NICE is currently evaluating givinostat for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy to determine whether it should be funded by the NHS, based on the evidence of its costs and benefits. Its independent appraisal committee met on 10 July, and I understand that NICE will issue draft guidance shortly. I hope noble Lords will appreciate that it would not be appropriate for me to speculate on NICE’s draft guidance or to seek to influence the outcome.

My Lords, the Prudential Regulation Authority, in consultation with HM Treasury, decided to delay the implementation of the Basel 3.1 reforms in the UK until 1 January 2027, taking into account competitiveness and growth considerations, given the current uncertainty around the timing of their implementation in the US. The delay to Basel 3.1 has no bearing on the base erosion and profit shifting policy agenda, where the Government are committed to ensuring that multinationals pay their fair share of tax in the UK.

My Lords, whistleblowers play an important role in shining a light on wrongdoing in public life. They need confidence that they will be taken seriously and will have legal recourse if subjected to detriment or dismissal for making a protected disclosure. There are already day-one rights for workers, but we intend to strengthen whistleblowers’ protections.

My Lords, the Government recognise how valuable it is that whistleblowers are prepared to shine a light on wrongdoing and believe that they should be able to do so without fear of recriminations. The Government launched a review of the whistleblowing framework on 27 March this year. This will examine the effectiveness of the existing framework in meeting its intended objectives, which are to enable workers to come forward and speak up about wrongdoing and to protect those who do so against detriment and dismissal. The review will provide an up-to-date evidence base on whistleblowing.

The focus for the Government, London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and TfL is delivering and monitoring the stabilisation works and developing a business case for the second stage of works. A further meeting of the Taskforce will be considered when members put forward substantive agenda items for discussion.

The Taskforce publishes a report of each meeting on the Government website.

A Ministerial Direction is a formal instruction by a Minister to the Chief Accounting Office of their department to proceed with a spending proposal. These are available on the GOV.UK website.

In the case of the British Business Bank plc, a Written Direction is a formal instruction issued by or on behalf of the British Business Bank’s Shareholder, the Secretary of State for BEIS, to proceed with a requested course of action after the Board has raised its concerns through a Reservation Notice. With respect to the Government’s Covid-19 Loan Schemes, all these notices are publicly available to view on the Bank’s website and GOV.UK.

The Office of the Leader of the House of Commons is an integral part of the Cabinet Office.

I refer the noble Lady to the answer given to PQs HL8861 and HL8862 as below -

Cross civil service information can be found at the Diversity and Inclusion dashboard at: https://public.tableau.com/profile/cabinet.office.diversity.and.inclusion#!/vizhome/CivilServiceDiversityandInclusiondashboard/Introduction?publish=yes

As the dashboard’s data tables show 7% of Cabinet Office Senior Civil Servants declared that they were from an ethinic minority.

18% of Cabinet Office overall civil servants declare that they are from an ethnic minority. Details of individual grades will not be disclosed to avoid identifying individuals.

As of September 2020, the department’s declaration rate for ethnicity is 77.2%, meaning that the figures in the table above are based on the percentage that was declared and not the department’s true population.

The Northern Ireland Office is a small department with less than 200 staff. As there are fewer than five BAME SCS members in the total cohort of 16 SCS grades in the department, figures cannot be provided in order to protect the privacy and identity of individuals concerned.

The Department collects this information from employees who declare their ethnicity on a voluntary basis. Due to the number of SCS declaring and the data protection risk this creates, we are unable to breakdown this information by SCS grade from 1 to 4, as requested.

Published Annual Civil Service statistics include BAME representation by Department and can be found (attached) here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/civil-service-statistics-2020

The Department for Transport and its Executive Agencies employ the following numbers of BAME Civil Servants at the grades listed:

SCS1: 6

SCS2: 2

SCS3: 0

SCS4: 0

These figures only include individuals who have self-identified as being of a BAME background; there are other individuals who have either not made a declaration or have indicated that they prefer not to disclose this information.

At the end of June 2020, 17 SCS PB1 employees in the Ministry of Justice and its executive agencies had declared their ethnicity as BAME. The number of declared BAME employees in the other SCS grades is too small to disclose in accordance with the Data Protection Act.

The Ministry of Justice is taking action to increase the diversity of staff recruited to the Senior Civil Service. This has included a comprehensive review of SCS recruitment, looking at every aspect of the delivery model to encourage interest and ensure fairness, consistency and transparency for prospective candidates. This covers, but is not limited to: team resource and systems; inclusive recruitment guidance; marketing and attraction; job analysis; diversity data reporting; the assessment process; and panel composition and training.

Civil Service wide diversity data is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-diversity-inclusion-dashboard/civil-service-diversity-and-inclusion-dashboard.

The changes referred to in the legislation apply to lenders in the credit industry, rather than Government departments. HMRC’s letters are always being reviewed and improved to follow best practice in debt collection. At the start of the pandemic, HMRC reviewed and amended the majority of their debt collection letters so they were tailored to taxpayers’ changing circumstances and to promote the support available to them.

The Civil Service publishes details of the percentage of senior civil servants from an ethnic minority background in the diversity and inclusion dashboard, which can be viewed here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-diversity-inclusion-dashboard/civil-service-diversity-and-inclusion-dashboard

The Office of the Secretary of State for Wales has no staff at SCS3 or SCS4. The number of staff in SCS1 and SCS2 is five or fewer. We are unable therefore to confirm the number of BAME staff to prevent potential identification of individuals.

I refer to the published diversity and inclusion data for the Civil Service: www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-diversity-inclusion-dashboard/civil-service-diversity-and-inclusion-dashboard.

The Civil Service is committed to diversity and inclusion and to reflecting the country that we serve, and is taking targeted action to tackle underrepresentation, especially in the Senior Civil Service (SCS). Our workforce data shows that the Civil Service as a whole is broadly representative of the UK’s working population, but there is more to be done to ensure that this diversity is reflected at all levels across departments and professions. Our diversity and inclusion dashboard provides details of the percentage of SCS from an ethnic minority background, but this data does not differentiate the SCS grades (SCS1,2,3,4). Defra is unable to provide the breakdown by SCS grades due to the risk of identifying individuals.

The Prime Minister’s Office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office.

Cross civil service information can be found at the Diversity and Inclusion dashboard at: https://public.tableau.com/profile/cabinet.office.diversity.and.inclusion#!/vizhome/CivilServiceDiversityandInclusiondashboard/Introduction?publish=yes

As the dashboard’s data tables show 7% of Cabinet Office Senior Civil Servants declared that they were from an ethinic minority.

18% of Cabinet Office overall civil servants declare that they are from an ethnic minority. Details of individual grades will not be disclosed to avoid identifying individuals.

The Prime Minister’s Office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office.

Cross civil service information can be found at the Diversity and Inclusion dashboard at: https://public.tableau.com/profile/cabinet.office.diversity.and.inclusion#!/vizhome/CivilServiceDiversityandInclusiondashboard/Introduction?publish=yes

As the dashboard’s data tables show 7% of Cabinet Office Senior Civil Servants declared that they were from an ethinic minority.

18% of Cabinet Office overall civil servants declare that they are from an ethnic minority. Details of individual grades will not be disclosed to avoid identifying individuals.

In line with reporting protocol and for disclosure control purposes, BAME figures for the Attorney General’s Office cannot be disclosed due to the small population. The Attorney General’s Office has a total of 5 members of staff at SCS1, SCS2, SCS3 and SCS4 grades combined.

In line with reporting protocol and for disclosure control purposes, BAME figures for the Office of the Advocate General for Scotland cannot be disclosed due to the small population. The Office of the Advocate General for Scotland has 5 members of staff total at SCS grade.

The numbers of senior civil servants who have declared their ethnicity as BAME is detailed in the attached table.