Written questions by Wood.

What proportion of UK Security Vetting staff are currently based in (a) York, (b) Glasgow and (c) other locations.

United Kingdom Security Vetting (UKSV) is part of the Government Security Group (GSG) hosted by the Cabinet Office. The Cabinet Office is committed to growth in both York and Glasgow; to help ensure HMG retains resilience, certain existing and specialist roles are based outside of these core locations.In line with the practice followed by successive administrations, the Government does not otherwise comment on security matters.

What proportion of UK Security Vetting’s total workforce is made up of contingent labour or contractors.

The proportion of UK Security Vetting's total workforce made up of contingent labour or contractors is 5%. The use of this resource allows UKSV to maximise skills and meet dynamic resourcing requirements, set by the customer departments across His Majesty’s Government (HMG). This strategy enables UKSV to consistently meet its agreed Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and satisfy its obligations as service provider of National Security Vetting (NSV).In line with the practice followed by successive administrations, the Government does not otherwise comment on security matters.

Pursuant to the answer of 10 October, to Question 71230, on Cabinet Office: Calder Conferences, what the specific event was for each of the individual room hires since 4 April 2025 other than Civil Service Live and the Infected Blood Inquiry.

As stated in my previous answer to Question 71230, to provide additional background information on each booking would incur disproportionate costs as this information is not centrally held.

Pursuant to the answer of 5 November 2025, to Question 86664, on Ministers: Official Cars, how much has been invoiced to each department in each month since July 2024; and how much has been paid through an internal transfer for the Cabinet Office in each month since July 2024.

The Government Car Service (GCS) transferred to the Cabinet Office from the Department of Transport, as a result of a machinery of government change, on 1st April 2025. Therefore all invoicing data prior to that date remains with the Department for Transport. Invoicing data post April 2025 is included below. A significant proportion of invoicing activity was paused during the transition period which resulted in two invoicing runs for April 2025 with costs normalising in subsequent months. Charges to the Cabinet Office include services provided to No10, the Leader of the Opposition, the Leaders of the House of Commons and House of Lords, and the Cabinet Secretary, in addition to core Cabinet Office ministers. The figures provided represent total charges to departments, inclusive of all associated costs such as Transport for London (TfL) congestion charge, as well as travel and subsistence claims submitted by drivers in the delivery of the service. APRIL'25APRIL'25MAY'25JUNE'25JULY'25AUG'25SEPT'25Cabinet Office£17,137.64£147,019.31£139,361.51£141,827.02£151,582.27£136,375.57£140,471.82DESNZ£335.24£20,423.45£19,957.72£19,994.24£19,973.80£19,817.6£19,936.66MHCLG£11,014.28£28,028.18£26,206.87£26,601.78£24,697.07£21,547.82£24,222.77DCMS£460.27£11,817.33£11,278.62£10,767.89£12,396.33£10,369.77£11,201.70DEFRA£1,897.57£22,009.46£20,611.41£21,209.77£22,049.17£20,135.75£21,124.97DFE£1,508.99£10,139.11£9,803.15£10,111.25£10,604.71£10,179.54£10,349.44DFT£1,233.32£20,266.75£20,389.25£20,491.14£21,162.53£20,066.73£20,509.47DHSC£1,831.9£30,597.56£30,469.06£31,465.41£32,053.88£29,629.62£31,758.00HMT£455.42£10,364.09£10,373.00£10,125.42£10,212.20£10,184.02£10,379.37Home Office£2,186.06£29,943.21£30,064.45£30,331.18£30,799.75£29,478.79£30,137.43Business & Trade£2,730.98£31,360.47£30,597.59£31,538.60£31,334.28£29,492.09£31,319.65AGO£1,682.59£10,941.86£10,701.09£11,221.40£11,860.04£9,940.09£10,422.28HoC£146.28£1,799.98£2,225.43£2,781.79£1,986.99£ -£1,545.44DWP£698.19£10,386.77£9,925.09£9,992.94£10,111.26£9,940.09£10,142.51NCA£ -£9,730.49£9,649.47£9,664.47£9,756.77£9,649.47£9,679.47MOJ£9,310.03£38,424.85£34,963.20£35,597.71£39,936.80£3,2694.29£32,980.11Scotland Office£648.12£9,689.83£9,608.12£10,254.40£10,369.88£9,406.25£10,163.82DSIT£1,195.05£21,067.14£21,634.16£22,223.55£22,081.34£20,115.41£21,210.24DWP£1,055.09£9,752.29£9,975.41£10,440.70£10,505.24£9,574.47£10,093.31

How many staff his Department intends to hire for the new Digital ID policy directorate; and what the total annual budget for that division is.

The digital ID policy team is in the process of being established. The staffing and budget will be considered as part of the Cabinet Office Business Plan in the normal way.

Whether special advisers have been informed by the Cabinet Office that they lose their employer contributions on the Civil Service pension scheme if they leave before two years of employment unless they transfer in another pension scheme.

Special Advisers are provided with guidance regarding Civil Service Pension schemes during onboarding and offboarding, as well as throughout their tenure. Special Advisers are also directed to published Civil Service Pension scheme resources.

Whether the Cabinet Office still operates a Hybrid Development Working Group.

The Civil Service has a number of cross-government groups to address common issues, find solutions to complex policy challenges and support the sharing of best practice.The Cross-Government Group on Working Flexibly meets on an adhoc basis and focuses on effective and positive ways of working in a hybrid world, as well as supporting the implementation of related legislation changes across departments.

Pursuant to the answer of 5 November 2025, to Question 86056, on Government Departments: Social Media, and with reference to paragraph 1.6(d) of the Ministerial Code, what the public interest basis is for not placing the specific financial details in the public domain.

Due to commercial and broader sensitivities surrounding this expenditure, we are unable to provide a more detailed breakdown as this could negatively affect the government's ability to engage with influencers in the most cost-effective manner.

Whether the Cabinet Office Staff Handbook has a definition of Islamophobia; and whether the Cabinet Office has adopted a definition for HR disputes.

The Cabinet Office does not hold a definition of Islamophobia. We take all allegations of inappropriate language, hostility, discrimination or prejudice very seriously. We have robust processes in place to investigate such matters. Possible sanctions as a result of such behaviours could include dismissal.

Whether all special advisers who have joined since July 2024 were informed by Cabinet Office Special Adviser HR that they will lose their employer contributions if they leave before two years of employment unless they transfer in another pension scheme.

Special Advisers are provided with guidance regarding Civil Service Pension schemes during onboarding and offboarding, as well as throughout their tenure. Special Advisers are also directed to published Civil Service Pension scheme resources.

With reference to the Cabinet Office news story of 5 August entitled "Extension of Generalist Member to the Senior Salaries Review Body", whether Pippa Greenslade was reappointed by open and fair competition; and what the (a) status and (b) cost of the competition to appoint such members to the Senior Salaries Review Body is.

Pippa Greenslade was appointed through a fair and open competition in 2019. Her second term as Generalist Member of the Senior Salaries Review Body was extended by 12 months, ending on 1 June 2026. Extensions do not require an open competition. The majority of the Cabinet Office’s public appointments are delivered internally; staff and administrative costs are absorbed within the department's existing budget.

Pursuant to the answer of 17 October 2025, to Question 77543, on Political Parties: Conferences, whether Cabinet Office HR division collates information on (a) junior and (b) senior civil service staff who are given permission to (i) run for local election and (ii) attend party political conferences.

Cabinet Office Human Resources does collate information centrally on both junior and senior civil service staff who are given permission to run for local election. However, information on staff attending party political conferences is not collated centrally as previously referenced in my answer to Question 77543.

If he will place the desk note on Direct Ministerial Appointments in the House of Commons Library.

On 30 October the government published for the first time guidance for departments on the process for ministers making Direct Ministerial Appointments. This replaced earlier internal desk note guidance for departments, which had been rewritten to provide greater clarity for a wider audience, including setting out publicly where Direct Ministerial Appointments sit within the various routes into government. On 3 November the Cabinet Secretary, during his evidence session before the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, agreed to send - and subsequently sent - a copy of the previous internal departmental desk note to the Committee. A copy of this now superseded desk note guidance will be placed in the House of Commons Library.

What information his Department holds on whether any public bodies operate (a) a four day week on full pay and (b) compressed hours for a week compressed into four days.

The department does not hold any information on whether public bodies operate four day weeks.

Pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 54273 on Government Departments: Sanitation, if he will publish all written submissions sent by PCS to the Cabinet Office on toilet provision in government buildings since the Supreme Court judgment in the case of For Women Scotland v The Scottish Ministers of 16 April 2025.

The Cabinet Office does not publish correspondence between unions and officials as this would undermine the ability to communicate freely.

If he will make it his policy that the Office for National Statistics' December publication of its plans is drawn to the attention of the House via a written Ministerial Statement.

The ONS’ planned publication of the Economic Statistics Plan and the Survey Improvement and Enhancement Plan updates on 4 December is an important milestone in the ONS’ recovery plan. The Government welcomes the ONS’ open and transparent approach to its economic statistics recovery. We have asked the ONS Parliamentary team to note your question and they have assured us they will highlight the publication through their normal routes in the usual way.

How many complaints concerning (a) Lord-Lieutenants, (b) Vice Lord-Lieutenants and (c) Deputy Lieutenants have been received under the new Cabinet Office procedure since its introduction; and what the outcomes of those complaints have been.

There have been no complaints since the Cabinet Office guidance was updated on 7th October 2025.

With reference to the Correspondence from the Interim Chair of ACOBA to the Permanent Secretary of the Cabinet Office on the closure of ACOBA and reform of the Rules, published on 12 October 2025, for what reason the letter was removed from gov.uk.

The correspondence was published in error and therefore it was removed from GOV.UK.

If he will publish a list of (a) inward and (b) outward secondments by (i) Department, (ii) grade and (iii) external body.

Secondments into the Civil Service from other sectors are a key route to bring essential skills and experience into the right roles and teams, enabling talented individuals from outside the Civil Service to contribute to the work of Government by sharing critical capabilities and innovative thinking for a set period of time. The secondments data commission provides insight on inward and outward secondments taking place across government. The Cabinet Office has worked closely with departments to improve the amount, detail and quality of the data available. The limited number of records/data sets makes the data personally identifiable information, therefore it will not be possible to publish this data.

How is the ethnicity definition of White Irish defined and what distinguishes it from White British (a) in relation to those who live or lived in Northern Ireland and (b) in general.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon. gentlemen’s Parliamentary Question of 14th November is attached.