Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to investigate the proposed acquisition of the Telegraph Media Group by RedBird IMI under the National Security and Investment Act 2021.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
The Government monitors the market at all times to identify acquisitions of potential national security interest. We do not routinely comment on individual transactions. As an open economy, the government welcomes foreign trade and investment where it supports growth and jobs in the UK, meets our stringent legal and regulatory requirements, and does not compromise our national security. However, the government will not hesitate to use our powers to protect national security where we identify concerns.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had (1) with, or (2) about, Hikvision regarding the removal of surveillance cameras which comply with China’s National Intelligence Law from (a) sensitive sites, and (b) the UK’s public procurement supply chain.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
The Cabinet Office has not had discussions with Hikvision regarding the removal of surveillance cameras produced by companies subject to China's National Intelligence Law. A letter was written on 1 August 2023 to confirm the position of the Government in respect of the Written Ministerial Statement of 24 November 2022.
We have had regular internal discussions about protecting the UK’s public procurement supply chain.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Procurement Act 2023 obliges police forces to remove Chinese-made surveillance equipment from sensitive sites.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
The Procurement Act 2023 does not oblige police forces to remove Chinese-made surveillance equipment from their estate. The government has committed to remove from sensitive government sites all surveillance equipment subject to the National Intelligence Law of the People’s Republic of China. This commitment does not extend to the wider public sector. However, public sector organisations, including police forces, may choose to mirror the action and I understand some have already done so.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether officials have met with Hikvision in the last year to discuss the Procurement Bill; and if so, what was discussed.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government which surveillance technology companies the Cabinet Office has shared its definition of "sensitive sites" with, as outlined in the Procurement Bill.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the publication on 14 September of their response to the report from the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament, China, when they will move a motion for debate to enable the House of Lords to discuss its findings and recommendations.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
I am pleased to refer the noble Lord to the upcoming debate on the government’s position on the long-term strategic challenges posed by China, to be held in the House of Lords on 19 October.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they plan to respond to the report of the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament China [HC 1605], published on 13 July; and whether they plan to hold a debate on the report.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
I refer the noble Lord to the written statement of 14 September 2023, Official Report, HLWS1012. I also refer to the answer of 11 September 2023, Official Report, Column 773.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to initial a debate in the House of Lords on the threat to UK security from the People’s Republic of China, particularly given the findings of the Report of the Intelligence and Security Committee, published on 13 July.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
HM Government is considering each of the recommendations and conclusions in the Intelligence & Security Committee’s report on China and will publish a full response to the report in due course, as per the Memorandum of Understanding agreed between the government and the committee.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will respond to the letter from Professor Fraser Sampson, Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner, to the Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office, concerning the ethical and security issues raised by surveillance camera technology.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
The Cabinet Office has been working closely with government departments to implement the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster’s Written Ministerial Statement of 24 November 2022. I can confirm that departments have ceased the deployment of visual surveillance equipment produced by companies subject to the National Intelligence Law of the People's Republic of China onto sensitive sites.
The statement also asked departments to consider whether they should remove and replace such equipment where it is deployed on sensitive sites rather than awaiting any scheduled upgrades. As the Parliamentary Secretary confirmed in the other place, the Government will set out the timeline for the removal of surveillance equipment supplied by companies subject to the national intelligence law of China from such sites within six months of the Procurement Bill receiving Royal Assent. The Cabinet Office has been working closely with Departments on this and I can confirm that good progress has already been made.
It is a longstanding Government policy that specific security arrangements regarding the Government estate, including any lists of sensitive sites and their locations, are withheld on security grounds. Security teams within government departments are responsible for identifying which of their locations are defined as sensitive against a common set of criteria.
Since the Written Ministerial Statement, we have also been working at pace to prepare for the implementation of the Procurement Bill, when it finishes its Parliamentary steps. Our efforts have focused on the setting up of the new National Security Unit for Procurement, which will administer the new national security debarment and exclusion powers that the Bill will provide.
The measures we have already taken on surveillance technology demonstrate that we will always put national security first and we will continue to keep risks such as this under close review. We will respond to the Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner’s letter on public space surveillance in due course. The Cabinet Office continues to monitor Government policy in this area, and is currently engaging with the Commissioner on this topic.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their response to the call from Professor Fraser Sampson, Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner, for a review of public space surveillance.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Shadow Minister (Treasury)
The Cabinet Office has been working closely with government departments to implement the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster’s Written Ministerial Statement of 24 November 2022. I can confirm that departments have ceased the deployment of visual surveillance equipment produced by companies subject to the National Intelligence Law of the People's Republic of China onto sensitive sites.
The statement also asked departments to consider whether they should remove and replace such equipment where it is deployed on sensitive sites rather than awaiting any scheduled upgrades. As the Parliamentary Secretary confirmed in the other place, the Government will set out the timeline for the removal of surveillance equipment supplied by companies subject to the national intelligence law of China from such sites within six months of the Procurement Bill receiving Royal Assent. The Cabinet Office has been working closely with Departments on this and I can confirm that good progress has already been made.
It is a longstanding Government policy that specific security arrangements regarding the Government estate, including any lists of sensitive sites and their locations, are withheld on security grounds. Security teams within government departments are responsible for identifying which of their locations are defined as sensitive against a common set of criteria.
Since the Written Ministerial Statement, we have also been working at pace to prepare for the implementation of the Procurement Bill, when it finishes its Parliamentary steps. Our efforts have focused on the setting up of the new National Security Unit for Procurement, which will administer the new national security debarment and exclusion powers that the Bill will provide.
The measures we have already taken on surveillance technology demonstrate that we will always put national security first and we will continue to keep risks such as this under close review. We will respond to the Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner’s letter on public space surveillance in due course. The Cabinet Office continues to monitor Government policy in this area, and is currently engaging with the Commissioner on this topic.