Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Baroness Chapman of Darlington on 31 October (HL10875 and HL10876), and with reference to the Montevideo Convention and international law regarding recognition of a state, who they recognise as the government of the state of Palestine; where that government is located; and what are the boundaries of that state.

Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)

The Palestinian Authority is the legitimate governing authority of the Palestinian state. The UK recognises Palestinian statehood over provisional borders, based on 1967 lines with equal land swaps, to be finalised as part of future negotiations.

Question

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure compliance with the Supreme Court decision in For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers [2025] UKSC 16.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Prime Minister and the government have been clear that everyone should follow the For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers [2025] Supreme Court judgment.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission - as the independent regulator - has submitted a draft Code of Practice for Services, Public Functions and Associations. This will provide guidance to relevant duty bearers on how they should comply with the Equality Act 2010 following the Supreme Court judgment.

The Government is considering the updated draft Code and, if the decision is taken to approve it, the Code will be laid before Parliament for a 40-day period.

In the meantime, we expect service providers to follow the law as clarified by this judgment and seek specialist legal advice where necessary.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with Ofcom about the BBC’s compliance with its Charter obligations of impartiality and accuracy of news for home and overseas audiences.

Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

DCMS Ministers and officials meet with Ofcom regularly to discuss a range of issues.

It is for Ofcom, as the independent regulator, to ensure the BBC is fulfilling its obligations to audiences, including on impartiality and accuracy, as outlined in the Charter.

Ofcom does not have any functions in relation to the BBC World Service. The BBC agrees objectives, priorities and targets for the World Service directly with the Government.

Question

To ask the Leader of the House what was the cost of answering Questions for Written Answer about Israel and Gaza in the past two years.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Basildon - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal

In the past two years the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Department have received 323 Questions for Written Answer from Members of the House of Lords on Israel and/or Gaza. There would be a disproportionate cost in seeking to identify the exact cost of answering each question, the maximum total cost to the Department to answer all 323 is up to £274, 550.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to the findings of the report published on 20 November by the UK COVID-19 Inquiry, Module 2, 2A, 2B, 2C Report: Core decision-making and political governance, what assessment they have made of the advisability of lockdowns in a future pandemic.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Government remains committed to learning the lessons from the Covid-19 pandemic and to better prepare the country for future pandemics.

The Government will consider the findings and recommendations in the Module 2 report in detail and respond in due course.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have offered support in improving prison conditions through the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative to the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo following reports of rapes at Makala Prison.

Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)

In total, the UK's Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI) has supported over 1,000 survivors of sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to rebuild their lives, and access justice, and we continue to raise human rights violations and prison conditions with the Government of DRC, including the mass rapes that took place at Makala prison in September 2024.

In her role as a supporter of PSVI, the Duchess of Edinburgh raised the ongoing investigation into those rapes during her visit to the DRC in October, and secured a commitment from Prime Minister, Judith Suminwa, that the DRC Ministry of Justice will be pursuing accountability in these cases.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have made representations to the government of Somalia through the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative about evidence of sexual violence by the Somali National Army; and what support, if any, they have provided to the government of Somalia to prevent further sexual violence.

Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)

The UK remains concerned by the human rights situation in Somalia, including conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV), and regularly raises these concerns with the Somali Government. Through the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI), the UK provides funding to the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict in Somalia to strengthen the capacity of Somalia's national security sector to prevent CRSV.