Written questions by Hayes.

How many full-time equivalent staff in her Department are tasked with tackling the use of fake license plates.

It is not possible to provide the full-time equivalent number of staff who deal with number plate issues. The staff involved do not exclusively work on number plate related issues and also investigate other types of cases. While on road enforcement of number plates issues is a matter for the police, the information in the table below shows the number of occasions where members of the public contacted the DVLA about correspondence, fines or penalties that they have been received from third parties about the use of vehicles which they do not recognise or accept responsibility for in the last five years. However, it is important to note that the misuse of a registration number or number plate is just one of the possible reasons why someone might receive such correspondence. A proportion of these cases will have been made as a result of errors, for example where a vehicle registration number has been entered incorrectly. Calendar YearNumber of reports20217,43020227,83720239,848202410,461202511,402

How many full-time equivalent staff in her Department have been employed for the purpose of making social media content in each of the past three years.

Due to the difficulty of disaggregating the number of staff who are employed to produce social media content from staff who are employed to work on broader digital communications, it is not possible to report exact figures in response to this question.

How many and what proportion of civil servants in his Department are (a) on temporary contract and (b) consultants.

Information on the number of civil servants employed on temporary contracts is published quarterly by the Office for National Statistics as part of the accredited official statistics release Public Sector Employment, UK: September 2025. This can be accessed at: (Source: ONS Public Sector Employment reference tables – Table 8 HC, September 2025 edition; MoJ Workforce MI, September 2025)Public sector employment - Office for National Statistics As at September 2025, according to the Office for National Statistics Public Sector Employment statistics (Table 8 HC), and published 16 December 2025, 455 civil servants in the Ministry of Justice were on temporary or casual contracts, representing approximately 0.5% of the Department’s civil service headcount (total 96,715). Ministry of Justice Civil Service Headcount – September 2025Contract TypeMaleFemaleTotalPermanent40,63055,63096,260Temporary / Casual165290455Overall Headcount40,79555,92096,715 Departmental expenditure on consultancy is published within the Ministry of Justice’s Annual Report and Accounts. The latest report for FY 2024/25 can be found at: Ministry of Justice – Annual Report and Accounts 2024-25(See Annex D: Off-payroll engagements, page 303). For clarity, consultants are not civil servants and are therefore not included in civil service headcount figures. The latest Ministry of Justice, Workforce Management Information (June 2025), publishes total cost of contractors, which is part of the department’s transparency data and can be accessed at: MoJ_headcount_and_payroll_data_for_June_2025_revised.ods

How many and what proportion of civil servants in his Department are (a) on temporary contract and (b) consultants.

Information on the number of civil servants employed on temporary contracts is published quarterly by the Office for National Statistics as part of the quarterly Public Sector Employment statistics. Information can be accessed for September 2025 at the following web address:https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/publicsectorpersonnel/bulletins/publicsectoremployment/september2025Departmental expenditure on consultancy is published within the Annual Report and Accounts. The latest report for FY 2024/25 can be found at the following web address:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/home-office-annual-report-and-accounts-2024-to-2025

How many and what proportion of civil servants in her Department are (a) on temporary contracts and are (b) consultants.

Information on the number of staff employed by the Law Officers’ Departments on temporary contracts is published quarterly by the Office for National Statistics as part of the quarterly Public Sector Employment statistics. Information can be accessed for September 2025 at the following web address:https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/publicsectorpersonnel/bulletins/publicsectoremployment/september2025 Departmental expenditure on consultancy is published within the Annual Report and Accounts. The latest report for FY 2024/25 can be found at the following web addresses.https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/686f95fc10d550c668de3d9c/SFO_Annual_Report_and_Accounts_2024-25.pdfhttps://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/publicsectorpersonnel/bulletins/publicsectoremployment/september2025Government Legal Department Annual Report and Accounts 2024–25 - GOV.UK

How many and what proportion of civil servants in her Department are (a) on temporary contract and (b) consultants.

My Department does not employ any Civil Servants on temporary contracts and there are no consultants in my Department. Information on the number of civil servants employed on temporary contracts in my Department is published quarterly by the Office for National Statistics as part of the quarterly Public Sector Employment statistics. Information can be accessed for September 2025 at the following web address:https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/publicsectorpersonnel/bulletins/publicsectoremployment/september2025 Departmental expenditure on consultancy is published within the Annual Report and Accounts. The latest report for FY 2024/25 can be found at the following web address:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/wales-office-annual-report-and-accounts-2024-25

How many and what proportion of civil servants in his Department are (a) on temporary contract and (b) consultants.

The Scotland Office does not have any civil servants that are on temporary contracts, nor does it employ any consultants.

How many and what proportion of civil servants in his Department are (a) on temporary contract and (b) consultants.

Information on the number of civil servants employed on temporary contracts is published quarterly by the Office for National Statistics as part of the quarterly Public Sector Employment statistics. Information can be accessed for September 2025 at the following:https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/publicsectorpersonnel/bulletins/publicsectoremployment/september2025 Departmental expenditure on consultancy is published within the Annual Report and Accounts. The latest report for FY 2024/25 can be found at the following web address:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/northern-ireland-office-annual-report-and-accounts-2024-to-2025

How many full-time equivalent staff in his Department have been employed for the purpose of making social media content in each of the past three years.

Due to the difficulty of disaggregating the number of staff who are employed to produce social media content from staff who are employed to work on broader digital communications, it is not possible to report exact figures in response to this question.

Communities and Local Government, how many full-time equivalent staff in his Department have been employed for the purpose of making social media content in each of the past three years.

Due to the difficulty of disaggregating the number of staff who are employed to produce social media content from staff who are employed to work on broader digital communications, it is not possible to report exact figures in response to this question.

What assessment has been made of the impact of recent changes to the dental contract on patients’ access to routine dental care.

The reforms will prioritise those with the greatest need, shifting care away from clinically unnecessary check-ups. An impact assessment will be published on the reforms from April 2026.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance on recall intervals states that a healthy adult with good oral health needs to see a dentist once every two years, and a child once every year.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many full-time equivalent staff in her Department have been employed for the purpose of making social media content in each of the last three years.

Due to the difficulty of disaggregating the number of staff who work on social media from staff who work on broader digital communications, it is not possible to provide the requested data in response to this question.

How many and what proportion of civil servants in his Department are (a) on temporary contract and (b) consultants.

Information on the number of civil servants employed on temporary contracts is published quarterly by the Office for National Statistics as part of the quarterly Public Sector Employment statistics. Information can be accessed for September 2025 at the following web address: https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/publicsectorpersonnel/bulletins/publicsectoremployment/september2025 Departmental expenditure on consultancy is published within the Annual Report and Accounts. The latest report for FY 2024/25 can be found at the following web address:DESNZ annual report and accounts 2024 to 2025 - GOV.UK

How many full-time equivalent staff in her Department have been employed for the purpose of making social media content in each of the past three years.

Due to the difficulty of disaggregating the number of staff who are employed to produce social media content from staff who are employed to work on broader digital communications, it is not possible to report exact figures in response to this question.

How many full-time equivalent staff in his Department have been employed for the purpose of making social media content in each of the past three years.

Due to the difficulty of disaggregating the number of staff who are employed to produce social media content from staff who are employed to work on broader digital communications, it is not possible to report exact figures in response to this question.

How many full-time equivalent staff in 10 Downing Street have been employed for the purpose of making social media content in each of the last three years.

Communications staff work across social media content as well as broader digital communications. It is therefore not possible to provide exact figures.

How many full-time equivalent staff in her Department have been employed for the purpose of making social media content in each of the last three years.

Due to the difficulty of disaggregating the number of staff who are employed to produce social media content from staff who are employed to work on broader digital communications, it is not possible to report exact figures in response to this question.

How many full-time equivalent staff in his Department have been employed for the purpose of making social media content in each of the past three years.

Various Defence communications staff have responsibilities to create and post content to social media channels. However, this only forms one aspect of their role. Exact figures for staff with responsibility for social media could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

How many and what proportion of civil servants in his Department are (a) on temporary contract and (b) consultants.

Information on the number of civil servants employed on temporary contracts is published quarterly by the Office for National Statistics as part of the quarterly Public Sector Employment statistics. Information can be accessed for September 2025 at the following web address:https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/publicsectorpersonnel/bulletins/publicsectoremployment/september2025Consultants are not civil servants and therefore, the response is nil.

How many full-time equivalent staff in his Department have been employed for the purpose of making social media content in each of the last three years.

Due to the difficulty of disaggregating the number of staff who are employed to produce social media content from staff who are employed to work on broader communication, it is not possible to report exact figures in response to this question.