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 a modern service framework for respiratory care on tackling health inequalities.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department is aware of the Taskforce for Lung Health’s report calling for a modern service framework for respiratory health, including the impact of respiratory conditions on mortality rates, emergency admissions, inequalities, and productivity.
Modern service frameworks will define an aspirational, long-term outcome goal for a major condition and will then identify the best evidenced interventions and the support for delivery. Early priorities will include cardiovascular disease, severe mental illness, and the first ever service framework for frailty and dementia.
The Government will consider other long-term conditions for future waves of modern service frameworks, including respiratory conditions. The criteria for determining other conditions for future modern service frameworks will be based on where there is potential for rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity.
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 report by the Taskforce for Lung Health, A Modern Service Framework for Respiratory, published on 18 November.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department is aware of the Taskforce for Lung Health’s report calling for a modern service framework for respiratory health, including the impact of respiratory conditions on mortality rates, emergency admissions, inequalities, and productivity.
Modern service frameworks will define an aspirational, long-term outcome goal for a major condition and will then identify the best evidenced interventions and the support for delivery. Early priorities will include cardiovascular disease, severe mental illness, and the first ever service framework for frailty and dementia.
The Government will consider other long-term conditions for future waves of modern service frameworks, including respiratory conditions. The criteria for determining other conditions for future modern service frameworks will be based on where there is potential for rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of the Sentencing Code in England and Wales.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Sentencing Code came into force in December 2020 and was the product of a Law Commission project that involved extensive public consultation. Prior to its creation sentencing procedural law was significantly convoluted, spanning across multiple different pieces of legislation. The Code consolidated the law in this area, helping make it more accessible.
More broadly, the Government keeps the sentencing framework under regular review. In October 2024, we commissioned the Independent Sentencing Review, led by former Lord Chancellor Rt. Hon. David Gauke. The Sentencing Bill, currently being considered before Parliament, implements many of the Review’s recommendations.
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 whether they plan to undertake public consultation on the next England Trees Action Plan; and when will the new England Trees Action Plan be published.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Environmental Improvement Plan 2025 sets out that the government will publish a new Trees Action Plan in 2026. The Trees Action Plan will set out how the government will invest over £1 billion this parliament into tree planting and the forestry sector to achieve our new 2030 interim tree canopy and woodland cover target, improve the resilience and condition of our trees and woodlands, and deliver multiple benefits for nature, climate, people and the economy.
We are working closely with industry, researchers and other stakeholders to shape the vision, priorities and content of the plan. We will continue to actively engage and collaborate with these and other stakeholders.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the likely impact on Northern Ireland and its participation in the Single Electricity Market of the introduction of the European Union's carbon border adjustment mechanism on 1 January 2026; and what discussions they have had with the European Union about an interim arrangement for Northern Ireland.
Answered by Lord Whitehead - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) will enter its definitive regime from January 2026 applies to imports of electricity and certain goods into the EU.
The EU CBAM does not apply in Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland-based power generators are already part of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme in order to maintain the arrangements underpinning the Single Electricity Market. Electricity sent to Northern Ireland from Great Britain is not affected by the EU CBAM.
If businesses are moving electricity to Ireland or elsewhere in the EU, they may need to provide information to their EU-based importer to help them meet their requirements under the EU CBAM. The UK will continue to engage closely with the EU as it finalises the CBAM.
UK businesses should stay informed about developments regarding the EU CBAM, the Department for Business and Trade offers a comprehensive support package through business.gov.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 when they will publish a response to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s report of February 2024 regarding funding redress issues for those harmed by pelvic mesh and 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.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Northern Ireland Executive and the Justice Minister in Northern Ireland regarding proposed amendments to the Sentencing Code and the parts of the Sentencing Bill that relate to Northern Ireland; and whether a Legislative Consent Motion will be required for that Bill.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Ministry of Justice officials have engaged officials in the Northern Ireland Executive in relation to a range of Bill measures and amendments that apply in Northern Ireland, including on sentences with a fixed licence period.
A Legislative Consent Motion is not required with respect to Northern Ireland.
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 how the safety measures in the Online Safety Act 2023 apply to conversational interactions between users and artificial intelligence chatbots where an online search has not been conducted.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
AI chatbots that allow users to share content with one another are regulated by the Online Safety Act. This is in addition to chatbots which search live websites to provide results. Over 100,000 services are in scope of the Act including many services with chatbots.
These services must protect users from illegal content, and they must protect children from harmful and age-inappropriate content. The Government has been clear that we will act to address new and emerging AI harms. For example, government is tackling the disgusting harm of Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse with a new offence to criminalise AI models which have been optimised for this purpose. The Secretary of State has also commissioned the department to see what gaps there are if any, in coverage of the Online Safety Act.
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 will compensate individuals and families who have suffered from the effects of sodium valproate in the past 30 years, and if so, when.
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, further to the answer by Baroness Merron on 13 October (HL Deb cols 9–10), what plans they have to introduce an 18-week referral-to-treatment target for dementia to ensure parity with other conditions and to address current waiting times.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We will deliver the first ever Frailty and Dementia Modern Service Framework to deliver rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. This will be informed by phase one of the independent commission into adult social care, expected in 2026.
The Frailty and Dementia Modern Service Framework will seek to reduce unwarranted variation and narrow inequality for those living with dementia and will set national standards for dementia care and redirect National Health Service priorities to provide the best possible care and support.
In developing the Frailty and Dementia Modern Service Framework, we are engaging with a wide group of partners to understand what should be included to ensure the best outcomes for people living with dementia. As part of this exercise, we will consider what interventions should be supported to improve diagnosis waiting times, which we know are too long in many areas. We are considering all options to help reduce variation, including reviewing metrics and targets.