theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 20 October 2025 to Question 81876 on Government Departments: Advertising, whether the (a) Guido Fawkes blog, (b) Sunday Sport and (c) Politico have been assessed under the SAFE framework. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: No SAFE framework assessment has been conducted on Guido Fawkes, Sunday Sport or Politico.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 20 October 2025 to Question 82673 on Government Departments: Social Media, on which (a) topics and (b) programmes the two agencies have been commissioned to (i) select and (ii) pay appropriate influencers; and whether his Department holds information on which influencers have been hired. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: Omni and Unlimited are contracted to Cabinet Office Government Communication Service. These agencies have supported GCS in delivering campaigns on the government's priorities and missions.

Influencers have proven to be effective in reaching audiences that traditional marketing channels find hard to reach.
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Freddie van Mierlo:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what guidance his Department issues to (a) university staff and (b) student support services on the rights of Irish citizens under the Common Travel Area. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: Information for Irish Students accessing higher education in the UK is available at https://www.ucas.com/international/international-students/support-for-international-students/students-from-ireland.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his Department's contract with Goaco Group Ltd, notice identifier 2025/S 000-063254, published on 8 October 2025, if he will list the countries in which subcontractor resources are now located. \p Chris Ward: This notice relates to the development of the Central Digital Platform for procurement. Goaco Group Ltd sought permission from the Cabinet Office to engage the Open Contracting Partnership (OCP) to undertake independent data quality analysis, so that the continuous improvement of the Platform is supported by the highest level of expertise available. OCP is an independent non-profit charity and has a presence in Spain and Canada. All development work related to this contract remains onshore in the UK.

As is the long-standing practice, the Cabinet Office as the contracting authority has given notice of amendment to the Goaco Contract to facilitate this work.
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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 26 September 2025 to Question 71194 on Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Equality, what mechanisms are in place to ensure (a) consistency and (b) value for money in the recruitment of Diversity and Inclusion managers in all Government departments. \p Anna Turley: Recruitment is delegated to Government Departments based on their workforce strategy.
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Suella Braverman:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the (a) legal, (b) administrative, (c) remedial and (d) other costs to the public purse of Capita's data breach. \p Anna Turley: In respect of the data breach for the Royal Mail Statutory Pension Scheme members, there was no cost borne by the public purse. However, Capita’s data breach is known to have impacted both private and public sector organisations and is much broader than just pension schemes. We cannot comment on the impact on anything other than the Royal Mail Pension scheme.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 94 of the Cabinet Office annual report and accounts 2024-25, published on 23 October 2025, for what reason Alex Chisholm was given a £57,521 severance payment. \p Anna Turley: It is a longstanding policy not to comment on individuals. Details of any payments are published in the Cabinet Office annual report and accounts.

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/68fb37aec18f97edd2b63756/36.17_CO_ARA_24-25_00-Book_v16A_WEB.pdf

Guidance on managing public money effectively is issued by HMT Treasury and it sets out rules and responsibilities, as well as best practice to achieve value for money. This guidance details the circumstances in which severance is payable. All special severance payments are approved by HMT.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 86 of the Cabinet Office annual report and accounts 2024-25, published on 23 October 2025, for what reason Simon Case was given a £201,402 severance payment; and whether this payment was approved by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury. \p Anna Turley: It is a longstanding policy not to comment on individuals. Details of any payments are published in the Cabinet Office annual report and accounts

(https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/68fb37aec18f97edd2b63756/36.17_CO_ARA_24-25_00-Book_v16A_WEB.pdf).

Guidance on managing public money effectively is issued by HMT Treasury and it sets out rules and responsibilities, as well as best practice to achieve value for money. This guidance details the circumstances in which severance is payable. All special severance payments are approved by HMT.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 79 of the Cabinet Office annual report and accounts 2024-25, published on 23 October 2025, if he will name the SCS2 civil servant who breeched the business appointment rules. \p Anna Turley: In compliance with the Business Appointment Rules (BARs) the Cabinet Office is transparent in the advice given to individual applications from senior staff, including special advisers. Advice given to senior civil servants regarding specific business appointments is published quarterly on GOV.UK as part of our ongoing transparency obligations.

We do not comment on specific individuals or BARs applications.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what guidance his Department has provided to special advisers on the definition of personal hospitality. \p Anna Turley: The Code of Conduct for Special Advisers requires special advisers to declare details of gifts and hospitality received in accordance with the rules set out in their departmental staff handbooks. The Special Advisers’ Transparency Guidance available on GOV.UK provides further details of requirements for reporting of gifts, hospitality and meetings with senior media figures.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent assessment he has made of the gender pay gap for special advisers. \p Anna Turley: The gender pay gap for Special Advisers is published annually on GOV.UK as part of the Cabinet Office Gender Pay Gap Report.

The next annual report, covering the most recent period, will be published in due course.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 110 of the Cabinet Office annual report and accounts 2024-25, published on 23 October 2025, what was the business case for the increase in the number of hours of facility time compared to 2023-24. \p Anna Turley: In 2024-25, the Cabinet Office spend fell well below the recommended 0.1% maximum spend laid out in the facility time framework guidance.

Trade Union representatives have a statutory right to be granted reasonable paid time off to undertake trade union duties and reasonable unpaid time to undertake trade union activities. The facility time guidance sets out the requirement to monitor and report on facility time spend in the Cabinet Office.
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Suella Braverman:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department had made an assessment of the adequacy of Capita’s cybersecurity protocols prior to the March 2023 data breach. \p Anna Turley: The Cabinet Office (CO), which is responsible for managing the contract with Capita for the Royal Mail Statutory Pension Scheme (RMSPS), ensured the adequacy of Capita's cybersecurity protocols through a robust contractual framework. Capita is required to adhere to Government Security standards and the Security Schedule of the contract, which includes providing annual independent penetration testing by a National Cyber Security Centre-accredited team and maintaining security accreditations such as ISO27001 and Cyber Essentials Plus.

These standards and Capita’s security posture are overseen by CO Information Assurance professionals and captured via regular reporting and audits. It should be noted that all of the accredited RMSPS systems were not compromised during the Capita cyber attack and remained secure; however, a small number of scheme members were unfortunately impacted when some data was extracted from a separate Capita finance file related to compensation payments.
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Suella Braverman:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he has taken to ensure transparency regarding the nature of the data compromised with the people affected by the Capita data breach. \p Anna Turley: Capita contacted all impacted members to inform them of the potential loss of data. Capita provided all impacted members with clear communications and also a subscription to Experian Plus that allowed members to monitor their online records for any signs of potential issues.

Capita also initiated an independent full review of their systems to review security and to identify any further potential data exfiltration. Capita cooperated fully with investigations into the breach with the Information Commissioner's Office and with Cabinet office in assessing any potential risks to the membership of the scheme.
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Suella Braverman:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department plans to review its guidance on outsourcing contracts following the Capita data breach. \p Anna Turley: The Sourcing Playbook, which provides policy and guidance on sourcing decisions, is published by the Cabinet Office and is reviewed and updated regularly. The last update was 26 February 2025.

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/64901fcc5f7bb700127fac5e/Sourcing_Playbook_Final.pdf
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Suella Braverman:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what contingency plans he has in place if Capita is deemed unsuitable to continue administering civil service pensions. \p Anna Turley: Contingency plans are linked to contractual obligations placed on the pension administrator with several options available to the Cabinet Office in the event that a third party is unable to meet its contractual obligations. In the event of a catastrophic failure, the Cabinet Office has the right to step in to manage the contract.
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Suella Braverman:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Capita data breach on the (a) integrity and (b) security of the Civil Service Pension Scheme. \p Anna Turley: Civil Service Pension Scheme members were not affected by the Capita data breach, as the incident impacted data held by the Royal Mail Statutory Pension Scheme and their members. Therefore, there was no impact on the a) integrity or b) security of the Civil Service Pension Scheme
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Suella Braverman:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department takes to ensure that employers share accurate (a) data and (b) instructions with Civil Service Pensions; and how often this is audited. \p Anna Turley: The Cabinet Office ensures employer data accuracy through a mandatory Interface Compliance Process, in place since 2018, which monitors the quality of all data and instructions against a 'right first time' standard. This process flags all Errors and Warnings on monthly submissions. The administrator, MyCSP, does not load the following month's data until all previous errors are corrected, ensuring a continuously maintained data quality. Compliance is audited weekly by the administrator, with summary reports provided to the Cabinet Office.
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Suella Braverman:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he has taken to ensure that all Civil Service Pension Scheme members that were affected by the Capita data breach have been (a) notified and (b) supported. \p Anna Turley: No members of the Civil Service Pension Scheme were affected by the Capita data breach as the scheme is administered by MyCSP. However, a small number of members of the Royal Mail Statutory Pension Scheme were affected. All were notified and full support was provided by Capita.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 21 October 2025 to Question 81875 on Senior Civil Servants: resignations, if he will list the Permanent Secretaries that have received severance payments for which the latest information is available. \p Anna Turley: Pursuant to the previous answer, all details of any payments made to Permanent Secretaries are available in the appropriate Departmental Annual Report and Account for the financial year, or will be published in the annual reports for the upcoming financial year.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 15 October 2025 to Question 70563 on Admiralty House: Valuation, what the valuation was; and whether each residence is valued. \p Anna Turley: Admiralty House as a whole was valued at £18.2 Million. The residences formed part of the valuation, however, they were not individually valued separately to the rest of the building.
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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 23 September 2025 to Question 76050 on Lobbying: Official Hospitality, if he will publish guidance on the holding of departmental receptions at the offices of consultant lobbying firms; how many such receptions have taken place since 4 July 2024; and what the location was of each event. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: I refer the Rt Hon Member to Question 76050. There is no data held centrally by the Cabinet Office on departments' externally hosted events.
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Anneliese Dodds:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department incorporates (a) Deaf-led infrastructure investment and (b) linguistic inclusion in social value assessments for procurement. \p Chris Ward: The Cabinet Office, in compliance with the Social Value Act 2012 and Procurement Policy Note 002 utilises the Government’s social value model toolkit to apply social value to all above-threshold procurements.

In practice, this involves selecting one out of eight Social Value Outcomes which is then evaluated as part of a procurement exercise. One of the choices which can be selected is 'Fair Work,' which, when selected, allows us to require suppliers to demonstrate benefits in deaf-led infrastructure investment and linguistic inclusion.
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Anneliese Dodds:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what mechanism his Department has in place on utilising Deaf-led expertise on British Sign Language in AI procurement. \p Chris Ward: The procurement of Artificial intelligent tools as a result of a new or amended digital service requires compliance with the GDS Service Manual (https://www.gov.uk/service-manual) and a service assessment. This manual includes the inclusion of accessibility and assisted digital and user research, to ensure procurement decisions cover a range of accessibility needs, based on user feedback.
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Sir Julian Lewis:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the time taken by public inquiries investigating specific adverse events in the last five years on (a) analysing past errors, (b) making preventative recommendations for the future, and (c) attributing blame. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: The Government is committed to righting past wrongs and working to ensure victims get answers. Inquiries shed light on injustices of the past, provide a means for victims and survivors to finally have their voices heard, and can help to rebuild trust in national institutions.

The Government recognises that there is growing criticism of Inquiry cost, duration and effectiveness.

The government is actively considering whether there are changes that could enable inquiries to deliver outcomes and enable lessons to be learnt more swiftly and at lower cost.

This is a substantial piece of work, led by the Cabinet Office, that will aim to improve how we identify wrongs, and get to the truth more quickly. We will continue to keep Parliament updated on this important subject.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 139 of the Cabinet Office annual report and accounts 2024-25, published on 23 October 2025, if he will provide a breakdown of the expenditure, including for individual fixtures and fittings, for the (a) refurbishment and (b) furnishing of the empty Downing Street flat; and if he will name which was empty flat. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: As was the case under successive administrations, an itemised list is not routinely published.
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John Glen:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Chair of the Infected Blood inquiry is remunerated for his work on the inquiry. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: Like all Inquiry Chairs, the Chair of the Infected Blood Inquiry is remunerated for the work he undertakes.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 16 September 2025 to Question 76281 on Ministers: Redundancy Pay, when Ministers were asked to sign the waiver. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: The reforms took effect from 13 October 2025 with waivers issued accordingly.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when the Cabinet Office Lieutenancy Policy team was established; how many staff it employs; and what the remit of that team is. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: Responsibility for Lord-Lieutenant policy and appointments was incorporated in the Church Appointments Team in 2018. The equivalent of one full-time member of staff is employed on this work. The team is responsible for managing the appointments of Lord-Lieutenants and Vice Lord-Lieutenants for the United Kingdom, and Deputy Lieutenants in England and Wales. It also oversees expenses for Lieutenancies in England, handles complaints from the public, and addresses relevant policy issues.
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John Glen:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Financial Reports for the Infected Blood Inquiry for the financial year 2024-2025 will be published. \p Nick Thomas-Symonds: Published costs for the Infected Blood Inquiry can be found on the inquiry webpage. The latest financial report  was published on 27 August 2024. Additionally, the Infected Blood Compensation Authority has published an annual report enclosing a financial statement up to 31 March 2025.
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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, for what reason the proposed digital ID will be issued to children aged 13 to 16 years. \p Josh Simons: The Government has announced plans for a new national digital ID for all UK citizens and legal residents aged 16 and over, and we will consult on lowering the proposed minimum age to 13.

Extending the national digital credential scheme to include 13–16-year-olds could streamline administrative processes involved in employing young people. Inclusion of this age group could also support children’s online safety by supporting age verification for online services in line with the Online Safety Act 2023.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the report entitled BritCard: A progressive digital identity for Britain, published June 2025. \p Josh Simons: The recently announced digital ID scheme is not called a BritCard and is not based on the report mentioned.

The government appreciates the role of think tanks in publishing research on potential government policy.
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Sorcha Eastwood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether there will be an option for company directors to (a) defer or (b) opt out of enrolment of the digital ID system. \p Josh Simons: There will be no requirement to enrol in Digital ID.

Employers will be required to conduct digital right to work checks by the end of this Parliament.

There is a requirement upon directors and individuals with significant control over companies to prove their identity with Companies House under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023. This is currently voluntary but will be mandatory from 18 November 2025.

This requirement is not connected to the introduction of the Digital ID.
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Freddie van Mierlo:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of (a) digital identity systems and (b) online application platforms on access to public services by Irish citizens living in the UK. \p Josh Simons: The government will launch a public consultation on the design of the new digital ID, and has already started to engage with a range of expert organisations. Stakeholder and public views, including those in response to the future consultation, will inform ongoing policy development and assessments of impacts.

We have been in touch with our counterparts in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and will continue to engage with them to ensure systems work for people on both sides of the border, as committed to in the Good Friday Agreement and the Common Travel Area.
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Sorcha Eastwood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether (a) exemptions of (b) alternative arrangements for the digital ID system will be offered to people resident in Northern Ireland. \p Josh Simons: We will design this system to ensure everyone who has a right to live and work in any part of the UK can do so easily and securely.

We have already prioritised meetings with senior figures in Northern Ireland and the Irish Government to ensure any new systems work for people on both sides of the border in line with the Good Friday Agreement and Common Travel Area.
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Sorcha Eastwood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact the digital ID system on (a) business operations, (b) online security and (c) personal privacy in Northern Ireland. \p Josh Simons: The government will launch a public consultation on the design of the new digital ID, and have already started to engage with a range of expert organisations. Stakeholder and public views, including those in feedback to future consultation, will inform ongoing policy development and assessments of impacts.

We will design this system to help ensure everyone who has a right to live and work in any part of the UK can do so more easily and securely. We will ensure our commitments in the Good Friday Agreement, the Windsor Framework and the Common Travel Area are respected.

People’s privacy and data will be protected using the most advanced security and encryption, just like banking apps. We will be following best practices for creating a secure digital service and the new digital identity will be designed in accordance with high standards of security and privacy. The scheme will have robust cyber security and resilience safeguards, and it will comply with all the applicable data protection requirements.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which elements of the digital ID system will use One Login infrastructure; and whether he expects to undertake additional procurement for this purpose. \p Josh Simons: The new digital ID scheme will build on existing infrastructure, including GOV.UK One Login which has already been used to verify the identities of over 13 million people.

Users will store the digital ID credential in the GOV.UK Wallet, as they will with digital other versions of other government documents like the veterans card and the digital driving licence.

In the event any specialist external services or expertise are procured to support the delivery of the new digital ID system, this will be subject to all the usual competitive processes to ensure transparency, and value for the taxpayer.
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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he plans to change the Office for National Statistics’ Annual Population Survey to a mixed-method design. \p Josh Simons: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 27th October is attached.

Letter from the National Statistician (pdf, 110.5KB)
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding her Department has provided to help support deaf-led (a) arts and (b) cultural projects in the last 12 months. \p Ian Murray: The government primarily supports the arts and cultural projects through Arts Council England (ACE). While ACE does not collect data specifically on deaf-led organisations, it does track funding for D/deaf and/or disabled organisations and cultural projects. Since April 2024, these groups have received over £4 million in funding. This includes £363,718 in annual funding to Stagetext, a deaf-led charity who provide accessible captions and subtitles, so that deaf, deafened, and hard of hearing people can access creativity and culture. ACE also funds a number of projects and programmes across England that do not fall within this funding category, but which directly or indirectly benefit the D/deaf community.

DCMS is also supporting ACE and the other arts councils in the UK and Ireland to develop All In - an access scheme dedicated to removing barriers and improving the experience of deaf, disabled, and neurodivergent people when attending creative and cultural events. All In aims to increase overall attendance by making it easier for people with access requirements to find and book tickets, while also developing standards for creativity and culture that promote quality and consistency across the UK and Ireland; all supported by training and skills development.
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Chris Evans:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to appoint a Freelance Champion before or after the terms of reference for the role have been established. \p Ian Murray: We committed in the Creative Industries Sector Plan to appoint a Freelance Champion in 2025, who will advocate for the creative sector’s freelancers within government and be a member of the Creative Industries Council.

We have been working closely with industry through a working group of the Creative Industries Council to inform the role's remit. This group developed a draft Terms of Reference, which outlines what industry would like to see from the role including commissioning and/or informing data and evidence gathering on creative industries freelancers; establishing mechanisms to give creative freelancers voice within government policy discussions; and working with a representative cross-section of creative industries stakeholders. We will use this work to inform the role specification prior to appointment.

It is important that the appointee is able to establish their priorities upon appointment, and we expect them to develop a workplan in the initial months of their appointment to address these priorities. The postholder will engage and work closely with the sector, and with ministers and government officials to represent the experiences of creative freelancers, and to build awareness of key rights, responsibilities, and resources among freelancers and their contractors.

We will make an appointment in the coming months.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-04)

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Bob Blackman:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding her Department has allocated for (a) tennis and (b) padel in the next five years. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government is determined to ensure that everyone has access to quality sport and physical activity opportunities. That is why we have committed another £400 million to transform facilities across the whole of the UK following the Spending Review. We are now working closely with sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what communities need and will then set out further plans. I have met with the Lawn Tennis Association, the National Governing Body for tennis and padel, along with representatives from other sports, to discuss this.

The Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport through Sport England, which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding. This includes long term investment in the Lawn Tennis Association, which receives up to £10.2 million for five years from 2022 to 2027 to invest in community tennis and padel initiatives in England that will benefit as many people as possible.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-04 conversation_378

Mrs Elsie Blundell:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she is taking steps with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government to support local councils to make funding decisions in relation to amenities for women’s and girls’ sports. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government is committed to supporting every aspect of women’s sport and ensuring all women and girls, no matter their background, have access to high quality facilities and opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity.

This includes supporting the This Girl Can campaign, run by our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England, which has inspired millions of women and girls to get active. 1.6 million more women are expected to be active as a result of the campaign by 2028.

The Government is also harnessing the power of hosting major sporting events, such as investing £6.7 million into the Impact 25’ programme for the Women’s Rugby World Cup, which has been used to make facilities more accessible for women, train new female coaches and match officials and provide sanitary packages to clubs nationwide. To honour the Lionesses recent European Championship triumph, the Government has announced new plans that are expected to more than double the share of slots dedicated to women’s and girls’ teams at Government-funded facilities across England over the next five years.

The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public sport and leisure facilities lies at Local Authority level. I will continue to discuss the provision of amenities for women and girls sport with local authorities, Sport England and ministerial colleagues.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-04 conversation_379

Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding her Department has allocated to preparations for UEFA Euro 2028. \p Stephanie Peacock: As part of the government’s Plan for Change, we are investing more than £500 million in the upcoming Spending Review period to support the delivery of world class sporting events being held in the UK over the coming years, including UEFA EURO 2028 and the Tour de France/Tour de France Femmes Grands Départs 2027.

Following the conclusion of a comprehensive review of the tournament hosting budget, the Government will be able to disclose to Parliament details of our funding allocated to the preparations for and delivery of UEFA EURO 2028 in the near future.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-04 conversation_380

Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has issued guidance to charities on the (a) participation of and (b) provision of parallel provision for (i) older girls and (ii) women in sporting events. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Charity Commission for England and Wales provides guidance for charities on compliance with the Equality Act 2010.

The Government is committed to supporting every aspect of women’s sport and ensuring all women and girls, no matter their background, are able to participate in sport and physical activity.

The This Girl Can campaign, run by our Arm’s Length Body Sport England, has inspired millions of women and girls to get active. 1.6 million more women are expected to be active as a result of the campaign by 2028.

We’ve also launched the Women’s Sport Taskforce to tackle challenges and barriers facing women and girls in sport, from grassroots to elite.

More widely, the Government is also harnessing the power of hosting major sporting events, such as investing £6.7 million into the Impact 25’ programme for the Women’s Rugby World Cup, which has been used to make facilities more accessible for women, train new female coaches and match officials and provide sanitary packages to clubs nationwide. To honour the Lionesses recent European Championship triumph, the Government has announced new plans that are expected to more than double the share of slots dedicated to women’s and girls’ teams at Government-funded facilities across England over the next five years.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-04 conversation_381

Dan Norris:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate her Department has made of the number of holiday lets in the West of England. \p Stephanie Peacock: DCMS is developing a registration scheme to collect data on short-term lets across England. The Scheme, which is launching in 2026, will give the Government and local authorities valuable insights on the number of short-term lets in local areas.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-04 conversation_382

Joe Morris:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions her Department has had with relevant stakeholders on encouraging girls into sport in (a) Hexham constituency, (b) Northumberland, (c) Newcastle and (d) the North East. \p Stephanie Peacock: My Department engages on a regular basis with a range of stakeholders to support grassroots sport.

A large part of our Arm’s Length Body Sport England’s work focuses on their place partnerships, where they work with local areas to understand and overcome the specific barriers to sport and physical activity in communities. Rise Northumberland, Tyne & Wear and County Durham, and Tees Valley Sport are two of Sport England’s place partnerships.

We’ve also committed another £400 million to transform facilities across the whole of the UK over the next four years. We are working closely with sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what communities need, and will then set out further plans.

The Government is committed to supporting every aspect of women’s sport and ensuring all women and girls, no matter their background, have opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity.

This includes supporting Sport England’s This Girl Can campaign which has inspired millions of women and girls to get active. We’ve also launched the Women’s Sport Taskforce to tackle challenges and barriers facing women and girls in sport, from grassroots to elite, and are harnessing the power of hosting major sporting events, such as investing £6.7 million into the Impact 25’ programme for the Women’s Rugby World Cup to make facilities more accessible for women. We’ve also announced plans to more than double the share of slots dedicated to women’s and girls’ teams at Government-funded facilities across England over the next five years.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-04 conversation_383

Adam Jogee:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans her Department has to support the development of (a) affordable and (b) accessible padel courts in (i) Newcastle-under-Lyme and (ii) England. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government is determined to ensure that everyone has access to quality sport and physical activity opportunities. That is why we have committed another £400 million to transform facilities across the whole of the UK following the Spending Review. This commitment includes a £5 million investment to grassroots basketball facilities in England in 2026/27. We are now working closely with other sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what communities need and will then set out further plans. I have met with the Lawn Tennis Association, the National Governing Body for tennis and padel, along with representatives from other court-based sports, to discuss this.

The Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport through Sport England, which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding. This includes long term investment in the Lawn Tennis Association, which receives up to £10.2 million for five years from 2022 to 2027 to invest in community tennis and padel initiatives in England that will benefit as many people as possible.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-04 conversation_384

Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether single foundation authorities will have (a) access to full devolution and (b) an elected mayor. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: Single foundation strategic authorities will be non-mayoral. The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill makes provision for the Secretary of State to designate a unitary council or county council, which is not covered by an existing strategic authority, as a single foundation strategic authority, subject to the consent of the council involved. The deepest powers and functions will be available to strategic authorities led by a mayor, as set out in the English Devolution White Paper.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-04 conversation_385

Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's press release entitled PM backs true patriots to lead UK renewal with £5bn investment, whether the £3.5 billion of additional Pride in Place funding is funded from the abolition of the Levelling Up Fund. \p Miatta Fahnbulleh: On 25 September, the Government launched its overarching Pride in Place Strategy, committing up to £5 billion in funding and support to 339 communities.

The flagship Pride in Place Programme will provide up to £20 million in flexible funding and support to 244 places over the next decade. This will serve as the cornerstone of this Government’s support for communities, incorporating the existing 25 trailblazer areas announced at Spending Review and the 75 Phase 1 Plan for Neighbourhoods programme areas that were announced in March. This Government is delivering in contrast to the empty unfunded promises that were made by the previous administration.

The Pride in Place funding is separate from programmes announced by the previous administration, including the Levelling Up Fund, and forms part of this Government’s new regeneration agenda to help build strong, resilient communities in areas facing the most entrenched social and economic challenges.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-04 conversation_386

Sir James Cleverly:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department has received communications from lobbying companies on local government reorganisation; and whether officials in his Department have had meetings with lobbying companies representing local authorities. \p Alison McGovern: My Department is regularly contacted by organisations with an interest in local government reorganisation. My officials also conduct regular meetings with a wide range of stakeholders to hear their views and insights, as part of the Department’s public engagement on the issue.

Officials must adhere to the Civil Service code at all times and abide by the Nolan Principles, which set out the standards expected of those in public life.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-04 conversation_387

Neil Coyle:To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that the Building Safety Regulator works within its intended timeframes to process applications. \p Samantha Dixon: We recognise there have been operational challenges within the Building Safety Regulator (BSR), which is why we announced a series of reforms to strengthen it in June. Improvements to ensure applications are processed within the intended timeframes are already underway. These include:

The BSR previously committed to improving operations by December, with faster processing of new build applications and decisions on most of the existing new-build caseload. To increase transparency and accountability, the BSR published performance data on 16 October and will continue to do so on a monthly basis to track progress against this commitment.