Asked by: Baroness Berger (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in regard to the policy paper Giving every child the best start in life, published on 7 July 2025, what is the timeline for the procurement and delivery of the national Best Start digital service.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Best Start in Life website launched on 1 September 2025, bringing together information and support from across government in one place. The content has been shaped by user research with parents, and serves as a key access point for online support and guidance.
Asked by: Baroness Berger (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what lessons they have learned from the rollout of online evidence-based parenting programmes by the government of Australia in 2022.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
In the Best Start in Life strategy, the government committed to expanding access to high-quality, evidence-based parenting and home-learning support. This ensures that families receive interventions that best promote children’s early development and help close the gap before they start school.
The department is committed to ensuring that parenting support in England is grounded in high-quality evidence and reflects the needs and circumstances of our population. As part of this commitment, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education visited Australia in December 2025, where she engaged in roundtables and met with ministers to discuss the Australian early years system.
We will continue to monitor emerging national and international practice while taking a careful and evidence-led approach to future decisions including the programmes in Australia.
Asked by: Baroness Berger (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in regard to the Freedom from violence and abuse volume 2: action plan, published on 18 December 2025, which minister has responsibility for the cross-departmental team on pornography policy.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Baroness Bertin’s independent report made 32 recommendations, including on governance and oversight of pornography policy. The ‘Freedom from Violence and Abuse: a cross-government strategy to build a safer society for women and girls’, published on 18 December 2025 commits to creating a joint team to address the issues detailed in the report.
The team is formed by the Home Office, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, Ministry of Justice and Department for Culture, Media and Sport. It will examine the evidence to inform the government’s approach to pornography policy, including the question of departmental responsibility.
Asked by: Baroness Berger (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in regard to the Freedom from violence and abuse volume 2: action plan, published on 18 December 2025, what is the timetable for the cross-departmental team's examination of the recommendations of Baroness Bertin's Independent Pornography Review.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
To address the recommendations of Baroness Bertin’s Review, in December 2025 government announced through the ‘Freedom from Violence and Abuse’ strategy, the creation of a cross-government joint team, to rigorously examine the evidence to inform the government’s approach to pornography policy. The team began work in December 2025, and is formed of the Home Office, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, Ministry of Justice and Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
Asked by: Baroness Berger (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Merron on 5 December (HL Deb col 2044), what distinction exists under Articles 2, 8 or 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights which means that a legal challenge would not arise for a person under 18 years old compared to those who are (1) under 21 years old, and (2) under 25 years old.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
At the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill committee debate on 5 December 2025, the comments referred to were made in relation to the amendments that had been tabled for consideration in the Lords. There would need to be a reasonable, necessary and proportionate justification to underpin restricting access to assisted dying to any age on the face of the Bill. Although the reasons to support an age limit of 18 years old, as opposed to an age limit of 21 or 25 years old, may well be different. This matter was debated at some length on 5 December 2025, and as I stated in that debate, it is rightly for Parliament to decide on any age-related restrictions and to consider the proportionality of the reasons which underpin them. As the Government is neutral, it is not for the Government to comment on the likelihood of a court upholding any particular case brought to challenge the age on the face of the Bill but it was important to note the general risk to aid the debate in the Chamber.
Asked by: Baroness Berger (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many times Ministers have met OpenAI to discuss platform safety.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Ministers meet with the AI Industry to discuss a range of issues related to government priorities, including in relation to AI security. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT)’s transparency data on ministers’ meetings with external organisations shows that between January and June 2025 there were six meetings with OpenAI, which focussed on issues including support for businesses, AI’s potential for public service delivery, and UK AI policy. Further updates on ministerial meetings will be released in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Berger (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of Netflix’s proposed acquisition of Warner Brothers Discovery on competition and consumer prices in the UK streaming market, on investment in UK film and TV productions, and on the viability of the UK cinema sector.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government is aware that Netflix has submitted a bid for Warner Bros. Discovery's studio and streaming assets as part of an ongoing acquisition process. As the bidding process is ongoing and no transaction has been finalised, it would not be appropriate to provide comment further on this individual case.
As set out in our Creative Industries Sector Plan, the Government recognises that convergence in the TV and streaming market is leading to greater consolidation as companies seek economies of scale. Should any proposed transaction progress, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) would be responsible for examining implications for competition and consumers. The Government has committed to asking the CMA, working with Ofcom, to set out how changes in the sector could be taken into account as part of any future assessment of the television and advertising markets.
Asked by: Baroness Berger (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of artificial intelligence chatbots on the mental health of children.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
DSIT is conducting a range of research projects to advance evidence around the impacts of AI chatbots on users, including on their mental health. The Secretary of State has also confirmed this week that the government will further consider chatbots and how they interact with the Online Safety Act as part of its approach, urging Ofcom to use its existing powers to ensure they are safe for children.
Alongside this, DHSC’s 10 Year Plan sets out an ambitious reform agenda to transform mental health services to improve access and, treatment and promote good mental health and wellbeing for the nation.
Asked by: Baroness Berger (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for artificial intelligence chatbots being regulated as search services under the Online Safety Act 2023.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Last year, Ofcom published a letter that set out that if an AI service searches the live internet to return its results it will be regulated under the Act as a search service.
The Secretary of State has also confirmed in Parliament this week that the government will further consider the role of chatbots and how they interact with the Online Safety Act as part of its approach, urging Ofcom to use its existing powers to ensure they are safe for children.
Asked by: Baroness Berger (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect the first staff treatment hubs, announced in the NHS 10-year plan, will be established; how many they expect to be operational between 2026 and 2029; and what criteria will guide their location.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan outlines plans to pilot Staff Treatment Hubs, to provide a high-quality, wellbeing and occupational health service for all National Health Service staff. Work is underway to develop implementation and operational plans for the Staff Treatments Hubs. This will determine factors such as location, budgets, timeframes and capacity. The Staff Treatment Hubs were designed to be inclusive of primary care workers delivering NHS contracts including general practitioners and NHS dentists.