House of Lords Business

Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government how much Department for International Development aid has been channelled through Adam Smith International in Syria to consultants outside Syria; and what assessment they have made of reports by BBC Panorama and The Times that those sums have been used to resource jihadists and Al Nusra, or have been lost through corruption. … Item text truncated - open link to view full item text

Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government how much Department for International Development aid has been made directly available to support religious minorities and victims of genocide in Syria in each of the last five years.  HL4024

Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 31 October (HL2092), what further representations they have made to the government of Sudan about the case of Asim Omer, following the ruling of the Khartoum Court of Appeals of 5 December to uphold the death sentence against him.  HL4025

Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 5 December (HL3335), whether they were aware that a four-year-old child was among the ten North Korean refugees awaiting repatriation by China to North Korea.  HL4026

Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 5 December (HL3335), whether they accept the findings of the UN Commission of Inquiry that (1) North Korea is a state "without parallel", (2) more than 100,000 people are in gulags, and (3) repatriation of refugees invariably results in them being sent to gulags.  H… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text

Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they accept the findings of the UN Commission of Inquiry on human rights in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1) that North Koreans who are deemed to be opponents of the State are routinely sent to gulags, become slave labour, are subjected to forced abortions, torture and execution, and (2) that repatriation… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text

Baroness Chalker of Wallasey to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to seek to enshrine anti-corruption provisions in all post-Brexit trade agreements.  HL4029

Lord Greaves to ask Her Majesty's Government whether, under the proposals in the Joint report on progress during phase 1 of negotiations under Article 50 TEU on the UK's orderly withdrawal from the EU, the customs arrangements will be the same for goods and services transported in either direction between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland (1) across the Irish l… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text

Lord Greaves to ask Her Majesty's Government whether, under the proposals in the Joint report on progress during phase 1 of negotiations under Article 50 TEU on the UK's orderly withdrawal from the EU, the customs arrangements will be the same for goods transported in either direction between the Republic of Ireland and the UK (1) directly between the Republic of Ireland… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text

Lord Greaves to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the implications of the increasing trade in Bitcoin, and of the case for greater regulation of the trade of Bitcoin.  HL4032

Lord Greaves to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the advice provided by the financial advice market in relation to Bitcoin; and in the light of that assessment, whether any changes to regulatory or legal framework for financial advice are required.  HL4033

Lord Green of Deddington to ask Her Majesty's Government what progress has been made by the Law Commission in their work on the simplification of immigration legislation; and when it is envisaged that that project will be completed.  HL4034

Lord Harris of Haringey to ask Her Majesty's Government what was (1) the budget, and (2) the complement of full time equivalent staff that the budget of the Border Force was designed to support; what was the average number of full time equivalent staff in post for each of the financial years from 2012–13 to 2016–17; and what are the corresponding projections for the financial year… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text

Lord Hunt of Chesterton to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which the amount of plastic waste being collected by local authorities is sufficient to prevent that waste degrading the environment; and which government agencies are (1) monitoring the current situation, and (2) planning for the future, in this regard.  HL4036

Lord Hunt of Chesterton to ask Her Majesty's Government whether Department for International Development programmes for development assistance must include measures to limit the global spread of plastic waste and other waste that degrades the environment.  HL4037

Lord Hunt of Chesterton to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure that school science practical classes are funded to a level sufficient to (1) stimulate school pupils, and (2) meet the requirements set by the examination boards.  HL4038

Lord Hylton to ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they are making to the government of Turkey following the exclusion of international observers from the trial held inside a maximum security prison in Ankara on 6 and 7 December of Selahattin Demirtas and Figen Yuksekdag, joint leaders of the HDP opposition party.  HL4039

Lord Hylton to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will contribute to the trust fund proposed by the UN Secretary-General on 26 May for community-based assistance projects in Kosovo.  HL4040

Lord Hylton to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 7 December (HL3522),  how many high-rise buildings have flammable insulation similar to that used on Grenfell Tower.  HL4041

Lord Hylton to ask Her Majesty's Government what action they will take to safeguard the rights of Irish citizens in the UK both before and after Brexit; and whether they will discuss with the government of the Republic of Ireland the rights of British residents in the Republic.  HL4042

Lord Lester of Herne Hill to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to extend civil partnership to opposite sex couples.  HL4043

Lord Lester of Herne Hill to ask Her Majesty's Government with which EU agencies they intend to remain involved after Brexit; and in each case, on what terms.  HL4044

Lord Lipsey to ask Her Majesty's Government what is their response to the petition by 38 degrees calling for rent money for women and children in domestic violence refuges to be paid directly to their refuges rather than to the relevant local authority.  HL4045

Baroness Lister of Burtersett to ask Her Majesty's Government whether the claimant commitment signed by a universal credit claimant takes account of any hours of paid work already being performed by a claimant when setting the number of hours a week that claimant is required to spend actively seeking work.  HL4046

Baroness Lister of Burtersett to ask Her Majesty's Government whether, when a Universal Credit claimant has an alternative payment arrangement in place by which the housing element is paid directly to their landlord, the 63 per cent taper on any applicable earnings is applied to (1) both the housing and other elements, (2) the housing element alone, or (3) only the other elements.… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text

Baroness Lister of Burtersett to ask Her Majesty's Government when they expect to publish the updated Universal Support framework as set out in the Ministerial Foreword to Universal Credit: Local Support Services Update and Trialling Plan, published in December 2013.  HL4048

Baroness Lister of Burtersett to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to commission research into the effectiveness of Universal Support in meeting the support needs of Universal Credit claimants.  HL4049

Baroness Lister of Burtersett to ask Her Majesty's Government how much money has been provided to local authorities to support Universal Credit claimants for each year since the introduction of (1) Local Support Services, and (2) Universal Support.  HL4050

The Countess of Mar to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Agnew of Oulton on 6 December (HL3501), whether the Department for Education would normally expect to be made aware of any research concerning school attendance which involved the divulgence of names and addresses of school pupils by school attendance officers.  HL4051

Lord Ouseley to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the measures and resources required to enable local authorities to provide education, health and care plans for all children with special educational needs who, without such plans, could be at risk of being effectively excluded from education provision.  HL4052

Lord Ouseley to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the measures and resources required to enable local authorities to provide support to young offenders who, without such support, could be at risk of being effectively excluded from education provision.  HL4053

Lord Ouseley to ask Her Majesty's Government, what educational policy objectives are supported by the advice to Ofsted inspectors from Amanda Spielman, the Chief Inspector of Schools, to ask young girls who wear a hijab why they do so; and what assessment they have made of the effect of that advice on equality of treatment and educational outcomes.  HL4054

Lord Roberts of Llandudno to ask Her Majesty's Government how they propose to safeguard trade between (1) Fishguard, (2) Pembroke, and (3) Holyhead, and Ireland following Brexit.  HL4055

Lord Roberts of Llandudno to ask Her Majesty's Government what additional border stages will be required following Brexit for those Welsh ports whose main trade in freight and passengers is with Ireland.  HL4056

Lord Roberts of Llandudno to ask Her Majesty's Government what is their estimate of the cost of new border and customs arrangements at Welsh ports following the UK's withdrawal from the EU.  HL4057

Lord Roberts of Llandudno to ask Her Majesty's Government how they plan to train additional medical staff from the UK to replace existing staff from other EU countries who have left or might leave the NHS.  HL4058

Lord Roberts of Llandudno to ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have held with representatives of the hotel and restaurant industries concerning possible staff shortages leading up to, and following, Brexit; and what support they are giving to those industries to help them train and recruit new staff.  HL4059

Lord Roberts of Llandudno to ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have held with representatives of the horticulture and agriculture industries concerning possible staff shortages leading up to, and following, Brexit; and what support they are giving to those industries to help them train and recruit new staff.  HL4060

Lord Sharkey to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the position of pensions in creditor and debtor petitioned bankruptcies following the introduction of pension freedoms.  HL4061

Lord Sharkey to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for excluding an individual's pension fund when determining whether an individual is insolvent when presenting their debtor petition for bankruptcy.  HL4062

Baroness Sheehan to ask Her Majesty's Government whether it is the position of (1) HM Government, and (2) the UN, that East Jerusalem is an occupied territory.  HL4063

Lord Truscott to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on consumers of the practice of some companies subscribing individuals to an e-mailing list without their consent and making it impossible for them to unsubscribe; and what steps they will take to prevent this practice.  HL4064