Asked by: Lord Jopling (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Chapman of Darlington on 16 July (HL9053), whether they will answer the question put.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
Please refer to my answer to HL9053 published on 16 July. We encourage all Allies to meet their North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) commitments.
Asked by: Lord Jopling (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government for how many weeks there have been traffic restrictions on the A1 between Wansford and Peterborough; for how many more weeks they expect those restrictions to be in place; and what are the reasons for those restrictions.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
National Highways (NH) has had traffic restrictions on the A1 at Water Newton to Stibbington in place from 1 November 2024 as a large agricultural vehicle caused substantial damage to the bridge. This has required nearside lane closures that will be in place until 12 September 2025.
NH has 16 planned overnight closures during the period 17 July 2025 until 4 October 2025 to carry out various temporary maintenance and technology works to maintain the network. NH plan to carry out the work overnight to limit disruption to drivers during the day.
NH has an Interim remedial scheme where it will undertake interventions to widen the A1 to allow for 2 lanes running. This will begin in September 2025 and finish in October 2025. This will require a combination of initial nighttime closures followed by a series of 6 weekend closures.
Asked by: Lord Jopling (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the percentage of GDP which the government of Belgium has spent on defence over the last five years in accordance with their obligations as a NATO member; and what representations they have made to that government regarding meeting pledged defence spending targets under NATO, including the new target of 5 per cent.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
The North-Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) collects defence expenditure data from Allies and publishes it on a semi-regular basis. NATO spending reports are published online here: https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/topics_49198.htm. At the NATO Summit, Allies committed to investing 5 per cent of gross domestic product annually on defence and security, composed of 3.5 per cent core defence spending and 1.5 per cent security and resilience spending, by 2035. We encourage all Allies to meet their NATO commitments.
Asked by: Lord Jopling (Conservative - Life peer)
Question
To ask the Leader of the House whether she has contacted the Permanent Secretaries at the Foreign Office, the Department for Education, and the Department for Health and Social Care to ask for explanations as to why these departments have failed to answer questions for written answer, tabled in May but still awaiting an answer in July.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Basildon - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
I have personally reminded Ministers of the 10 day target for their department throughout my time as Leader. As well as this my office routinely contacts departments and Secretaries of State who have breached the target, reminding them of their duty to ensure the target is met and to ascertain the reasons why deadlines have been missed. I have not at present written to any Permanent Secretaries but I will do so if the issue persists.
Asked by: Lord Jopling (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many babies were born in each of the past three years to surrogate mothers; and in how many cases the surrogate mother has claimed parentage of the child contrary to the wishes of the genetic parents.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) publishes annual data, available on their website, which includes births from surrogacy at United Kingdom licensed fertility clinics. The following table shows the number of live births from in vitro fertilisation among surrogates at UK licensed fertility clinics in each of the last three years for which information is available:
Year of treatment | Number of live births |
2021 | 105 |
2022 | 90 |
2023 | 95 |
Source: HFEA dashboard data, available at the following link:
https://www.hfea.gov.uk/about-us/hfea-dashboard/
Data on the HFEA dashboard is rounded to the nearest five to ensure patient confidentiality. The data is as recorded by the HFEA on 1 May 2025, and reflects the data on this date, and may change over time. This does not represent the total number of births from surrogacy in the UK, only those that have been carried out within UK licensed fertility clinics.
Information is not held by the Government on cases where the surrogate mother has claimed parentage of the child contrary to the wishes of the genetic parents.
Asked by: Lord Jopling (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 16 April (HL6564), whether they plan to insist on a loosening of impediments to access of the UK financial services sector to the United States financial services sector in seeking a new trade agreement with the United States.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
On 8 May the UK government announced a landmark economic deal with the US, making the UK the first country to reach an agreement with President Trump. We are continuing talks which will look at increasing digital trade, access for our world-leading services industries and improving supply chains.
The US and the UK are each other's largest single country trading partners for financial services. Following discussions between the Chancellor and US Treasury Secretary Bessent, we agreed to use the upcoming Financial Regulatory Working Group (FRWG) to discuss collaboration on digital assets, including to support the use and responsible growth of digital assets, and the proposals put forward by the Commissioner on the Security and Exchange Commission for a transatlantic sandbox for digital securities.
Asked by: Lord Jopling (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether, in negotiating a free trade agreement, they intend to prioritise opening up the financial services industry between the United Kingdom and the United States of America.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The US is an indispensable ally and one of our closest trading partners. Our trading relationship with the US was worth £315 billion in 2024. As Secretary of State said on 3 April, we have been engaged in discussions on an economic deal between the US and the UK and we remain committed to this. The financial services industry is integral to our economy, and we will always act in the UK's national interest.
Asked by: Lord Jopling (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many Ministers do not receive a ministerial salary sitting in (1) the House of Commons, and (2) the House of Lords; and how many of these are beyond the scope of the statutory limitation on the maximum number of Ministers who may be paid ministerial salaries.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
A list of all government ministers is on gov.uk at the following address: https://www.gov.uk/government/ministers. This details whether ministers are paid or unpaid.
The Ministerial and other Salaries Act 1975 sets a statutory limit on the number of ministerial salaries of 109. There are currently 108 paid ministers, 1 minister paid by the Labour Party, and 10 unpaid ministers.
Asked by: Lord Jopling (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether current or proposed guidance to Ministers on accepting gifts or entertainment applies to Ministers who are not in receipt of ministerial salaries.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Guiding principles for ministers on accepting gifts and hospitality are set out in the Ministerial Code. The Code applies to all government ministers.
Asked by: Lord Jopling (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government which further education establishments in England provide courses which include instruction in the construction of tunnels for the use of railway or road traffic.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
It is for providers to determine what courses to deliver based on employer and learner demand. Statistics are published on sector subject area, which can be accessed here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/further-education-and-skills. The department does not hold information on which institutions are providing provision covering the construction of tunnels for the use of railway or road traffic.