Written questions by Wood.

Pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2026 to Question HL13539 on Special Advisers: Email, whether guidance or advice has been given to (a) officials and (b) special advisers on whether information held on non-corporated advices remains in scope of the Freedom of Information requests after they leave Crown Service.

Officials and special advisers are directed to guidance on use of Non Corporate Communication Channels on appointment and leaving of Crown Service.

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 February 2026 to Question 108667 on Cabinet Office: Policy, how many desk notes are held by the Cabinet Office Propriety and Ethics Team.

I refer the Honourable Member to the answer given to Question 108667 on 20 February 2026.

How many cases of suspected misuse of Flexible Support Fund equipment have been identified in the last three years for which figures are available.

Work coaches must ensure all awards made under the Flexible Support Fund (FSF) are reasonable and represent good value for money in terms of improving employment prospects and reducing the time spent on benefits. Where a work coach identifies concerns that FSF funded equipment may have been misused, this information is recorded on the customer’s Universal Credit account and considered as part of ongoing engagement, including when determining the appropriateness of any future FSF support. Misuse of FSF support does not always indicate fraud. Where there is evidence that misuse may involve deliberate dishonesty or a criminal offence, work coaches are required to make a formal referral to the Department’s fraud team, who determine whether further investigation or enforcement action is appropriate. The Department does not hold central records on the number of cases of suspected misuse of FSF funded equipment. Information is captured at individual customer level and is not collated nationally for reporting purposes. A new digital FSF application system, being rolled out nationally, will strengthen oversight of FSF spend by providing improved data and enabling more detailed scrutiny of awards.

Whether he plans to amend his Department's guidance to civil servants, Ministers and special advisers on using non-corporate communication devices.

I refer the Member for Kingswinford and South Staffordshire to my replies to his Parliamentary Questions 112176 and 112653. The current guidance was issued under the previous government. We plan to review the way that non-corporate communication channels are used in Government and to update the accompanying guidance to reflect the changes in the ways we use technology.

Pursuant to the Answer of 3 March 2026 to Question 113613 on UK Integrated Security Fund: Equality, which Integrated Security Fund projects have been supported which relate to Gender Equality and Social Inclusion markers.

I refer the Member to answers given to Parliamentary Questions 91383 and 92006.

With reference to page 35 of the Cabinet Office consultation paper on Digital ID, 10 March 2026, CP1498, whether his Department considered collecting data on sex for digital ID.

As set out in the Digital ID consultation paper, the national digital ID will only collect the minimum amount of data required to issue and manage securely. We are asking questions in the consultation about the type of data that should be included.

What is the office attendance requirement for staff on hybrid working.

Members of the Senior Civil Service (SCS) must spend more than 60% of their contracted hours in the office over each four-week period. For colleagues outside the SCS, the minimum office requirement is 60% of contracted hours over each four-week period. DWP’s customer-facing employees (e.g. in job centres) are office-based and must attend for 100%.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 17 February 2026 to Question 108739 on UK Relations with EU: Fines, how many international agreements and treaties the UK has signed that included a termination provision since July 2024.

The texts of treaties that have been signed since July 2024 and laid before Parliament for scrutiny can be found on GOV.UK, including details of any termination provisions.

With reference to page 48 of the Cabinet Office consultation paper on Digital ID, 10 March 2026, CP1498, whether prospective employees who do not have a passport or a Digital ID will be able to take up a job.

Digital right to work checks will be required by the end of the Parliament. Anyone starting a new job will be able to use the new, free digital proof of identity for these right to work checks - or do a digital check of other documents, including your passport.The design and rollout of digital ID will be accompanied by an inclusion programme across the UK.

What the terms of reference are of the Break Down Barriers to Opportunity Mission Board; and whether the terms of reference have been amended since the Mission Board was established.

The Opportunity Mission Board provides a forum for external challenge and cross-government discussion on priorities and delivery for the Opportunity Mission. The Board is chaired by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education. The Board does not have a fixed list of attendees. Ministers from relevant government departments and external experts are invited to attend meetings depending on the issues under discussion. The Board has been reformed since it was established to be a more delivery focused forum benefiting from external and sector expertise.

Whether there have been any (a) disciplinary actions and (b) dismissals of (i) DWP and (ii) executive agency officials for unauthorised access to personal data since July 2024.

DWP takes its responsibility to safeguard personal data extremely seriously. All staff have an obligation to report suspected breaches; security responsibilities are covered in mandatory security training, undertaken annually. As of 28 February 2026, we have 94,876 employees in the Department, of which, there are 227 individuals who have a disciplinary case currently open or closed within the last 12 months relating to ‘Unauthorised Access’, of which 7 individuals were dismissed. These figures cover both paid and unpaid Department for Work and Pensions staff only. Information on the other parts of the question would only be available at disproportionate cost as data is not held on central DWP systems.

Pursuant to the answer of 5 March 2026 to Question 114870 on Lobbying: Finance, whether grant funding has been approved where lobbying activity is expressly part of the purpose of the grant since July 2024.

The government grants register is published on GOV.UK. The latest publication, for 2023/24, makes no reference to lobbying under the purpose of any scheme listed.

If he will publish the (a) FOI reference numbers and (b) dates of the Freedom of Information Act responses on the Government Car Service where his Department has released information in full.

The Hon Member will be aware that as under successive administrations, the Cabinet Office does not routinely publish responses to FOI requests.

Pursuant to the answer of 13 October 2025, to Question 71202, on Public Bodies: Freedom of Information, whether information held by civil servants who have now left Crown Service is in scope of the Humble Address on Lord Mandelson.

I refer you to the Government's statement and release of information on 11th March, providing an update on the response to the Humble Address. The Government is working to ensure that Parliament’s instruction is met with the urgency and transparency that it deserves.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether Ministers in her Department have met with (a) David Taylor and (b) Asia House since 4 July 2024.

Details of ministerial meetings with external individuals and organisations are routinely published by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office on a quarterly basis.

Further to the Interministerial Standing Committee Meeting Communiqué - 17 February 2026, updated 9 March 2026, what the Memorandum of Understanding on the Sewel Convention will contain.

The government is committed to strengthening the Sewel Convention by setting out a new Memorandum of Understanding outlining how the nations will work together on legislation. Officials from each of the four governments of the UK have been working closely on this and good progress has been made. As these discussions are ongoing, further detail on the content of the MoU will be provided in due course.

Pursuant to the answer of 2 February 2026, to Question 107708, on Eramsus+ programme, if she will set out how the money will be distributed back to UK student beneficiaries, and how much of the cost will be used to pay for EU students studying in the UK.

The Erasmus+ budget determines the overall allocation of funds across the programme for the 2021–2027 period. The UK National Agency will be responsible for assessing funding applications and awarding grants to UK beneficiaries.EU students who wish to come to the UK on an Erasmus+ placement are funded through their own country’s Erasmus+ budget, which is managed by their national agency.All students enrolled in studies at a UK higher education institution (HEI) leading to a degree or another tertiary level qualification are eligible to apply for an Erasmus+ mobility, provided their institution has secured funding. Decisions on which students receive funding for placements are made by the individual HEIs.

Further to the Cabinet Office consultation paper on Digital ID, 10 March 2026, CP1498, what the estimated gross cost is of the Digital ID programme.

The design and delivery of the national digital identity credential are subject to a public consultation, which launched Tuesday 10th March. The design and delivery of digital ID are subject to the consultation outcomes. The feedback from the consultation will inform our final approach and enable a more accurate assessment of costs.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 3 March 2026 to Question 115117 on Jonathan Powell, for what reason the direct ministerial appointment of John Powell as Special Envoy in early August 2024 was not announced until 6 September 2024.

Jonathan Powell was appointed in line with standard procedure, and his appointment announced in the usual way.

What assessment his Department has made of the risk of Capita holding over £3 billion in Government contracts; and whether he plans to invoke the supplier debarment provisions of the Procurement Act 2023.

Cabinet Office continues to manage the government’s relationship with Capita, including monitoring its performance on a cross-government basis. As a strategic supplier to the government, Capita has a high level of oversight and risk management by the Cabinet Office, which is underpinned by an Memorandum of Understanding. As part of this, Capita provides transparency on their financial health and corporate strategy as well as engage with annual Corporate Resolution Planning. Under the Procurement Act 2023, suppliers can be excluded from procurements on certain grounds, including serious breaches of contract and unremedied poor performance. The Act also empowers the Government to investigate a supplier for potential debarment, which could affect the supplier's eligibility to bid for future public contracts. There are currently no live debarment investigations relating to Capita.