Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Chapman of Darlington on 7 March (HL5231), what are the "long-standing processes on establishing geographical feature names for UK use"; and whether the Gulf of Mexico will be renamed.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Permanent Committee on Geographical Names (PCGN) advises HMG on policies and procedures for the representation of geographical names for places and features outside the UK, excluding those of the Antarctic. For names of international maritime features beyond any sovereignty, PCGN usually advises reflecting the common English conventional name, which for this body of water is the 'Gulf of Mexico'.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will be renaming the Gulf of Mexico; and, if so, what to.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We have long-standing processes on establishing geographical feature names for UK use, which will continue to govern future labelling.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to establish a taskforce aimed at tackling discrimination against Christians and other religious groups in the UK, similar to the taskforce created for that purpose by the government of the USA.
Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
All forms of racial and religious discrimination are completely unacceptable, including that directed at Christians, and the government continues to work closely with community partners to tackle it. Churches and Christian charities occupy a valuable position in society through their access to active citizens, their role within local communities and their good relationships with other faith groups. Government and police routinely assess potential threats to ensure that protective measures are in place to protect Christian communities and their places of worship. The government has been exploring a more integrated and cohesive approach to bridging divisions and challenging hatred. We remain committed to protecting the right of individuals to freely practise their religion and will not tolerate discrimination against Christians in any form.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to assess the feasibility of initiating direct flights between the United Kingdom and Northern Cyprus.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Under the 1944 Chicago Convention, only the Republic of Cyprus may designate Ercan as an international airport and grant permission for flights. It has not done so. This means that no direct air services between the north of Cyprus and the UK can take place as it would be contrary to the UK’s obligations under the Chicago Convention.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Timpson on 16 December 2024 (HL3055), what recent assessment they have made of the value and performance of current prison maintenance service providers.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The value and performance of the Department’s private-sector service providers are subject to ongoing contract management, and current performance is in line with expected parameters.
As contracts approach expiry, assessments are conducted to inform decisions about future services. A 2023 assessment in partnership with the Cabinet Office determined that a privatised solution was the preferred option for future prison maintenance services. These contracts will be competitively tendered.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Timpson on 16 December 2024 (HL3055), what is their timescale for tendering new contracts for prison maintenance service providers.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Government is currently running a competitive tender process that aims to award new contracts for the provision of maintenance services for prisons by December 2025.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government when, if at all, they expect that the drug abiraterone will be available on NHS prescription in England; and why NHS England has not made it available while it is in Scotland and Wales.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for developing authoritative, evidence-based recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new, licenced medicines represent a clinically and cost-effective use of resources.
The NICE has published guidance recommending abiraterone for the treatment of metastatic hormone-relapsed prostate cancer before chemotherapy is indicated, and for castration-resistant metastatic prostate cancer previously treated with a docetaxel-containing regimen. NHS England funds abiraterone for these indications of prostate cancer in line with the NICE’s recommendations, making it routinely available for clinicians to prescribe to eligible patients.
The NICE was unable to recommend abiraterone for use in the treatment of newly diagnosed, hormone-sensitive, metastatic prostate cancer in its guidance published in 2021. However, the NICE is preparing to review this technology appraisal to determine whether to recommend abiraterone for this indication at current prices, following the patent expiry for abiraterone. Further information will be available on the NICE's website in due course.
Pending the outcome of this review, NHS England has published an interim clinical commissioning policy on 13 December 2024 that will make abiraterone acetate and prednisolone available as a routine commissioning treatment option, within the criteria set out in the policy for patients with newly diagnosed high-risk hormone-sensitive metastatic prostate cancer.
Health is a devolved matter and decisions on the availability of medicines in Scotland and Wales are a matter for their own administration.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to review the ministerial code regarding declarations of interest to improve public confidence in elected officials.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Prime Minister published a new Ministerial Code on 6 November 2024 which sets out the standards expected of all government ministers. Part B, Chapter 3 of the Ministerial Code details the established process in place for the declaration and management of interests held by ministers. This ensures that steps are taken to avoid or mitigate any actual or perceived conflicts of interest.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the report by the Independent Monitoring Boards The impact of a crumbling prison estate on prisoners published in November, what plans they have (1) to consider the potential merits of returning prison maintenance to the public sector, and (2) to review the value of privatised services within the remit of the Ministry of Justice.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Government has a programme of work underway that will put in place new contracts for the provision of maintenance services for prison, these will be competitively tendered.
The value and performance of the Department’s private-sector service providers is reviewed through routine contract and performance management and, in addition, as contracts are approaching expiry so decisions about whether to continue to outsource services can be taken.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to reply to the letter from Lord Balfe to the Treasury sent on 18 September.
Answered by Baroness Gustafsson - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
I apologise to the Noble Lord for the delay in responding to his letter of 18 September. A reply has now been sent.