Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the progress of the Independent Office of Police Conduct in pursuing gross misconduct charges arising from Operation Midland.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Disciplinary proceedings concerning Operation Midland remain ongoing and it would therefore be inappropriate for the Government to comment while that remains the case.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether there are any plans to revisit or otherwise further investigate the operational conduct of Operation Midland.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Police forces and the Independent Office for Police Conduct are independent of government and decisions concerning investigations are operational ones for them to make.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure and enforce oversight and governance of (1) sharia courts, and (2) Muslim arbitration tribunals.
Answered by Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government has no plans to regulate religious dispute resolution processes (such as sharia courts) where all parties consent to those processes. This is consistent with Britain’s long history of freedom of worship and religious tolerance, and the legal rights and remedies of the parties involved remain in place.
Decisions of such bodies are only enforceable if there is a valid arbitration agreement by which all parties have consented to the process, as provided under the terms of the Arbitration Act 1996 for any arbitration panel.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what obligations the Highways Agency is under to keep motorways free of detritus.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Shadow Secretary of State for Wales
The responsibility for clearing highway litter and sweeping carriageways is governed by the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (EPA); National Highways is responsible for litter collection on motorways and some trunk roads. National Highways works to the ‘Code of Practice on Litter and Refuse 2006' issued under section 89(7) of the EPA. National Highways inspects and grades litter and detritus on the Strategic Road Network (SRN) in accordance with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ Code of Practice on Litter and Refuse. National Highways carries out litter picking almost every day and weekly inspections on its network, to ensure that clearance of the worst affected areas is prioritised. Wherever possible planned closures are used to undertake litter picks to minimise disruption to road users.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many accidents on motorways have been caused by discarded tyres and other detritus in each of the past five years.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Shadow Secretary of State for Wales
The information requested is not held by the Department.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with Highways England about keeping motorways free of discarded tyres and other litter.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Shadow Secretary of State for Wales
The Department for Transport holds regular meetings with National Highways to discuss its performance and management of the Strategic Road Network. In April 2024, Minister Opperman met with National Highways to discuss the ways in which it tackles litter. National Highways’ Strategy focuses on reducing litter on the network by influencing littering behaviour as well as providing an effective litter clearing service. National Highways takes a data-led approach to litter clearing activities to ensure that litter hotspots are quickly identified and that resources are targeted effectively.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to commission an up-to-date study of the comparative (1) cost and impact, and (2) feasibility and viability, of each type of infrastructure for conveying electricity.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Industry leads on innovation in the technologies and design of the infrastructure developed and delivered to meet our net zero targets. The Government does not currently plan to directly commission any new work.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Welsh Government on the relative benefits of cable ploughing new power lines.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government is aware of cable ploughing as a technique for installing some types of electricity cabling lines and is aware of the Welsh Government’s work into the merits of cable ploughing. The Government looks forward to engaging with the Welsh Government on the outcomes of that work.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the relative costs of undergrounding power lines by (1) cable ploughing, and (2) open trenching.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Undergrounding is usually by open trenching with costs varying between 5-10 times those of overhead lines. These costs are from the Institution of Engineering and Technology Study, 2012. Cable ploughing is a newer method of undergrounding some types of electricity cables. The Government has not made a formal assessment of those costs. The Government regularly engages with industry to understand new opportunities and innovations.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to build on the proposals in the report of Sir Andrew Dilnot’s Commission on Funding of Care and Support, Fairer Care Funding, published in July 2011.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
As announced in the Autumn Statement 2022, we listened to the concerns of local government and made the decision to delay the rollout of charging reforms from October 2023 to October 2025. These reforms include the introduction of a cap on personal care costs, and a more generous adult social care means test. The Government has been considering what form the rollout of charging reform from October 2025 will take.