Written questions by Lowe.

How questions were provided to the Prime Minister in advance of Prime Minister's questions since 5 July 2025, broken down by party.

In line with long-standing convention, MPs are responsible for what they say in the chamber.

How many pubs have closed each year since 2015.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon Gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 2nd September is attached.

How many employees in his Department earn (a) £100,000 and (b) £166,000 or more per year.

Salary information for Senior Cabinet Office employees can be found at https://www.data.gov.uk/dataset/ff76be1f-4f37-4bef-beb7-32b259413be1/organogram-cabinet-office. The next update is due to be published by 6th December 2025.

How many and what proportion of departmental procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the 2024-25 financial year.

Central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder). Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023 above £12,000 inc VAT are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service. This includes a note of the winning supplier. (https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Search).

Whether Departments are required to report on the origin of food purchased through public procurement contracts.

Departments are not currently required to report on the origin of food served in their canteens. In January the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs announced that the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs would be undertaking a review of public sector food procurement to better understand what food the public sector buys and where it comes from. As part of this review, the Government will be reviewing food provenance across all public sector settings, including Government departments.

How many staff in his Department have permission to work remotely outside the UK; and in which countries those staff are based.

Cabinet Office staff may apply for permission to temporarily work remotely overseas in exceptional circumstances. Examples of this might include when accompanying a Civil Service or Armed Forces partner on an official posting. There are <5 staff registered on payroll whose permanent working location is abroad. On security and data protection grounds, we are not able to share their location/s. Separately, there is also a process for staff to request to take their IT overseas with them while on leave, for example if they believe they may need to be contacted during that time.

How much his Department has spent on (a) social media promotions, (b) influencer marketing and (c) online advertising in the last 12 months.

Commercial sensitivities exist around aspects of this spend which could prejudice commercial interests. All spend in these areas are subject to the standard value for money assessments.

What the total cost of external consultants across Government was in each year since 2019.

Individual Central Government departments publish expenditure on external consultants in their annual reports and accounts. The Government is committed to stopping all non-essential expenditure on consultants, and reducing the reliance on contingent labour.

What proportion of civil servants have been subject to formal performance management in the last three years.

Departments have delegated responsibility for managing poor performance.

How many external consultancy projects have (a) overrun or (b) failed to deliver expected outcomes in each year since 2020.

From 2022, there have been no consultancy contracts, awarded by the Cabinet Office, that were subject to formal performance action or contract termination due to poor performance. Any informal concerns about the delivery of contract objectives would be managed by contract managers and data is not held on this centrally.Prior to 2022, individual Cabinet Office Business Units were responsible for contract management and central records for this period are therefore not available.The Government is committed to stopping all non-essential expenditure on consultants, and reducing the reliance on contingent labour.

How many working days have been lost to stress-related illness in the civil service in each of the past five years.

Management Information on Average Working Days Lost due to mental ill-health, which includes stress-related illness, is published at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/sickness-absence

What the average daily rate of pay is for consultants working across Whitehall Departments.

This information is not held by the Cabinet Office.Pay for consultants is managed by each department individually, as they are accountable for their own consultancy pay details. Average rates may differ due to the type of consultancy and commercial structure around individual customer contracts. The Government is committed to stopping all non-essential expenditure on consultants, and reducing the reliance on contingent labour.

Whether any procurement contracts over £1 million were awarded without competitive tender in the last two years.

Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder). Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023 above £12,000 inc VAT are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service (https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Search). The details published online include whether each contract was let through competitive tendering.

How many public sector contracts have been subject to fraud investigations in each year since 2019.

Information pertaining to the amount of public sector contracts subject to fraud investigations is not held by the Cabinet Office. This information would be held by relevant law enforcement authorities, or specific government departments, that carried out investigation. Tackling public sector fraud is a priority for this government. This government is taking strong action to reduce public sector fraud - ensuring that as much public money as possible goes to delivering vital public services. That’s why the government introduced the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Bill as part of the biggest fraud crackdown in a generation. The measures in the Bill will give us more tools to combat fraud, recover public money and allow the government to investigate fraud. The Public Sector Fraud Authority is also driving forward the development of the counter fraud approach across government, working with departments and public bodies to reduce the impact of fraud and build expert counter fraud services. The 2024 Autumn Budget and 2025 Spring Statement also announced the most significant package of measures to tackle fraud and error in recent history. The 2025 Spending Review highlighted that Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts these measures to deliver £9.6 billion in savings by 2030.

How many civil servants have been dismissed for (a) incompetence and (b) misconduct in each year since 2015.

Departments have delegated responsibility for decisions relating to dismissal of an employee. Civil Service statistics on the composition of the Civil Service workforce, including data on those leaving the Civil Service due to dismissals, are available on GOV.UK.

How many and what proportion of civil servants work from home for more than 80% of their contracted hours.

This information is not held centrally. Decisions on terms and conditions of employment, including flexible working arrangements, are made by the employing department. Heads of departments have agreed that 60% minimum office attendance for most staff continues to be the best balance of working for the Civil Service. Data on Civil Service Headquarters (HQ) occupancy is collected and published quarterly on GOV.UK for all HQ buildings of Whitehall Departments, Office for Scotland, Office for Wales and Northern Ireland Office. Data for the latest period for which data is available can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-hq-occupancy-data

What task forces are funded by each Department.

This information is not held centrally. Individual departments are responsible for any task forces they establish.

What estimate he has made of the proportion of adult migrants resident in the UK for over five years who are proficient in (a) spoken and (b) written English.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 11th June is attached.

What information her Department holds on the proportion of jobseekers from overseas with limited English language skills that remain unemployed 12 months after their arrival in the UK.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 13th May is attached.

If he will list the days of (a) cultural and (b) religious significance publicly marked by the Prime Minister (i) since 4 July 2024 and (ii) for the next 12 months.

Days of cultural and religious significance are frequently marked by the Prime Minister. Please see the @10DowningStreet X account for regular updates.