Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what arrangements they intend to make for members of the House of Lords named as having MI5 files in the course of the Undercover Policing Inquiry to see those files.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Undercover Policing Inquiry is independent of the Home Office, and its independence is crucial to its effectiveness.
Disclosure is a matter for the Inquiry. Safeguarding the independence of the Inquiry is of paramount importance and it would not generally therefore, be acceptable for the Government to comment on or intervene in the Inquiry’s decision-making.
More information on the Inquiry’s evidence and disclosure process can be found on the Inquiry’s website at Evidence & hearings - UNDERCOVER POLICING INQUIRY (ucpi.org.uk)
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Prime Minister's statement on 22 September that the enforcement of the COVID-19 restrictions will include “a greater police presence on our streets, and the option to draw on military support where required to free up the police” (HC Deb, col 798), whether police and army leave will be cancelled for the Christmas and new year period for this purpose.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Decisions on the deployment of officers and use of police resources is a matter for individual forces. However, we have been working alongside policing partners throughout this emergency to ensure they have the resources required to be able to effectively respond and enforce the COVID measures in place. This work continues and includes consideration of how we could free up more police officers in the future if it is needed. This includes considering the option of using military support to backfill certain non-public facing police roles.