Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they reimburse the Royal National Lifeboat Institution for assistance with boats bringing migrants across the Channel; and, if so, what is the basis for that reimbursement; and what is the total cost to date.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

HM Government does not reimburse the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) for any Search and Rescue (SAR) activity and does not differentiate the SAR response to small boats crossing the Channel from any other type of SAR.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to change the rules on the compulsory purchase of land for infrastructure projects such as HS2 so that farmers receive 100 per cent of the land value rather than 90 per cent.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The overriding principle of compulsory purchase compensation is ‘equivalence’, so that landowners are left neither better nor worse off (at least in monetary terms) as a result of their land being compulsorily acquired.

Compulsory purchase compensation is based on the open market value of the land acquired in the absence of the scheme, for example, regeneration project or railway line, underlying the compulsory purchase. This is known as the “no scheme principle”. Under the no-scheme principle, any increases or decreases in the value of the land attributable to the compulsory purchase scheme, or the prospect of the scheme, are disregarded when assessing compensation for the value of land acquired. The Government has no plans to change this principle.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what were the running costs of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration in the first full year of operation following its establishment; what were the annual running costs for the latest year for which figures are available; and what has been the total cost since its inception.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Government does not hold information on the running costs of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration which was established in 1967 and was superseded by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) in 1973. Information on the running costs of the PHSO are set out in its published annual reports and accounts. The running costs for the years for which the PHSO holds information are as follows:

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many ombudsman bodies exist in the United Kingdom; and who is responsible for their funding.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Cabinet Office is responsible for a subset of public bodies administratively classified as Arm's-Length Bodies, which include Executive Agencies, Non-Departmental Public Bodies, and Non-Ministerial Departments.

There is no statutory definition of "ombudsman" in government, and bodies with varying functions can be labelled as ombudsman

Data on which ALBs are ombudsman bodies, or how they are funded, is not held centrally.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many farms have lost land to, or been affected by, the route of HS2.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

HS2 records show 346 farms were included within both Acts of Parliament. These Farms will be impacted to varying degrees, including through loss of land due to acquisition or other effects, such as impacts to access or impacts from noise.