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1240215

registered interest
date	05/10/2020
answering body	Leader of the House of Lords
answering dept id	92
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name	Leader of the House of Lords
hansard heading	Questions for Short Debate and Select Committee Reports: Parliamentary Scrutiny
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask the Leader of the House what plans there are to set aside time on currently non-sitting Fridays to debate (1) Select Committee reports, or (2) Questions for Short Debate, in the Chamber or in Grand Committee.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL8699
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/10/2020 answer text <p>My Noble Friend the Government Chief Whip has no such plans. In line with the Guidance on Hybrid House and Hybrid Grand Committee set down by the Procedure and Privileges Committee, legislation is currently taking precedence on sitting Fridays.</p><p>Despite the constraints on the way in which the House is working we have managed to debate 11 Select Committee reports in the session to date. I expect it to be possible to debate further reports as the session progresses.</p><p>Last week the Government Chief Whip wrote to the Procedure and Privileges Committee with a suggestion as to how we can adapt our current working practices to allow a limited number of Questions for Short Debate to be asked in Grand Committee.</p><p>Background/points we could make:</p><p>- The short answer to the question is ‘no’.</p><p>- We normally sit on only one Friday per calendar month. We have had to sit on more than that since returning from the summer recess to accommodate the various Coronavirus regulations.</p><p>- The Procedure and Privileges Committee guidance clearly states, at paragraph 39, that:</p><p>- “Until further notice, Thursday and Friday sittings of the hybrid House may be used for legislation which shall have precedence over other business.”</p><p>- Despite the broadcasting and administrative restrictions we have been working under we have still managed to debate 11 select committee reports in the session to date. And will take more where we can.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Evans of Bowes Park question first answered 19/10/2020 15:35:19 answering member 4329 label Biography information for Baroness Evans of Bowes Park attachment 1 file name Scan_Isabelle Tombs_20201019-123716_2720_001.pdf title B Evans signed
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1354401

registered interest
date	09/09/2021
answering body	The Senior Deputy Speaker
answering dept id	204
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name	Senior Deputy Speaker (HoL)
hansard heading	Official Visits: China
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker whether House of Lords authorities were consulted ahead of the visit of the Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to the parliamentary estate.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL2569
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2021 answer text <p>No such visit had been planned for the House of Lords part of the parliamentary estate. Neither House routinely consults with the other regarding bookings taken for use of their facilities.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 16/09/2021 15:30:16 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1405009

registered interest
date	20/01/2022
answering body	The Senior Deputy Speaker
answering dept id	204
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name	Senior Deputy Speaker (HoL)
hansard heading	Select Committees: Business Interests
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker whether witnesses to House of Lords select committee inquiries will be required to declare whether (1) they, or (2) institutions and companies in which they are involved, receive (a) remuneration, (b) endowments, or (c) financial support, from counties identified in the Integrated Review as representing a threat to UK interests.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL5571
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/02/2022 answer text <p>Witnesses to House of Lords Select Committee inquiries are not required to make declarations of this kind and there are no plans to introduce such a requirement. The large majority of witnesses are unlikely to have any such involvement and Committee members are best placed to understand which witnesses might represent such a threat and to raise queries about those witnesses both before a committee session and, if necessary, during it.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 02/02/2022 16:41:47 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1659974

registered interest
date	12/09/2023
answering body	The Senior Deputy Speaker
answering dept id	204
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name	Senior Deputy Speaker (HoL)
hansard heading	House of Lords: Security
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker what support the Houses of Lords Administration receives from His Majesty’s Government regarding the issuing of parliamentary passes and the vetting of individuals when passes are requested; and what consideration he has given to a review into the activities of hostile states and the subversion of parliamentary democracy in the House of Lords.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL10084
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/09/2023 answer text <p>All passholders are subject to vetting, and Parliament follows the Government vetting framework and is regulated by the Government’s statement of vetting policy. Parliament’s vetting processes draw on data provided by the relevant national authorities. More information can be found in Parliament’s <a href="https://www.parliament.uk/globalassets/mps-lords--offices/offices/pass-office/psd-national-security-vetting-booklet.pdf" target="_blank">National Security Vetting booklet</a>. I am constrained in what further I can share widely on Parliament’s security measures.</p><p>Parliament works with the relevant national authorities to keep all potential threats to Parliament, parliamentarians and parliamentary democracy under constant review and ensure our mitigations are appropriate. This includes the threat posed by foreign state interference. Parliament is also represented at the Defending Democracy taskforce which is chaired by the Security Minister.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 21/09/2023 15:58:00 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1336820

registered interest
date	15/06/2021
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Crown Prosecution Service: Internet
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar on 14 June concerning recent acquittals in the case of perverting the Court of Justice in relation to the Hillsborough disaster (HL Deb, cols 1668–71), what plans they have to ask the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to revert to the practice of earlier DPPs of publishing their advice on their website.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL1097
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/06/2021 answer text <p>The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) did not advise on these cases and there is no DPP advice to publish. Whenever appropriate the CPS will look to provide more detailed explanations about its decision making on its website.</p><p> </p><p>Throughout criminal proceedings relating to the Hillsborough disaster, the CPS has issued regular press statements, and published reasons for its decision making. In particular, in June 2017, the CPS published a public statement following the decision to charge the three individuals with perverting the course of justice alongside other suspects referred for a charging decision at the same time.</p><p> </p><p>On 26 May 2021 the CPS issued a public statement on this ruling and has confirmed publicly that the decision not to appeal was based on the conclusion that the legal test to do so was not met.</p> answering member printed Lord Stewart of Dirleton question first answered 29/06/2021 11:03:36 answering member 4899 label Biography information for Lord Stewart of Dirleton
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1337557

registered interest
date	16/06/2021
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Hillsborough Stadium Inquiry
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar on 14 June concerning recent acquittals in the case of perverting the Court of Justice in relation to the Hillsborough disaster (HL Deb, cols 1668–71), what discussions they have had with the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) as to why the decision of the Court was not appealed; whether the DPP gave advice on the decision not to appeal; and whether the DPP intends to publish the advice not to appeal.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL1146
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/06/2021 answer text <p>The decision not to pursue an appeal in these cases was made by the CPS team managing the original prosecution after seeking advice from senior counsel. Prosecution decisions are made independently from Government. The Director of Public Prosecutions did not provide advice on these cases.</p><p> </p><p>To bring an appeal, the prosecution would have to be able to show that the Judge’s decision was wrong in law, that he had made an error about the facts or that his decision was otherwise unreasonable. After careful consideration, especially for the families involved, the CPS concluded that it could not meet this test.</p><p> </p><p>On 26 May 2021, the CPS issued a public statement on this ruling and has confirmed publicly that the decision not to appeal was based on the conclusion that the legal test was not met.</p> answering member printed Lord Stewart of Dirleton question first answered 29/06/2021 11:05:38 answering member 4899 label Biography information for Lord Stewart of Dirleton
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1337559

registered interest
date	16/06/2021
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Hillsborough Stadium Inquiry
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar on 14 June concerning recent acquittals in the case of perverting the Court of Justice in relation to the Hillsborough disaster (HL Deb, cols 1668–71), whether they have discussed with the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) the reasons for not bringing charges in relation to misconduct in public office; and whether they have asked the DPP to publish those reasons.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL1147
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/06/2021 answer text <p>The CPS carefully considered the available evidence against a wide range of suspects but the Code for Crown Prosecutors only permits the CPS to commence a prosecution where there is sufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction and where it is in the public interests to do so. The CPS brought prosecutions where the Code Test was met. The CPS makes prosecution decisions independently from Government.</p><p> </p><p>In June 2017, the CPS published a public statement following the decision to charge the three individuals with perverting the course of justice alongside other suspects referred for a charging decision at the same time.</p><p> </p><p>On 15 June, the DPP appeared before the Justice Select Committee and outlined the reasons why the CPS did not pursue misconduct in public office charges. Charges of misconduct in public office would only have been available against two of the three defendants and, the CPS assessed that perverting the course of justice was the correct charge against all three. The conduct alleged would have been identical whatever the charge selected. The DPP’s evidence is publicly available on the Justice Select Committee website.</p> answering member printed Lord Stewart of Dirleton question first answered 29/06/2021 11:04:50 answering member 4899 label Biography information for Lord Stewart of Dirleton
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1404157

registered interest
date	18/01/2022
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Crimes against Humanity: Prosecutions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the UK's use of universal jurisdiction to prosecute the crimes of (1) genocide, (2) crimes against humanity, and (3) war crimes.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL5468
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/02/2022 answer text <p>The Counter Terrorism Division within the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is responsible for prosecuting core international crimes (genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes) and applies the principle of universal jurisdiction when necessary.</p><p> </p><p>Universal jurisdiction helps to ensure that the UK does not provide a safe haven for war criminals or those who commit other serious violations of international law, and the CPS will continue to bring individuals to justice wherever possible. Any decision to prosecute offences of universal jurisdiction in England and Wales is governed by the same principles that apply to any other prosecution and must be in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors.</p> answering member printed Lord Stewart of Dirleton question first answered 01/02/2022 15:43:01 answering member 4899 label Biography information for Lord Stewart of Dirleton
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1608454

registered interest
date	28/03/2023
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Crimes against Humanity: Prosecutions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to applying universal jurisdiction as a means of bringing to justice those who have committed atrocity crimes, but have evaded prosecution in international courts or domestic courts in other jurisdictions.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL6902
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/05/2023 answer text <p>The International Criminal Court Act 2001 and The International Criminal Court (Scotland) Act 2001 allows jurisdiction over the offences of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity committed abroad by any person who: (i) is/was a UK national or UK resident at the time of the crime; or (ii) became a UK national or UK resident after the crime and still resides in the UK when proceedings are brought. Criminal law in the United Kingdom provides for universal jurisdiction over the crimes of torture and grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions, allowing prosecutorial authorities to investigate and prosecute these offences under certain conditions when they were committed abroad by foreign nationals. The relevant prosecuting authorities from across the UK will bring individuals to justice wherever possible, in line with their respective prosecutorial policies. Universal jurisdiction has been applied in the past in the UK, including in the case against Agnes Taylor who was accused of participating in crimes of torture during the first Liberian Civil War.</p> answering member printed Lord Stewart of Dirleton question first answered 11/05/2023 14:11:11 answering member 4899 label Biography information for Lord Stewart of Dirleton
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1608887

registered interest
date	29/03/2023
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	International Criminal Law: Prosecutions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government how many people have been tried by domestic courts for international crimes in the last five years.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL6969
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/04/2023 answer text <p>His Majesty’s Government does not collate statistics on trials in UK domestic courts for international crimes.</p> answering member printed Lord Stewart of Dirleton question first answered 25/04/2023 16:35:11 answering member 4899 label Biography information for Lord Stewart of Dirleton
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool