Asked by: Lord Bishop of Norwich (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the feasibility of making coagulometers available for loan to patients self-testing International Normalised Ratio levels on the same basis that blood glucose testing meters are available free to diabetics through the NHS.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is important that patients on warfarin have regular blood tests to monitor their International Normalised Ratio levels. Patients can be tested in their general practice (GP) surgery or hospital anticoagulant clinic. The Department has not made an assessment of how best to provide coagulometers as the decision on how best to run and fund testing is a local decision. Self-testing is possible if the clinician was confident of the results and if the GP or anticoagulant clinic chose to fund the testing in this way. We are not aware of patients being asked to pay for a coagulometer to self-test.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Norwich (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government why patients on warfarin are expected to pay for a coagulometer to self-test International Normalised Ratio levels or use an NHS nurse appointment for monitoring.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is important that patients on warfarin have regular blood tests to monitor their International Normalised Ratio levels. Patients can be tested in their general practice (GP) surgery or hospital anticoagulant clinic. The Department has not made an assessment of how best to provide coagulometers as the decision on how best to run and fund testing is a local decision. Self-testing is possible if the clinician was confident of the results and if the GP or anticoagulant clinic chose to fund the testing in this way. We are not aware of patients being asked to pay for a coagulometer to self-test.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Norwich (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they intend to support the COP29 Collective Quantified Goal of at least $300 billion per year from the developed world by 2035.
Answered by Lord Whitehead - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
COP29 agreed a collective goal to provide at least $300bn from a broad range of public and private sources, with developed countries taking the lead.
The UK is committed to providing International Climate Finance now and in the future, and to playing our part alongside other developed countries and climate finance providers to deliver our international commitments. The UK is on track to deliver £11.6bn in International Climate Finance by the end of this financial year. Future spending plans will be set out following the completion of the Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocation process.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Norwich (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made towards mandating UK-regulated financial institutions and FTSE 100 companies to implement transition plans aligned with the Paris Agreement; and what timetable they intend to set for introducing such requirements.
Answered by Lord Whitehead - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The government ran a consultation from June to September 2025 seeking views on how to implement transition plan requirements. We received extensive feedback from a wide range of stakeholders and are currently reviewing responses. The Government will set out next steps, including any decisions on the introduction and timing of future requirements, in due course.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Norwich (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the use of charitable funds originating from the UK being used to support and maintain illegal settlements in Palestine; and whether they will undertake a review of this practice.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem are illegal under international law and harm prospects for a two-state solution. The Government and the Charity Commission expect charities in the UK to act lawfully, in line with their charitable purposes and for the public benefit. Any concerns about charities engaging in inappropriate or unlawful activity should be referred to the Charity Commission.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Norwich (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support international nature restoration, following their report National security assessment on global ecosystems, published on 20 January.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The National security assessment on global ecosystems deepens our understanding of how biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation affect national and global stability. This analysis informs our engagement with international partners and supports collective action to address shared biodiversity challenges.
The UK is taking comprehensive action to strengthen resilience to environmental risks at home and overseas. This includes support for conflict prevention, climate adaptation, early warning systems and sustainable livelihoods, alongside targeted investments through International Climate Finance. The Government is investing £11.6 billion including £3 billion for nature, supporting tropical rainforests, marine habitats and indigenous communities. The Government is also backing innovative finance such as the eco.business Fund and the Land Degradation Neutrality Fund, which mobilise private sector investment to restore degraded land, enhance biodiversity and strengthen climate resilience globally.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Norwich (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the report National security assessment on global ecosystems, published on 20 January, what plans they have to prioritise the protection and restoration of ecosystems, particularly those that support the UK food system.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK is taking action to strengthen resilience to environmental risks at home and overseas, investing in forest and ocean protection and supporting the transition to more sustainable food and land use globally.
This includes strengthening supply chain resilience through the Critical Imports and Supply Chains Strategy and supporting sustainable agriculture globally through International Climate Finance (ICF) investments. The UK is on track to deliver £11.6 billion in ICF by the end of FY25/26, of which £3 billion should be Nature finance.
The Government has also recently published the revised Environmental Improvement Plan, which will help us to restore nature, improve environmental quality, and protect environmental security. Furthermore, our Food Strategy calls for action that will reduce the impact of our food system on the natural environment and build sustainability and resilience into our food supply chain. Together with our Farming Roadmap and Land Use Framework, we will enhance UK food security by protecting and stabilising food production and supply; and accelerate the green financial transition to drive economic growth at home and abroad.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Norwich (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of reducing overseas aid on the UK’s response to the security risks posed by climate change.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
We are committed to addressing the threats from the climate and nature crisis to our national security and economic prosperity, but as we reduce our overall aid budget, we need to achieve more with less by targeting our support where it has the most impact. The UK has a long track record of delivering that impact through our International Climate Finance, and we are on track to deliver £11.6 billion in International Climate Finance by the end of the financial year 2025/26.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Norwich (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government how the proposed extension of existing gas and oil drilling in the North Sea aligns with calls arising from the Global Stocktake to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels, as recommended by the Climate Change Committee.
Answered by Lord Whitehead - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The North Sea Future Plan sets out the Government’s globally standard setting, 1.5°C and climate science aligned approach to future oil and gas production, including how we will deliver our commitment not to issue new licences to explore new fields.
The Government is also introducing new Transitional Energy Certificates to enable some oil and gas production in areas adjacent to already licensed fields, to ensure existing fields can be managed for their lifespan. Developers will not be permitted to carry out new exploration on these areas.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Norwich (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have for legislation to make it mandatory for insurance companies to provide flood cover at an affordable and fair price, to supersede the temporary Flood Re scheme.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In 2024/25, Flood Re provided cover for over 346,000 household policies. 650,000 properties have benefitted since the scheme’s launch and 99% of householders at high risk of flooding can now obtain quotes from 10 or more insurers.
Flood Re have a statutory purpose to manage the transition to a risk-reflective market of flood insurance between 2016 and 2039 when the scheme is expected to end. Flood Re publishes a Transition Plan every five years outlining progress and actions to manage this transition. Flood Re's next Transition plan (Transition Plan 4) will be published in 2028.
We recognise that climate change and population growth could further impact on the future costs of home insurance. This is why we have committed to reviewing, by the end of this Parliament, how both government and industry are responding to these new challenges and creating the conditions for this transition.
The review will consider current and future actions to ensure that the insurance market can enable access to affordable flood insurance from 2039, without the need for ongoing government intervention.