Asked by: Lord Harper (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the expected (1) total and (2) per capita reduction in daily calorie intake for (1) adults and (2) children in England as a result of the extension of the soft drinks industry levy announced on 25 November.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The changes to the Soft Drinks Industry Levy announced in the 2025 Autumn Budget are:
These changes will apply from 1 January 2028. They are designed to encourage producers to reformulate their products to reduce sugar levels and avoid paying the levy, thus reducing the calories consumed from the drinks in scope.
The Department carried out a health benefit assessment to estimate the calorie reduction from these changes through reformulation and substitution to alternative drinks. Together, these changes reduce sugar and calorie intake from drinks across all age groups.
The analysis used nutrition data from the National Diet and Nutrition Survey, sales data from Worldpanel by Numerator, formerly Kantar WorldPanel, and a series of assumptions to estimate the sugar and calories removed from diets due to the changes. The approach, data sources, and assumptions are set out in detail in the published assessment.
This analysis estimates per person per day calorie reductions of 0.3 kcal in five to 10 year olds, 0.4 kcal in 11 to 18 year olds, 0.3 kcal in 19 to 64 year olds, and 0.2 kcal in those aged 65 years old and over. This is equivalent to approximately four million kcal per day in children and 13 million kcal per day in adults.
Asked by: Lord Harper (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government on the basis of what evidence they have estimated that the extension of the soft drinks industry levy, announced on 25 November, could prevent almost 14,000 cases of adult obesity and nearly 1,000 cases of childhood obesity.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The changes to the Soft Drinks Industry Levy announced in the 2025 Autumn Budget are:
These changes will apply from 1 January 2028. They are designed to encourage producers to reformulate their products to reduce sugar levels and avoid paying the levy, thus reducing calories consumed from the drinks in scope.
Evidence shows that energy dense diets such as those that are high in sugar can contribute to excess calorie intake, which if sustained leads to weight gain and obesity. Population-level policies therefore aim to create a healthier food environment to reduce excess calories and obesity prevalence across the entire population.
The Department carried out a health benefit assessment to estimate the calorie reduction from these changes through reformulation and substitution to alternative drinks. Together, these changes reduce sugar and calorie intake from drinks across all age groups.
The analysis used nutrition data from the National Diet and Nutrition Survey, sales data from Worldpanel by Numerator, formerly Kantar WorldPanel, and a series of assumptions to estimate the sugar and calories removed from diets due to the changes. The approach, data sources, and assumptions are set out in detail in the published assessment.
This analysis estimates per person per day calorie reductions of 0.3 kcal in five to 10 year olds, 0.4 kcal in 11 to 18 year olds, 0.3 kcal in 19 to 64 year olds, and 0.2 kcal in those aged 65 years old and over.
The BMI Prevalence Model was then used to simulate the change in obesity prevalence from the estimated change in calorie intake at a population level. This model is based on weight loss equations by Henry (2005), a sample of height and weight data from Health Survey for England, and population data from Office for National Statistics.
This modelling estimates that a calorie reduction of this scale could translate into reducing cases of adult obesity by almost 14,000 and childhood obesity by almost 1,000.
Asked by: Lord Harper (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many members will be on the Independent Commission on Adult Social Care, how many have been appointed to date, and what are the names and backgrounds of those appointed.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Baroness Louise Casey of Blackstock chairs the independent commission into adult social care (the Commission) alongside a dedicated secretariat team. No commissioners have been appointed.
Baroness Casey and the Commission’s secretariat are based in the Cabinet Office. The secretariat has a total of 11 officials, nine are employed by the Department of Health and Social Care, and two by the Cabinet Office. One external individual has been hired as contingent labour to support the work of the Commission’s secretariat. There are a further four officials working in the Commission’s sponsorship function based in the Department of Health and Social Care.
As the Commission is independent, the secretariat may expand as it carries out its work and as Baroness Casey considers what further skills and expertise she needs.
Asked by: Lord Harper (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the release of beavers at Greathough Brook in the Forest of Dean, on the ability of the land to retain water and prevent flooding in nearby residential areas.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Forestry England worked with experts at the Beaver Trust to introduce beavers within an enclosure at the Forest of Dean. One of the aims of the project was to hold stormwater flow back to mitigate against future flooding downstream. Forestry England commissioned the University of Exeter to carry out an impact assessment relating to beaver activity and natural flood management which was published in 2020. This is publicly available at Hydrological Processes | Hydrology Journal | Wiley Online Library and a copy is attached to this answer.
The study found that the introduction of beavers had a beneficial effect on flow attenuation during storm events.
Asked by: Lord Harper (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many hotels were housing asylum seekers in (1) July 2023, (2) July 2024, and (3) either July 2025 or the most recent month for which data is available.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government recognises that hotels are not a sustainable solution for accommodating asylum seekers and remains committed to ending their use, already reducing the number in operation. We do not provide a running commentary on hotel numbers, our objective is to close all asylum hotels by the end of this Parliament, reducing costs to the taxpayer and restoring control to local communities.
Asked by: Lord Harper (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the efficacy of the engineering work carried since October 2022 to reduce flooding of the track near Chipping Sodbury, and what, if any, further work is planned.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The work Network Rail has completed to date has significantly improved the resilience of the track at Chipping Sodbury during flooding events. Resilience levels for closure have been raised from 36mm to 73mm of rainfall for a 5-day consecutive period. This work delayed the flooding impact of Storm Claudia in mid-November significantly, with flooding above railhead occurring only after 76mm of rain, providing an extra 27 hours of resilience and operational railway at Chipping Sodbury.
Network Rail plans to spend a further £1.45m on further measures at Chipping Sodbury starting in 2026/27, which will include removing some long-standing restrictions to discharging water, reinstatement and renewal of pumps at both tunnel portals, and ground investigation and monitoring work.
Asked by: Lord Harper (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether any civil servants are working on the implementation of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill beyond the work necessary to improve the workability of the legislative drafting.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The function of the team working within the Department is to fulfil the Government’s duty to the statute book, with regard to the legal and technical coherence of the bill.
Matters of policy have remained solely for the sponsoring members, the Hon. Member Kim Leadbeater in the Commons and the Rt Hon. Lord Falconer of Thoroton in the Lords, to determine.
None of this work to date has been done with the objective of implementing assisting dying. Should the bill gain Royal Assent, this work would form the basis of an implementation programme.
Asked by: Lord Harper (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Independent Medical Expert Group has been tasked to study a potential causal link between chemical exposure and cancer incidence in Explosive Ordnance Disposal personnel; and, if so, what is the timetable for its report.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The topic of a causal link between chemical exposure and cancer incidence in Explosive Ordnance Disposal personnel was referred to the Independent Medical Expert Group (IMEG) in June 2025. The IMEG is actively considering the matter and no date has yet been set for the publication of their report.
Asked by: Lord Harper (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made about whether there is a causal link between chemical exposure and cancer incidence in Explosive Ordnance Disposal personnel.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Ministry of Defence (MOD) officials reviewed with interest the March 2025 British Journal of Urology International research letter on a potentially increased risk of bladder cancer in military personnel exposed to explosive ordnance. MOD referred this matter to the Independent Medical Expert Group (IMEG) for their independent medical advice. The possible link between exposure to explosives and an increased risk of bladder cancer among military personnel was discussed by the IMEG at their June 2025 meeting. This matter now forms part of their current work plan. This is a complex issue on which we await their advice.
Asked by: Lord Harper (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in the light of the King’s College London report Learning from lives and deaths: people with a learning disability and autistic people, published in September, what steps they are taking to ensure that the impact on people with learning disabilities is considered when the policy for vaccine eligibility is decided this year, including when initially making the decision to accept JCVI recommendations.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to protecting those most vulnerable to COVID-19 through vaccination, as guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The primary aim of the national COVID-19 vaccination programme remains the prevention of serious illness, resulting in hospitalisations and deaths, arising from COVID-19.
The JCVI has advised that population immunity to COVID-19 has been increasing due to a combination of naturally acquired immunity following recovery from infection and vaccine-derived immunity. COVID-19 is now a relatively mild disease for most people, though it can still be unpleasant, with rates of hospitalisation and death from COVID-19 having reduced significantly since COVID-19 first emerged.
The focus of the JCVI advised programme has therefore moved towards targeted vaccination of the two groups who continue to be at higher risk of serious disease and mortality. These are the oldest adults and individuals who are immunosuppressed. The JCVI’s full advice for autumn 2025 is available on the GOV.UK website, in an online only format. The Government has accepted the JCVI’s advice for autumn 2025 and in line with the advice a COVID-19 vaccination is being offered to the following groups in autumn 2025:
As with other United Kingdom vaccination programmes, the JCVI’s advice on eligibility carefully considered the evidence on the risk of illness, serious disease, or death as a consequence of infection, in specific groups, as well as a cost-effectiveness analysis. The JCVI has engaged a number of organisations representing adults with learning disabilities to discuss the COVID-19 vaccine eligibility criteria.
The most recent Learning from Lives and Deaths: People with a Learning Disability and Autistic People Annual Report, based on 2023 data and published in September 2025, highlights how COVID-19 has fallen significantly as a cause of death in people with learning disabilities since the pandemic in 2021. Although it is important to caveat that the data in this report may not be complete for 2023 due to data collection issues, the trend observed provides reassurance that the risk of severe COVID-19 is much lower now than previously, including for people with a learning disability and autistic people.
As for all vaccines, the JCVI keeps the evidence under regular review.