Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many registered XL bully dogs are aged (1) 0 or 1 years, (2) 2 or 3 years, (3) 4 or 5 years, (4) 5 or 6 years, (5) 7 or 8 years, (6) 9 or 10 years, (7) 11 years or more.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The table below provides a breakdown of registered XL Bully dogs by the ages requested.
Age of dog | Number of dogs |
0 or 1 years old | 16,461 |
2 or 3 years old | 26,304 |
4 or 5 years old* | 8,849 |
5 or 6 years old* | 4,392 |
7 or 8 years old | 1,954 |
8 or 9 years old | 1,039 |
11 years old or older | 807 |
*Please note that 5 year old dogs have been included in both age ranges.
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the number of registered unneutered XL bullies in England and Wales.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Dogs aged under 12 months on the 31 January 2024 need to be neutered by the 31 December 2024. In March this year, the Government announced that there would be an extension for the youngest dogs that were aged less than 7 months on the 31 January 2024. These dogs would need to be neutered by the 30 June 2025. As these deadlines have not yet passed, we have not received and processed all neutering forms and so we do not hold data on the number of XL Bullies that have been neutered. We recommend that owners arrange for their dogs to be neutered as soon as possible to meet these deadlines.
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the number of registered neutered XL bullies in England and Wales.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Dogs aged under 12 months on the 31 January 2024 need to be neutered by the 31 December 2024. In March this year, the Government announced that there would be an extension for the youngest dogs that were aged less than 7 months on the 31 January 2024. These dogs would need to be neutered by the 30 June 2025. As these deadlines have not yet passed, we have not received and processed all neutering forms and so we do not hold data on the number of XL Bullies that have been neutered. We recommend that owners arrange for their dogs to be neutered as soon as possible to meet these deadlines.
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 20 February (HL2204), whether they intend to apply further conditions to funding provided to the government of Iraq to prevent this funding being funnelled to other groups, including Kata'ib Hezbollah.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
Thorough due diligence assessment of all funding is carried out and the FCDO ensures partners have procedures in place to manage the main risks of aid diversion from activities it funds, including specific controls to ensure that assistance goes direct to the intended beneficiaries.
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 20 February (HL2204), what methods and tactics they have at their disposal when hostages are held by non-state actors within the territory of another state, such as the case of Elizabeth Tsurkov in Iraq; and what further steps they will take to facilitate her release.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK is concerned over the kidnapping of Israeli-Russian dual national Elizabeth Tsurkov. The Government of Iraq opened an investigation into her kidnapping last year and we await the findings. Those suspected of criminal responsibility for her kidnapping should be brought to justice in fair trials. However, as Elizabeth Tsurkov is not a British citizen, we are not in a position to offer direct consular assistance.
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 20 February (HL2204), what processes and safeguards are in place to ensure that UK funding to the government of Iraq is not channelled to the Popular Mobilisation Forces and affiliated organisations such as Kata'ib Hezbollah.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
Thorough due diligence assessment of all funding is carried out and the FCDO ensures partners have procedures in place to manage the main risks of aid diversion from activities it funds, including specific controls to ensure that assistance goes direct to the intended beneficiaries.
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (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 Azerbaijan concerning the protection of the cultural heritage of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The preservation of religious and cultural sites in the region is an important issue and we take seriously reports of the destruction of churches or other sites of religious significance. We are aware of allegations from both Armenia and Azerbaijan that cultural and religious sites have been deliberately damaged over the course of the conflict. The British Embassy in Baku has raised the topic of religious and cultural destruction with the Azerbaijani government consistently and at senior level.
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether there has been any discussion with the government of Iraq concerning the case of the academic Elizabeth Tsurkov, currently being held hostage by Kata'ib Hezbollah.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK is concerned over the kidnapping of Israeli-Russian dual national Elizabeth Tsurkov. The Government of Iraq opened an investigation into her kidnapping last year, and we await the findings. Those suspected of criminal responsibility should be brought to justice in fair trials. His Majesty's Government has not had any discussion with the Government of Iraq regarding the kidnapping.
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what funding and other support is provided to the government of Iraq; and whether any of this is used by the government of Iraq towards the Popular Mobilisation Forces.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK wants to see a more stable, peaceful and prosperous Iraq. Across our programmes, we aim to counter threats and foster stability and development, while promoting UK interests and values. Our funding and support is delivered through implementing partners and not directly through the Government of Iraq. While we do not provide any UK funding or support directly to the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), it is not always possible for the UK to restrict participation in UK-funded initiatives to only non-PMF personnel.
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (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 Israel regarding the safety of the Armenian community in Jerusalem.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK is actively monitoring the situation, and engaging closely with partners across the region. We are a strong supporter of Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) and call for places of worship to be respected. Israel has made clear its commitment to freedom of religion, and we encourage the Israel Government to do all that it can to uphold the values of equality for all, enshrined in its laws. Our Embassies in Tel Aviv, and our Consulate General in Jerusalem regularly raise matters relating to religious freedom with the Israeli Governments.