The requirement for academy trusts to obtain prior approval from the department for confidentiality clauses associated with staff severance payments was introduced in October 2025 and is set out in paragraph 5.13 of the academy trust handbook, which is available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/academy-trust-handbook/academy-trust-handbook-2025-effective-from-1-september-2025.

The revision was made to reflect HM Treasury’s updated guidance on public sector exit payments, which states that Treasury approval is required if the payment is novel, contentious or repercussive. Settlement agreements that contain confidentiality clauses are included within this description. As this requirement was only introduced in October 2025, annual data is not currently available.

For local authority-maintained schools, the responsibility and oversight for such decisions will be managed locally.

The current number of case managers allocated to processing Access to Work applications is 307.7 full-time equivalent (FTE).

We are committed to reducing waiting times for Access to Work. We have increased the number of staff processing Access to Work claims by 27% and applications from customers who are about to start a job or who are renewing are prioritised.

The Green Paper launched a consultation on the future of Access to Work which has now concluded. We are considering responses to the consultation and will set out our plans in due course.

The schemes in Network North will navigate a variety of different consenting regimes depending on their size, scale, and location. However, we are committed to speeding up the delivery of our transport projects and the Government’s action plan for reforms to the planning process includes commitments to develop workforce strategies to address skills and capability gaps and providing capacity and capability funding to the planning system to provide additional resource if required.

The Department for Transport does not hold this information centrally. Each Train operating company, as the individual employers, holds this information.

The corrected data was published on 9 March 2023. Department for Transport Officials underestimated the time taken to correct and review information published to the gov.uk website. I have written to correct Question 153873.

The March 2022 workforce management information was incorrectly used to report April 2022 data. The Department has requested the publication of the correct April 2022 data and the figures will be updated by 2 March 2023.

HS2 Ltd informed the Department on 2 February 2023 that it directly employs 1,849 people. The Department’s last 6-monthly report to Parliament on HS2, published in October 2022, stated that the programme is supporting over 29,000 jobs with 2,580 businesses working on HS2.

In the Plan for Rail the Department committed to the delivery of annualised savings of £1.5bn by 2026/27. The delivery of these savings comes through a new commercial model, an improvement in fares ticketing and retail, and a new industry structure. The largest share of these savings are anticipated to be from workforce reform - and in delivering a sustainable railway fit for the future they will help to ensure the railways offer sustainable, well-rewarded, jobs into the future.

Sampling is being carried out in such a way as to provide a representative coverage of train operating companies (TOCs). The planned total sample size will be of a scale which will allow robust conclusions to be drawn from the data.

I recognise that Doncaster Sheffield Airport’s (DSA) review into the future of the airport will be concerning for passengers and people who work at the airport. The Department was notified on the 13 July along with other local stakeholders about the announcement. My officials are in contact with the airport to understand its plans and I am due to meet Peel Group later this week. It would be inappropriate to comment whilst the review is ongoing. However, we hope that the review will be able to ensure a future for aviation at DSA.

Since the start of the pandemic, we estimate that the air transport sector (airlines, airport and related services) has benefitted from around £8bn of government support. This includes support through loan guarantees, support for exporters, the Bank of England’s Covid Corporate Financing Facility, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, and the Airport and Ground Operations Scheme (AGOSS) from which DSA was awarded £1,758,720 in grant payments.

Ministers and officials engage extensively with the Aviation industry on a regular basis. As the Aviation Minister, I visited Doncaster Sheffield Airport on 3 June meeting with the Chairman of Peel Airports and the leadership team of the airport. Officials from the Department continue to meet with representatives from DSA as part of routine engagement on a range of matters.

The latest published staffing and finance figures for Border Force can be found in the Home Office Annual Report for 2020-2021 at:

HO annual report and accounts 2020-21 (publishing.service.gov.uk)

Border Force has continued to build staffing levels during 2021/2022 and recruitment will continue throughout 2022. The training and deployment of new staff means resources will continue to increase through to the end of the calendar year.

The latest published staffing and finance figures for Border Force can be found in the Home Office Annual Report for 2020-2021 at:

HO annual report and accounts 2020-21 (publishing.service.gov.uk)

Border Force has continued to build staffing levels during 2021/2022 and recruitment will continue throughout 2022. The training and deployment of new staff means resources will continue to increase through to the end of the calendar year.

I am unable to reveal the average processing time of National Security Vetting (NSV) checks as this is likely to prejudice national security. It would also impact the protective measures employed in safeguarding Her Majesty’s Government (HMG). However, I am able to report that national security checks for the aviation sector are being processed in a timely manner and that there are no delays.

In line with the practice followed by successive administrations, the Government does not otherwise comment on security matters.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) currently employs 565 members of staff who make decisions on driving licence applications where a medical condition must be investigated.

I am unable to confirm staffing levels in United Kingdom Security Vetting (UKSV) for security reasons but can confirm that there are measures in place to fast track applications submitted from the aviation sector. UKSV works closely with customer groups and authorities to understand their forecasted demand for the provision of vetting services. In turn this allows for an appropriate resourcing forecast.

I am also unable to reveal the number of National Security Vetting (NSV) checks in progress as this is likely to prejudice national security. It would also impact the protective measures employed in safeguarding Her Majesty’s Government (HMG). However, I am able to report that security checks are being processed in a timely manner and that there are no delays.

In line with the practice followed by successive administrations, the Government does not otherwise comment on security matters.

I am unable to confirm staffing levels in United Kingdom Security Vetting (UKSV) for security reasons but can confirm that there are measures in place to fast track applications submitted from the aviation sector. UKSV works closely with customer groups and authorities to understand their forecasted demand for the provision of vetting services. In turn this allows for an appropriate resourcing forecast.

I am also unable to reveal the number of National Security Vetting (NSV) checks in progress as this is likely to prejudice national security. It would also impact the protective measures employed in safeguarding Her Majesty’s Government (HMG). However, I am able to report that security checks are being processed in a timely manner and that there are no delays.

In line with the practice followed by successive administrations, the Government does not otherwise comment on security matters.

I am unable to reveal the number of National Security Vetting (NSV) checks in progress as this is likely to prejudice national security. It would also impact the protective measures employed in safeguarding Her Majesty’s Government (HMG). However, I am able to report that security checks are being processed in a timely manner. There are no delays, and the aviation industry is aware of the time that these checks take to be processed.

In line with the practice followed by successive administrations, the Government does not otherwise comment on security matters.

We have announced a nine-point plan to address the appalling way P&O have acted. This includes closing legal loopholes which allow ferry operators to undercut British workers.

The measures will also step up enforcement of existing laws, financially penalise companies which fire and rehire, and work with international partners to create minimum wage corridors.

We will work together to explore the creation of minimum wage corridors between our nations, as well as asking unions and operators to agree a common level of seafarer protection on these routes.