Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many refugees from Ukraine have been settled in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland respectively.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
As of 5 March 2024, 201,400 people have arrived in the UK under the Ukraine visa schemes, rather than as refugees. 144,400 of them have been sponsored under the Homes for Ukraine scheme with 108,601 being in England, 1,500 in Northern Ireland, 5,847 in Scotland and 4,200 in Wales.
In addition to this, 20,882 Ukrainians have been sponsored by the Scottish Government and another 3,291 by the Welsh Government. Further information including a full breakdown of the data has been published on Gov.UK and can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/ukraine-sponsorship-scheme-visa-data-by-country-upper-and-lower-tier-local-authority.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Wales Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what directives or guidelines they have issued to the Welsh Government in relation to overseas initiatives on matters related to devolved responsibilities.
Answered by Lord Harlech - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The FCDO remains fully committed to working collaboratively with the Welsh Government and other Devolved Administrations on overseas initiatives which may support the delivery of devolved policy objectives. The FCDO has developed internal guidance to ensure that the foreign affairs reservation is respected, including requiring a UK Government official to be present at meetings between devolved ministers and ministers of foreign governments.
Since April 2023, the FCDO has supported over 15 overseas visits by Welsh Government Ministers. International activity undertaken by each of the Devolved Administrations will continue to be supported appropriately by Posts.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect work on electrifying the rail line between Crewe and Holyhead to start; what estimate they have made of the cost of this work; and when they expect the project to be completed.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
We are working closely with the rail industry to develop and deliver on the Government priorities outlined in the Prime Minister’s Network North announcement, which includes an unprecedented £1 billion investment to fund the electrification of the North Wales Main Line. We are in the early stages of planning the next steps for the North Wales electrification scheme, including the costs and programme for development and delivery. We will share further information when that work is complete.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Wales Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many times since taking office the Prime Minister has met the First Minister of Wales; and whether the Prime Minister plans to meet the current First Minister before the latter’s retirement.
Answered by Baroness Swinburne - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
I refer the Noble Lord to the answer I gave to question HL1907 on 1 February 2024. I also refer the Noble Lord to my Rt Hon Friend the Prime Minister’s comments about the First Minister’s retirement at Prime Minister’s Questions on 13 December 2023. Details of the Prime Minister’s future official meetings and visits will be announced in the usual way.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their current assessment of the suitability of constructing a small modular nuclear reactor at the nuclear power station in Trawsfynydd in Gwynedd.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Trawsfynydd could be a candidate for new nuclear in future and is one of a number of potential sites that could host new civil nuclear projects, subject to National planning policy, regulatory approvals and technical assessments.
As a first step towards developing a new nuclear National Policy Statement, Government is consulting on a proposed policy for determining how new nuclear power stations will be sited beyond 2025, including the potential for Small Modular Reactors and other advanced nuclear technologies.
Whilst no decision on sites has been taken, Great British Nuclear is working with Government to support access to potential new nuclear sites, and is open to discuss potential opportunities with site owners.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the volume and value of cheese exports to Canada in each of the last five years, and what assessment they have made of the likely impact on those figures of not concluding a trade agreement with Canada.
Answered by Lord Offord of Garvel - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Between 2018 and 2022 the UK exported between 1.5 and 2.2 kilotonnes of cheese to Canada each year, worth between £11 million and £18.7 million.
Prior to 1 January 2024, UK exporters could export cheese to Canada through a Canadian importer with a licence for Canada’s “EU” World Trade Organisation quota. As of 1 January 2024, the Canadian importer must have a licence for Canada’s “non EU” World Trade Organisation quota to import UK cheese.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans, if any, they have to modify the Barnett formula for financial year 2024–25 and subsequent financial years, to reflect the changing needs of (1) Northern Ireland, (2) Scotland, and (3) Wales.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
There are currently no plans to modify the operation of the Barnett formula. The Barnett formula has stood the test of time because it is simple, efficient and provides a clear and certain outcome.
Overall, the devolved administrations’ funding is at least 20% more per person than equivalent UK Government spending in other parts of the UK.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Welsh Government with regard to the transfer of additional quantities of water from the reservoirs in Wales, or from rivers running from Wales to England, to meet increased water demand in South East England.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As agreed in the Intergovernmental Protocol on Water Resources, Water Supply and Water Quality, Defra and the Welsh Government work closely on water resources management.
Water companies in England and Wales have a statutory duty to provide a secure supply of water for customers, efficiently and economically.
Last year, regional water resources groups and water companies, consulted on their draft water resources plans. These plans set out how each company will secure water supplies sustainably for at least the next 25 years. Within their plans, water companies consider all options, including water demand management and new water resources infrastructure including water transfers. In the latest round of plans, no new additional quantities have been identified to be transferred from Wales to England. A summary can be found at gov.uk.
Ofwat, the Environment Agency and Natural Resources Wales issued joint water resources planning guidance to water companies, which takes account of policy in England and Wales. They are also statutory consultees on the plans, as relevant. When reviewing the plans, the Environment Agency and National Resources Wales regularly meet to discuss proposals by water companies.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the tonnage of coil and sheet steel (1) manufactured in, and (2) imported into, the UK in each of the past five years.
Answered by Lord Offord of Garvel - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Coil and sheet steel, commonly known as flat steel, is predominantly manufactured by Tata Steel in the UK. Based on Companies House data (here), Tata Steel's production volumes are in the table below:
Year | Production (Millions of Tonnes of Liquid Steel) |
17/18 | 3.6 |
18/19 | 3.2 |
19/20 | 3.5 |
20/21 | 3.4 |
21/22 | 3.5 |
Spartan UK and Liberty Steel Dalzell also produce flat steel products, volumes for which are relatively small. Data made available through Companies House, however, are unavailable on a consistent and comparable basis with Tata Steel.
Based on HMRC Trade Info (here), the figures for imports of flat steel products are in the table below:
Year | Imports (Millions of Tonnes) |
2018 | 3.7 |
2019 | 3.4 |
2020 | 2.4 |
2021 | 3.1 |
2022 | 2.7 |
Flat Steel products defined by HS Codes 7208-7212, 7219, 7220, 7225 and 7226.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Argentina on the future security of the Falkland Islands.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As fellow G20 members, we look forward to developing a strong and constructive relationship under the Presidency of Javier Milei. When the Minister for the Americas met President Milei at his inauguration, he made clear that the UK has no doubt about our sovereignty over the Falkland Islands and surrounding maritime areas. We are committed to defending proactively the Falkland Islanders' right of self-determination; this is not something we will ever be prepared to negotiate on.