Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with which countries does the UK operate international science partnership funds; and how much and what proportion of the funding for the partnership with Japan is from (a) public and (b) private sources and (i) domestic and (ii) foreign contributors.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The International Science Partnership Fund currently operates in:
United States of America, Japan, Canada, India, South Korea, Switzerland, Australia, Germany, Israel, Taiwan, China, Ireland, France, Netherlands, New Zealand, Denmark, and Latvia (non-ODA)
South Africa, Kenya, Malaysia, Thailand, Brazil, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Philippines, Vietnam, Turkey, and Ghana (ODA)
Information on spend in Japan is not provided under the exemptions in the Ministerial Code that cover information that is not currently held and where there would be a disproportionate cost to gaining it.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what nations form the European Carrier Group Initiative.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The European Carrier Group Interoperability Initiative comprises the UK, France, Italy and Spain (Carrier Nations), alongside the non-Carrier members of Portugal, Greece, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and Denmark.
Asked by: Jeremy Hunt (Conservative - Godalming and Ash)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will support the proposal made by the Netherlands government to amend the shoulder height requirements in regulation R129 at the upcoming 77th meeting of the UN Working Party on Passive Safety in Geneva in December.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Department for Transport noted the informal document presented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the 77th meeting of the UNECE Working Party on Passive Safety (GRSP) in May 2025 to amend Regulation 129 on Child Restraint Systems. An associated working document was published on 23 September for the 78th meeting of GRSP in December.
The Government treats road safety seriously and is committed to reducing the numbers of those killed and injured on our roads. Where there is clear evidence of a substantial safety issue related to the design of vehicle accessories, the Department will consider positively the evolution of international regulations and will assess this proposal carefully in advance of the next meeting of GRSP.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to recommendation 22 of the Strategic Defence Review 2025, with which NATO allies he is seeking to strengthen bilateral relations.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The UK is committed to deepening our relationship with a broad range of Allies. Pages 73-75 as well as 82 - 84 of the Strategic Defence Review provide a clear list of allies with which the UK should develop closer ties. These are: the USA, France, Germany, Italy, Turkey, Poland Estonia, Norway, Canada, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Latvia, Lithunua, The Netherlands, Romania, and Greece. This is not exhaustive; the Ministry of Defence maintains close links with all Allies in NATO.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to page 22 of the National Security Strategy 2025, CP 1338, published on 24 June 2025, what the composition is of the Joint Expeditionary Force.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) is a coalition of ten like-minded NATO nations: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the UK, which acts as Framework Nation.
The JEF is a high-readiness multinational defence framework designed to respond rapidly to crises, particularly in the High North, North Atlantic, and the Baltic Sea Region. It operates flexibly, with no standing force elements, instead drawing national contributions on a case-by-case basis.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the consultation on poultry catching and handling, which ended on 2 May 2025, what steps he is taking to ensure that the research project to study the impact of various catching methods and different housing systems will reflect the practices of (a) the Netherlands, (b) Brazil and (c) other countries where upright catching is mandatory.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Poultry catching summary of responses was published in June, and includes a summary of views on the research and how robust data could best be generated. As set out in the Government response to the public consultation, we have commissioned research that will focus on addressing gaps in the scientific evidence on the impact of upright and two-legged catching within a commercial GB setting.
The research has started at SRUC and the University of Bristol and will take account of published peer-reviewed research, which may include information from other countries where relevant.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many staff in his Department have permission to work remotely outside the UK; and in which countries those staff are based.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department approves temporary international remote working for staff to work remotely overseas for short defined periods of time where there is critical business need or unforeseen personal circumstances that require immediate attention outside of the United Kingdom. The Department approved 73 cases of international remote working for Department staff between 4 July 2024 and 4 July 2025. The destinations that we have approved for international remote working cases are as follows Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, India, Italy, Jamaica, Jordan, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Republic of Ireland, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Trinidad and USA. The Department has no approved permanent postings outside of the UK.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Norwich (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what engagement they are undertaking with producer countries as they develop an approach to implementing Schedule 17 to the Environment Act 2021 so that it delivers robust due diligence standards while ensuring that smallholder producers are meaningfully supported and not disadvantaged.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK Government works closely with producer countries bilaterally and through key international platforms, such as the Forest, Agriculture and Commodity Trade (FACT) Dialogue. FACT convenes 28 major producers and consumers of globally traded agricultural commodities to agree collective actions that protect forests and other vital ecosystems, while promoting sustainable trade and development. A core focus of FACT is the inclusion of smallholder farmers in international value chains - an issue that was central to recent meetings we convened with the Government of Malaysia.
The UK also provides direct support to smallholder farmers through its Overseas Development Assistance. For example, we are co-funding the National Initiatives for Sustainable and Climate Smart Oil Palm Smallholders programme alongside the Netherlands. This helps smallholders improve the sustainability of the palm oil sector. We also support the Living Income Community of Practice, an alliance of partners developing data and tools aimed at lifting smallholders out of poverty.
We will set out our approach to addressing UK consumption of forest-risk commodities in due course.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they are taking steps, alone or in partnership with other countries, to initiate proceedings against Ethiopia before the International Court of Justice for violations of the Genocide Convention.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Our approach to genocide determination does not, and has not, prevented us from taking action to call out and seek to address atrocities, or work to build resilience in places where there are risks of instability and violence. Where we see immediate risks of atrocities, we raise our concerns bilaterally with the countries involved and multilaterally through international organisations.
On 15 November 2023, the UK jointly with Canada, Denmark, France, Germany and the Netherlands filed a declaration of intervention at the International Court of Justice in order to set out our interpretation of the relevant provisions of the Genocide Convention before the Court. This, and Written Observations submitted to the Court in March 2025, are intended to assist the court in its independent deliberations.
The UK has not initiated proceedings against the Government of Ethiopia. It is the long-standing policy of the UK Government that any formal determination as to whether genocide has occurred should be made following a judgment by a competent national or international court. This policy is consistent with our obligations under the Genocide Convention, providing a clear, impartial and independent measure for the determination of whether genocide has occurred.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help strengthen the UK’s relationship with the Netherlands.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK and the Netherlands have a strong bilateral relationship as North Sea neighbours, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies, and a shared approach to global challenges. The Prime Minister hosted Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof in Downing Street on 6 February, and the Foreign Secretary hosted Foreign Minister Veldkamp during his visit on 6 May. The UK and the Netherlands continue to work together to promote economic growth and to tackle organised crime, including the people smuggling gangs that drive illegal migration. As NATO allies, we continue to work to promote stability in the Middle East, ramp up the pressure on Russia, and provide support to Ukraine.