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House of Lords Business

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Questions for Written Answer for 17 November 2020

Tabled on 16 November 2020 and due for answer by 30 November 2020.

Baroness Altmann to ask Her Majesty's Government how many applications they have received for Green Home Grants; and how many of these are from (1) private residential landlords, (2) social landlords, and (3) owner-occupiers.  HL10316
Answered
Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bethell on 2 November (HL9267), which supplier contracted by the Department of Health and Social Care supplied the central distribution warehouse for personal protective equipment (PPE) in Daventry with PPE masks produced by Medwell Medical Products.  HL10317
Answered
Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bethell on 2 November (HL9267), how many personal protective equipment (PPE) masks held at the central distribution warehouse for PPE in Daventry were produced by Medwell Medical Products.  HL10318
Answered
Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bethell on 2 November (HL9267), how much they paid the supplier of the personal protective equipment (PPE) masks produced by Medwell Medical Products which were held at the central distribution warehouse for PPE in Daventry.  HL10319
Answered
Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address the sale of fake COVID-19 vaccines; and what assessment they have made of the remarks by the director general of the National Crime Agency’s National Economic Crime Centre suggesting that vaccine fraud is an "emerging threat" for the UK.  HL10320
Answered
Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the statement by the Royal College of Psychologists about the number of people experiencing severe mental illness during the COVID-19 pandemic and the funding of mental health services.  HL10321
Answered
Lord Alton of Liverpool to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of recent remarks by Professor Dame Sally Davies about (1) the correlation between obesity and the UK’s COVID-19 mortality rate, and (2) the ‘structural environment’ contributing to obesity in the UK.  HL10322
Answered
Lord Berkeley to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to publish the results of the evaluation questions answered by individuals when applying for a Fix Your Bike Voucher.  HL10323
Answered
Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe to ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions the Department for Health and Social Care has held about  the future of Public Health England’s remit for (1) obesity prevention, and (2) weight management, services,  HL10324
Answered
Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to their policy paper Tackling obesity: empowering adults and children to live healthier lives, published on 27 July, when they will publish their plans to expand weight management services available through the NHS.  HL10325
Answered
Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe to ask Her Majesty's Government what steps the Department for Health and Social Care has taken to address the level of obesity in socio-economically deprived communities; and whether any such steps will be taken as part of their strategy set out in their policy paper Tackling obesity: empowering adults and children to live healthier lives, publi… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text
Answered
Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the policy paper Tackling obesity: empowering adults and children to live healthier lives, published on 27 July, what steps they are taking to help people with severe and complex obesity maintain a healthy weight following weight loss.  HL10327
Answered
Baroness Eaton to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to remove any special legal status differentiating Hong Kong from China following the resignation of Hong Kong’s opposition lawmakers.  HL10328
Answered
Baroness Finlay of Llandaff to ask Her Majesty's Government whether frontline staff working in the funeral industry will be considered as a priority group to receive vaccination against COVID-19.  HL10329
Answered
Baroness Finlay of Llandaff to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to allocate frontline funeral workers key worker or equivalent status to enable them access to regular COVID-19 testing.  HL10330
Answered
Baroness Fox of Buckley to ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to encourage voter turnout in the (1) local council, (2) mayoral, (3) Senedd, and (4) Scottish Parliament, elections in May 2021; and what arrangements they have put in place to ensure that everyone who wants to vote in these elections can do so.  HL10331
Answered
Baroness Fox of Buckley to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of postal voting in the upcoming local elections in May 2021; whether they have a contingency plan to manage any significant increase in postal voting; and what steps they will take to ensure that any increase in postal voting is managed (1) effectively, and (2) fairly.  HL10332
Answered
Baroness Gardner of Parkes to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to pre-book COVID-19 tests for all university students to take before they return to university after the Christmas break.  HL10333
Answered
Baroness Goudie to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord True on 13 November (HL9533), whether (1) the Public Sector Procurement Guidelines, or (2) their Management Consultancy Framework, contain a requirement for contracts not to be awarded to management consultancy firms which regularly advise the fossil fuel industry.  HL10334
Answered
Lord Greaves to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Annual Budget Survey November 2020 by the County Councils Network, published on 12 November, in particular the finding that 60 per cent of councils anticipate a "fundamental reduction" in frontline services; and what steps they are taking to prevent this.  HL10335
Answered
Lord Greaves to ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made on agreeing new targets for new housing numbers for each local authority area; and what is the timetable for introducing these targets.  HL10336
Answered
Lord Greaves to ask Her Majesty's Government when they plan to publish their new England Peat Strategy.  HL10337
Answered
Lord Greaves to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to promote COVID-19 vaccine uptake among (1) people with physical and mental disabilities, (2) people with physical and mental chronic illnesses, (3) people who have been sheltering for much of 2020, (4) elderly people, (5) carers, and (6) people who are reluctant to be vaccinated due to anti-vaccine propaganda on s… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text
Answered
Lord Greaves to ask Her Majesty's Government how they have monitored peat burning on the South Pennine Moors Site of Special Scientific Interest (1) this year, and (2) in the previous three years; and what assessment they have made of the effects of this peat burning.  HL10339
Answered
Lord Hague of Richmond to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the value of UK (1) imports, and (2) exports, of (a) fur, and (b) articles with fur, for each year since 2015.  HL10340
Answered
Baroness Hayman to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the statement on the future of financial services by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 9 November (HC Deb, cols 619–21), what plans they have to consult on the new green taxonomy.  HL10341
Answered
Baroness Hoey to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to introduce legislation to decriminalise non-payment of the TV licence fee.  HL10342
Answered
Baroness Hoey to ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of civil servants are currently working from home.  HL10343
Answered
Baroness Hoey to ask Her Majesty's Government how many civil servants worked from an office in London during September and October.  HL10344
Answered
Baroness Hoey to ask Her Majesty's Government how many (1) Government departments and bodies, and (2) private institutions, have stopped using the Post Office for payments over the past two years.  HL10345
Answered
Lord Hylton to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to discuss (1) arms control, and (2) arms trade limitation, with the government of Saudi Arabia, including at the next G20 summit.  HL10346
Answered
Lord Kennedy of Southwark to ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of landmines laid in North Africa during World War 2 that remain a danger to people in that region.  HL10347
Answered
Lord Kennedy of Southwark to ask Her Majesty's Government what recent work they have done to remove landmines from North Africa following World War 2; and when they estimate any such work will be completed.  HL10348
Answered
Baroness Kidron to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of accepting transfers made under Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Cross-Border Privacy Rules on (1) the privacy rights of (a) UK citizens, (b) children, and (c) disadvantaged groups, and (2) the enforcement of data protection provisions under Section 123 of the Data Protection Act 2018. … Item text truncated - open link to view full item text
Answered
Lord Lingfield to ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that stroke rehabilitation services continue to be delivered effectively during the COVID-19 pandemic.  HL10350
Answered
Lord MacKenzie of Culkein to ask Her Majesty's Government why the COVID-19 home test kit system is not available to postcodes in (1) Sutherland, (2) Caithness, (3) Ross and Skye, (4) Lochaber, (5) Badenoch, (6) Argyll and Bute, (7) the Western Isles, (8) Orkney, and (9) Shetland; and what steps they are taking to resolve this availability.  HL10351
Answered
Lord Maginnis of Drumglass to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 10 November (HL9658), what assessment they have made of any difference between their policies towards recognising (1) the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, and (2) Taiwan; what are the reasons for any such differences; and what plans they have to treat both… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text
Answered
Baroness Masham of Ilton to ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking (1) to inform, and (2) to implement, the use of ready-to-use critical care medicines such as noradrenaline at trust-level; and what assessment they have made of the impact of these medicines on (a) safety levels, (b) drug error rates, and (c) nursing time saved.  HL10353
Answered
Baroness Masham of Ilton to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure that funding is provided so that the respiratory commitments in the NHS Long Term Plan can be delivered in full.  HL10354
Answered
Baroness Masham of Ilton to ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that patients with lung conditions can access health services during the COVID-19 pandemic.  HL10355
Answered
Baroness Masham of Ilton to ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to improve pulmonary rehabilitation services; and what funding has been allocated to any such work in the 2020/21 financial year.  HL10356
Answered
Baroness Noakes to ask Her Majesty's Government what is their estimate of nosocomial infection rates for SARS-COV2 throughout 2020 in (1) England, and (2) the UK.  HL10357
Answered
Baroness Noakes to ask Her Majesty's Government what is their current estimate of the rate of nosocomial infection for SARS-COV2 in (1) England, (2) Scotland, (3) Wales, and (4) Northern Ireland.  HL10358
Answered
Baroness Noakes to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Lord Bethell that “the nosocomial infection that we are seeing is at dramatically lower rates that it was in the past” in relation to COVID-19 on 12 November (HL Deb, col 1256), to quantify the reduction of nosocomial infection rate which took place in the period referred to.  HL10359
Answered
Lord Oates to ask Her Majesty's Government what ministerial-level discussions they have had with the government of Ethiopia about the conflict in Tigray.  HL10360
Answered
Lord Oates to ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Chair of the African Union about (1) the conflict in Ethiopia, and (2) the potential of that conflict to destabilise Ethiopia and the wider region.  HL10361
Answered
Lord Oates to ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to government of Zimbabwe about the detention of Hopewell Chin’ono.  HL10362
Answered
Lord Patel of Bradford to ask Her Majesty's Government since March, what is the total number of people in England who have presented at accident and emergency departments with (1) an overdose, or (2) parasuicide; and whether they can provide these figures broken down by region.  HL10363
Answered
Lord Pendry to ask Her Majesty's Government what humanitarian assistance they have provided to protect civilians displaced by the conflict in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia.  HL10364
Answered
Lord Pendry to ask Her Majesty's Government what aid they have provided to support those who have been affected by the flooding in Jamaica.  HL10365
Answered
Baroness Randerson to ask Her Majesty's Government when they intend to allow solo Compulsory Basic Training and other motorcycle rider training to recommence; and what assessment they have made of the impact that the cessation of this training has had on employment prospects for those wishing to find work in the delivery sector.  HL10366
Answered
Baroness Randerson to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to include airline pilots and cabin crew in the priority groups for COVID-19 vaccination.  HL10367
Answered
Viscount Ridley to ask Her Majesty's Government what is the estimated area of certified organic potatoes treated in England during 2020 with copper hydroxide under the emergency derogation granted by the Chemicals Regulation Directorate.  HL10368
Answered
Viscount Ridley to ask Her Majesty's Government what is the estimated proportion of the total certified organic area of the (1) wheat, (2) barley, (3) oats, (4) rye, and (5) triticale, crops produced from non-organic seed in England in each of the past three harvest years.  HL10369
Answered
Viscount Ridley to ask Her Majesty's Government how many emergency derogations to use non-organic antimicrobial products were authorised to certified organic producers of (1) beef cattle, (2) dairy cattle, (3) sheep, (4) goats, and (5) pigs, in England in each of the past three calendar years.  HL10370
Answered
Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick to ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made with preparations for COP26 in November 2021.  HL10371
Answered
Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick to ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to reduce the use of ‘dismiss and rehire’ strategies by employers.  HL10372
Answered
Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick to ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with (1) employers, or (2) employers’ associations, about the use of ‘dismiss and rehire’ strategies.  HL10373
Answered
The Lord Bishop of St Albans to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Barran on 10 November (HL9946), what representations they have made to the (1) Gambling Commission, and (2) Electronic Money Association, about encouraging the providers of e-wallets to introduce gambling blocks.  HL10374
Answered
The Lord Bishop of St Albans to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Barran on 10 November (HL9946), what representations they have made to the Gambling Commission to encourage building societies to introduce gambling blocks on personal current accounts and credit cards.  HL10375
Answered
The Lord Bishop of St Albans to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the findings of the survey published by the Gambling Commission Young People & Gambling 2020, published in August, what representations they have made to the Advertising Standards Authority on what further measures can be taken to reduce childhood exposure to gambling.  HL10376
Answered
The Lord Bishop of St Albans to ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Azerbaijan about (1) the rights of Armenians, and (2) the protection of cultural sites, including monasteries and churches, in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.  HL10377
Answered
The Lord Bishop of St Albans to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the announcement that Burnley FC are working with the Young Gamers and Gamblers Education Trust to educate staff and supporters about the risks of gambling, what representations they have made to the Premier League to encourage clubs to adopt similar initiatives.  HL10378
Answered
The Lord Bishop of St Albans to ask Her Majesty's Government whether their plans to ban advertisements that promote unhealthy lifestyles will be extended to gambling advertisements.  HL10379
Answered
Lord Scriven to ask Her Majesty's Government how many companies were offered the opportunity to bid for the contract, that was secured with Admiral Associates, for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy's Vaccine Taskforce.  HL10380
Answered
Lord Scriven to ask Her Majesty's Government what work Admiral Associates undertook and provided for the Vaccine Taskforce that civil servants within the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy did not have the skills or knowledge to provide.  HL10381
Answered
Lord Scriven to ask Her Majesty's Government what was the number of days between the initial contract notification and the date when Admiral Associates secured the contract for work on the Vaccine Taskforce.  HL10382
Answered
Lord Scriven to ask Her Majesty's Government where was the notification of the tender for the contract secured between Admiral Associates and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s Vaccine Taskforce placed.  HL10383
Answered
Lord Scriven to ask Her Majesty's Government who was ultimately responsible for approving the contract that was secured with Admiral Associates by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s Vaccine Taskforce.  HL10384
Answered
Lord Scriven to ask Her Majesty's Government what due diligence was performed to assess potential conflicts of interests between the directors of Admiral Associates, and ministers, officials and advisers in (1) the Vaccines Task force, (2) the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, (3) the Cabinet Office, and (4) the Prime Minister's Office; and what were the fin… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text
Answered
Baroness Sheehan to ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to strengthen health system resilience to specific diseases in low and middle income countries.  HL10386
Answered
Baroness Sheehan to ask Her Majesty's Government how many disease-specific programmes they have (1) reduced, and (2) cancelled, as a result of the reduction of the foreign aid budget by £2.9 billion announced in July.  HL10387
Answered
Baroness Sheehan to ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that progress made in strengthening health system resilience is not lost.  HL10388
Answered
Baroness Sheehan to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) maintaining, and (2) advancing, health system resilience as a precursor to economic development in low and middle income countries.  HL10389
Answered
Baroness Sheehan to ask Her Majesty's Government when they will publish their review of the 2021–-22 framework for the aid budget for non-governmental organisations.  HL10390
Answered
Lord Smith of Finsbury to ask Her Majesty's Government how the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport is collaborating with UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) on sharing and preserving digital heritage collections.  HL10391
Answered
Lord Smith of Finsbury to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide support for residential outdoor activity centres  that are at risk of closure because of the restrictions put in place to address the COVID-19 pandemic.  HL10392
Answered
Lord Strasburger to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have considered if any data collected from COVID-19 testing could be used to create (1) a UK DNA biobank, or (2) be used by Genomics England for any purpose.  HL10393
Answered
Lord Taylor of Warwick to ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made in discussions with universities about the mass testing of students at the end of term.  HL10394
Answered
Lord Taylor of Warwick to ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the Lifetime Skills Guarantee is accessible to all low-paid workers.  HL10395
Answered
Lord Taylor of Warwick to ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Football Association about how that organisation can improve on issues of racial diversity.  HL10396
Answered
Baroness Thornhill to ask Her Majesty's Government why the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government refused planning permission for the proposed changes to the Anglia Square shopping centre in Norwich.  HL10397
Answered
Baroness Thornhill to ask Her Majesty's Government whether objections by local objectors are given greater importance than objections by non-local objectors in planning decisions taken by the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government.  HL10398
Answered
Baroness Tonge to ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to include contraceptive care within the scope of their women's health strategy.  HL10399
Answered
Baroness Tonge to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Sexual and Reproductive Health Women's Lives, Women's Rights: Strengthening Access to Contraception Beyond the COVID-19 Pandemic, published on 10 September, what plans they have to include reviewing current data collection processes for (1) uptake, and (2) provisi… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text
Answered
Baroness Tonge to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that the government of Israel is planning (1) to expand settlements in East Jerusalem, and (2) to isolate the Beit Safafa and Sharafat neighbourhoods, before 20 January 2021.  HL10401
Answered
Baroness Tonge to ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they plan to make to the government of Israel about reports that that government has ordered that the building of a sports facility for Palestinian wheelchair users in Salfit be stopped.  HL10402
Answered
Baroness Tonge to ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the letter sent by Gisha - the Legal Center for Freedom of Movement and Adalah - the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel to the government of Israel on 8 November requesting (1) a halt to the Israel Defence Force's destruction of land in the Gaza Strip, (2) an investigation into recent inc… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text
Answered
Baroness Tonge to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay on 9 November (HL9589), what legislative options they are considering to ensure that all higher education institutions sign up to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism.  HL10404
Answered
Lord Watson of Invergowrie to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to respond to the letter to the Secretary of State for Education, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Children and Families, and the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Business and Industry from 35 charities on 29 September which requested the extension of the scheme which provided digi… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text
Answered
Lord West of Spithead to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord True on 12 November (HL9797), whether CAB93/7 contains any records relating to the loss of HMS Dasher; whether (1) the Cabinet Office, or (2) the Prime Minister’s Office, hold any other records concerning HMS Dasher; and if so, whether any of these records are publicly available.  HL10406
Answered
Lord West of Spithead to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord True on 12 November (HL9797), whether (1) the Cabinet Office, or (2) the Prime Minister’s Office, hold any records concerning Operation Mincemeat; and if so, whether these records are publicly available.  HL10407
Answered
Baroness Whitaker to ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to compel companies to report their ethnicity pay gaps.  HL10408
Answered
Baroness Wolf of Dulwich to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 23 October (HL9101), whether the procedures local authorities should refer to in carrying out Equality Impact Assessment are publicly available; what assessment they have made of the timeframe in which Equality Impact Assessments should be carried out following a… Item text truncated - open link to view full item text
Answered
Baroness Wolf of Dulwich to ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 23 October (HL9102), what assessment they have made of the consistency of a local authority’s decision not to monitor air quality data for road closures funded by the Emergency Active Travel Fund with the Local Air Quality Management framework.  HL10410
Answered
Baroness Wolf of Dulwich to ask Her Majesty's Government whether details of the Local Air Quality Management framework are publicly available; if so, where; what steps they are taking to ensure that local authorities carry out their duties under this framework; and what steps citizens can take to ensure that local authorities are reviewing air quality.  HL10411
Answered
Baroness Wolf of Dulwich to ask Her Majesty's Government whether local authorities are required (1) to consider, and (2) to consult on, traffic displacement in advance of road closures; and whether local authorities are required to monitor congestion in streets adjacent to closed roads.  HL10412
Answered
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Numbers starting HL are unique identifiers for written questions, Bills or papers.