Asked by: Baroness Young of Old Scone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the proposed designs for East West Rail include any structures which are solely for the protection of bats.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The proposed designs for East West Rail do not include any structures which are solely for the protection of bats. The proposed structures along the line of route, including the tunnel at Chapel Hill, are designed to provide the best solution based on a range of factors, including engineering and cost as well as impacts to communities and the environment.
Asked by: Baroness Young of Old Scone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of Heritage Lottery Fund grants have been awarded in each of the devolved nations in each of the last 15 years.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The National Lottery Heritage Fund awards funding to projects in all of the UK’s devolved nations.
The proportion of National Lottery Heritage Fund funding awarded in Northern Ireland over the last 15 years is; 2010 - 4%, 2011 - 2%, 2012 - 2%, 2013 - 8%, 2014 - 1%, 2015 - 2%, 2016 - 4%, 2017 - 5%, 2018 - 4%, 2019 - 2%, 2020 - 4%, 2021 - 1%, 2022 - 7%, 2023 - 3%, 2024 - 4%.
The proportion of National Lottery Heritage Fund funding awarded in Scotland over the last 15 years is; 2010 - 10%, 2011 - 10%, 2012 - 14%, 2013 - 9%, 2014 - 6%, 2017 - 11%, 2018 - 11%, 2019 - 7%, 2020 - 3%, 2021 - 5%, 2022 - 5%, 2023 - 9%, 2024 - 12%.
The proportion of National Lottery Heritage Fund funding awarded in Wales over the last 15 years is; 2010 - 10%, 2011 - 5%, 2012 - 3%, 2013 - 3%, 2014 - 6%, 2015 - 5%, 2016 - 6%, 2017 - 11%, 2018 - 11%, 2019 - 7%, 2020 - 3%, 2021 - 5%, 2022 - 5%, 2023 - 9%, 2024 - 12%.
Asked by: Baroness Young of Old Scone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have discussed the transfer of responsibility for the Heritage Lottery Fund to Historic England with the Heritage Lottery Fund, Historic England or the devolved administrations.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Under the previously announced Cabinet Office Arm’s Length Bodies review, Government is considering how to ensure all its public bodies, including the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Historic England, are as efficient and effective as possible and where we can bring certain functions under closer ministerial scrutiny to deliver better outcomes for communities and the places they live in. This initiative aligns with the Government's wider strategy to foster a more productive and agile public sector and has involved wide ranging discussions on a number of areas. If there are implications for the devolved nations on this, the department will reach out to them for discussions.
Asked by: Baroness Young of Old Scone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of Heritage Lottery Fund grants have been awarded for the natural environment in each of the last 15 years.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Since 1994, The National Lottery Heritage Fund has awarded over £2 billion to more than 4,500 land, nature and biodiversity projects across the UK.
Protecting the environment is one of the National Lottery Heritage Fund's four investment principles and they are prioritising landscape and nature projects that support nature’s recovery, deliver nature-based solutions to address climate change, and reconnect people with landscapes, marine environments and nature. Recent targeted work in this area has included the launch of Nature Towns and Cities, a partnership initiative that brings together organisations from across the UK to improve the quality of and access to urban green spaces, and Landscape Connections, a £150million strategic initiative supporting world-class landscapes across the UK to become better for nature and people.
The following proportionates of National Lottery Heritage Grant funding awarded to the natural environment are; 2010 - 28%, 2011 - 23%, 2012 - 23%, 2013 - 17%, 2014 - 25%, 2015 - 23%, 2016 - 26%, 2017 - 25%, 2018 - 19%, 2020 - 26%, 2021 - 28%, 2022 - 21%, 2023 - 24%, 2024 - 15%.
Asked by: Baroness Young of Old Scone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in implementing the recommendations of the report of the Tree Council Protecting trees of high social, cultural and environmental value published in April, and in developing an action plan for and improving the legal protection of important trees.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We are carefully considering expert recommendations laid out in the Tree Council and Forest Research report. It will be important to balance our approach with existing priorities and our statutory obligations.
We recognise the value of our most important trees and consider all ancient and veteran trees to be irreplaceable habitats. The Sycamore Gap sentencing demonstrates that our judicial system takes illegal tree felling seriously.
Asked by: Baroness Young of Old Scone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to publish a land use framework for England, what land uses this will cover, and whether it will be subject to formal consultation.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The way we use and manage our land is already changing in response to pressures like climate change. It is time that government works openly with stakeholders and experts to understand and support the changes needed to keep nature and food production in England resilient.
The Government will do this by taking a collaborative approach to publishing a Land Use Framework for England. The Framework will consider issues such as food security and how we can expand nature-rich habitats such as wetlands, peat bogs and forests.
Spatial planning will play an important role in the delivery of the Government’s growth and clean energy missions, and the land use framework will work hand in hand with the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan. The Government will also explore the opportunities for spatial planning to support the delivery of other types of infrastructure.
Asked by: Baroness Young of Old Scone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will, in line with previous commitments, publish a land use framework for England in 2023.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Lord Chamberlain (HM Household)
The Land Use Framework will be published in due course. The Framework will build on the insight from the House of Lords Land Use in England Committee’s inquiry and support delivery of the full range of Government commitments through multifunctional, resilient and productive landscapes.
Asked by: Baroness Young of Old Scone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of households eligible for Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding have not yet made an application.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Department estimated there were around 930,000 households who were potentially eligible for the Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding (EBSS AF) across Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Figures published on GOV.UK on 11th May show that, as of 3rd May, there were a total of 169,770 applications for the scheme in Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Take-up figures for the scheme will be updated on 15th June 2023.
Asked by: Baroness Young of Old Scone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the proportion of households eligible for Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding who have been wrongly denied the funding on the basis that they have received the £400 via their electricity supplier.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Department has not made any assessment of the proportion of households eligible for the Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding who have wrongly been denied funding on the basis that they have received the £400 via their electricity supplier. If individuals believe this to be the case, they can request a review of their application by calling the contact centre on 0808 175 3287 (0808 175 3894 for Northern Ireland).
Asked by: Baroness Young of Old Scone (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to extend the application period for Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding beyond 31 May to account for social housing providers who are supporting their residents through the application process.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding launched on 27 February providing 3 months for eligible applicants to apply before the scheduled 31 May deadline. The government does not currently propose to extend the application period. Throughout the scheme we have engaged with social housing partners, providing them with information to help support their residents through the application process.