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1688308

registered interest
date	07/02/2024
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prisoners: Guardianship and Parents
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what is their most recent estimate for the number of children with (1) a parent in prison, and (2) a primary carer in prison.
tabling member printed	Lord Farmer
uin	HL2278
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/02/2024 answer text <p>The Ministry of Justice’s most comprehensive estimate remains that over the course of a year, approximately 200,000 children may be affected by a parent being in or going to prison. This estimate is based on 2009 survey data.</p><p>The Prison Strategy White paper detailed our intention to work with other government departments to commission updated research to improve our collective understanding of the overall number of children affected by parental incarceration.</p><p>As part of this work, changes have been made to the Basic Custody Screening Tool (BCST) to enable us to collect data on entry to prison about how many primary carers are in custody and how many children under the age of 18 are affected by their imprisonment, which means that we can access this information centrally. Questions contained within the BCST are under continuous review to reflect learning from operational colleagues and people with lived experience of prison. While the BCST does include questions on the sex and ages of dependents of prisoners, the collection of this information relies solely on self-declaration of the parent in prison and therefore may raise challenges as to the accuracy or consistency of this information without being able to verify with other sources.</p><p>The Government is delivering on its white paper commitment to improve our data and evidence in this area, through the Better Outcomes through Linked Data (BOLD) Programme. BOLD is a £19.7m cross government Shared Outcomes Fund programme which is linking data to enable better evidenced and more joined up cross government services. The purpose of BOLD is to identify the overall scale of the issue by improving our understanding of the number of children affected by parental imprisonment. The BOLD programme aims to do this by exploring data available across government, including information that does not rely on self-disclosure. We expect findings from the project to be published in Spring 2024.</p> answering member printed Lord Bellamy grouped question UIN HL2276 HL2277 question first answered 19/02/2024 14:55:21 answering member 4941 label Biography information for Lord Bellamy
tabling member	4321 label Biography information for Lord Farmer

1505804

registered interest
date	07/09/2022
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	Natural Gas: Storage
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what capacity of gas storage is likely to be achieved at the Rough gas site off the coast of Yorkshire for this coming winter.
tabling member printed	Baroness Redfern
uin	HL2278
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/09/2022 answer text <p>The Government welcomes Centrica taking the necessary steps to seek approvals to re-open the Rough storage facility this winter. Information on the available capacity of the site is a matter for Centrica.</p> answering member printed Lord Callanan question first answered 20/09/2022 15:08:19 answering member 4336 label Biography information for Lord Callanan
tabling member	4551 label Biography information for Baroness Redfern

1349345

registered interest
date	21/07/2021
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Arts: Education
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 impact of funding cuts to the high cost subsidy for creative arts courses at universities on the viability of these courses; and what steps they are taking to ensure equal access to creative arts courses in all educational settings.
tabling member printed	Lord Taylor of Warwick
uin	HL2278
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/08/2021 answer text <p>In January 2021, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education asked the Office for Students to reform the Strategic Priorities Grant for the academic year 2021/22 in order to ensure value for money and to support strategic priorities across the sector as well as disadvantaged students and under-represented groups.</p><p>The Office for Students ran a consultation on this matter and has recently published its conclusions. The responses to the consultation were carefully analysed, and the issues raised were considered by both the Office for Students and the Secretary of State in reaching their respective decisions about the allocation of the Strategic Priorities Grant in 2021/22.</p><p>These reforms include the reallocation of high-cost subject funding, which is one element of the Strategic Priorities Grant, towards the provision of high-cost subjects which support the NHS and wider healthcare policy, high-cost science, technology and engineering subjects, and subjects meeting specific labour market needs. As a result, the total funding for high-cost subjects such as medicine and engineering is 12% (£81 million) higher than last year. The high-cost subject funding rate for arts and music courses will be set at £121.50 in 2021/22 – the fall from 2020/21 is equivalent to a reduction of around 1% in combined funding (on a per-student basis) from a £9,250 tuition fee and Office for Students grant funding.</p><p>The government continues to value arts and social science subjects. High-quality provision in a range of subjects is critical for our workforce and our public services, as well as being intellectually rewarding and culturally enriching for those studying them and wider society.</p><p>As part of the same reform programme, we have asked the Office for Students to invest an additional £10 million in our world-leading specialist providers, many of which specialise in arts provision. We want to ensure that such providers receive additional support, and that grant funding is used effectively to support students.</p><p>The Office for Students continually monitors and assesses financial health in the higher education sector, working closely with any provider that shows increased risk of financial difficulties. The latest Office for Students report on the financial sustainability of higher education providers in England showed that the overall financial position of universities, colleges, and other higher education providers registered with the Office for Students across the higher education sector remains sound, with reasonable financial resilience.</p> answering member printed Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay question first answered 19/08/2021 14:54:16 answering member 4728 label Biography information for Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay
tabling member	1796 label Biography information for Lord Taylor of Warwick

1183186

registered interest
date	05/03/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	4G
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of England is covered by 4G.
tabling member printed	Lord Mawson
uin	HL2278
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/03/2020 answer text <p>The Government announced on 9 March that it had agreed a deal with the mobile network operators to deliver the Shared Rural Network programme. This will see Government and industry jointly invest to increase 4G mobile coverage throughout the UK to 95% geographic coverage by end-2025. Coverage is based on Ofcom’s definition of good quality 4G coverage, which is the minimum signal strength required to deliver a 90-second telephone call and a download speed of at least 2Mbit/s, 95% of the time.</p><p>The Shared Rural Network is underpinned by legally binding coverage commitments from each operator to have reached at least 90%, which will be assessed in 2026. Ofcom will regularly report on coverage improvements towards this goal through its Connected Nations report.</p><p>Exact site deployment plans will be managed by the operators themselves in order for them to best deliver the agreed coverage outcomes. However, we expect that consumers will feel the benefit of the programme long before its conclusion and the operators will consult with communities as roll out plans become clearer.</p><p>While the biggest improvements in coverage arising from the Shared Rural Network will be in Scotland and Wales, there will be improvements across all four nations. 4G geographic coverage in England is currently 97% from at least one operator and 81% from all four operators. As a result of the programme, this will increase to 98% coverage from at least one operator, and 90% from all four by end-2025.</p><p>The Shared Rural Network will help close the digital divide between urban and rural areas by improving mobile coverage in largely rural areas across the whole of the UK. The programme is not directly aimed at improving coverage in dense inner-city areas such as the West End of London which, typically, have good 4G coverage from all four operators, and it will remain a commercial decision for operators to decide whether to improve coverage in such areas.</p><p>We are aware of the European Commission’s Digital Economy and Society Index report 2019, which compares 4G coverage of homes across Member States. The report, available via the following link, <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/desi" target="_blank">https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/desi</a> suggests that in 2018, based on an average of operator coverage, there was 98% 4G coverage of UK homes. This compared to 95% for France, and an EU average of 94%. The Shared Rural Network will help to improve our European standing by providing additional coverage to 280,000 premises.</p><p>While the vast majority of commercial rollout of 5G services will be delivered by industry and according to their own timeframes, government is committed to being a world leader in 5G technology and providing a 5G signal to a majority of the population by 2027. The Government is investing in a nationally coordinated programme of 5G testbed facilities and application trials to help achieve this, and has allocated £200 million from the National Productivity Investment Fund to the 5G Programme, which launched in 2017 and will run until March 2022.</p> answering member printed Baroness Barran grouped question UIN HL2279 HL2280 HL2281 HL2282 HL2283 HL2350 question first answered 16/03/2020 16:31:57 answering member 4703 label Biography information for Baroness Barran
tabling member	3830 label Biography information for Lord Mawson

773563

registered interest
date	19/10/2017
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	Livestock: Animal Welfare
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the food welfare standards for hens and sows reared in Brazil, Thailand, Canada and the United States; and (2) whether future tariffs on imported poultry and pork products from those countries could be linked to higher animal welfare standards.
tabling member printed	Lord Laird
uin	HL2278
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/11/2017 answer text <p>Brazil, Canada, Thailand and the US all have laws designed to protect farm animals, and in the case of the United States they vary from state to state. Defra is not aware of any detailed comparative analysis of these countries’ welfare standards.</p><p> </p><p>All produce imported into the EU must comply with EU rules and these standards will apply to imports into the UK and domestic production when we leave the EU. As we move towards a new relationship with Europe and the rest of the world, we are determined to maintain our high standards and improve them where appropriate.</p><p> </p><p>Any future trade agreements must work for consumers, farmers, and businesses in the UK. We will not water down our standards on food safety, animal welfare and environmental protection as part of any future trade deals.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 02/11/2017 17:54:17 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	2479 label Biography information for Lord Laird

600525

registered interest
date	12/10/2016
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Consumer Goods: Imports
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what impact they expect the recent fall in the value of sterling to have on imported consumer goods.
tabling member printed	Lord Kennedy of Southwark
uin	HL2278
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/10/2016 answer text <p>Before the referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU, the UK government published short-term and long-term assessments of the likely impact on the UK economy from leaving the EU, including the effects of sterling revaluation. HM Government is monitoring economic developments closely and the independent Office for Budget Responsibility will produce an updated economic forecast alongside Autumn Statement 2016.</p> answering member printed Lord Young of Cookham question first answered 25/10/2016 11:09:30 answering member 57 label Biography information for Lord Young of Cookham
tabling member	4153 label Biography information for Lord Kennedy of Southwark

419205

registered interest
date	16/09/2015
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Religious Hatred
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to prevent attacks on Muslims and their places of worship in the light of the recent statistics from the Metropolitan Police Service showing an increase of 70 per cent in such attacks since July 2014.
tabling member printed	Baroness Tonge
uin	HL2278
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/10/2015 answer text <p>The Government takes the security of the Muslim and all other communities extremely seriously, and deplores all forms of hate crime. The Government is committed to stamping this out to ensure the safety and security of all our communities. Our new Counter-Extremism Strategy, due to be published later this year, will outline how we will further protect British Muslims, including communities worried about poisonous far right extremists who may be planning crimes such as attacks on mosques.</p><p>Ensuring that there is effective security at crowded places and potentially vulnerable sites, such as mosques, remains a priority for the Government. We work with the police to ensure the safety and security of all communities, and considerable advice and guidance has already been provided to mosques, madrassahs, synagogues, and other religious sites; for example, we have drawn upon the expertise of Bradford Council of Mosques and the Community Security Trust to develop security guidance for all mosques in the light of the 2014 incursions by Britain First.</p><p>The Department for Communities and Local Government also chairs a cross-Government working group on anti-Muslim hatred, which includes community organisations and representatives, to consider and develop initiatives to seek to combat hate crime.</p><p>Police forces continue to be alert to combating and responding to crimes being committed against members of the Muslim community, and to taking appropriate steps to safeguard people and property. Monitoring of the security situation and specific threats to communities remains under regular review, and if there is a need to consider additional measures to ensure the security of the Muslim or any other community, then these will be undertaken as and when it is appropriate to do so.</p> answering member printed Lord Bates question first answered 05/10/2015 15:51:58 answering member 1091 label Biography information for Lord Bates
tabling member	200 label Biography information for Baroness Tonge

100072

registered interest
date	21/10/2014
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Asylum: Finance
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to abolish the Azure payment card and amend legislation to enable the provision of cash support for all refused asylum seekers until they are either given status in the United Kingdom or return to their country of origin.
tabling member printed	Lord Roberts of Llandudno
uin	HL2278
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/10/2014 answer text <p>The Azure card is issued to destitute failed asylum seekers accommodated under section 4 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 because they are temporarily unable to leave the United Kingdom. The card can be used at most of the main supermarket chains to purchase food and other essential items. The performance of the card is kept under regular review but the Government is satisfied that it is an effective way of ensuring that recipients are able to meet their essential living needs and are not left destitute.</p><p> </p><p>The Government therefore has no plans to abolish the card or change legislation to allow people supported under section 4 to receive cash instead.</p><p> </p><p>The total administrative costs of the card scheme since it was introduced in 2009 are approximately £1,515,000. Estimated administrative costs for the current financial year are £200,000.</p><p> </p><p>The Government published its response to the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee report about asylum procedures in December 2013 (cm 8769). A response to the Committee’s views on section 4 support was set out on page 18-19.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Bates grouped question UIN HL2277 HL2279 HL2280 HL2281 question first answered 28/10/2014 15:17:55 answering member 1091 label Biography information for Lord Bates
tabling member	3691 label Biography information for Lord Roberts of Llandudno