Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Collins of Highbury on 26 February (HL5029) on Stonewall funding, what steps they are taking to ensure the efficacy and utility of each project mentioned in respect of value for taxpayer money.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's LGBT+ rights programme aims to transform the lives of millions of LGBT+ people around the world. This is done by tackling systematic violence, persecution, and exclusion by addressing outdated discriminatory laws, promoting protective legislation, empowering civil society organisations, and supporting the most vulnerable LGBT+ people in conflict and crisis. All programme proposals are required to set out how they will deliver and measure value for money. Successful partners are required to submit reports for the rigorous monitoring and evaluation process. These reports include a results framework or log frame to track progress against targets of the project alongside quarterly and annual progress reports, which allow us to look at the effectiveness, efficiency, efficacy, and utility of any work supported. All the information received from the partner and ongoing conversations throughout the years which the project is active allows us to track value for money.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to next discuss sentencing guidelines with the Sentencing Council.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Lord Chancellor recently met with the Chairman of the Sentencing Council to discuss the Imposition guideline, and they had a constructive discussion. It was agreed that the Lord Chancellor would set out her position in writing, which the Sentencing Council will then consider before the guideline is due to come into effect.
Ministers will meet with Sentencing Council as needed for continued engagement.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Ukraine regarding religious freedom and plurality following the adoption of Law 3894 in September 2024.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are deeply disturbed by the impact of Russia's illegal war on Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) in Ukraine. In contrast, Ukraine's democracy is well known for its commitment to religious pluralism. The UK supports the intention behind Law 3894 "about protection of the constitutional system in field of activity of the religious organisations". The Ukrainian Government and religious leaders have offered reassurances that the law is not aimed at restricting freedom of religion or belief in Ukraine, but instead responds to clear national security threats. The Ukrainian Government is in ongoing consultation with religious and belief communities in Ukraine on the implementation of the law, including the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organisations.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of religious freedom in Ukraine following the adoption of Law 3894 in September 2024.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are deeply disturbed by the impact of Russia's illegal war on Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) in Ukraine. In contrast, Ukraine's democracy is well known for its commitment to religious pluralism. The UK supports the intention behind Law 3894 "about protection of the constitutional system in field of activity of the religious organisations". The Ukrainian Government and religious leaders have offered reassurances that the law is not aimed at restricting freedom of religion or belief in Ukraine, but instead responds to clear national security threats. The Ukrainian Government is in ongoing consultation with religious and belief communities in Ukraine on the implementation of the law, including the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organisations.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address barriers to marriage faced by lower income couples following the publication of new research by the Marriage Foundation.
Answered by Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Law Commission’s 2022 report on weddings law made 57 recommendations for the reform of weddings law and set out its view that its recommendations would provide greater choice for couples, lowering the cost of weddings and making them more accessible to all.
Marriage will always be one of our most important institutions. That is why we are carefully considering the Law Commission’s report and have a duty to take the time to consider these important issues. We will set out our position on weddings reform in the coming months.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to safeguard neurodivergent and vulnerable children and young adults from receiving medically unnecessary surgeries as part of gender-affirming care interventions.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England commissions gender services for children and young people in line with its interim service specification for children and young people with gender incongruence. These services do not make referrals for surgical interventions.
Children and young people are cared for holistically by specialist multi-disciplinary teams based in specialist children's hospitals. The multi-disciplinary team should include expertise in child and adolescent mental health, including family therapy, cognitive behavioural therapy, and neurodevelopmental conditions.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress has been made on data sharing by adult gender clinics to enable the study of long-term outcomes for patients, including young adults and children, who have accessed puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Following the publication of the Cass Review Final Report, NHS England assumed responsibility for progressing the data linkage study, which will help us learn from the experiences and outcomes of young adults who accessed previous models of National Health Service gender services care.
This work is being undertaken with oversight from the NHS England National Research Oversight Board and is progressing as intended.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure children are not privately prescribed cross-sex hormones in order to circumnavigate the ban on puberty blockers.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The safety of children and young people is an overriding priority for the Government, and that is why we introduced an indefinite ban on the sale and supply of puberty supressing hormones from the European Economic Area and private providers in the United Kingdom.
We will monitor the impact of the ban and will not hesitate to go further if the evidence shows the indefinite ban is being circumnavigated.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many individuals who are foreign nationals have been removed from the UK upon revocation of their student visas as a result of serious public order or other criminal offences since 7 October 2023.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Foreign nationals who commit a crime should be in no doubt that the law will be enforced and, where appropriate, we will pursue their deportation.
The information requested is not available from published statistics.
The Government strongly values the vital economic and academic contributions that international students make in the UK.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Collins of Highbury on 25 February (HL5027), whether the (1) Serious Fraud Office, (2) Independent Office for Police Conduct, and (3) National Crime Agency, are paid members or affiliates of Stonewall.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Independent Office for Police Conduct is a paid member of Stonewall.
The Serious Fraud Office and National Crime Agency are neither members nor affiliates of Stonewall.