Written questions by Lowe.

What criteria he uses to distinguish permissible trade union political campaigning by civil servants holding union office from prohibited party-political activity under the Civil Service Code.

Awaiting answer.

What the membership of the Digital ID Advisory Group is; and on what date each member was appointed.

Awaiting answer.

Whether minutes of meetings of the Digital ID Advisory Group are published.

Awaiting answer.

What the terms of reference are for the Digital ID Advisory Group; and what reports, recommendations, or other formal outputs the Group has produced to date.

Awaiting answer.

What estimate his Department has made of the cost to the public purse of introducing a digital identity system.

Awaiting answer.

What the budget of the Digital ID Advisory Group is for the 2026–27 financial year; and how that budget is allocated.

Awaiting answer.

How many nights were spent in hotels by Departmental staff in financial year 2024-25 by the star rating of the hotel.

The Cabinet Office does not record individual hotel star ratings. This is because the Cabinet Office’s travel policy prioritises specific amenities, like a workspace, and safety requirements within fixed nightly rate ceilings rather than subjective commercial gradings.

If the Department will make an estimate of the current UK population based on waste disposal.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question’s of 22nd January is attached.

If the Department will make an estimate of the current UK population based on food consumption data.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question’s of 22nd January is attached.

If the Department will make an estimate of the current UK population based on water usage data.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question’s of 22nd January is attached.

How many civil servants employed by their Department work in roles primarily focused on (a) transgender policy, (b) diversity, (c) equity and (d) inclusion; and at what annual salary cost.

The Cabinet Office has less than 5 civil servants who work in roles primarily focused on those areas internally in the department. We cannot provide annual salary cost details in such cases as that disclosure of the information would contravene principle A under article 5(1)(a) of the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

What the cost to the public purse was of feasibility studies conducted by their Department for projects that did not proceed in the last five years.

The information requested is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

If the Government will launch an inquiry into vaccine harms and excess deaths during Covid-19 lockdowns.

Our thoughts are with the families of those who lost loved ones and those who continue to suffer because of the pandemic. The UK Covid-19 Inquiry was established in 2022 under the Inquiries Act. The Government is fully committed to supporting the work of the Inquiry and to learning lessons from the Covid-19 pandemic to ensure the UK is better prepared for a future pandemic. Module 2 of the Inquiry investigated matters including decision-making relating to lockdowns. The Inquiry published its report in November last year - the Government will consider the Inquiry’s findings and recommendations carefully before responding in full. Module 4 of the Inquiry is investigating a range of issues relating to the development of Covid-19 vaccines and the implementation of the vaccine rollout programme - the Inquiry is expected to publish its report in April 2026.

For the total spend on (i) LinkedIn membership fees (ii) other subscriptions by his Department in the last financial year.

In line with other large employers, The Cabinet Office utilises LinkedIn subscriptions for business purposes including recruitment across government and managing the wider Civil Service talent pipeline. It is not possible to provide a definitive figure for subscriptions for the last financial year (and to do so would incur disproportionate costs.) Heads of Business Units review all subscriptions and other internal expenditure to ensure value for tax payer money.

How many staff in their Department have been on mental health leave for six months or more; and for what reason.

The Civil Service publishes regular sickness absence reports, which provide statistics for sickness absence by organisation and sickness reason, including Mental Ill-Health. These can be found at Sickness absence in the Civil Service - GOV.UK.

How many civil servants within the Government Communications Service are engaged in identifying, categorising, or responding to social media content critical of government migration policy.

The Cabinet Office's GCS team has three staff members responsible for media and social media analysis. While their analysis is not specifically focused on migration, the topic may arise as part of wider thematic reporting. We cannot provide information on GCS staffing levels or responsibilities within other government departments.

Whether the Government Communications Service collects, stores, or processes data from social media accounts under the RESIST framework.

The Government Communication Service (GCS) monitors publicly available media posts, under strict controls, to measure communication effectiveness, understand public narratives, and address potential mis/disinformation. GCS does not access private information or monitor individuals, but collects, stores, and processes data from public social media posts.Reports may include examples of high-performing public content relevant to government priorities, and adheres to a published Privacy Notice (link below) outlining the legal basis for monitoring. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/privacy-notice-social-and-digital-media-analysis/privacy-notice-social-and-digital-media-analysis GCS uses commercially available automated and AI tools, such as Storyzy, procured via the civil service framework, for information environment analysis; no external contractors are used.

Whether the Government Communications Service maintains a database, spreadsheet, internal dashboard, or record of accounts or individuals who post content about migrants, asylum seekers, or community housing pressures.

The Government Communication Service (GCS) monitors publicly available media posts, under strict controls, to measure communication effectiveness, understand public narratives, and address potential mis/disinformation. GCS does not access private information or monitor individuals, but collects, stores, and processes data from public social media posts.Reports may include examples of high-performing public content relevant to government priorities, and adheres to a published Privacy Notice (link below) outlining the legal basis for monitoring. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/privacy-notice-social-and-digital-media-analysis/privacy-notice-social-and-digital-media-analysis GCS uses commercially available automated and AI tools, such as Storyzy, procured via the civil service framework, for information environment analysis; no external contractors are used.

For the total budget and number of staff of the Government Communication Service.

The Government Communication Service (GCS) conducts an annual data collection, requesting government organisations to submit accurate and timely returns. It should be noted that some organisations may have undergone significant changes since the data was collected in July 2025. At the time of the 2025 annual Government Communications data collection, the total figure for staff in the Government Communication Service is 6,150 across the profession in all departments and ALBs. The total budget is not held centrally in the Cabinet Office.

How many people have been monitored by the Government Communications Service in the previous year.

The Government Communication Service (GCS) monitors publicly available media posts, under strict controls, to measure communication effectiveness, understand public narratives, and address potential mis/disinformation. GCS does not access private information or monitor individuals, but collects, stores, and processes data from public social media posts.Reports may include examples of high-performing public content relevant to government priorities, and adheres to a published Privacy Notice (link below) outlining the legal basis for monitoring. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/privacy-notice-social-and-digital-media-analysis/privacy-notice-social-and-digital-media-analysis GCS uses commercially available automated and AI tools, such as Storyzy, procured via the civil service framework, for information environment analysis; no external contractors are used.