Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much the Home Office spent on consultancy fees in relation to their Resources for asylum seekers in the UK leaflets and posters.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office spent approximately £2,400 in consultancy fees in relation to the Resources for asylum seekers in the UK leaflets and posters.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have held any meetings with the Scottish Government regarding its proposed Human Rights Bill.
Answered by Lord Katz - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
In its recent Programme for Government, the Scottish Government committed to the development of a Human Rights Bill on devolved matters, which it aims to introduce in year two of the new Scottish Parliament. The development of Scottish Parliament legislation is of course a matter for the Scottish Government, but the UK Government notes this is a complex policy area and will consider any requests for engagement in the usual way. To date, there have been no substantive policy discussions with the Scottish Government on the proposed legislation.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hanson of Flint on 27 July (HL2056), whether the Ministry of Defence plans to publish a timetable for the reopening of Cameron Barracks for use by all previous user groups; and whether they plan to ensure Highland Council and other affected user groups receive formal notification as soon as the handover from the Home Office is complete.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Cameron Barracks is planned to return to Defence use this Autumn following the announcement by the Home Office in June 26 that they were no longer considering the site for asylum accommodation. As the site was never used for temporary accommodation, there is limited refurbishment and remediation works required.
Previous user groups and the military families whose service families accommodation is located at the barracks, were notified over the summer that the site is returning to Ministry of Defence (MOD) use. The MOD has continued to engage with local stakeholders throughout, although they would not normally notify the Highland Council about the routine use of Defence sites within their jurisdiction.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to fund the refurbishment of Cameron Barracks in Inverness, in the light of their decision not to use Cameron Barracks as temporary accommodation for illegal migrants.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Cameron Barracks is planned to return to Defence use this Autumn following the announcement by the Home Office in June 26 that they were no longer considering the site for asylum accommodation. As the site was never used for temporary accommodation, there is limited refurbishment and remediation works required.
Previous user groups and the military families whose service families accommodation is located at the barracks, were notified over the summer that the site is returning to Ministry of Defence (MOD) use. The MOD has continued to engage with local stakeholders throughout, although they would not normally notify the Highland Council about the routine use of Defence sites within their jurisdiction.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what was the total weight of Class A, B and C drugs that were seized from British airports in each year since 2024, broken down by drug type and airport.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The total weight of drugs seized by Border Force, broken down by type and by year, is available within our regularly published transparency data via the following link:Migration transparency data - GOV.UK
Statistics on the proportion of these seizures which took place at an airport or any other mode are not part of the published transparency data.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in the light of the Home Office's decision to revoke the Bloomsbury Institute's licence to sponsor international students, how many other (1) higher, and (2) further, education institutions are under investigation for failing to meet any or all of the assessments that they are required to comply with to remain on the Register of Student Sponsors.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
All licensed sponsors are subject to ongoing compliance monitoring, including through the Basic Compliance Assessment and wider sponsorship compliance framework.
It would not be appropriate to comment on ongoing investigations, including the number of sponsors currently subject to live compliance action. Where a sponsor is found not to be meeting its obligations, the Home Office may take a range of compliance actions, including action plans, licence restrictions, suspension or revocation.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many applications were received for funding from the Crisis and Resilience Fund to assist with rising heating oil costs since its launch on 1 April 2026, broken down by local authority area; and how many (1) have been approved or rejected, and (2) remain unprocessed.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Support for households affected by rising heating oil prices is administered by local authorities through the Crisis and Resilience Fund (CRF). Local authorities are responsible for determining eligibility, processing applications and holding data relating to applications and awards.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what meetings they have had with the Scottish Government to discuss the issue of properties in Scotland that still have a radio teleswitch service meter, following the radio teleswitch service switch off on 30 June.
Answered by Baroness Curran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
DESNZ, Ofgem, Scottish Government officials and industry representatives met regularly throughout the RTS phase out, to obtain assurances from energy suppliers ahead of each stage of activity, and monitor suppliers' performance in responding rapidly where issues have arisen.
As the majority of remaining recorded RTS consumers have not responded to multiple contacts from suppliers, despite their signal being switched off between one and twelve months ago, industry believes most are no longer reliant on RTS for heating and hot water.
The Department would encourage any consumers who have not had a replacement to contact their energy supplier to arrange one.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what contingency plans are in place for households in remote and island communities that face delays to getting a radio teleswitch service meter replaced with a smart meter, following the radio teleswitch service switch off on 30 June.
Answered by Baroness Curran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department is aware that some consumers living in remote or rural areas of Scotland have faced historical challenges obtaining RTS meter replacement appointments, due to a lack of installer resource, appropriate technology solutions or logistical challenges.
However, the RTS Taskforce, which the Department sits on, has in the last year led a concerted effort to overcome these historical challenges, resulting in significant progress on RTS replacements in these regions.
The Department would encourage any consumers who have not yet had a replacement to contact their energy supplier to arrange one as soon as possible.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what the total value of fines that levied on applied to energy companies for failing to install smart meters in properties within an appropriate timeframe is, broken down by (1) year, and (2) energy company, since 2023-24.
Answered by Baroness Curran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Under new Guaranteed Standards of Performance (GSOP) regulations customers are entitled to £40 compensation if their energy supplier fails to offer a smart meter installation appointment within 6 weeks of the customer requesting one. These regulations came into force on 23rd February 2026 and therefore no performance data is yet available. Ofgem is responsible for compliance and ongoing monitoring of these new Guaranteed standards.
From 2022 until the end of 2025, energy suppliers were required to meet minimum annual installation targets. In 2023, six large suppliers agreed to pay £10.8m into the Voluntary Redress Fund for not meeting 2022 targets.