Asked by: Baroness Alexander of Cleveden (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in setting up taskforces to improve government delivery.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Government has started the first two pilots of these taskforces. One that will improve data sharing across the criminal justice system with work taking place between the Ministry of Justice and the Home Office and a second to address violence against women and girls by working to accelerate delivery of support services in communities across the country.
Asked by: Baroness Alexander of Cleveden (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential impact of increasing levels of AI adoption on public sector efficiency.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government recognises the significant potential for artificial intelligence (AI) to improve public sector efficiency and productivity.
Analysis undertaken through the State of Digital Government Review indicates there is up to £45 billion per year in potential gains, including up to £36 billion from simplifying and automating delivery. Initial analysis by the Central Digital and Data Office found that baseline spend could be reduced by 31% through the use of AI. However, this is an estimate of opportunity, rather than a forecast or committed saving.
Asked by: Baroness Alexander of Cleveden (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in improving their use of technology to deliver government priorities.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government has made significant progress in improving its use of technology to deliver priorities across the public sector.
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology’s Government Digital Service is established as the digital centre of government and sets out a clear framework through the Blueprint for Modern Digital Government and the 2026 Roadmap.
This includes accelerating adoption of cloud technologies, tackling legacy IT systems, expanding the use of artificial intelligence, and investing in shared digital infrastructure to deliver more joined-up, resilient and efficient public services.
Asked by: Baroness Alexander of Cleveden (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in setting up AI growth zones.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
To date, Government has announced five AI Growth Zones: in Culham; the North East of England; Anglesey (North Wales); a South Wales Cluster (spanning from Newport to Bridgend); and Lanarkshire, Scotland.
Over £28 billion in private investment has been committed to these announced AI Growth Zones to date, with delivery of these projects underway across multiple sites.
Asked by: Baroness Alexander of Cleveden (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in establishing a national school for government and public services.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Since the Chief Secretary’s announcement in January 2026, we have developed an initial curriculum, begun on in-house design and expanded our capacity. The School is due to launch later this year.
Asked by: Baroness Alexander of Cleveden (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support people with health conditions into work.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We know that work can support health and wellbeing, so we want everyone who can to get work and get on in work as far as possible. Disabled people and people with health conditions are a diverse group so access to the right work and health support, in the right place, at the right time, is key.
We therefore have a range of specialist initiatives that join up employment and health systems such as WorkWell and Employment Advisers in Talking Therapies. Existing measures include support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants and Connect to Work. We continue to oversee the Disability Confident Scheme.
In our Pathways to Work Green Paper we set out our Pathways to Work offer, backed by £1 billion a year of new funding by the end of the decade. We are building towards a guaranteed offer of personalised work, health and skills support for all disabled people and people with health conditions on out of work benefits, building on existing initiatives.
In November 2025, Sir Charlie Mayfield published the Keep Britain Working Review, setting out recommendations to help employers create healthier, more inclusive workplaces and to reshape how Government works with employers to improve work and health outcomes. We are now working with volunteer employers, providers and regions through a Vanguard Phase to test and refine approaches that support disabled people and people with long‑term physical and mental health conditions to thrive in work. This includes developing effective stay-in-work and return-to-work practices, strengthening prevention, and building the evidence needed to spread good practice so that disabled workers and workers with long-term health conditions receive the support they need to remain in employment successfully.
The 10 Year Health Plan builds on existing work to better integrate health with employment support and incentivise greater cross-system collaboration, recognising good work is good for health. The Plan states our intention to break down barriers to opportunity by delivering the holistic support that people need to access and thrive in employment by ensuring a better health service for everyone, regardless of condition or service area. It outlines how the neighbourhood health service will join up support from across the work, health and skills systems to help address the multiple complex challenges that often stop people finding and staying in work.
Asked by: Baroness Alexander of Cleveden (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support people with disabilities into work.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We know that work can support health and wellbeing, so we want everyone who can to get work and get on in work as far as possible. Disabled people and people with health conditions are a diverse group so access to the right work and health support, in the right place, at the right time, is key.
We therefore have a range of specialist initiatives that join up employment and health systems such as WorkWell and Employment Advisers in Talking Therapies. Existing measures include support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants and Connect to Work. We continue to oversee the Disability Confident Scheme.
In our Pathways to Work Green Paper we set out our Pathways to Work offer, backed by £1 billion a year of new funding by the end of the decade. We are building towards a guaranteed offer of personalised work, health and skills support for all disabled people and people with health conditions on out of work benefits, building on existing initiatives.
In November 2025, Sir Charlie Mayfield published the Keep Britain Working Review, setting out recommendations to help employers create healthier, more inclusive workplaces and to reshape how Government works with employers to improve work and health outcomes. We are now working with volunteer employers, providers and regions through a Vanguard Phase to test and refine approaches that support disabled people and people with long‑term physical and mental health conditions to thrive in work. This includes developing effective stay-in-work and return-to-work practices, strengthening prevention, and building the evidence needed to spread good practice so that disabled workers and workers with long-term health conditions receive the support they need to remain in employment successfully.
The 10 Year Health Plan builds on existing work to better integrate health with employment support and incentivise greater cross-system collaboration, recognising good work is good for health. The Plan states our intention to break down barriers to opportunity by delivering the holistic support that people need to access and thrive in employment by ensuring a better health service for everyone, regardless of condition or service area. It outlines how the neighbourhood health service will join up support from across the work, health and skills systems to help address the multiple complex challenges that often stop people finding and staying in work.
Asked by: Baroness Alexander of Cleveden (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to increase employment support for people receiving sickness benefits.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We know that work can support health and wellbeing, so we want everyone who can to get work and get on in work as far as possible. Disabled people and people with health conditions are a diverse group so access to the right work and health support, in the right place, at the right time, is key.
We therefore have a range of specialist initiatives that join up employment and health systems such as WorkWell and Employment Advisers in Talking Therapies. Existing measures include support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants and Connect to Work. We continue to oversee the Disability Confident Scheme.
In our Pathways to Work Green Paper we set out our Pathways to Work offer, backed by £1 billion a year of new funding by the end of the decade. We are building towards a guaranteed offer of personalised work, health and skills support for all disabled people and people with health conditions on out of work benefits, building on existing initiatives.
In November 2025, Sir Charlie Mayfield published the Keep Britain Working Review, setting out recommendations to help employers create healthier, more inclusive workplaces and to reshape how Government works with employers to improve work and health outcomes. We are now working with volunteer employers, providers and regions through a Vanguard Phase to test and refine approaches that support disabled people and people with long‑term physical and mental health conditions to thrive in work. This includes developing effective stay-in-work and return-to-work practices, strengthening prevention, and building the evidence needed to spread good practice so that disabled workers and workers with long-term health conditions receive the support they need to remain in employment successfully.
The 10 Year Health Plan builds on existing work to better integrate health with employment support and incentivise greater cross-system collaboration, recognising good work is good for health. The Plan states our intention to break down barriers to opportunity by delivering the holistic support that people need to access and thrive in employment by ensuring a better health service for everyone, regardless of condition or service area. It outlines how the neighbourhood health service will join up support from across the work, health and skills systems to help address the multiple complex challenges that often stop people finding and staying in work.
Asked by: Baroness Alexander of Cleveden (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they last made representations to the government of Pakistan about the welfare of former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
I refer the Noble Baroness to the answer given on 6 March to Question HL14686.
Asked by: Baroness Alexander of Cleveden (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will publish an overview of the key threats they have identified to the UK's electoral processes.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
It is, and always will be, an absolute priority for this Government to protect our democratic and electoral processes. Several government publications provide an overview of key threats to the UK’s electoral processes as part of the Government’s Counter Political Interference and Espionage Action Plan to disrupt and deter foreign influence and spying from foreign states.
The Government’s strategy for modern, secure and inclusive elections, published in July, sets out our plan to strengthen oversight of and safeguards against known and emerging threats, including foreign interference through covert political funding. We will deliver a robust and proportionate response to known risks, protecting the integrity of our system and reinforcing public trust in democracy. The strategy can be found (attached) here: Restoring trust in our democracy: Our strategy for modern and secure elections - GOV.UK
Additionally, on December 16th 2025, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government announced an independent review into countering foreign financial influence and interference in UK politics. The terms of reference for the review can be found (attached) here: Independent review: countering foreign financial influence and interference in UK politics: Terms of Reference - GOV.UK
The findings of the independent review will build on both the Government’s Elections Strategy and Counter Political Interference and Espionage Action Plan and inform the elections and democracy bill that we will bring forward this year.
Furthermore, the national technical authorities have published overviews of key threats. The guidance that the National Protective Security Agency published in October highlights the range of vectors and tactics that foreign actors are using to target individuals working in UK politics. This can be found (attached) here: Defending Democracy | National Security Act | NPSA and the NCSC published guidance for political organisations and individuals to counter the cyber threat to elections: Defending democracy - NCSC.GOV.UK