Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the finding by the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory that the government of Israel has committed genocide in Gaza, what steps they intend to take to ensure that potential perpetrators are held to account.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
I refer the Noble Baroness to my answer of 7 October to question HL10739.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they plan to take to persuade the government of Israel (1) to allow humanitarian access to Gaza, (2) to ensure the protection of civilian populations and humanitarian workers, and (3) to end settler violence in the West Bank.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
The UK has repeatedly made representations to the Israeli government to ensure that humanitarian workers are protected, medical and aid workers can do their jobs safely and to clamp down on settler violence and expansion. Working with our Australian counterparts, we developed the political Declaration for the Protection of Humanitarian Personnel which launched at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on September 21 and secured endorsement from 105 states. On 3 October, the Foreign Secretary spoke to Foreign Minister Sa'ar and pressed him on the humanitarian situation in Gaza, among other matters. We will continue our engagement and keep these issues under review.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to promote nature-based solutions to flooding.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government supports blue-green infrastructure, including nature-based solutions (NbS) to tackle flooding, and delivers it through various programmes including its flood and coastal erosion risk management programme and Environmental Land Management schemes.
The Government published an update on flood and coastal erosion resilience and investment on 14 October 2025 (written statement UIN HLWS955). This includes a commitment to direct at least 4% – or £300 million over ten years – towards NbS, the highest figure to date for the floods programme.
To achieve this, we’re removing barriers that have held back NbS projects. Including:
These reforms will be in place for the start of the new investment programme in April 2026 and we will review progress after three years.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they plan to take to support innovators’ confidence in developing cell and gene therapies in the UK; and what plans they have to amend substances of human origin legislation to accommodate new innovations in the collection and use of substances of human origin products.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Substances of Human Origin (SoHO) Regulation Review Programme launched in 2024 to consider recent changes that the European Union (EU) has made to its SoHO Regulation ((EU) 2024/1938) as well as stakeholder proposals for legislation in this area. It is reviewing patient safety, the intra-United Kingdom and UK-EU supply of SoHO, innovation within the sector, and health inequalities.
A key principle of the review is to maintain compatible high levels of minimum safety and quality standards for blood, blood components, tissues and cells, human breast milk, intestinal microbiota, and blood preparations that are not used for transfusion, to support public health and the movement of SoHO.
A targeted consultation, planned to launch by the end of 2025, will give stakeholders the opportunity to share views and highlight key issues and opportunities. Once the review has concluded a decision will be made about potential changes to legislation.
In addition, recognising the transformative potential of cell and gene therapies, the Department has stood up an advanced therapies co-ordination group to create a joined-up ecosystem that will support the development, regulation, and delivery of cell and gene therapies in the UK.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - 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 of current legislation on substances of human origin on the UK’s ability to compete globally in life sciences growth and innovation.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Substances of Human Origin (SoHO) Regulation Review Programme launched in 2024 to consider recent changes that the European Union (EU) has made to its SoHO Regulation ((EU) 2024/1938) as well as stakeholder proposals for legislation in this area. It is reviewing patient safety, the intra-United Kingdom and UK-EU supply of SoHO, innovation within the sector, and health inequalities.
A key principle of the review is to maintain compatible high levels of minimum safety and quality standards for blood, blood components, tissues and cells, human breast milk, intestinal microbiota, and blood preparations that are not used for transfusion, to support public health and the movement of SoHO.
A targeted consultation, planned to launch by the end of 2025, will give stakeholders the opportunity to share views and highlight key issues and opportunities. Once the review has concluded a decision will be made about potential changes to legislation.
In addition, recognising the transformative potential of cell and gene therapies, the Department has stood up an advanced therapies co-ordination group to create a joined-up ecosystem that will support the development, regulation, and delivery of cell and gene therapies in the UK.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have established a timeline for reforming substances of human origin legislation; and when draft legislation is expected to be published.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Substances of Human Origin (SoHO) Regulation Review Programme launched in 2024 to consider recent changes that the European Union (EU) has made to its SoHO Regulation ((EU) 2024/1938) as well as stakeholder proposals for legislation in this area. It is reviewing patient safety, the intra-United Kingdom and UK-EU supply of SoHO, innovation within the sector, and health inequalities.
A key principle of the review is to maintain compatible high levels of minimum safety and quality standards for blood, blood components, tissues and cells, human breast milk, intestinal microbiota, and blood preparations that are not used for transfusion, to support public health and the movement of SoHO.
A targeted consultation, planned to launch by the end of 2025, will give stakeholders the opportunity to share views and highlight key issues and opportunities. Once the review has concluded a decision will be made about potential changes to legislation.
In addition, recognising the transformative potential of cell and gene therapies, the Department has stood up an advanced therapies co-ordination group to create a joined-up ecosystem that will support the development, regulation, and delivery of cell and gene therapies in the UK.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the recent findings of the Internet Watch Foundation about AI chatbots that enable users to simulate sexual scenarios with child avatars.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government is committed to tackling the atrocious harm of child sexual exploitation and abuse.
The strongest protections in the Online Safety Act are for children – regulated services must remove illegal content and prevent children from encountering harmful content, including where it is AI generated.
The government recognises the need to ensure our legislation keeps pace with changing technologies. The government has introduced an offence in the Crime and Policing Bill which criminalises possessing, creating or distributing AI tools designed to generate child sexual abuse material. We will not hesitate to strengthen the law further, where necessary, to protect children.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to reduce waiting times for diagnostic cardiology services, and what assessment they have made of the potential role of digital health solutions in improving patient outcomes.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We inherited a broken National Health Service, and reducing elective waiting lists is a key part of getting it back on its feet and building an NHS that is fit for the future. To that end we have committed to achieving the NHS Constitutional standard that 92% of patients should wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to treatment by March 2029. Cutting waiting times for diagnostic tests, including those for cardiology, is a crucial step in reducing the elective waiting list.
My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced at the October statement £600 million of capital to support the reduction of diagnostic waiting lists, which includes continued investment in new and expanded community diagnostic centres (CDCs), new acute hospital diagnostic equipment, and investment in digital diagnostic capabilities.
Between July 2024 and August 2025, existing CDCs have carried out a total of 286,260 echocardiography tests and 260,040 electrocardiography tests. Many CDCs are also implementing innovative cardiac pathways to speed up diagnosis and access to treatment for patients with symptoms suggestive of cardiac disease. Our Elective Reform Plan commits to building up to five new CDCs in 2025/26, alongside increasing the operating hours of existing sites so that more offer services 12 hours a day, seven days a week.
The NHS is investing in digital health solutions to improve patient outcomes in cardiology. This includes enabling remote patient monitoring, early intervention, and greater patient engagement through personalised management plans and educational tools. These solutions allow for continuous data collection from home, which helps clinicians detect and respond to deterioration sooner, potentially preventing hospital admissions and improving long-term health management. They also support early detection, diagnosis, and monitoring.
In addition, NHS England has invested in digital capability which is helping to speed up the reporting of tests routinely used in cardiology services, including artificial intelligence cardiac computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to The Hughes Report published on 7 February 2024, when they will provide interim compensation to people impacted by sodium valproate.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is carefully considering the work by the Patient Safety Commissioner and her report, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh. This is a complex issue involving input from different Government departments. The Government will provide a further update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s report.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential savings to the NHS and social care services from adopting value-based procurement of incontinence care for people living with dementia, in particular having regard to the impact on hospital admissions, staffing costs and laundry costs.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has been working in partnership with NHS England and the NHS Supply Chain to develop national Value Based Procurement (VBP) Standard Guidance which will be published in early 2026. The guidance shifts the procurement focus from upfront cost to how a product can best deliver improved patient outcomes and value.
The Department is conducting live pilots to test the draft standard guidance, with National Health Service trusts and integrated care boards, from September to December 2025. Insights from the pilots will be used to refine the guidance and implementation plans ahead of final publication, including the support needed for NHS trusts to adopt the guidance.
Under the 10-Year Health Plan, those living with dementia will benefit from improved care planning and better services. Supporting this, the VBP Standard Guidance will enable the procurement of the most effective products that improve patient experience and outcomes, including for those living with dementia and requiring absorbent incontinence products, as well as improve NHS efficiency.