Asked by: Lord Black of Brentwood (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Chapman of Darlington on 3 April (HL6029), what are the names of the current members of the Royal Visits Committee.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As answered in PQ HL6029, the membership of the Royal Visits Committee is chaired by the Permanent Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and consists of senior representatives from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Royal Households, No.10, Department for Business and Trade and the Cabinet Office.
We will not be disclosing individual names because officials need to be free to discuss and provide advice in an environment which maintains trust and confidence in the decision-making process.
Asked by: Lord Black of Brentwood (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government when a meeting of the Royal Visits Committee was held to agree that an invitation for a state visit should be offered to President Trump, which members of the Committee were present at that meeting, and whether they will publish the minutes of that meeting.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
His Majesty will only extend a State Visit invitation following a formal recommendation from the Prime Minister. The Royal Visits Committee (RVC) provides advice to the Prime Minister, drawing on views from across HM Government.
The disclosure of RVC meeting minutes could potentially impact the bilateral relationship between the United Kingdom and the countries concerned. This would reduce the UK government's ability to protect and promote UK interests internationally.
Officials also need to be free to make and provide advice in an environment which maintains trust and confidence with the RVC membership and the decision-making process itself.
Asked by: Lord Black of Brentwood (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of osteoporotic fractures on hospital bed occupancy.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The latest data for 2023/4 on hospital inpatient admissions with a primary diagnosis of 'Osteoporosis with pathological fracture' shows that patients with this diagnosis accounted for 60,760 ‘bed days’, or approximately 0.1% of the overall total number of bed days that year.
The Government recognises that patients around the country, including those suffering from osteoporosis, are waiting too long for care and treatment. Our Plan for Change will get the health service back on its feet and make it fit for the future.
Asked by: Lord Black of Brentwood (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many teachers were employed in primary and secondary state-funded schools in England on 31 December 2024.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
Information on the school workforce, including the number of teachers in each school phase and type, is published in the ‘School workforce in England’ statistical publication, which can be found at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england.
As of November 2023, the latest date for which data is available, there were 218,534 full-time equivalent (FTE) teachers employed in state-funded nursery and primary schools in England and 217,563 FTE teachers employed in state-funded secondary schools in England.
School workforce statistics as of November 2024 will be published in June 2025.
Asked by: Lord Black of Brentwood (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that all medicines approved for treatment of osteoporosis by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence are available in (1) integrated care systems and (2) local formularies.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) makes recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new licensed medicines should be routinely funded by the NHS based on an assessment of their costs and benefits.
The NHS in England is legally required to fund medicines recommended by the NICE, usually within three months of final guidance.
The 2025/26 NHS Standard Contract, which applies to all contracts between NHS commissioners and providers, stipulates that, where any service involves or may involve the prescribing of medicines, the provider must ensure that its formulary reflects all relevant positive NICE technology appraisals.
The NICE has also published guidance on developing and updating local formularies, which is intended to support commissioners and healthcare providers in developing formularies that reflect local needs, reduce variation in prescribing, and allow for the rapid adoption of new medicines and treatments. Further information is available on the NICE website, in an online only format.
Asked by: Lord Black of Brentwood (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Chapman of Darlington on 11 March (HL5400), whether they will publish the membership of the Royal Visit Committee.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Royal Visits Committee is chaired by the Permanent Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and consists of senior representatives from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Royal Households, No.10, Department for Business and Trade and the Cabinet Office.
Asked by: Lord Black of Brentwood (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have responded to the letter sent to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs by the Low-Welfare Act Coalition, dated 19 February, concerning the implementation of the Animals (Low-Welfare Activities Abroad) Act 2023; and if so, whether they will publish that correspondence.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has received the Low-Welfare Act Coalition’s open letter dated 19 February and a reply will be shared with representatives of the coalition shortly.
Asked by: Lord Black of Brentwood (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hanson of Flint on 26 February (HL4971), by what date current funding for Operation Grange provided by the Home Office will be exhausted; and whether they intend to publish details of any subsequent requests for funding if they are made.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Funding from the Police Special Grant is drawn from the wider Police Funding Settlement. As such, budgets and awards are agreed annually. At the start of this financial year, previous Ministers agreed to provide the Metropolitan Police with up to £191,800 in respect of Operation Grange for 2024-25. Funding for 2025-26 will be decided in due course.
Special Grant awards are published on the Home Office website after the end of the financial year to which they relate. Police funding: special grant applications - GOV.UK
Asked by: Lord Black of Brentwood (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to introduce a ban on the retail sale of eggs and egg products from caged hens; and, if not, whether they plan to establish a consultation on the issue.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The transition to non-cage egg production has been accelerated in recent years by the major supermarkets pledging to stop selling shell eggs from hens kept in colony cages by 2025, and some supermarkets have extended this to products containing liquid or powdered eggs.
We remain firmly committed to maintaining and improving animal welfare and want to work closely with the farming sector to deliver high standards. The use of cages for laying hens is an issue which we are currently considering very carefully.
Asked by: Lord Black of Brentwood (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Animal Welfare Committee’s report Opinion on the welfare implications of current and emergent feline breeding practices, published in September 2024, and its recommendation that the breeding of cats with known and harmful extreme traits should be banned.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government welcomes the Animal Welfare Committee’s Opinion on the welfare implications of current and emergent feline breeding practices. We are carefully considering the Committee’s recommendations.