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

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to regulate professional dog walkers.

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

Professional dog walkers must comply with the Animal Welfare Act 2006 and other relevant legislation, such as welfare in transport regulations and the Health and Safety at Work Act, and any public liability or other insurance policy requirements.

The Government has no current plans to regulate professional dog walkers. The Canine and Feline Sector Group has published best practice guidance to assist dog walkers which can be found here.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what are the current terms of reference of Healthwatch England.

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

Healthwatch England is the independent statutory national champion for people who use health and social care services. Its functions include gathering and communicating the views of the public on their needs and experiences of health and social care services. Healthwatch England also provides support and assistance to the 152 Local Healthwatch organisations in England.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government what percentage of women remanded into custody in each of the past two years subsequently (1) were not sentenced, (2) received a community sentence, and (3) received a sentence of less than six months.

Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the remand status of defendants and subsequent outcomes at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Remands data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly: December 2023

The proportion of females remanded in custody and subsequently (1) not sentenced, (2) receiving community sentence, and (3) receiving a custodial sentence of less than six months at criminal courts is provided below.

Proportion of outcomes for women remanded in custody at criminal courts, 2022 to 2023, England and Wales [note 1]

Source: Court Proceedings Database.

Notes:

[1] Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.

[2] These figures are presented on a principal offence basis - i.e. reporting information relating to the most serious offence that a defendant was dealt with for. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.

[3] These figures are presented on a principal disposal basis - i.e. reporting the most severe outcome issued for the offence.

[4] Defendants are reported against the most serious remand status recorded at a court hearing during their case (excluding the status recorded post-sentencing hearing, as this reflects the outcome of the sentence rather than a remand decision). A defendant’s remand status may change several times throughout their court journey, however only the most serious status during that period is reported and this does not reflect the number of remand decisions made.

[5] 'Not sentenced' includes the following outcomes: Case discontinued or discharged at Magistrates' court; charge withdrawn or dismissed at Magistrates' court; case discontinued at Crown Court; other disposal without conviction; and acquitted at Crown Court.

Question

To ask His Majesty's Government what are the current terms of reference of the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)

The Equality Act 2006 details the establishment, duties, powers and constitution for the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).

Further information regarding the governance of the EHRC can be found on their website: www.equalityhumanrights.com.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what were the terms of reference of the reviews they have commissioned of six healthcare regulators, to be led by Dr Penny Dash.

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

In July, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care asked Dr Penny Dash to carry out a review, looking at patient safety across the health and care landscape in England, within the context of the wider regulation and improvement of the quality of care. The guidance, Review of patient safety across the health and care landscape: terms of reference, published on 15 October 2024, is available on the GOV.UK website, in an online-only format.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what are the current terms of reference of the (1) Children's Commissioner, (2) Victims’ Commissioner and (3) Care Quality Commission.

Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Office for the Children’s Commission does not have a terms of reference. Instead there is a framework agreement with the Department for Education, which can be found here: DfE framework agreement | Children's Commissioner for England.

The Children Act 2004 created the role for a Children’s Commissioner in England with the primary function of promoting and protecting the rights of children in England, ensuring that the views of the most vulnerable children are heard. The role was established following a recommendation in the Inquiry into Victoria Climbié’s death in 2000.

The intention of the Children and Families Act 2014 was to strengthen the remit, independence, and powers of the Commissioner. The Commissioner was given additional powers to effectively carry out the role.

These pieces of legislation set out the powers and responsibilities of the Children’s Commissioner for England.

The Victims’ Commissioner is appointed by the Secretary of State for Justice in accordance with the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004. The functions of the role are set out in legislation and are to promote the interests of victims and witnesses, encourage good practice in the treatment of victims and witnesses, and to keep under review the operation of the Code of Practice for Victims (“the Victims’ Code). The Victims’ Commissioner is also required to make an annual report on the performance of their functions to the Justice Secretary, Attorney General and the Home Secretary and give advice to a Minister of the Crown or to the Treasury when required to do so, amongst other functions and duties.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and social care in England. It operates within the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations, including the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, which sets out the fundamental standards that providers of health and social care are expected to meet.

The CQC among its other functions, inspects, assess and monitors providers, giving them a rating of either outstanding, good, requires improvement or inadequate, to encourage continuous improvement. It has enforcement powers, to ensure the quality of care does not fall below the expected levels of standards.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what are the current terms of reference of Ofsted.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)

Ofsted’s overall functions and remit are set out in a range of legislation, including the Education and Inspections Act 2006, which is available here: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2006/40/part/8. The Act establishes Ofsted as a non-ministerial government department.

Ofsted publishes a number of documents relevant to its work and responsibilities, including its corporate governance arrangements, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ofsteds-corporate-governance-framework/ofsteds-corporate-governance-framework. An annual report on its work is attached and also available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/655f2551c39e5a001392e4ca/31587_Ofsted_Annual_Report_2022-23_WEB.pdf.

Found: This proposal is supported by Lord Bradley, Lord Carter of Haslemere and Lord Farmer. + RACHEL GLOUCESTER