Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that those formally associated with the Assad regime, including those responsible for torture and the suppression of human rights in Syria, are not given asylum in the United Kingdom.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
While all asylum claims are routinely considered on their individual merits, it is standard procedure to deny protection to anyone who has committed crimes against peace, war crimes, crimes against humanity, other serious crimes abroad or acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers from Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 26 November and 3 December (HL2612 and HL2976), who was invited to attend the inaugural meeting of the East–West Council held in Dover House on 24 March.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Attendance at the council remains flexible to align with themes of discussion and so to ensure its East-West dimension is upheld. The following were invited to the inaugural meeting:
Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities & Minister for Intergovernmental Relations;
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland;
Minister of State for Northern Ireland;
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Levelling Up;
First Minister of Northern Ireland;
deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland;
Minister for Communities, Northern Ireland; and
Minister for the Economy, Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the absence of a functioning Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme in Northern Ireland on their plans for net zero.
Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
This policy is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Executive. We will publish an updated plan in due course, with full detail of policies and proposals to meet the UK’s emissions targets on a pathway to net zero. In developing this we will continue to consult and work closely with the devolved governments.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what clothing and other allowances are made available to asylum seekers who arrive in the United Kingdom whether through official channels or illegally.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office has a legal obligation to meet the essential living needs of destitute asylum seekers. Details of what is considered essential can be found in the annual asylum support rate review reports, published on gov.uk; www.gov.uk/government/publications/report-on-review-of-cash-allowance-paid-to-asylum-seekers.
Asylum seekers are not eligible for mainstream benefits.
Further information about support asylum seekers may be entitled to can be found at Asylum support: What you'll get - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what benefits asylum seekers are entitled to receive upon their arrival in the United Kingdom, whether they came via official channels or illegally.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office has a legal obligation to meet the essential living needs of destitute asylum seekers. Details of what is considered essential can be found in the annual asylum support rate review reports, published on gov.uk; www.gov.uk/government/publications/report-on-review-of-cash-allowance-paid-to-asylum-seekers.
Asylum seekers are not eligible for mainstream benefits.
Further information about support asylum seekers may be entitled to can be found at Asylum support: What you'll get - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether asylum seekers who arrive in the United Kingdom through official channels or illegally are eligible to receive all NHS services; and if so, what is the level of uptake of these services.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Health Service is a residency-based system, which means that people who do not live here on a lawful, settled basis must contribute to the cost of their care. However, some of the most vulnerable people arriving in the United Kingdom, including refugees and asylum seekers, do not pay for NHS treatment.
There are varying entitlements to secondary healthcare services across England and the devolved administrations. Specific examples can be found in the NHS entitlements: migrant health guide on the GOV.UK website, in an online only format. We do not hold information on the level of uptake of these services.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government further to Written Answer from Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 26 November (HL2612), what budget has been allocated to the East–West Council; who was invited to attend its first meeting and who actually attended in March.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The inaugural meeting of the East-West Council took place in Dover House, London in March 2024 and was chaired by the then Secretary of State for Levelling Up and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations.
It was attended by the then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Minister of State for Northern Ireland and the Cabinet Office, and the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Levelling Up. It was also attended by the Northern Ireland First Minister, deputy First Minister, Minister for the Economy and Communities Minister. As with all intergovernmental bodies, the East-West Council will be resourced appropriately.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, if any, of the degree of accuracy of the data from the Office for National Statistics on economic inactivity.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Recent data from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) is subject to significant uncertainty. LFS response rates fell from 49.3% in Q3 2013 [1] to 12.7% in Q3 2023 [2], which have led to a number of concerns about the quality of data based on the LFS.
As set out in its November 2024 Labour Market Overview [3], despite coherence challenges between LFS estimates and other data sources, the LFS continues to be the sole source of data for unemployment, economic inactivity and the self-employed. There are also a range of breakdowns that are only possible from LFS data.
The ONS is undertaking work to address these quality issues through improvements to its data collection and methodology [4]. The ONS is also continuing to develop the Transformed Labour Force Survey (TLFS) as the long-term solution for collecting labour market data [5].
While planned improvements are underway, LFS estimates remain volatile and will continue to be badged as ‘official statistics in development’ until further review. The ONS advise caution when interpreting changes in headline LFS rates and recommend using them as part of its suite of labour market indicators [6].
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much compensation they have paid in the past five years in response to claims made by relatives of those shot and killed by soldiers in Northern Ireland during the Troubles.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
In the last five years the Ministry of Defence has paid £4,682,122 in compensation to relatives of individuals fatally shot by members of the British Army in Northern Ireland between 1969 to 2007.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of cyclists who cycle on roads in the dark without lights on their bicycles.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
No assessment has been made of the number of cyclists who cycle on roads in the dark without lights on their bicycles. Rule 60 of The Highway Code states that cycles must be fitted with a red rear reflector and have white front and red rear lights lit at night. Cycling without proper lights at night is an offence, and enforcement of this is entirely a matter for the police.