Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address infrastructure and building safety issues within (1) school buildings, and (2) the NHS estate; and what is their current risk assessment for building collapse or failure in each of those.
Answered by Baroness Swinburne - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they taking to ensure that local councils in England are able to meet their statutory duties to provide adult social care for 2025–26, in accordance with the Care Act 2014; and what discussions they have had with the Local Government Association about this matter.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has made up to £8.6 billion available in additional funding over 2023/24 and 2024/25, to support adult social care and discharge. This funding has enabled local authorities to buy more care packages, helped people leave hospital on time, improved workforce recruitment and retention, and reduced waiting times for care. The Government regularly meets with the Local Government Association and other representatives from the sector, to understand the pressures facing them.
Funding plans for 2025/26 will be developed as part of the next Spending Review. We will continue to work closely with local authorities and the adult social care sector to understand what the impact of cost and demand pressures will be on service delivery, and to support them in responding to these pressures.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to reform the Single Justice Procedure (SJP) to enable magistrates to properly consider each case before them and to minimise any risk of miscarriages of justice; and whether they have implemented, or plan to implement, any of the twelve recommendations to improve the operation, transparency and fairness of the SJP contained within the Magistrates’ Association position statement, published on 26 March.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they are taking action, with international partners, to dissuade the government of Israel from undertaking a military ground offensive in Rafah, Gaza.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are clear that do not support a major operation in Rafah unless there is a very clear plan for how to protect people and save lives. We have not seen that plan so, in these circumstances, we do not support a major operation in Rafah.
The fastest way to end the conflict is to secure a deal which gets the hostages out and allows for a stop in the fighting in Gaza. We must then work with our international partners to turn that pause into a sustainable, permanent ceasefire.
We must remain focused on a long-term solution to this crisis - a political horizon for the Palestinians, providing a credible and irreversible pathway towards a two-state solution.
We have consistently made these points to Israel, at all levels.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the government of Israel’s decision to shut down the operations of the Al Jazeera television network in that country, what discussions they have had with that government concerning press freedom.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Israel must ensure its campaign is targeted at Hamas leaders and operatives and ensure journalists can carry out their work safely. On 5 December, the UK supported a joint statement of the Media Freedom Coalition expressing concern over the repercussions for the safety of journalists and access to information due to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the current (1) humanitarian, and (2) security, situation in Darfur following the recent outbreak of hostilities in El Fasher; and what diplomatic initiatives they are undertaking, together with international partners, to end the current conflict in order to prevent mass civilian casualties.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had, if any, with the government of Israel regarding the long-term purpose of the strategic corridor which has been built along the Netzarim Corridor in Gaza.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the current security situation in Western Myanmar; and what steps they are taking, together with international partners, to prevent the outbreak of a civil war between the Buddhist Rakhine and the Muslim Rohingya.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the suspension of political party activities and the postponement of elections in Mali, what assessment they have made of the current (1) political, and (2) security, situation in that country.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK condemns attempts to restrict democratic space in Mali, including through restrictive legislation on civil society and on political participation. Such measures risk undermining peace and security. We continue to urge the authorities in Mali to deliver on their commitment to a political transition, with free, fair, transparent and inclusive presidential elections. We are committed to working with our partners to respond to immediate humanitarian needs and address the underlying causes of conflict and poverty in Mali.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the amount of cocaine that arrived in the UK in (1) 2023, and (2) 2024 to date, as a result of Balkan drug gangs and their criminal networks; and what steps they are taking, together with European partners, to (a) end the illegal activities associated with Balkan drug dealers, and (b) disrupt the supply of cocaine across Europe.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Illegal drugs devastate lives, ruin families and damage communities. The Government is committed to tackling these harms, including drug-related gang activity.
a) Reducing the threat posed by transnational Western Balkans organised crime groups (WBOCGs) is a government priority. We intensified the cooperation with our international partners to maximise the impact of our interventions WBOCGs wherever they are. Our engagements have already resulted in strategic partnerships with countries such as France, Germany, Italy, and Albania. In addition, the National Crime Agency (NCA) has well established relationships with law enforcement partners across Europe, as well as with Europol and Interpol, which include regular exchanges on organised crime with links to the Western Balkans. We are also seeking to improve criminal records sharing arrangements and law enforcement cooperation between the UK and the Western Balkan countries.
b) Our ten-year Drug Strategy, From Harm to Hope, sets out a whole system approach to combat illicit drugs. As part of this the Home Office has committed £300m of dedicated investment over three years (April 2022 – March 2025) to tackle every phase of the drug supply chain and make it considerably harder for criminal gangs to operate. With this funding we are supporting intelligence-led approaches to interdict and seize drugs as they cross the UK border and prevent criminal groups from bringing drugs to our streets. Across the whole of the UK, the NCA, Border Force, and local police are working in partnership, using intelligence and technology to secure our borders against drug trafficking. We are also funding upstream activity to tackle overseas drug supply, which is aimed at disrupting the criminal networks seeking to traffic illegal drugs to the UK. This includes building close enforcement partnerships with law enforcement agencies in mainland Europe.
The NCA has estimated that the UK consumes 117 tonnes of cocaine each year. We do not hold data on the amount of cocaine arriving in the UK as a result of Balkan OCGs. In the financial year ending 2023, police and Border Force seized 18.58 tonnes of powder cocaine, the second largest quantity of the substance since records began.