Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made on the proposed policy to restrict foreign donors from giving funds to UK political parties.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We are bringing forward a package of reforms which represents a substantial tightening of the UK’s political finance system. These measures will introduce strict new requirements on political donations to reduce the risk of foreign money entering UK politics. While the law already prohibits foreign donations, it is clear that the threat of foreign interference is evolving, becoming increasingly hostile and sophisticated.
Under new legislation, we will require enhanced checks by recipients of donations to consider the risk of political donations being illegitimate, ensure political donors declare any benefit or sources of funding connected to their donation and tighten the rules around company donations by allowing them to donate only if they have a genuine connection to the UK or Ireland.
The rules around political donations must be abided by regardless of the type of donation made, which includes donations made using cryptocurrency. Political donations can only be accepted from permissible sources, and the recipients of donations must make an honest assessment of the value of the donation at the time they receive it. The Electoral Commission provides guidance on donations, including for non-standard donations such as those made in cryptocurrencies.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to prevent wealthy foreign individuals from donating to UK political parties.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We are bringing forward a package of reforms which represents a substantial tightening of the UK’s political finance system. These measures will introduce strict new requirements on political donations to reduce the risk of foreign money entering UK politics. While the law already prohibits foreign donations, it is clear that the threat of foreign interference is evolving, becoming increasingly hostile and sophisticated.
Under new legislation, we will require enhanced checks by recipients of donations to consider the risk of political donations being illegitimate, ensure political donors declare any benefit or sources of funding connected to their donation and tighten the rules around company donations by allowing them to donate only if they have a genuine connection to the UK or Ireland.
The rules around political donations must be abided by regardless of the type of donation made, which includes donations made using cryptocurrency. Political donations can only be accepted from permissible sources, and the recipients of donations must make an honest assessment of the value of the donation at the time they receive it. The Electoral Commission provides guidance on donations, including for non-standard donations such as those made in cryptocurrencies.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the use of cryptocurrency for donations to UK political parties.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We are bringing forward a package of reforms which represents a substantial tightening of the UK’s political finance system. These measures will introduce strict new requirements on political donations to reduce the risk of foreign money entering UK politics. While the law already prohibits foreign donations, it is clear that the threat of foreign interference is evolving, becoming increasingly hostile and sophisticated.
Under new legislation, we will require enhanced checks by recipients of donations to consider the risk of political donations being illegitimate, ensure political donors declare any benefit or sources of funding connected to their donation and tighten the rules around company donations by allowing them to donate only if they have a genuine connection to the UK or Ireland.
The rules around political donations must be abided by regardless of the type of donation made, which includes donations made using cryptocurrency. Political donations can only be accepted from permissible sources, and the recipients of donations must make an honest assessment of the value of the donation at the time they receive it. The Electoral Commission provides guidance on donations, including for non-standard donations such as those made in cryptocurrencies.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what support they have provided to survivors of conflict-related sexual violence in Haiti.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
The UK strongly condemns the violence that continues to undermine efforts to restore democratic rule in Haiti, and the infliction of human rights abuses by gangs on the Haitian people, including rape and sexual violence against women and children. The UK contributes approximately £28 million per annum to development in Haiti via multilateral bodies including through the UN and its agencies. We have supported expansion of the Human Rights Team within the UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH), with a focus on addressing sexual and gender-based violence. We also funded the creation and implementation of the human rights compliance framework to the Multinational Security Support mission to Haiti and the designation of gang leaders under the UN Sanctions Regime for enabling human rights abuses.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question
To ask the Leader of the House what monitoring process is in place to ensure that responses to Written Questions answer the question that has been asked.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Basildon - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
As Leader I regularly remind Ministers of the importance of timely and accurate answers to written questions. I have met the working group of departmental Parliamentary Clerks and am scheduled to meet separately Permanent Secretaries next week to stress the importance of written questions and the need for those to be answered on time. Alongside this my office routinely contacts departments who have breached the 10 working day target.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question
To ask the Leader of the House whether audits are conducted by departments to assess the accuracy of answers given to Written Questions.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Basildon - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
It is the responsibility for departmental Ministers to ensure that answers to written questions are accurate and address the question posed by the Peer. It is for each individual department to decide its approach to auditing responses. The Guide to Parliamentary Work makes clear that “in responding to questions, ministers should follow the principles of the Ministerial Code making the utmost effort to give accurate and helpful answers”.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assistance they plan to provide to the government of Syria to clear landmines, improvised explosive devices, and other explosive weapons.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
Explosive ordnance continues to pose a significant threat to civilians and humanitarian workers across Syria, as well as preventing the rehabilitation of buildings such as schools and clinics, as well as agricultural land.
We provide funding to the mine action sector via the UK-led Aid Fund for Syria, the UK Global Mine Action Programme and the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs. We are working with partners to clear mines and unexploded ordnance in North East Syria, to allow restoration of services and landmines.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what are the rates of child poverty in (1) England, (2) Wales, (3) Scotland, and (4) Northern Ireland.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Relative low income after housing costs is the government’s headline measure of poverty. Based on a three-year average for 2021/22 to 2023/24, 31 per cent of children in England, 31 per cent of children in Wales, 23 per cent of children in Scotland, and 24 per cent of children in Northern Ireland were in relative low income after housing costs.
Further statistics on the number of children living in absolute and relative poverty in the UK are published annually in the “Households Below Average Income” publication, the latest available being: Households below average income: for financial years ending 1995 to 2024 - GOV.UK.
This government is committed to tackling child poverty and the Child Poverty Taskforce is developing an ambitious Child Poverty Strategy which we will publish in the autumn. We are considering all available levers as part of our strategy, including social security reforms, to give every child the best start in life. The causes of child poverty are wide-ranging and deep-rooted, and so it is right that the Taskforce carefully considers and assesses the available levers as it develops this Strategy.
In the meantime, we are pressing ahead with action.
As a significant downpayment ahead of strategy publication, we have already taken substantive action across major drivers of child poverty through the Spending Review 2025. The government will provide £410 million per year by 2028-29 to expand Free School Meals eligibility to all pupils in England with a parent receiving Universal Credit. The government will also provide £80 million per year by 2028-29 for early years and post-16 settings to support this expansion. This expansion will lift 100,000 children out of poverty by the end of the parliament. We are also establishing a long-term Crisis and Resilience Fund supported by £1bn a year, including £158 million to the devolved governments, investing in local family support services and extending the £3 bus fare cap.
In August, we confirmed funding of £600m for the Holiday Activities and Food programme for the next three years, ensuring that children and young people in England can continue to benefit from enriching experiences and nutritious meals during the school holidays.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Merron on 12 September (HL10050), what steps they are taking to accelerate the process to bring wounded children from Gaza to the United Kingdom.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government continues to work to evacuate some of the critically ill and injured children from Gaza. They will receive specialist treatment in National Health Service hospitals across the United Kingdom.
I refer the noble Lord to my Written Statement HLWS899 from 2 September 2025, available on the Parliament.UK website, which sets out the Government’s medical evacuation process from Gaza
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of their sanctions policy in relation to Israel, following that country’s attack on Qatar on 9 September.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
On 11 September, the UK's Permanent Representative to the UN, Dame Barbara Woodward, condemned Israel's strikes on Doha as a "flagrant violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Qatar," warning of the risk of further escalation. The Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary have both expressed grave concern over the incident, reaffirming UK solidarity with Qatar and calling for de-escalation. Since taking office, this Government has announced three packages of sanctions in relation to Israel/Palestine. In June we imposed sanctions on Israeli Cabinet Ministers Smotrich and Ben Gvir, in their personal capacity for inciting violence towards Palestinians, while the previous rounds targeted individuals, illegal settler outposts and organisations perpetrating and supporting violence against Palestinian communities in the West Bank.