Written questions by Hayes.

How many banks have closed in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire in last five years.

Awaiting answer.

How many agency staff were employed by her Department in each of the last five years.

Awaiting answer.

Other than special advisers if her Department has appointed anyone from outside the civil service since July 2024.

Awaiting answer.

Whether her department uses numerical reasoning tests as part the recruitment process for its graduate recruitment scheme.

Awaiting answer.

How many political appointees have been made by her department since July 2024.

Awaiting answer.

What assessment she has made of the potential compounded impact of (a) National Insurance contribution rises (b) business rate rises and (c) energy price rises on pubs in Lincolnshire.

Recognising the value pubs bring and the challenges they face, on business rates the Government has introduced a 1-year 15 per cent relief for all pubs and live music venues in 2026/27, on top of the existing support package announced at Budget. This mean...

Whether her Department has hired external public relations consultants since July 2024.

HM Treasury has not procured any consultancy relating to public relations since July 2024.

If her Department permits civil servants employed in the UK to work from overseas on a regular basis.

HM Treasury employees may only request temporary overseas working for personal reasons in very limited circumstances. Such requests are considered on a case-by-case basis, fully taking account of operational requirements and risk.Any approved arrangements...

Whether her department permits (1) Ministers, (2) Special advisers and (3) officials to use (a) Chat GPT, (b) Google Gemini, (c) Claude, (d) Deepseek and (e) Grok as part of their official duties.

Ministers, special advisers, and officials in HM Treasury have access to HMT-GPT, our internal AI tool which is built on Claude and ChatGPT, and Copilot, which have been assured to the appropriate security standards and approved for official use. The use ...

How much her Department has spent on advertising on podcasts in each of the last three years.

The department has spent £0 on advertising on podcasts over the last three years.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the absence of in-person banking services in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire on blind and partially sighted people.

Banking is changing, with many customers benefitting from the convenience and flexibility of managing their finances remotely. However, the Government recognises that these changes may have resulted in detriment for some customers, particularly those who ...

What recent steps she has taken to help support people with the cost of living in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.

The Government is committed to improving living standards for everyone, in every part of the UK. Our strategy for improving living standards is through growing the economy, which is the only way to sustainably increase wages, and through tackling inflatio...

What steps she is taking to support economic growth in Lincolnshire.

The government’s focus is in making Britain better off. There is excellence right across the country and this government is backing it: lifting living standards and putting more money in people’s pockets.The Greater Lincolnshire Combined County Authority ...

If she will provide a list of training programmes used by civil servants in her department since 2020.

The diverse nature of roles in HM Treasury means training is often provided at team-level rather than being centrally managed. As such, a list of all training courses is not readily available centrally and the information requested cannot be obtained without disproportionate cost.

Whether her Department has used artificial intelligence to assist with drafting (a) legislation and (b) policy in the past 12 months.

AI is not used by the department to draft legislation. Officials use AI tools in combination with a range of evidence, collaboration, challenge and technology to deliver policy drafts. They use their judgement and a variety of data sources to apply a critical lens to their advice and analysis to ensure high quality. Officials use HMT-GPT, the department’s internal AI tool, and Copilot, which are both secure and quality assured for civil service use. Guidance and training for responsible AI usage is provided to staff, making it clear that tools are designed to assist with work, not to replace colleagues in decision making processes.

Whether her Department has paid for followers on social media platforms it uses.

HM Treasury does not pay for followers on any social media platforms.

How much her Department has spent on special severance payments in each of the last three years.

As per HM Treasury’s Annual Report and Accounts (ARA), the department spent £41,770 on special severance payments in 2023/24 and £206,772 in 2024/25. The figures for 2025/26 are not yet finalised and will be published in the next ARA.

Whether any civil servants hired by her Department were recruited over another person on the basis of a protected characteristic in each of the last three years.

Civil Service recruitment is governed by the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act (CRaGA) 2010, which requires that all appointments to the Civil Service are made on merit on the basis of fair and open competition. HM Treasury does not recruit candidates on the basis of protected characteristics. All appointments are made on merit, in line with the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. Compliance with these principles is overseen by the independent Civil Service Commission.

How many staff in her Department are reliant on a visa for employment.

We do not disclose the exact number of staff with visas for data privacy reasons, but can confirm that fewer than five staff members at HM Treasury are reliant on a visa for their right to work in the UK.

On how many days in 2025 did the Pride Flag fly on the main Whitehall building operated by her Department.

During 2025 the Pride Flag was not flown on 1 Horse Guards Road on behalf of HM Treasury HM Treasury is only one department in GOGGS (Government Offices Great George Street, encompassing 1 Horse Guards Road and 100 Parliament Street). Flag flying is administered by DCMS and Government Property Agency.