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

To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to the potential role of beavers in restoring England’s chalk streams.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

This Government is committed to the restoration of our cherished chalk streams. With 85% of the world’s chalk streams found in the UK, these unique water bodies are not just vital ecosystems but a symbol of our national heritage.

Beavers are part of the natural chalk stream fauna, and we view that these ecosystem engineers can contribute to the Government’s aspiration to deliver a healthy, sustainable water environment for people, businesses, and nature at a catchment scale. Defra and the Environment Agency are working with Natural England, stakeholders, and Beaver Management Groups, and other partners to inform and support these aims.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the productivity of businesses where employees work a permanent four-day working week.

Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

While the government routinely monitors the impact of flexible working, it has made no specific assessment of the four-day week. Additionally, the government has no plans to mandate a four-day week for five-days’ pay. However, we are, through the Employment Rights Bill, giving employees better access to flexible working arrangements, where feasible. Not all businesses will be able to accommodate all forms of flexible working. We want to create a framework that will encourage employers and employees to explore suitable options for flexible working arrangements that suit both parties.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to engage positively with Muslim communities, including the Muslim Council of Britain.

Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Government recognises the importance of engaging meaningfully with faith and belief groups. HMG does not engage with the Muslim Council of Britain. There has been no change to this policy. This has been set out consistently in Parliament.

Since being appointed Faith Minister, I have been engaging with Muslim communities nationwide, connecting with women, young people, and community leaders through extensive outreach efforts. This has included engagement with numerous Muslim leaders in the aftermath of the Southport incident and subsequent riots, hosting a Muslim women’s roundtable, and supporting a number of community-led initiatives including interfaith youth forums. Looking ahead, I am planning further engagement in preparation for Ramadan to continue fostering dialogue and strengthening collaboration.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they intend to make to the government of Iran concerning the execution sentences of Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani.

Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

We are aware of the reports relating to the death sentences of Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani. We have repeatedly called on Iran to establish a moratorium on executions, including at the UN Human Rights Council and UN Third Committee last year. We continue to raise human rights issues directly with the Iranian government, including through our Ambassador in Tehran, and are committed to working with international partners to expose Iran's application of the death penalty in multilateral fora.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the M23 rebel group taking control of Goma; and whether they intend to call on Rwanda to withdraw support to the M23 rebels and withdraw from the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The UK condemns the occupation of Goma and other territories in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) by M23 and Rwandan Defence Forces as an unacceptable breach of DRC's sovereignty and the UN Charter, which poses a fundamental risk to regional stability. The humanitarian situation is now critical, with hundreds of thousands of people re-displaced, acute food insecurity and an increased risk of violence against civilians, especially women and girls.

The Foreign Secretary has spoken with President Kagame and President Tshisekedi to call for immediate de-escalation and a return to diplomatic talks. The UK has been at the forefront of encouraging regionally-led peace efforts, including the Luanda and Nairobi Processes. The joint Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East Africa Community (EAC) Summit in Dar es Salaam 7-8 February committed to resuming dialogue and negotiations with all state and non-state parties and supporting this with AU-appointed facilitators, as well as calling for improved humanitarian access.

In the UK's statement on the situation in eastern DRC, we called for the immediate withdrawal of all Rwandan Defence Forces from Congolese territory. We have been clear with Rwanda that an attack on Goma would provoke a strong response from the international community.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what recent reports they have received on the whereabouts of Sombath Somphone.

Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

There are no recent reports from the Lao authorities on the whereabouts of Sombath Somphone. During a bilateral meeting with the UK's Minister for the Indo-Pacific in 2023, the Lao Government stated that they were continuing to investigate the disappearance but had no new information.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have made to counterparts in Laos regarding the fate of civil society activist Sombath Somphone.

Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

We remain very concerned as to the whereabouts of Mr Sombath Somphone. The UK regularly raises the disappearance of Sombath Somphone bilaterally and through the UN Human Rights Council. Most recently, on 15 December 2024 our Embassy in Laos publicly raised the disappearance and continued to push for a thorough and impartial investigation into this case. We intend to continue to raise the case at the highest levels and to continue to stay engaged with Sombath's family who are still based in Laos.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to raise the case of civil society activist Sombath Somphone at the UN's fourth Universal Periodic Review of Laos on 29 April.

Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK will continue to use the UN Human Rights Council as a platform to raise the case of Sombath Somphone and other human rights cases. In the upcoming Universal Periodic Review in April, the UK will urge the Lao Government to follow and implement the recommendations from Member States. This includes undertaking impartial, thorough, and transparent investigations into all enforced disappearances, including Sombath Somphone.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hanson of Flint on 29 January (HL4121), whether they intend to make an assessment of the number of parents illegally accessing cannabinoid epilepsy treatments for their children.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

There are currently no plans to make such an assessment but the Government keeps all regulations under close review.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to address the rise in shoplifting.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

Under the previous Government, shop theft soared to record highs and it continues to increase at an unacceptable level, with more and more offenders using violence and abuse against shop workers. We will not stand for this.

Everybody has a right to feel safe at their place of work and this Government is committed to tackling retail crime.

We will introduce a new offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores. We will also end the effective immunity, introduced by the previous Government, granted to shop theft of goods of and under £200. This will remove any perception that offenders will escape punishment.

As set out in the Autumn Budget 2024, we will provide over £7 million over the next three financial years to help police in tackling retail crime and supporting local businesses.

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to establishing an advisory body to provide advice on food security, as recommended in the National Preparedness Commission executive summary report Just in Case: 7 steps to narrow the UK civil food resilience gap, published in January.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra recognises the importance of civil preparedness in resilience alongside industry’s role in responding to supply chain disruptions. Officials have been reviewing with interest the recommendations of ‘Just in case: 7 steps to narrow the UK civil food resilience gap’ since its publication on 6 February 2025.

Food is one of the 13 Critical National Infrastructure sectors in the UK and Defra takes its role as Lead Government Department for food supply very seriously. Defra works closely with the resilience and CNI community across government to ensure impacts to food supply are considered in risk assessments and contingency planning.

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

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will take steps to treat food security as a core component of national infrastructure planning, as recommended in the National Preparedness Commission executive summary report Just in Case: 7 steps to narrow the UK civil food resilience gap, published in January.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra recognises the importance of civil preparedness in resilience alongside industry’s role in responding to supply chain disruptions. Officials have been reviewing with interest the recommendations of ‘Just in case: 7 steps to narrow the UK civil food resilience gap’ since its publication on 6 February 2025.

Food is one of the 13 Critical National Infrastructure sectors in the UK and Defra takes its role as Lead Government Department for food supply very seriously. Defra works closely with the resilience and CNI community across government to ensure impacts to food supply are considered in risk assessments and contingency planning.

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to introducing a "Food Security and Resilience Act", as recommended in the National Preparedness Commission executive summary report Just in case: 7 steps to narrow the UK civil food resilience gap, published in January.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra recognises the importance of civil preparedness in resilience alongside industry’s role in responding to supply chain disruptions. Officials have been reviewing with interest the recommendations of ‘Just in case: 7 steps to narrow the UK civil food resilience gap’ since its publication on 6 February 2025.

Food is one of the 13 Critical National Infrastructure sectors in the UK and Defra takes its role as Lead Government Department for food supply very seriously. Defra works closely with the resilience and CNI community across government to ensure impacts to food supply are considered in risk assessments and contingency planning.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the proportion of people diagnosed with lung cancer over the past five years who have never smoked.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

No assessment has been made on this issue, as smoking data is not routinely collected, except for specific circumstances such as data on access to stop smoking services. A difficulty in collecting and using data on smoking is that ‘never’ smoked can be interpreted in different ways and can result in under-estimation of smoking.

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

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of Farm Retail Association forecasts that more than 700 farm shops could close in the coming decade.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Government are introducing measures to support retail premises. We intend to introduce permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties from 2026-27. Ahead of these changes being made, we have prevented RHL relief from ending in April 2025 by extending it for one year at 40 per cent up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business and frozen the small business multiplier. This year, we’re launching a new Business Growth Service, which will simplify SME support, bringing it all under a single, trusted banner. We’re also publishing our Small Business Strategy, setting out our shared vision to help all SMEs irrespective of their sector.

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Found: THE LORD BISHOP OF ST ALBANS LORD ROBATHAN 22_ After Clause 2, insert the following new Clause— “Closure

Found: Holocaust Memorial Bill 6 THE LORD BISHOP OF ST ALBANS _ After Clause 2, insert the following new Clause

Found: THE LORD BISHOP OF ST ALBANS _ After Clause 2, insert the following new Clause— “Closure of Victoria

Found: THE LORD BISHOP OF ST ALBANS _ After Clause 2, insert the following new Clause— “Closure of Victoria

Found: THE LORD BISHOP OF ST ALBANS _ After Clause 2, insert the following new Clause— “Closure of Victoria

Found: THE LORD BISHOP OF ST ALBANS ★_ After Clause 2, insert the following new Clause— “Closure of Victoria