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Speech in Grand Committee - Wed 15 Jun 2022
Public Procurement (International Trade Agreements) (Amendment) Regulations 2022

"I, too, am pleased to speak to some of the issues before us this afternoon and thank and congratulate my noble friend on bringing forward the regulations. My noble friend Lord Lansley has eloquently addressed a number of issues on the relationship between this instrument and the public procurement Bill. …..."
Baroness McIntosh of Pickering - View Speech

View all Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Con - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Public Procurement (International Trade Agreements) (Amendment) Regulations 2022

Written Question
Infrastructure: Reviews
Wednesday 9th March 2022

Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government when they last undertook a review of critical infrastructure, including electricity substations and their resilience to the threat of flooding; and how frequently such reviews are undertaken.

Answered by Lord True - Shadow Leader of the House of Lords

Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) in the UK, including the energy sector, is subject to thorough scrutiny and sectors need to satisfy stringent sectoral regulatory and national security requirements. Sector Security and Resilience Plans (SSRPs) are produced annually by the 13 CNI sectors, this assurance process asks Lead Government Departments to detail the activity ongoing in their sectors to improve security and resilience to a host of risks, including those from the National Security Risk Assessment such as flooding. For the energy sector specifically, the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) independently oversees and enforces the UK’s energy regulatory regime.

A large portion of the UK’s CNI is in private sector hands, and the Government works continuously with CNI owners and operators to support and ensure the security and resilience of their sites and systems. This approach ensures sectors prepare for a range of both malicious risks (threats) and non-malicious risks (hazards), including that of flooding.

The Environment Agency is working with national infrastructure providers and government departments to improve planning for current and future flood risks. This work forms one of the main themes within the Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy for England.


Written Question
Electronic Warfare
Tuesday 18th January 2022

Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of cyber attacks there have been in each of the last three years on UK companies by a hostile state; and what is their policy to prevent such attacks.

Answered by Lord True - Shadow Leader of the House of Lords

Our new National Cyber Strategy, launched in December 2021, sets out how we will ensure that the UK continues to be a leading, responsible and democratic cyber power, able to protect and promote our interests in the rapidly evolving online world. This includes our approach to making the UK more resilient to cyber attacks and countering cyber threats. It is supported by £2.6 billion of investment over three years.

Over the past three years, the National Cyber Security Centre has dealt with a total of 2158 significant cyber incidents affecting people and organisations across the UK: 658 in 2019, 723 in 2020 and 777 in 2021. The 2021 Cyber Security Breaches Survey shows that 39% of businesses identified a cyber attack in the last 12 months, 46% in 2020 and 32% in 2019. We are not in a position to be able to identify all cyber attacks against UK companies or attribute responsibility for every attack.

The UK will do what is necessary to protect ourselves through our world leading capability in this area. We are vigilant to cyber threats, wherever they come from, and ready to defend against them. We are continuing to work to make the UK more resilient to cyber threats and raise the cost for those who would do us harm.


Speech in Lords Chamber - Thu 16 Dec 2021
EU–UK Partnership Council

"My Lords, in addition to the Horizon programme, which is causing some concern, my noble friend will be aware of the ongoing anxiety about the REACH programme. For those who have been affected by the fact that the unilateral UK REACH programme is not as comprehensive but is proving more …..."
Baroness McIntosh of Pickering - View Speech

View all Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Con - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: EU–UK Partnership Council

Written Question
Northern Ireland Protocol: UK–EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement
Monday 29th November 2021

Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to apply the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland; and what assessment they have made of the implications of this application for the UK–EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement.

Answered by Lord Frost

The Government has invested substantial funding to implement the Northern Ireland Protocol in line with our current obligations and to support businesses adjusting to this change, including through the Trader Support Service and the Movement Assistance Scheme (MAS). We have already spent over £150m on these services. The forecast spend for the Trader Support Service is for £360m over the full two years to the end of 2022 and the forecast for MAS is that total spend could run to up to £150m.

The Northern Ireland Protocol is not part of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA). Nevertheless, there have been suggestions that the EU would take retaliatory actions under the TCA should the UK invoke the Article 16 safeguards. This would aggravate the problems in Northern Ireland rather than reduce them. Article 16 is a legitimate safeguard within the Protocol and we would urge the European Commission to consider the impact of such disproportionate actions.


Speech in Lords Chamber - Thu 18 Nov 2021
Retained EU Law

"Will my noble friend ensure that any such review of retained EU legislation will be based on fact and science? He will recall that when the EU nitrates directive was adopted, the bar was set very high to prevent any recurrence of blue babies. There has been no blue baby …..."
Baroness McIntosh of Pickering - View Speech

View all Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Con - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Retained EU Law

Speech in Lords Chamber - Mon 08 Nov 2021
UK Cash Network

"Will my noble friend give an assurance that there will continue to be access to cash in rural areas? Could he please define what, in his view, is a reasonable distance to travel to pay in or take out cash?..."
Baroness McIntosh of Pickering - View Speech

View all Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Con - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: UK Cash Network

Speech in Grand Committee - Wed 03 Nov 2021
Budget Statement

"My Lords, I follow my noble friend in adding my congratulations to the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Newcastle on not just her speech but, as others have commented, her years of service to the Church and her public service generally. I wish her every success. As a money …..."
Baroness McIntosh of Pickering - View Speech

View all Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Con - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Budget Statement

Speech in Lords Chamber - Thu 21 Oct 2021
Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland: EU Proposals

"I think my noble friend would agree that the Northern Ireland protocol is an integral part of the withdrawal agreement. Does he not share my concern that, if we go back and seek to renegotiate the Northern Ireland protocol, we will open up and have to renegotiate the withdrawal agreement …..."
Baroness McIntosh of Pickering - View Speech

View all Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Con - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland: EU Proposals

Speech in Lords Chamber - Mon 11 Oct 2021
Health and Social Care Levy Bill

"My Lords, I congratulate the Government on at least tackling what is a very vexatious part of government policy. I refer to my interests: the work I do with the Dispensing Doctors’ Association and the fact that I was a dispensing doctor’s daughter and a dispensing doctor’s sister.

There has …..."

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering - View Speech

View all Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Con - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Health and Social Care Levy Bill