Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, where the COVID-19 restrictions on the movement and activities of people differ in any of the countries of Great Britain, the rules applying to individuals living in the border regions will be those that apply to the country in which they (1) reside, (2) work, or (3) are present at a given moment.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
Where a matter is devolved, UK Government guidance available on GOV.UK is clear that measures apply in England-only and should be considered alongside local public health requirements, guidance and legislation.
The UK Government continues to work with the devolved administrations to take a coordinated approach to decisions and guidance related to the current measures.
Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what the consideration they have given to postponing local elections on 7 May, in view of the COVID-19 pandemic; and if so, what is their assessment of the last day on which a decision must be announced in order for any such postponement to take place.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
Further to the Written Ministerial Statement HLWS169 which I laid on 19 March 2020, the Government has confirmed that the scheduled local, mayoral and Police and Crime Commissioner elections that were due to take place on 7 May this year will be postponed until the next ordinary day of election on 6 May 2021.
Other polls that had already been set for dates from 16 March 2020 and which arise over coming weeks and months will also be addressed in legislation being brought forward as part of the Coronavirus Bill.
The decision was taken following advice from the Government’s medical experts in relation to the response to the Covid-19 virus and the advice of those delivering elections.
Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether local elections on 7 May could be postponed after the publication of the notices of election; and if so, what procedures would be required in order to do so.
Answered by Lord True - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
Further to the Written Ministerial Statement HLWS169 which I laid on 19 March 2020, the Government has confirmed that the scheduled local, mayoral and Police and Crime Commissioner elections that were due to take place on 7 May this year will be postponed until the next ordinary day of election on 6 May 2021.
Other polls that had already been set for dates from 16 March 2020 and which arise over coming weeks and months will also be addressed in legislation being brought forward as part of the Coronavirus Bill.
The decision was taken following advice from the Government’s medical experts in relation to the response to the Covid-19 virus and the advice of those delivering elections.
Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what recent assessment they have made of the all-party consensus, reached in 1999 when the House of Lords Act was passed, that no single political party would in future have a majority of the politically declared membership of the House of Lords.
Answered by Earl Howe - Deputy Leader of the House of Lords
The House of Lords has a key role in scrutinising the executive and being a revising chamber. It is important that the way it is constituted reflects that role and the primacy of the House of Commons. The Conservative manifesto committed to looking at the role of the House of Lords and reviewing the relationship between the Government, Parliament and the courts.
The House of Lords Appointments Commission recommends individuals for appointment as non-party-political life peers. In line with established convention, the number of nominations to be offered to individual political parties is a matter for the Prime Minister. All appointments are vetted by the House of Lords Appointments Commission to ensure the highest standards of propriety.
Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the email account ideasfornumber10@gmail.com has been approved as an official means of recruiting staff to work as special advisers or civil servants; and what are the approved person specifications for the “super-talented weirdos” and “misfits with odd skills” who are invited to apply.
Answered by Earl Howe - Deputy Leader of the House of Lords
The blog invites people to get in touch to discuss opportunities. The blog post does not set out proposed recruitment processes.
Recruitment to the Civil Service is through fair and open competition following section 10 of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act.
Special Adviser appointments are made by Ministers in accordance with section 15 of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act.
Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, and if so when, they intend to lay orders for new parliamentary constituency boundaries before Parliament; and if not, what other proposals they intend to make on constituency boundaries.
Answered by Earl Howe - Deputy Leader of the House of Lords
The final reports of the four Boundary Commissions in the 2018 Boundary Review were submitted to the Government and laid before Parliament in September 2018.
The Government will continue to monitor closely the current legal proceedings in relation to the Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland’s final report.
As we set out in our manifesto, the Government will ensure we have updated and equal parliamentary boundaries, making sure every vote counts the same.
Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to include election funding within the scope of the proposed Constitution, Democracy and Rights Commission.
Answered by Earl Howe - Deputy Leader of the House of Lords
As set out in the Queen’s Speech, the Commission will examine the broader aspects of the constitution in depth and develop proposals to restore trust in our institutions and in how our democracy operates. We are carefully considering the composition and focus of the Commission.
I am unable to offer further detail at the moment, as the precise scope of the Commission’s remit and programme has not yet been decided. Further announcements will be made in due course and I would be happy to provide further information at that time.
Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many European Union citizens whose names appear on the register of electors with a right to vote in the European Parliament elections were turned away from polling stations on 23 May.
Answered by Lord Young of Cookham
Data on people who are turned away from polling stations is not collected centrally.
Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the estimated cost of each of the electoral integrity and voter ID pilots in the local elections on 2 May in England this year; what is the estimated overall cost of running those pilots; and whether they will reimburse local authorities for any extra costs that they incur.
Answered by Lord Young of Cookham
Voter ID is part of a body of work this Government is delivering to strengthen the integrity of our electoral system and give the public confidence that our elections are secure and fit for the 21st century.
As was the case for the 2018 pilots, the 2019 pilot costs will be confirmed when they are known which will be after the pilot authorities have completed their work. That will be as soon as possible after the elections on 2 May. Funding for the additional cost of piloting voter ID will be provided to each local authority by the Cabinet Office.
Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the change of name of the Department of Health to the Department of Health and Social Care, whether there have been any changes to the responsibilities of (1) that Department, and (2) any other department.
Answered by Lord Young of Cookham
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) held responsibility for social care policy before the name change and will continue to do so. DHSC has taken on additional responsibility for delivering the forthcoming Social Care green paper. The team who have been leading the work on the green paper have moved from the Cabinet Office to DHSC. Responsibility for Local Authority funded social care will remain with the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government. There has been no change in responsibilities to any other department.