Written questions by Wood.

Whether new staff members of the (a) National Wealth Fund and (b) Great British Energy will be eligible to join the Civil Service Pension Scheme; and whether existing civil servants who transfer to those new bodies will have their Civil Service pension membership continued under their new employment.

The Cabinet Office, as Scheme Manager for the Civil Service Pension Scheme (CSPS), considers all requests to join the CSPS as part of an employer’s application process. Neither Great British Energy nor National Wealth Fund have submitted an application to join the CSPS, but any such application would be considered by the Cabinet Office in the normal way.

Pursuant to the Answer of 19 May 2025 to Question 51160 on Office for National Statistics: Industrial Disputes, what the average daily occupation is for (a) Newport, (b) Titchfield, (c) London, (d) Manchester, (e) Edinburgh and (f) Darlington, in the most recent period for which figures are available, expressed as the average over a five day period of (i) proportion of desks occupied and (ii) proportion of assigned workforce to that office location attending that office.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 20th May is attached.

Whether he plans to publish a Regulatory Impact Assessment for the measures contained in the (a) UK-EU Summit - Common Understanding and (b) UK-EU Security and Defence Partnership.

The Common Understanding between the UK and the EU sets out the results of exploratory discussions and a new agenda for cooperation. The UK and the EU have agreed to take forward these commitments swiftly through technical negotiations. The government will follow normal processes for any necessary legislative changes.No legislative changes are currently proposed as a result of the Security and Defence Partnership.

With reference to the Model Special Adviser Contract published on the Government's website, if he will publish a copy of the equivalent template contract for Permanent Secretaries.

As has been the case under successive administrations, contracts for Permanent Secretaries and all other SCS are not published publicly so we will not be placing a copy on GOV.UK.

Whether he plans to lay a new Official Statistics Order to designate the Border Security Command’s statistical outputs as official statistics.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 20th May is attached.

Pursuant to the Answer of 13 May 2025 to Question 48562 on Arms Length Bodies, what the sponsoring department is; and in what policy area Project Seahorse is exploring delivery options.

‘Project Seahorse' is considering delivery options for decarbonisation. If taken forward, it would be sponsored by The Department of Energy, Security and Net Zero.

Pursuant to the Answer of 13 May 2025 to Question 45016 on Civil Service, if he will issue a Ministerial Correction to the Answer to attach the requested information.

The answer to Question 45016 has now been corrected to include an attachment with the requested information.

Further to the Prime Minister's post on X dated 19 May 2025, what is the evidential basis for the proposition that the UK-EU Summit - Common Understanding will result in “lower food prices at the checkout” for consumers.

The UK-EU SPS Agreement will cut costs, remove red tape and reduce delays at the border for businesses for most agrifood products imported from the EU. Supermarkets have said publicly the SPS Agreement will help to ease the pressure on food prices.

What guidance his Department provides to the House of Lords Appointments Commission on the processes to follow when vetting peerages.

The House of Lords Appointments Commission is an independent, advisory non-departmental public body. The Commission is responsible for vetting all nominations for life peerages for propriety and advises the Prime Minister on these matters. Information about the Commission’s approach to vetting nominees for propriety is set out on its website.

Which Ministers have used Admiralty House as an office workplace in the last 30 years.

We do not hold this information.

What costs have been re-charged from (a) Downing Street and (b) the Cabinet Office to the Labour Party since 4 July 2024.

I refer the Hon. Member to my answer of 28 May 2025, Official Report, PQ 53200.

Whether appointments to Skills England will be included in the Public Bodies Order in Council; and whether the chair appointment will be classified as a Significant Appointment.

The department will give due consideration on whether to request the inclusion of Skills England in the Public Appointment Order in Council at the point when the Cabinet Office invites departments to nominate bodies for inclusion in the Order. Concurrently, we will assess whether the Chair position falls within the scope of appointments deemed significant under the criteria specified by Cabinet Office at the time of the request.

Whether his Department has issued guidance to Ministers on whether they can undertake a personal holiday following an official visit to a foreign country.

The standards of conduct expected of ministers are set out in the Ministerial Code.

With reference to paragraph 13 of the policy paper entitled UK-EU Summit: Common Understanding, published on 19 May 2025, what estimate he has made of the annual number of EU visitors there would be under a youth experience scheme; whether he plans to negotiate a cap; and whether the scheme would provide a full right to work in the UK.

We have agreed that we will work towards the establishment of a balanced youth experience scheme with the EU. We have agreed that any scheme will be time-limited and capped, and we have also been clear that it should be in line with the UK’s existing schemes with countries like Australia and New Zealand. The exact parameters will be subject to negotiation.

With reference to paragraph 14 of the policy paper entitled UK-EU Summit: Common Understanding, published on 19 May 2025, whether he has estimated the number of EU participants in the Erasmus+ programme who will be eligible to enter the UK each year.

We have agreed to work towards the association of the UK to the EU Erasmus+ programme. The specific terms of this association will be discussed going forward. Erasmus+ offers a broad range of opportunities across education, youth, and sport sectors. Historically, many UK and EU participants took up opportunities under Erasmus+, which is about short-term exchanges, after which participants return to their home countries.

With reference to the policy paper entitled UK-EU Summit: Common Understanding, published on 19 May 2025, whether (a) primary and (b) secondary legislation will be (i) repealed and (ii) amended to facilitate the agreement.

The UK has taken a sovereign decision to agree to dynamic alignment of some laws. By regulating consistently with the EU in specific areas, we will unlock further market access for UK firms with one of our largest trading partners, thereby improving growth for British people. Where we are making new commitments to introduce new laws Parliament will play a role in scrutinising the legislation that implements those commitments.

With reference to paragraph 16 of his Department's policy paper entitled UK-EU Summit - Common Understanding, published on 19 May 2025, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the commencement of the EU Entry/Exit System on the use of eGates by (a) UK nationals and (b) other third party nationals travelling from the UK.

Since the UK left the EU, UK nationals, as third-country nationals, cannot use eGates in most Schengen countries. The UK-EU Common Understanding confirms that there will be no legal barriers to eGate use for British Nationals traveling to and from EU Member States after the introduction of the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES). This is a positive step forward and we can now work quickly with Member States to get these arrangements in place and improve our citizens’ travel experience reducing lengthy and imbalanced queues at various entry points across the EU. We continue to work with the European Commission, France and local authorities to ensure we are prepared for the introduction of EES.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether Ministers may use diplomatic passports for personal overseas travel.

Where Ministers exceptionally hold a diplomatic passport, this is for official use only and not for personal overseas travel.

With reference to the publication of the EU/UK Common Understanding of 19 May 2025, whether any of the measures directly affect (a) the Channel Islands and (b) Gibraltar.

The Common Understanding has the same territorial scope as the Trade and Cooperation Agreement. The Crown Dependencies will be able to benefit from many of the measures if they wish to, including the SPS Agreement. The Government has separate negotiations concerning Gibraltar.

With reference to the policy paper entitled UK-EU Summit: Common Understanding, published on 19 May 2025, in which areas the European Court of Justice would have oversight that is not permitted by existing treaties in (a) Great Britain and (b) Northern Ireland.

The Common Understanding between the UK and the EU sets out the results of exploratory discussions ahead and a new agenda for cooperation. The UK and the EU have agreed to take forward these commitments swiftly through technical negotiations. The Common Understanding does not provide for oversight of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) within Great Britain or Northern Ireland. Instead it provides that the CJEU will have a limited role in assisting an independent arbitration tribunal responsible for deciding a dispute between the UK and the EU, and only where there is dynamic alignment of laws under any future SPS agreement, ETS linking agreement or an electricity agreement. The Windsor Framework continues to apply in Northern Ireland with a role for the CJEU within that framework.