House of Lords Business

Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government what is their response to the report by Oxfam Vulnerable and Abandoned, published on 9 January, about the problems associated with the Greek reception system for asylum seekers and that system's protection of vulnerable people.  HL12731

Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government what is their response to the report by Oxfam Vulnerable and Abandoned, published on 9 January, about (1) specialised shelters for minors, (2) special accommodation for single women, (3) access to medical services for pregnant and lactating women, and (4) psycho-social and psychiatric support for people with mental h… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text

Lord Berkeley to ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they had with the Mayor of Ostend before awarding a contract to Seaborne Freight to operate ferry services from Ramsgate to Ostend from 29 March; and given the Mayor’s statement that the port will not be ready in time, what alternative port arrangements they intend to make.  HL12733

Lord Berkeley to ask Her Majesty's Government what were the changes made to the latest edition of the HS2 Development Agreement, dated November 2018.  HL12734

Lord Berkeley to ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions have been held between the Department for Transport and Transport for London on funding for the section of HS2 between Old Oak Common and Euston.  HL12735

Lord Bird to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 26 November (HL11364), whether they have begun assessing the equalities impact of applying a zero VAT rate to e-publications; and whether any such assessments will include the impact on literacy rates in relation to children from disadvantaged backgrounds.  HL12736

Lord Black of Brentwood to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have made to enable veterinary medicines authorised for veterinary use by regulators in an EU Member State to be used in the UK in the event of a no-deal Brexit.  HL12737

Lord Black of Brentwood to ask Her Majesty's Government what additional checks, if any, will be required on veterinary medicines which have been authorised for veterinary use by regulators in an EU Member State to be used in the UK in the event of a no-deal Brexit.  HL12738

Lord Black of Brentwood to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure that there are enough vets in the UK to deal with any increased demands on veterinary care as a result of a no-deal Brexit.  HL12739

Lord Campbell-Savours to ask Her Majesty's Government what level of subsidy they are providing, or plan to provide, towards the cost of dredging work in the harbour area of Ramsgate.  HL12740

Lord Campbell-Savours to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the letter sent by the President of Getlink to the Secretary of State for Transport on 2 January, whether (1) the provision of £103 million to ferry operators for the provision of additional cross-Channel freight capacity breaches the concession agreement with Eurotunnel, and (2) they conducted an assessment of the… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text

Baroness Corston to ask Her Majesty's Government how many babies have been born in England with neural tube defects, such as spina bifida, in the last five years for which figures are available.  HL12742

Baroness Coussins to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they expect to bring forward measures to ensure that Directive 2010/64/EU of the European Parliament, providing for the right to interpretation and translation in criminal proceedings, will be incorporated into UK statute before 29 March; and if so, when.  HL12743

Lord Grade of Yarmouth to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of proposals from the UK's screen industries and others for reform of the apprenticeship levy to increase the numbers of skilled new entrants needed to meet demand.  HL12744

Lord Jones of Cheltenham to ask the Leader of the House whether she intends to invite the House of Lords to sit on Fridays until 29 March in order to allow time for proper scrutiny of pre-Brexit legislation.  HL12745

Lord Jones of Cheltenham to ask the Leader of the House whether she intends to invite the House to sit on Saturdays until 29 March in order to allow time for proper scrutiny of pre-Brexit legislation.  HL12746

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch to ask Her Majesty's Government which new freight transport routes across the English Channel between the UK and the EU are being considered as part of the contingency planning for a no-deal Brexit.  HL12747

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch to ask Her Majesty's Government how many additional food inspectors will be put in place to ensure food imports from the EU are checked at transit ports in the event of a no-deal Brexit.  HL12748

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the availability of fresh, frozen, and chilled food warehousing space should imported food be delayed as a consequence of a no-deal Brexit.  HL12749

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch to ask Her Majesty's Government which organisation has responsibility for clearing litter from motorways and trunk roads; and whether they also have powers to issue civil penalties to the owner of a vehicle from which litter is seen to be thrown.  HL12750

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch to ask Her Majesty's Government by what date any necessary new IT import notification system for food imports when the UK leaves the EU will be fully operational.  HL12751

Lord Mawson to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Ashton of Hyde on 29 November 2018 (HL11578, HL11579, HL11580, and HL11581), why they have made no assessment across those varied funds.  HL12752

Lord Mawson to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Ashton of Hyde on 29 November 2018 (HL11578, HL11579, HL11580, and HL11581), whether it is HM Treasury’s responsibility to monitor the use of funds from dormant bank accounts belonging to members of the public; and if not, whose responsibility it is.  HL12753

Lord Mawson to ask Her Majesty's Government what is their role in monitoring the effectiveness of systems and processes relating to spending money from dormant bank accounts belonging to members of the public.  HL12754

Lord Mawson to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the level of demand for social investment funds, and (2) the amount those funds supply.  HL12755

Lord Mawson to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have any evidence of social investment funds vehicles offering loans at higher interest rates than those offered by the commercial market.  HL12756

Lord Mawson to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have any evidence of social investment funds vehicles encouraging small charities and social enterprises to take out high interest loans.  HL12757

Lord Norton of Louth to ask the Senior Deputy Speaker how many items of correspondence were received in the Palace of Westminster in 2018; and of those, how many were received in the House of Lords.  HL12758

Baroness Royall of Blaisdon to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to prevent any funding shortfall for UK universities by introducing domestic funding to replace research income from the European Research Council and Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions in the event of no withdrawal agreement being reached between the UK and EU.  HL12759

Lord Scriven to ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Bahrain about the release of Sayed Nazar Alwadaei, Mahmood Marzooq Mansoor and Hajar Mansoor Hassan, following the statement by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on 9 January that they were held because of their family ties with Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei.  HL12760

Baroness Thomas of Winchester to ask Her Majesty's Government how many individuals have had to wait (1) three to six months, (2) six to nine months, (3) nine to 12 months, and (4) over 12 months for their Personal Independence Payment (PIP) appeals to be heard in each year since PIP was introduced.  HL12761

Baroness Thornton to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether bookmakers are offering better odds to those who place bets online as opposed to those who place bets in betting shops; and if so, whether this discriminates against those whose disability means that they can only place bets in a shop.  HL12762

Lord Trefgarne to ask Her Majesty's Government how many River-class minesweepers, if any, remain in service with the Royal Navy or the Royal Naval Reserve.  HL12763

Lord Warner to ask Her Majesty's Government how many statutory instruments relating to the possibility of a no-deal withdrawal from the EU on 29 March are now awaiting consideration by the House of Lords; and how many of those are subject to the affirmative procedure.  HL12764

Lord Warner to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will continue to present to the House of Lords statutory instruments relating to the possibility of a no-deal withdrawal from the EU on 29 March if the House of Commons votes to avoid a no-deal exit.  HL12765

Baroness Whitaker to ask Her Majesty's Government, following the commitment to address health inequalities in the NHS Long Term Plan, published on 10 January, what steps they intend to take to tackle the health inequalities experienced by members of the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities.  HL12766

Baroness Whitaker to ask Her Majesty's Government what action they have taken to raise awareness among local authorities and housing associations that the Affordable Homes Programme covers funding for Traveller sites; how many applications proposing Traveller sites have been made; and how many of those have been approved since April 2016.  HL12767

Baroness Young of Old Scone to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have carried out an environmental impact assessment of the current dredging of the channel at the Port of Ramsgate; if so, whether, and when, the Environment Agency evaluated and accepted that impact assessment; and when approval was given for the dredging to begin.  HL12768