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Written Question
Shipping: Arctic
Thursday 21st March 2024

Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to monitor the safety of British ships crossing the Arctic Ocean as new shipping lanes become accessible as a result of climate change.

Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

His Majesty’s Government does not directly monitor the safety of British ships crossing the Arctic Ocean. However, ships transiting these waters will be monitored by those States that have Search and Rescue (SAR) responsibilities in the region.

With regards the safety of British ships in Arctic waters, the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) International Code for Ships Operating in Polar Waters (Polar Code) came into force 1 January 2017 and requires ships operating in the Polar regions to meet enhanced safety standards which reflect the additional risks associated with those regions. The UK applies these standards through a survey and certification regime to ensure that safety standards are met and that ships operating in polar regions apply the additional safety considerations that are considered necessary.


Written Question
Food: Children
Friday 9th February 2024

Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact that food consumption campaigns, such as “Drinka Pinta Milka Day”, have had on introducing children to healthy eating habits.

Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

We cannot comment on campaigns undertaken by other commercial companies or organisations. The Government’s nutrition campaigns, such as Better Health Families previously named Change4Life, have focused on sugar, specifically encouraging parents to decrease the amount of sugar their children consume.

These campaigns have seen high claimed behavioural change as a result, as well as a measurable reduction in sugar consumption. For example: in 2019, 59% of all mothers of five to 11 year olds, or 89% of advert recognisers, said they took direct sugar-related action as a results of the campaign; in 2017, 64% of mothers reported making changes around sugar, saturated fats or salt as a result of our Be Food Smart campaign; a 2016 study of the Sugar Smart campaign showed that supermarket stores which featured Change4Life advertising saw a 3% to 4% difference in sales of sugary cereals, sugary drinks and diet drinks compared to the control stores, a trend which continued for 16 weeks after the campaign ended; and the 2014 Smart Swaps campaign led to a decrease of more than 8% in the purchase of sugary fizzy drinks during the campaign period, when compared with the previous year.

For the assessment of our campaigns, we use an evaluation framework to holistically evaluate, measure success, and optimise. This framework examines the conditions in which campaigns operate, the cost of the campaigns, the activity undertaken and the resultant reach, the reaction to the campaign, the behaviour change achieved, whether claimed and actual, and the impact of the campaign on individuals.


Written Question
Seeds: Pesticides
Monday 22nd January 2024

Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Lord Harlech on 4 December (HL Deb col 1352), what plans they have for (1) regulating seed treatment technology, and (2) establishing a parallel trade scheme for plant protection products.

Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

We have implemented temporary and targeted measures to ensure farmers have continued access to seed treatments authorised for that purpose in the EU, and access to parallel products through reinstatement of permits. This is not a permanent solution, rather the measures are designed to provide manufacturers sufficient time to submit applications for authorisation of both existing and new products and for industry to increase the supply of alternative products to bolster choice and competitiveness for all pesticide users.


Written Question
EU Law
Friday 5th January 2024

Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask His Majesty's Government what is the current status of the Dashboard of Retained EU Law, with particular reference to those instruments (1) to be revoked, or (2) subject to sunset, by 31 December 2023.

Answered by Lord Offord of Garvel - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

There are currently 5020 pieces of Retained EU Law (REUL) on the dashboard. This will be updated in January.

At the end of the year around 700 pieces of REUL will be revoked via schedule 1 of the Act (“the revocation schedule”) and subsequent secondary legislation.

Unless it is actively revoked, no REUL will sunset. The Government changed approach from a sunset to the revocation schedule, to provide clarity for business and allow the Government to focus on reform.

Further REUL will be revoked throughout 2024, delivering on our ambition to reduce burdens for business and cut red tape.


Written Question
Electric Scooters: Public Places
Friday 22nd December 2023

Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the illegal use of privately owned e-scooters driven in public places, and what measures they intend to take to impose penalties for their illegal use.

Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Private e-scooters remain illegal to use on public roads, cycle lanes and pavements. Those riding illegally are subject to the same road traffic offences and penalties for unlawful use as all other motor vehicles.

Users can face fixed penalty notices, criminal prosecution, points on their driving licence, and having their e-scooter seized. How resources are deployed to tackle illegal riding is a matter for Chief Officers according to local policing plans.


Written Question
Logistics
Friday 22nd December 2023

Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the value of the logistics sector to the economy.

Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport has not made an assessment of the economic impact of the decline in the UK’s ranking in the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index (LPI).

According to the latest available data published by the Office of National Statistics (ONS), the Transport and Storage Sector contributed £83.5 billion Gross Value Added to the UK economy in 2021. It should be noted that this figure includes some sub-sectors not specific to logistics. A breakdown by sub-sector is available within the ONS published Annual Business Survey statistics.


Written Question
Logistics
Friday 22nd December 2023

Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on the economy of any decline in the UK's ranking in the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index.

Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport has not made an assessment of the economic impact of the decline in the UK’s ranking in the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index (LPI).

According to the latest available data published by the Office of National Statistics (ONS), the Transport and Storage Sector contributed £83.5 billion Gross Value Added to the UK economy in 2021. It should be noted that this figure includes some sub-sectors not specific to logistics. A breakdown by sub-sector is available within the ONS published Annual Business Survey statistics.


Written Question
Churches: Rural Areas
Wednesday 20th December 2023

Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will introduce a zero rate of VAT for repairs of rural churches.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

VAT is a broad-based tax on consumption and the twenty per cent standard rate applies to most goods and services. Whilst there are exceptions to the standard rate, these have always been limited by both legal and fiscal considerations.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport already administer the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme. This aims to redress financial shortfalls by providing grants towards VAT paid on repairs and maintenance to the nation's listed places of worship. With annual funding increased to £42 million per annum, the scheme handles around 7,000 claims per annum and has made grants totalling over £300 million to date.

Going further by zero rating all repairs of rural churches would impose significant additional pressure on the public finances to which VAT makes a significant contribution.

There are no plans to introduce a new VAT relief for the repair of rural churches. However, the Government keeps all taxes under review.


Written Question
Shoplifting
Wednesday 20th December 2023

Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the rise in shoplifting; and what steps they will take to reduce these offences.

Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Government recognises the significant impact shoplifting has on businesses, communities and consumers. The Crime Survey for England and Wales shows neighbourhood crime is down 51% compared to findings from the year ending March 2010.

However, Police Recorded Crime figures show shoplifting offences increased by 25% in the 12 months to June 2023. Statistics also show the number of people charged with shoplifting offences has risen by 29% in the year ending June 2023.

We have recently made significant steps to improve the police response to retail crime, including shoplifting.

In October, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) published the Retail Crime Action Plan. Through this Plan, all police forces in England and Wales have committed to prioritise police attendance at the scene where violence has been used towards shop staff, where an offender has been detained by store security, and where evidence needs to be secured and can only be done by police personnel. Additionally, where CCTV or other digital images are secured, police will run this through the Police National Database to further aid efforts to identify prolific offenders or potentially dangerous individuals.

This builds on the NPCC commitment that police forces across England and Wales will follow up all crimes where there is actionable evidence and the chance of identifying an offender, including shoplifting.

October also saw the launch of Pegasus, a unique private-public partnership, which involves retailers providing data, intelligence and evidence to Opal, the national police intelligence unit on organised acquisitive crime, to develop a better strategic picture and help forces crack down on serious offenders.


Written Question
Electric Vehicles: Road Traffic Offences
Thursday 7th December 2023

Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many fines or other penalties have been imposed for breaches of road traffic laws by (1) e-bikes, and (2) e-scooters, in each of the past six months.

Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Home Office collects and publishes data on fixed penalty notices (FPNs) and other outcomes for motoring offences in England and Wales on an annual basis, as part of the ‘Police Powers and Procedures: Other PACE’ statistical bulletin. The most recent data, up to 2021, is available here:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1118166/fixed-penalty-notices-and-other-motoring-offences-statistics-police-powers-and-procedures-year-ending-31-december-2021.ods

However, the Home Office does not centrally collect data on the type of vehicle involved in the offence.