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1174066

registered interest
date	28/01/2020
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Forests
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support measures to address international deforestation.
tabling member printed	Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
uin	HL837
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/02/2020 answer text <p>The UK Government has a long and proud history of supporting action to combat deforestation.</p><p> </p><p>As part of our 25 Year Environment Plan, we have committed to protect the world’s forests by enhancing sustainability and supporting deforestation-free supply chains. We are signatory to the Amsterdam Declarations and have endorsed the New York Declaration on Forests, which supports a fully sustainable palm oil supply chain from 2020.</p><p> </p><p>The Government recently convened a Global Resource Initiative taskforce, which will report this spring and recommend actions the UK can take to address our global commodity supply chain footprint. We are a member of Tropical Forest Alliance 2020, a public-private partnership working to help organisations achieve their deforestation-free commitments. In addition the UK has set up the Partnership for Forests Programme, which supports organisations that produce agricultural goods without causing deforestation. We have also been at the forefront of tackling illegal logging though our commitment to the Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade and Timber Regulations.</p><p> </p><p>At the 2015 Paris climate summit, Germany, Norway and the UK pledged $5 billion over the period 2015 to 2020 to developing countries to protect forests. We have a shared objective of ensuring the forests and land-use sector plays a key role in meeting global climate goals along with encouraging ambitious action from developing countries to protect their rainforests while supporting communities to develop sustainable forest practices.</p><p> </p><p>Our International Climate Finance (ICF) spending is our primary mechanism to meet the UK’s international forest commitments.</p><p>At the United Nations Climate Action Summit in September 2019, the Prime Minister announced that the ICF will be doubled to at least £11.6 billion between 2021/22 and 2025/26, in a clear signal that the UK is stepping up its efforts even further to address climate change and tackle deforestation. This fund will include spending to protect forests and mangroves, create new protected areas and restore degraded ecosystems which were once home to forests, mangroves and other precious habitats.</p> answering member printed Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park question first answered 03/02/2020 16:34:16 answering member 4062 label Biography information for Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
tabling member	4282 label Biography information for Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

1173357

registered interest
date	27/01/2020
answering body	Cabinet Office
answering dept id	53
answering dept short name	Cabinet Office
answering dept sort name	Cabinet Office
hansard heading	Dementia and Mental Illness
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the next meeting of the British–Irish Council discusses (1) mental health, and (2) dementia, medical and social care provision.
tabling member printed	Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick
uin	HL806
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/02/2020 answer text <p>The British Irish Council supports 11 work sector programmes, the members of whom meet regularly at official and ministerial level. These thematic policy groups include Social Inclusion, Housing and Collaborative Spatial Planning, Digital Inclusion and Misuse of Substances, which each cover aspects of mental health and social care. As part of the agenda for the next main Summit meeting the Council will be provided with an update on the 11 work sector programmes.</p> answering member printed Earl Howe question first answered 03/02/2020 17:30:30 answering member 2000 label Biography information for Earl Howe
tabling member	4130 label Biography information for Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick

1175322

registered interest
date	27/01/2020
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Energy
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	Her Majesty's Government what are the current peak energy requirements of the UK; and what such requirements are predicted to be in 2032.
tabling member printed	Lord West of Spithead
uin	HL829
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/02/2020 answer text <p>National Grid has estimated energy demand for four different future scenarios in the latest version of the future energy scenarios 2019, these are presented in Figure 4.1 on pages 46 and 47. Current (2020) estimated peak annual energy requirements for Great Britain range from 900 to 1,100TWh, depending on the scenario. The same scenarios are used to predict total annual energy requirements for 2032 of between 700 and 1,000TWh.</p> answering member printed Lord Duncan of Springbank question first answered 03/02/2020 17:11:51 answering member 4686 label Biography information for Lord Duncan of Springbank attachment 1 file name Future Energy Scenarios 2019.pdf title Future Energy Scenarios 2019
tabling member	3834 label Biography information for Lord West of Spithead

1175337

registered interest
date	27/01/2020
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	European Committee for Standardization
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of Brexit on the UK's membership of the European Committee for Standardization; what discussions they have had with the British Standards Institution on the issue; and what were the outcomes of any such discussions.
tabling member printed	Baroness Scott of Needham Market
uin	HL809
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/02/2020 answer text <p>The European standards organisations (CEN, CENELEC and ETSI) are not EU bodies and the British Standards Institution (BSI) is independent from government. We are in regular contact with BSI and are supportive of the steps that they, as the UK’s national standards body, are taking to maintain the high level of influence of UK experts in the European standards organisations, as set out in the Memorandum of Understanding between Government and BSI.</p><p> </p><p>BSI have informed the Department of their intention to retain their membership of the European standards organisations in line with the wishes of UK stakeholders.</p> answering member printed Lord Duncan of Springbank question first answered 03/02/2020 17:10:29 answering member 4686 label Biography information for Lord Duncan of Springbank
tabling member	2542 label Biography information for Baroness Scott of Needham Market

1176691

registered interest
date	27/01/2020
answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
hansard heading	Dementia: Research
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that research funding for dementia is increased to ensure that medical and care interventions are available to anyone with that condition.
tabling member printed	Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick
uin	HL807
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/01/2020 answer text <p>The Government remains strongly committed to supporting research into dementia and the United Kingdom research community is playing a significant role in the global effort to find a cure or a major disease-modifying treatment by 2025.</p><p>The Government’s 2020 Challenge contained the commitment to spend £300 million on dementia research over the five years to March 2020. This commitment was delivered a year early with £341 million spent on dementia research over the four years to 31 March 2019. We are currently working on ways to boost significantly further research on dementia at all stages on the translation pathway including medical and care interventions.</p> answering member printed Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford question first answered 30/01/2020 15:56:35 answering member 4019 label Biography information for Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
tabling member	4130 label Biography information for Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick

1176696

registered interest
date	27/01/2020
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Air Pollution
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by the Centre for Cities Cities Outlook 2020, published on 27 January; and in particular, whether there is a "south–north" divide in air quality in the UK.
tabling member printed	Lord Taylor of Warwick
uin	HL812
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/02/2020 answer text <p>We are aware of the Centre for Cities report and are considering its evidence and findings. Improving air quality is a top priority for this Government and we are committed to take action to drive down overall emissions of air pollutants across the UK and reduce human exposure to local concentrations of pollutants.</p><p> </p><p>Levels of air pollution in the UK vary significantly depending on the specific pollutant, location, time of day and season. There are many factors that contribute to levels of air pollution at a local level but proximity to the European continent also plays a role particularly for the pollutant of greatest harm to human health, PM2.5. Around a third of the UK PM2.5 can be from sources outside of the UK (up to 50% on specific days). Many additional factors also contribute such as weather conditions and population density but South East areas of England are more affected by transboundary pollution in comparison to more north westerly regions of the UK.</p><p> </p><p>To improve air quality across the UK, the Government have already put in place a £3.5 billion plan to reduce harmful emissions from road transport and are supporting 61 English local authorities in both the North and the South of England to reduce nitrogen dioxide. We have also published the Clean Air Strategy (CAS) which sets out comprehensive action to reduce the national emissions of pollutants, reduce background pollution, and minimise human exposure to harmful concentrations of pollution. The CAS also seeks to drive down emissions of PM2.5 across the UK and provide stronger powers to tackle it in local areas where there is a problem. Furthermore, the forthcoming Environment Bill will introduce measures to ensure both neighbouring local authorities and relevant public authorities work collaboratively and cooperate to tackle the problem of regional air pollution. To tackle transboundary pollution we are increasing our International engagement activity. The Bill will also introduce a duty to set a target for concentration levels of PM2.5 in ambient air as well as a duty to set an additional long-term target on air quality, going beyond EU requirements and delivering significant health benefits for our citizens</p> answering member printed Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park question first answered 03/02/2020 16:34:55 answering member 4062 label Biography information for Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
tabling member	1796 label Biography information for Lord Taylor of Warwick

1173110

registered interest
date	23/01/2020
answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether their plans to reform care and support will consider adults of all ages and unpaid carers, as well as older people.
tabling member printed	Lord Porter of Spalding
uin	HL760
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/01/2020 answer text <p>Putting social care on a sustainable footing, where everyone is treated with dignity and respect, is one of the biggest challenges we face as a society. The Government will bring forward a plan for social care this year. The Government will seek to build cross-party consensus and will outline next steps shortly.</p> answering member printed Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford question first answered 29/01/2020 17:11:11 answering member 4019 label Biography information for Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
tabling member	4555 label Biography information for Lord Porter of Spalding

1173124

registered interest
date	23/01/2020
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made in eliminating Japanese knotweed.
tabling member printed	Baroness Wilcox
uin	HL774
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/01/2020 answer text <p>The Government recognises the threats posed by invasive non-native species including Japanese knotweed and has a comprehensive Great Britain Non-native Species Strategy designed to tackle these threats, the first of its kind in Europe.</p><p> </p><p>Local Action Groups, with support from the Government, are actively involved in reducing and eradicating Japanese knotweed. Increasing public awareness of the species and what can be done about it is an important part of tackling the problems caused by Japanese knotweed. To that aim, we launched the first Invasive Species Week in 2015, to bring together a wide range of organisations to raise awareness of invasive non-native species, to highlight work going on to tackle them and to inspire people to get involved and help prevent their spread. Invasive Species Week has gone from strength to strength, with eight administrations taking part in 2019 and 93 events held.</p><p> </p><p>Defra continues to fund a biocontrol programme through the release of a psyllid insect to tackle Japanese knotweed. The Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI) is working to establish the highly specific psyllid <em>Aphalara itadori</em> in the UK and a population of climatically suitable psyllids from Japan is being studied in CABI’s quarantine in Surrey. It is hoped this will be the key to unlocking the potential of this agent to reduce the effort and cost of managing Japanese knotweed and its invasive capacity. Research is also underway to evaluate a leaf-spot fungus for use as a mycoherbicide.</p><p> </p><p>The Government has developed guidance on how to prevent the spread of Japanese knotweed, which can be found at:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/guidance/prevent-japanese-knotweed-from-spreading" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/guidance/prevent-japanese-knotweed-from-spreading</a></p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 28/01/2020 17:15:32 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	1727 label Biography information for Baroness Wilcox

1175283

registered interest
date	23/01/2020
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Syria: Export Controls
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 22 January (HL455), how many exemptions and licences have been issued for British exports to Syria in the last two years; and whether those were granted to (1) commercial, or (2) other, groups.
tabling member printed	Lord Hylton
uin	HL740
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/02/2020 answer text <p>For the most recent two-year period for which data is available (1 October 2017 – 30 September 2019), eight Single Individual Export Licences were issued for Syria of which none were provided to commercial end-users. All the licences were for humanitarian purposes. No licences were granted to the Syrian regime or armed opposition groups.</p><p>In addition, one Open Individual Export Licence was issued in this period, covering goods for humanitarian end use. Information about licences granted between 1 October 2019 – 31 December 2019 is due to be published on GOV.UK on 14 April 2020. The British Government does not grant 'exemptions' for export licences.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 03/02/2020 16:58:30 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	2018 label Biography information for Lord Hylton

1175296

registered interest
date	23/01/2020
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	China: Uyghurs
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of China about reports that Uighur Muslims are being recruited for forced labour in Xinjiang; what assessment they have made of the risk that the supply chains of (1) UK, and (2) UK-based companies could include products manufactured using such forced labour; and what guidance they have given to UK and UK-based companies in this regard.
tabling member printed	Baroness Helic
uin	HL739
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/02/2020 answer text <p>Reports indicating that forced labour is being used in Xinjiang adds to the growing body of evidence about the disturbing situation that Uyghurs and other minorities are facing in the region. We regularly raise concerns about Xinjiang at the UN and directly with the Chinese Government. We are also aware of the risks to supply chains in the UK and officials have discussed the issue with businesses and industry standard setting organisations. As set out in our online Overseas Business Risk guidance, businesses involved in investing in Xinjiang, with parts of their supply chains in Xinjiang, or with any other business involvement in the province should consider conducting appropriate due diligence to satisfy themselves that their activities do not support, or risk being seen to support, any human rights violations or abuses.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 03/02/2020 17:01:56 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	4331 label Biography information for Baroness Helic