed.

The Scotland Office does not employ staff directly. All staff that join do so on an assignment, loan or secondment from other Government bodies, principally the Scottish Government and the Ministry of Justice, who remain the employers and will hold records on civil servants who have been appointed to civil service posts without competition.

What (a) direct ministerial and (b) other public appointments to her Department and associated bodies have (i) been (A) removed from their posts and (B) asked to resign and (ii) made since 4 July 2024.

Since 4 July 2024, I have not removed or made a direct ministerial or public appointment at the Wales Office or an associated body or asked a ministerial or public appointment to resign.

What (a) direct ministerial and (b) other public appointments to his Department and associated bodies have (i) been (A) removed from their posts and (B) asked to resign and (ii) made since 4 July 2024.

Since 4 July 2024, a new member of the Boundary Commission for Scotland has been appointed. No direct ministerial or other public appointments to the Scotland Office have been removed from their posts or have been asked to resign in the same period.

How many people, other than special advisers, have been appointed to civil service posts in his Department without open competition since 4 July 2024; what their (a) job titles and (b) salary bands are; and on what basis each was appointed.

Every person appointed to a civil service post within the Northern Ireland Office since 4 July 2024, has been recruited via fair and open competition.

What (a) direct ministerial and (b) other public appointments to his Department and associated bodies have (i) been (A) removed from their posts and (B) asked to resign and (ii) made since 4 July 2024.

Since becoming Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on 5 July, no direct ministerial or other public appointees have been asked to resign or been removed from office. I have confirmed the following direct ministerial appointments: Anna Jerzewska, Alistair Hamilton and Aidan Reilly as members of the new Windsor Framework Independent Monitoring Panel and Baroness Foster as Chair of Intertrade UK. I have also made the following public appointments that were regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments: Nazia Latif as Commissioner to the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland and Mairead Holder as Commissioner to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission.

What political restrictions apply to Deputy Directors in his Department.

The Civil Service Management Code requires that civil servants in “the politically restricted” category i.e. members of the Senior Civil Service, must not take part in national political activities, must seek permission to take part in local political activities and must comply with any conditions laid down by their department or agency. Cabinet Office policy aligns to the position as set out in The Civil Service Management Code, and provides additional supporting guidance for staff/managers. There has been no change to this internal policy from when the Rt Hon Member was Minister for the Cabinet Office.

What (a) direct ministerial and (b) other public appointments to her Department and associated bodies have (i) been (A) removed from their posts and (B) asked to resign and (ii) made since 4 July 2024.

As of 8 October 2024, one direct ministerial appointment was made. Ian Corfield was appointed as an unpaid International Investment Summit Adviser by the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ian Corfield will be in post until 31 October 2024. Professor Alan Taylor has been appointed by the Chancellor following a fair and open recruitment process run by HM Treasury to join the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on 2 September for a 3-year term, replacing current external member Professor Jonathan Haskel who has been on the MPC since September 2018. No appointments have been asked to resign or have been removed from their posts since 4 July 2024.

How many people, other than special advisers, have been appointed to civil service posts in her Department without open competition since 4 July 2024; what their (a) job titles and (b) salary bands are; and on what basis each was appointed.

The information requested is only collated centrally once a quarter and can only be provided at disproportionate cost.

What (a) direct ministerial and (b) other public appointments to his Department and associated bodies have (i) been (A) removed from their posts and (B) asked to resign and (ii) made since 4 July 2024.

Two direct ministerial appointments have been made since 4 July 2024, to work on the 10 Year Health Plan, and to lead on the independent investigation of the National Health Service. Further information on these two announcements is available respectively at the following two links:https://www.gov.uk/government/news/paul-corrigan-appointed-by-the-government-to-help-shape-health-planshttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/independent-investigation-of-nhs-performance-terms-of-reference/independent-investigation-of-nhs-performance-terms-of-referenceNo direct ministerial or public appointees have been removed from their posts since 4 July 2024. As of 8 October 2024, 12 public appointees have had their terms extended or been re-appointed as non-executive board members. Further details on the public appointments are available at the following two links:https://apply-for-public-appointment.service.gov.uk/announcements?titleSearch=&bodySearch=Select+organisation&department=1014&regulated=&bodyJustice=&sort=openingAt%3Adesc#search-resultshttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dhsc-public-appointments-2024-to-2025/appointments-made-october-2024-to-march-2025