Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what role, if any, they have in removing a Lord Lieutenant or Deputy Lord Lieutenant from office.
Answered by Earl Howe - Shadow Deputy Leader of the House of Lords
Lord-Lieutenants (LLs) are HM The Queen’s representatives in each county and metropolitan area of the UK. Their primary role is to uphold the dignity of the Crown. They are Crown appointments, appointed by The Queen on the recommendation of the Prime Minister.
There is an expectation that Lord-Lieutenants will always act to protect the dignity and integrity of the Office.
The usual practice is for a Lord-Lieutenant to step down from office.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what role, if any, the Gulf National Security Secretariat Implementation Group (NSSIG) has within the Cabinet Office; and how the role and responsibilities of the NSSIG differs from those of the Integrated Delivery Board.
Answered by Lord Young of Cookham
National Security Strategy and Implementation Groups (NSSIGs) were established after the 2017 National Security Capability Review to support the delivery of national security priority programmes, including by better utilising the full range of national security capabilities. Each NSSIG is chaired by a Senior Responsible Official (SRO), who is accountable to the National Security Council.
The Gulf Delivery Board has not met since the establishment of the Gulf & Iran NSSIG, which subsumed its primary roles and responsibilities in April 2018. Cabinet Office officials are members of the Gulf & Iran NSSIG and attend all meetings. The Cabinet Office also provides some secretariat support to the NSSIG, alongside that provided by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the Written Answer by the Minister for the Cabinet Office on 19 October 2016 (HC47638), which department provided the funding for the administration costs of £70,004 for the Gulf Strategy Integrated Delivery Team in the financial year 2015–16.
Answered by Lord Young of Cookham
Funding for the Integrated Delivery Team was allocated by the Treasury to the Cabinet Office in financial year 2015-16.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what IT or data services are provided to central government departments by Capita.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott - Opposition Whip (Lords)
Capita provides a wide range of IT and data services to central government departments. These include hosting, IT services, support and maintenance.
Details of contracts with a value over £10,000 are published on the Contracts Finder website. https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Search
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government which Government departments are using facial biometric technology; and for what reasons and purposes.
Answered by Lord Young of Cookham
Two Government departments have involvement with this type of technology.
The Home Office operates the e-gates facial recognition system at some airports. This compares a person’s face with biometric information held in their passport. The purpose of this system is to verify identity and speed entry to the UK by reducing the need for people to pass through desks staffed by immigration officers.
The Home Office also operates the Police National Database on behalf of police forces. This includes a database of facial images taken from people who have been arrested. Images of suspects can be compared with this database for the purpose of detection of crime.
The Department for Transport regulates Eurotunnel’s use of biometric checks on staff entry to high security zones but it does not use facial biometric technology to run checks on members of the public.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Young of Cookham on 11 July (HL 291), why changing the system of courtesy titles for (1) the spouses of women members, and (2) the same sex spouses and civil partners of members, of the House of Lords is not a priority for the current parliamentary session.
Answered by Lord Young of Cookham
The Government does take the issue of inherent inequalities seriously, however, the Government’s priorities for the coming Parliamentary session were set out in The Queen’s Speech.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bridges of Headley on 27 June 2016 (HL662), whether they intend to prioritise the establishment of honorary titles for the spouses of women members of the House of Lords; and for same sex spouses and civil partners of members of the House of Lords.
Answered by Lord Young of Cookham
I refer the Noble Lord to the answer I gave Lord Lexden on 11 July 2017 (HL291): The Government is sympathetic to those who are seeking to change the current system of courtesy titles, and has considered this complex issue. However, resolving this difficult matter is not a priority for the current Parliamentary session.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to set up a commission to look at the question of the disestablishment of the Church of England, in the light of the communiqué from Anglican Primates about homosexuality and same-sex marriage.
Answered by Lord Bridges of Headley
The Government has no plans to set up such a commission.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to strip honours received from individuals who are implicated in the recent child exploitation cases.
Answered by Lord Wallace of Saltaire - Liberal Democrat Lords Spokesperson (Cabinet Office)
It is possible to rescind an honour on the advice of the Forfeiture Committee and with the approval of the Sovereign. Forfeiture may be considered for holders of awards in civilian or military Orders of Knighthood and for those appointed Knight Bachelor. We cannot comment on whether or not specific cases are being considered for forfeiture. There is no posthumous forfeiture of honours.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what examination they are giving to granting 16 and 17 year-olds votes in United Kingdom elections in the event of the Scottish Government reducing the voting age in Scotland to 16.
Answered by Lord Wallace of Saltaire - Liberal Democrat Lords Spokesperson (Cabinet Office)
There is no consensus within Government on the question of lowering the voting age for Westminster elections and therefore no plans to do so in this Parliament. However the Government welcomes the ongoing discussions and debates on this issue.