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1695941

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
answering body	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
answering dept id	208
answering dept short name	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
hansard heading	Jimmy Lai
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the call made by the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture on 8 March that Hong Kong and China investigate the admission of evidence allegedly obtained by torture in the trial of Jimmy Lai, and (2) the statement by Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC that evidence which appears to have been procured by torture may be used in proceedings against Jimmy Lai.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL3226
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/03/2024 answer text <p>On 8 March the UK Ambassador and Permanent Representative, UK Mission to the World Trade Organization (WTO), UN and Other International Organisations (Geneva) highlighted the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture's comments and noted the allegation that some evidence to be used to prosecute Jimmy Lai had been obtained through the torture of Andy Li. Article 15 of the Convention against Torture, which China has ratified, prohibits the use of statements established to have been made as a result of torture in court proceedings. We are clear that no evidence gained via torture can be valid evidence.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 28/03/2024 12:59:16 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1695942

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
answering body	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
answering dept id	208
answering dept short name	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
hansard heading	Pakistan: Ahmadiyya
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 11 March (HL2717), whether they will specifically raise with the government of Pakistan why Ahmadi Muslims were not included on the single electoral list with all other voters in the recent elections in that country.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL3227
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/03/2024 answer text <p>On 22 March I met with Pakistan's newly-appointed Foreign Secretary Ishaq Dar to discuss the inclusivity of the elections and the rights of religious minorities. We will continue to raise human rights issues affecting the Ahmadiyya Muslim community in engagements with the new government and reaffirm the importance of Pakistan respecting the voting rights of all religious communities.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 28/03/2024 16:58:44 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1695943

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
answering body	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
answering dept id	208
answering dept short name	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
hansard heading	Hong Kong: Human Rights
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the alignment of the proposed Article 23 legislation in Hong Kong with the Sino-British Joint Declaration, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and other international laws and standards; and what assessment they have made of the potential impact of the legislation on British National (Overseas) visa holders, in particular the six exiled Hong Kongers in the UK with arrest warrants and HK$1 million bounties who might be considered “absconders” under the new security legislation.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL3228
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/03/2024 answer text <p>Hong Kong is required to ensure that national security legislation complies with international standards and upholds rights and freedoms, as set out in the Joint Declaration, the Basic Law, and international law. The future application of the new Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, implemented under Article 23 of Hong Kong's Basic Law, enacted on 23 March is likely incompatible with international human rights law and will have a negative impact on the people of Hong Kong in the exercise of their rights and freedoms. That is why the Foreign Secretary on 19 March urged the Hong Kong authorities to respect rights and freedoms and act in accordance with its international commitments and legal obligations. As the Foreign Secretary said on 14 December 2023, we will not tolerate any attempt by any foreign power to intimidate, harass or harm individuals or communities in the UK.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 28/03/2024 13:02:46 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1695944

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
answering body	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
answering dept id	208
answering dept short name	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
hansard heading	Hong Kong: Pensions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will take steps to impose sanctions on Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee for his role in the development of the proposed Article 23 legislation in Hong Kong; and whether they will make representations to HSBC and Standard Chartered to allow Hong Kongers to access to their Mandatory Provident Fund.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL3229
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/03/2024 answer text <p>The Government is aware that individuals who have chosen to take up the British Nationals (Overseas) Visa (BN(O)) route are having difficulties in accessing their pensions held in the Hong Kong Mandatory Provident Funds (MPF). Financial institutions operating in Hong Kong do so within a strict legal and regulatory framework. British officials in Hong Kong have raised this directly with the Hong Kong SAR Government and the Hong Kong MPF Schemes Authority and will continue to do so. We have also raised the issue with trustee HSBC directly. We will continue to urge the Hong Kong authorities and all relevant bodies to facilitate early drawdown of funds as is the case for other Hong Kong residents who move overseas permanently. We continue to keep sanctions designations under review. It would not be appropriate to speculate about future sanctions measures as to do so could reduce their impact.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 28/03/2024 13:03:43 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1695945

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
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	Soil: Environment Protection
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in developing indicator E7 on healthy soils as part of the Outcome Indicator Framework for monitoring progress of the 25 Year Environment Plan.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL3230
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/03/2024 answer text <p>The Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) published a concept model for a soil health indicator in June 2023 (please see attached) and we intend to develop a more comprehensive model by 2025. A progress report on the development of the indicator will be published by June 2024.</p><p> </p><p>Improving soil health and monitoring changes over time is a priority for government. The E7 indicator for soil health in England will use comprehensive data on soil characteristics (physical, chemical, and biological) and land use to show how different soils are contributing to different ecosystem services as a measure of soil health. Towards the end of financial year 2022/2023, we began national soil monitoring under the Natural Capital Ecosystem Assessment (NCEA) programme. The data will inform ambitious, proactive, and sustainable policy decisions to support the government's goal to improve the state of the environment within a generation.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 20/03/2024 15:35:11 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1695946

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
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	Chemicals: Health Hazards
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what processes the Environment Agency follows in identifying and nominating chemical substances to the Prioritisation and Early Warning System (PEWS) for chemicals of emerging concern; and whether there are routes for individuals or other organisations to raise chemical substances of concern to PEWS.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL3231
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2024 answer text <p>The Environment Agency has developed a nomination process that integrates horizon scanning, environmental monitoring, and international collaboration. Nominations are received from internal and external stakeholders, collected from systematic reviews of published research, and watchlists developed by international environmental agency counterparts.</p><p> </p><p>Individuals and organisations are able to feed into the nomination process by raising chemical substances of concern to any contact within DEFRA or the Environment Agency via <a href="mailto:PEWS@environment-agency.gov.uk" target="_blank">PEWS@environment-agency.gov.uk</a> who can nominate the substance following the instructions provided on the internal intranet page for PEWS.</p><p> </p><p>The Environment Agency has adopted recommendations made by the Hazardous Substances Advisory Committee on stakeholder engagement, from their 2021 review of PEWS.</p> answering member printed Lord Douglas-Miller question first answered 21/03/2024 17:06:13 answering member 5006 label Biography information for Lord Douglas-Miller
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1695947

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
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	TPP: Contracts
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what contracts NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care have with The Phoenix Partnership and for what services; and what assessment they have made of the appropriateness of it providing such services.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL3232
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2024 answer text <p>The Department is the contracting authority for two consecutive framework agreements on which The Phoenix Partnership (TPP) has been appointed as a supplier, and awarded call-off contracts. These frameworks are the <em>GP Systems of Choice</em> (GPSoC), from 2014, and the <em>GP IT Futures framework agreement</em> (GPITF FA), which succeeded the GPSoC in 2020. The GPITF FA is the main contractual framework to supply IT systems and services to general practices (GPs) and associated organisations in England. The GPITF FA is operationally managed by NHS England, and the relevant contracting authorities under the call-off contracts are the individual integrated care boards, who contract on behalf of GPs.</p><p>In addition to managing the GPITF FA on behalf of the Department, NHS England is the contracting authority on three active contracts with TPP for: GP IT development and compliance; provision of Point of Care services to the NHS England Vaccination Programme; and provision of IT services to residential places of detention under the Health and Justice Information Systems contract.</p><p>The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has a statutory requirement to report on the performance of the national immunisation programmes, and in June 2022, TPP was awarded a contract to extract this data directly from GPs' systems for the UKHSA, with a successor contract being awarded for the same work in October 2023. All Government contracts are awarded fairly and transparently, in line with the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. All decisions on contracts are rigorously scrutinised to assess a company’s ability to perform and deliver the best value for money for the taxpayer.</p> answering member printed Lord Markham question first answered 09/04/2024 15:52:06 answering member 4948 label Biography information for Lord Markham
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1695948

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
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	Health Professions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government, following the protection of the titles “physician associate” and “anaesthesia associate” under the Anaesthesia Associates and Physician Associates Order 2024, when they plan to provide protection for other medical titles which are not already protected.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL3233
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/03/2024 answer text <p>All healthcare professional regulators have protected titles relating to the professions they regulate. There are currently 64 protected titles across 10 professional health and care regulators. The Government’s regulatory reform programme, which is already underway, will consider protected titles more broadly.</p> answering member printed Lord Markham question first answered 25/03/2024 12:06:32 answering member 4948 label Biography information for Lord Markham
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1695949

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
answering body	Department for Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	217
answering dept short name	Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Department for Culture, Media and Sport: BBC
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay on 13 March (HL2878), how the responsibility of the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport to safeguard the independence of the BBC should be exercised.
tabling member printed	Lord Birt
uin	HL3234
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/03/2024 answer text <p>The BBC is operationally and editorially independent of HM Government, and the Government rightly therefore does not interfere in these matters. The licence fee model confers on the BBC a unique responsibility to its audiences to place a particular focus on impartiality, which is the bedrock of trust in the BBC as an institution.</p><p>It is right that the Government engages constructively with the BBC to ensure that it upholds these high standards expected by the public. When there is a risk that trust and faith in the organisation may be undermined, that should be of concern to the BBC, of concern to Ofcom, and of concern to the Government and Parliament.</p> answering member printed Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay question first answered 26/03/2024 12:28:44 answering member 4728 label Biography information for Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay
tabling member	2533 label Biography information for Lord Birt

1695950

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
answering body	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
answering dept id	208
answering dept short name	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
hansard heading	Saudi Arabia: Women
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Saudi Arabia regarding the release of imprisoned women activists in that country, particularly (1) Manahel al-Otaibi, and (2) Salma al-Shehab.
tabling member printed	Baroness Cox
uin	HL3235
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/03/2024 answer text <p>We have raised the continued detention of individuals for expressing their political views, including women and women's rights defenders, with the Saudi government. The FCDO is closely monitoring both Manahel al-Otaibi and Salma al-Shehab's cases, and the British Embassy in Riyadh will continue to attempt to attend trials where possible. I, Minister for the Middle East, regularly raise individual freedom of expression cases with the Saudi authorities, including as recently as 31 January with the President of the Saudi Human Rights Commission. Saudi Arabia remains a FCDO human rights priority country, in part due to continued restrictions on freedom of expression.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 27/03/2024 17:00:14 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	3364 label Biography information for Baroness Cox