Asked by: Lord Palmer (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question
To ask the Leader of the House what steps he is taking to encourage members to keep supplementary questions short and succinct.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
I agree with the noble Lord that members should aim to keep their contributions concise and, in accordance with the Companion, confined to no more than two points. This enables as many peers from across the House as possible the opportunity to scrutinise the Government.
It is the responsibility of the whole House to work collectively on this issue and I am sure the usual channels will make every effort to ensure their members keep to this standard of practice. In June 2022 the usual channels wrote collectively to all members to remind them of these rules and the courtesies of the House more generally.
I will also remind colleagues of the importance of ministers providing succinct answers to questions, in accordance with the practice of the House, to enable the House to operate in the most effective manner including the recommendation that initial answers should be no more than 75 words.
Asked by: Lord Palmer (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the imposition of fines on people who ride bicycles on pavements.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government has no plans to review the imposition of fines on people who ride bicycles on the footway.
Except in designated areas (such as shared used paths), cycling on the pavement (“footway”) is an offence under Section 72 of the Highways Act 1835. Officers can issue verbal warnings, fixed penalty notices or report the road user for formal prosecution.
The enforcement of cycling on the footway and other cycling offences is an operational matter for the police.
Asked by: Lord Palmer (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what employment package the minister responsible for the implementation of HS2 will receive.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
The list of Ministerial responsibilities is available on gov.uk. An updated list will be published in due course. Ministerial salaries are published on gov.uk and set in accordance with the Ministerial and Other Salaries Act 1975.
Asked by: Lord Palmer (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker what was the cost of this year's refurbishment of the House of Lords' River Restaurant.
Answered by Lord Laming
The Senior Deputy Speaker has asked me, as Chair of the Services Committee, to respond on his behalf. A full refurbishment of the seating area, fridges and payment stands in the River Restaurant was carried out in September and October 2019. The new design has increased the number of available seats by four and improved the accessibility and flow of the area.
The costs for this project are laid out below:
Enabling and redecoration works: £35,000
Equipment and fittings: £83,207
Total Cost of Project: £118,207
Asked by: Lord Palmer (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker what estimate he has made of the total cost of the sitting of the House of Lords on Saturday 19 October.
Answered by Lord McFall of Alcluith
It is not possible to provide a reliable estimate of the total cost of the sitting of the House on Saturday 19 October at this stage. The costs incurred will relate to additional staff costs and claims that Members may submit in relation to their attendance on that date. Such claims can be submitted up to the end of November and once the figures are available an update will be provided. Other directly attributable costs will be disclosed if available. However, for some general running costs, for example heating and lighting etc., it will not be possible to attribute those to a specific date.
Asked by: Lord Palmer (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker what was the total cost of providing new uniforms for parliamentary security staff; and what proportion of that cost was paid by the House of Lords.
Answered by Lord McFall of Alcluith
The total cost of providing over 350 new uniforms for parliamentary security staff was £150,000. The proportion of that cost paid by the House of Lords was £45,000.
Asked by: Lord Palmer (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government who is (1) accountable for the British Transport Police, and (2) responsible for making operational decisions regarding the deployment of British Transport Police officers on passenger trains across the UK.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The British Transport Police Authority (BTPA), an arm’s length body of the Department, is responsible for setting the BTP’s strategy, policing plans and budget, holding the BTP force to account, and ensuring its effectiveness and efficiency. The Chief Constable of the BTP is responsible for making operational decisions on the deployment of BTP officers on the rail network across England, Scotland and Wales.
Asked by: Lord Palmer (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is (1) the role, and (2) the total complement, of the British Transport Police.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The British Transport Police (BTP) is responsible for policing the rail network across England, Scotland and Wales, providing a service to rail operators, their staff and passengers. It also polices the London Underground, Docklands Light Railway, the Midland Metro tram system, Croydon Tramlink, Tyne and Wear Metro, Glasgow Subway and Emirates AirLine. The BTP has 3107 police officers, 303 police community support officers, 311 special officers and 1567 police staff (as at 31 March 2019).
Asked by: Lord Palmer (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker what is the cost of the new clocks in the House of Lords Chamber.
Answered by Lord McFall of Alcluith
The new clocks in the House of Lords Chamber were procured together with new clocks for Grand Committee. Together the new clocks for the Chamber and Grand Committee cost £23,709.60. This includes the cost of the bespoke design, software, hardware and installation. It is inclusive of VAT.
The clocks are maintained by the same company that maintains the clocks in the House of Commons. Together the two Houses pay an annual maintenance fee of £3,596 per annum. The House of Lords pays 40% of this cost.
Asked by: Lord Palmer (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker what was the total cost of the production of Issue 1 of the House of Lords Library magazine The Library, published in April; and what estimate he has made of the future costs of the publication of that magazine.
Answered by Lord Laming
The total cost of production for issue 1 of the House of Lords Library Magazine The Library published in April was £2,642.50 plus VAT (template and printing). The magazine is available in print and digitally, and the cost of future issues will therefore depend upon the demand for printed copies. Likely subscriber numbers indicate a cost for printing of £185 plus VAT per issue, and it is expected that The Library will be published approximately nine times per year.