Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask His Majesty's Government when they plan to respond to the Alternative Routes to Market for New Nuclear Projects consultation.

Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government intends to ensure the long-term security of the nuclear sector including advanced nuclear. We will publish a response to the Alternative Routes to Market Consultation in due course.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the legal fulfilment of the statutory duty of every local authority to provide sufficient childcare places.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)

The department has regular contact with each local authority in England about their sufficiency of childcare and any issues they are facing.  No local authorities are reporting that they are unable to meet their sufficiency duty. Under Section 6 of the Childcare Act 2006, local authorities are responsible for ensuring that the provision of childcare is sufficient to meet the requirements of parents in their area. Part B of the ’Early education and childcare’ statutory guidance for local authorities highlights that local authorities are required to report annually to elected council members on how they are meeting their duty to secure sufficient childcare, and to make this report available and accessible to parents. The full guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-education-and-childcare.

Where local authorities report sufficiency challenges, we discuss what action they are taking to address those issues and, where needed, support the local authority with any specific requirements through our childcare sufficiency support contract.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they are aware of any plans the Office of Environmental Protection may have to publish advice regarding the Planning and Infrastructure Bill.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The government welcomes continued collaboration with the Office for Environmental Protection as the Planning and Infrastructure Bill progresses. As an independent body, it is for the Office for Environmental Protection to decide whether to advise on proposed changes to environmental law within the Bill.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have commissioned advice from the Office for Environmental Protection about the Planning and Infrastructure Bill.

Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The government welcomes continued collaboration with the Office for Environmental Protection as the Planning and Infrastructure Bill progresses. As an independent body, it is for the Office for Environmental Protection to decide whether to advise on proposed changes to environmental law within the Bill.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many responses were received for the Alternative Routes to Market for New Nuclear Projects consultation.

Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Department of Energy Security and Net Zero received 82 responses from across the public realm, including industry and academia. The government will respond in due course.

Question

To ask His Majesty's Government how many legal proceedings, other than judicial review or as an intervener, have been initiated by the Equality and Human Rights Commission under section 30 of the Equality Act 2006 since the legislation was enacted.

Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Equality and Human Rights Commission’s (EHRC) intervention and enforcement decisions are independent of government. This question has been passed to the EHRC who will be providing a written response to Baroness Coffey.

Question

To ask His Majesty's Government how much money has been provided for legal assistance to individuals under section 28 of the Equality Act 2006 since its enactment, and to how many individuals.

Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Equality and Human Rights Commission’s (EHRC) intervention and enforcement decisions are independent of government. This question has been passed to the EHRC who will be providing a written response to Baroness Coffey.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have started preparing a shadow body of the Voluntary Assisted Dying Commissioner.

Answered by Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Government has not started preparing a shadow body of the Voluntary Assisted Dying Commissioner. This is a provision of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, on which the Government remains neutral and which is still under consideration by Parliament.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government how much the creation and opening of each community diagnostic centre cost, and how much it costs annually to operate each centre.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The information requested is not held centrally in the format requested, and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

NHS England publishes a monthly report on diagnostic activity for the 15 modalities that make up the Diagnostics Waiting Times and Activity collection. This includes details of activity undertaken in CDCs for those 15 modalities. This is published on the NHS.UK website, in an online only format. It is not, however, a complete record of all CDC activity.

NHS England also publishes a quarterly dataset of all CDC activity at a national level. This is also published on the NHS.UK website, in an online only format. The latest published CDC management information details that CDCs have delivered over 13.9 million additional tests since July 2021.

NHS England’s CDC programme has been supported by a capital budget of £1.48 billion across 2022/23 to 2024/25.

The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, committed to expanding existing CDCs, as well as building up to five new ones in 2025/26, to support the National Health Service to return to meeting the elective waiting time constitutional standard. The plan also commits to CDCs opening 12 hours per day, seven days a week, and delivering more same-day tests and consultations, with an expanded range of tests.

The 2025/25 capital guidance confirmed that £1.65 billion of capital funding will be allocated to support NHS performance across secondary and emergency care, across 2025/26 more broadly. This includes £450 million which has been provisionally allocated for diagnostics, which includes CDCs, partly to expand existing and build new CDCs. £20 million has also been allocated directly to relevant trusts via a separate processes for CDC pathway productivity.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many diagnostic tests have been undertaken by each community diagnostic centre on a weekly basis since each centre was opened.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The information requested is not held centrally in the format requested, and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

NHS England publishes a monthly report on diagnostic activity for the 15 modalities that make up the Diagnostics Waiting Times and Activity collection. This includes details of activity undertaken in CDCs for those 15 modalities. This is published on the NHS.UK website, in an online only format. It is not, however, a complete record of all CDC activity.

NHS England also publishes a quarterly dataset of all CDC activity at a national level. This is also published on the NHS.UK website, in an online only format. The latest published CDC management information details that CDCs have delivered over 13.9 million additional tests since July 2021.

NHS England’s CDC programme has been supported by a capital budget of £1.48 billion across 2022/23 to 2024/25.

The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, committed to expanding existing CDCs, as well as building up to five new ones in 2025/26, to support the National Health Service to return to meeting the elective waiting time constitutional standard. The plan also commits to CDCs opening 12 hours per day, seven days a week, and delivering more same-day tests and consultations, with an expanded range of tests.

The 2025/26 capital guidance confirmed that £1.65 billion of capital funding will be allocated to support NHS performance across secondary and emergency care, across 2025/26 more broadly. This includes £450 million which has been provisionally allocated for diagnostics, which includes CDCs, partly to expand existing and build new CDCs. £20 million has also been allocated directly to relevant trusts via a separate processes for CDC pathway productivity.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask His Majesty's Government which status of public body they expect the new Fair Pay Agency to have.

Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

Through the Employment Rights Bill, the Government is creating Fair Pay Agreements in the social care sector, and the Fair Work Agency to upgrade enforcement of employment rights.

The Fair Work Agency will be an executive agency of the Department for Business and Trade. This and further information on both the Fair Work Agency and Fair Pay Agreements is set out in the Employment Rights Bill factsheets available on gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/employment-rights-bill-factsheets.

Found: of Yardley (The Chair); Lord Blencathra; Lord Bradley; Lord Carter of Coles; Baroness Cass; Baroness Coffey

Found: BARONESS COFFEY _ Schedule 4, page 204, line 28, leave out lines 28 to 30 LORD HENDY _ Schedule 4,

Found: THE EARL OF KINNOULL BARONESS FOOKES LORD TREES BARONESS COFFEY 124_ Clause 12, page 19, line 37,

Found: BARONESS COFFEY _ Schedule 4, page 204, line 28, leave out lines 28 to 30 LORD HENDY _ Schedule 4,

Found: LORD BLACK OF BRENTWOOD LORD LEXDEN BARONESS JONES OF MOULSECOOMB BARONESS COFFEY _ Clause 12, page

Found: BARONESS COFFEY _ Schedule 4, page 204, line 28, leave out lines 28 to 30 LORD HENDY ★_ Schedule 4

Found: BARONESS COFFEY ★_ After Clause 6, insert the following new Clause— “Repossession of homes during school

Found: Schedule 4 BARONESS COFFEY _ Schedule 4, page 204, line 28, leave out lines 28 to 30 Clause 38 BARONESS

Found: BARONESS COFFEY 4★_ After Clause 9, insert the following new Clause— “Reports by Secretary of State

Found: Schedule 4 BARONESS COFFEY _ Schedule 4, page 204, line 28, leave out lines 28 to 30 Clause 38 BARONESS

Found: protected disclosure about information obtained during the application process, or”” Schedule 4 BARONESS COFFEY