Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they are giving to securing the full independence of the UK's nuclear deterrent.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
I can assure the noble Lord that the United Kingdom’s nuclear deterrent is completely operationally independent. Only the Prime Minister can authorise the firing of our nuclear weapons, even if they are to be employed as part of a NATO response.
The UK has a longstanding, close relationship with the US on all defence nuclear issues, which has endured through many changes of Government in our two nations. Our extant long-term arrangements under the 1958 Mutual Defense Agreement and the 1963 Polaris Sales Agreement (as amended in 1982 for Trident) provide for co-operation and collaboration which has been, and continues to be, of considerable mutual benefit to both nations.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide future funding to local authorities to allow them to dispense discretionary crisis support.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
In England, the Government is providing £742 million to extend the Household Support Fund (HSF) by a further year, from 1 April 2025 until 31 March 2026. The HSF is a scheme providing discretionary support to those most in need towards the cost of essentials, such as food, energy and water.
We recognise that certainty helps Local Authorities to design and deliver sustainable plans for local welfare assistance. Committing to funding the Household Support Fund until 31 March 2026 will allow them to plan their approach with greater confidence.
No decision has been made at this stage on funding beyond the end of March 2026. As with all other Government programmes, any such funding will be considered in the round at Phase 2 of the Spending Review.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to review the Household Support Fund guidance to ensure the fund prevents people from facing serious financial hardship.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions conducted an evaluation of the fourth iteration of the Household Support Fund, that ran from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024, to understand the benefits of the awards made across England during this period. This has been published and can be found here: Evaluation of the Household Support Fund 4 - GOV.UK.
The evaluation followed a mixed quantitative and qualitative approach to assess the effectiveness of the HSF4 delivery by Local Authorities and its benefits for recipients, to inform the design of potential future funding schemes. When setting the Household Support Fund guidance, the Department considers evaluation activities alongside feedback from stakeholder engagement sessions.
The Household Support Fund scheme guidance and individual Local Authority funding allocations for the forthcoming extension will be announced as soon as possible ahead of the scheme beginning on 1 April 2025.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of press freedom and freedom of expression in Zimbabwe following the detention of the journalist Blessed Mhlanga.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK is monitoring the arrest and detention of Zimbabwean journalist Blessed Mhlanga.
An official from our Embassy in Harare attended Mhlanga's bail application hearing on 28 February. We continue to call for freedom of expression, as well as the rule of law and due process, to be respected in line with Zimbabwe's constitution.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to increase multi-year funding to support food insecure people in Sudan, and food insecure Sudanese refugees in neighbouring countries.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Ministers will consider Official Development Assistance allocations for 2025/26 over the coming months, and we will publish them in the Annual Report & Accounts in summer 2025. The next phase of the Spending Review will set departmental budgets from 2026/27 to 2029/30.
In November 2024, the UK announced a further £113 million of aid. With this announcement, the UK has doubled our aid to £226.5 million.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to encourage a ceasefire and an end to the conflict in Sudan.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK is actively working towards ending the conflict in Sudan. The Foreign Secretary has spoken with regional partners to explore how the UK can assist international mediation efforts. Richard Crowder, UK Special Representative to Sudan, visited Port Sudan in December 2024 - the UK's first official visit to the county since outbreak of conflict in April 2023. He pressed for a resolution to the conflict, and for all parties to engage constructively in mediation talks, including by complying with the Jeddah Declaration of Commitments to Protect Civilians. We also continue to lead efforts in the UN Security Council to support peace and to keep international spotlight on this crisis.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to secure guarantees from warring parties in Sudan for the safe and unimpeded delivery of humanitarian assistance to conflict-affected populations.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK continues to raise the critical issue of humanitarian access. We did this recently at the UN Security Council on 19 December 2024 and 6 January 2025, where we called for the warring parties to lift bureaucratic impediments and let aid get to those who need it. The Minister for Development has also engaged directly with the new Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, on the UN response. The UK Special Representative, Richard Crowder, met the head of the Sudanese Armed Forces, General Burhan, during his first visit to Sudan and lobbied against current impediments such as visas. On 25 November 2024, the Foreign Secretary chaired a Sudan meeting with G7 and Arab Quint Foreign Ministers to discuss joint steps to improve humanitarian access and increase aid. In November 2024, the UK co-led a protection of civilians resolution at the UN Security Council with Sierra Leone, which also called for parties to the conflict to agree humanitarian pauses, and ensure the delivery of adequate humanitarian aid. This received unanimous Council support, apart from Russia who chose to veto it.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the findings of the Nuffield Health and Manchester Metropolitan University report Unlocking the 'miracle cure', published in December 2024, and whether those findings will inform their plans to integrate physical activity into NHS treatment pathways for preventing and managing long-term health conditions.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has not made a specific assessment of the report. However, the Government welcomes the announcement of the new venture between Manchester Metropolitan University and Nuffield Health and will be keen to learn from this work as it delivers physical activity support to people living with chronic conditions.
The National Health Service, together with local authorities, provides a range of services such as exercise on referral and social prescribing, including exercise classes, falls prevention through strength and balance classes for older adults, walking groups and promotion of digital support like the NHS Active 10 walking app.
Interventions like the one in Manchester demonstrate the valuable work across local areas to embed movement into people’s care. There are other established examples of local NHS and local government approaches across the country that integrate physical activity into clinical care including perioperative care and cancer and cardiac rehabilitation.
NHS England is working closely with partners nationally and locally to explore how the NHS might galvanise support to make physical activity a core part of NHS care, to benefit patients, NHS staff and the wider public. By empowering clinicians and healthcare professionals with the skills and confidence to discuss and promote physical activity, by integrating it into key clinical pathways and by aligning it with Core20PLUS5 for adults, children and young people, the NHS could help to transform patient outcomes and reduce health inequalities.
Whilst the Government and NHS recognise the value of integrating physical activity into clinical care, prevention will always be better, and cheaper, than cure. The Health Mission, on which the Department leads, is focused on shifting towards a more preventative approach to healthcare.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they plan to take, following the Nuffield Health and Manchester Metropolitan University report Unlocking the 'miracle cure', published in December 2024, to support healthcare professionals in prescribing physical activity as part of routine NHS care.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has not made a specific assessment of the report. However, the Government welcomes the announcement of the new venture between Manchester Metropolitan University and Nuffield Health and will be keen to learn from this work as it delivers physical activity support to people living with chronic conditions.
The National Health Service, together with local authorities, provides a range of services such as exercise on referral and social prescribing, including exercise classes, falls prevention through strength and balance classes for older adults, walking groups and promotion of digital support like the NHS Active 10 walking app.
Interventions like the one in Manchester demonstrate the valuable work across local areas to embed movement into people’s care. There are other established examples of local NHS and local government approaches across the country that integrate physical activity into clinical care including perioperative care and cancer and cardiac rehabilitation.
NHS England is working closely with partners nationally and locally to explore how the NHS might galvanise support to make physical activity a core part of NHS care, to benefit patients, NHS staff and the wider public. By empowering clinicians and healthcare professionals with the skills and confidence to discuss and promote physical activity, by integrating it into key clinical pathways and by aligning it with Core20PLUS5 for adults, children and young people, the NHS could help to transform patient outcomes and reduce health inequalities.
Whilst the Government and NHS recognise the value of integrating physical activity into clinical care, prevention will always be better, and cheaper, than cure. The Health Mission, on which the Department leads, is focused on shifting towards a more preventative approach to healthcare.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - 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 whereabouts and safety Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We are concerned by the reports of the IDF operation at Kamal Adwan hospital, and the reported detention of Dr Hussam Abu Safiya and others. In recent weeks, the Minister for the Middle East raised this case, along with the wider need to ensure healthcare facilities in northern Gaza are protected, and to enable WHO and ICRC access, with both Israel's Ambassador to the UK, and Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Haskel. Israel must allow medical staff to carry out their work unimpeded, and to travel around Gaza as needed. On 27 December, the Minister for the Middle East made it clear to Israel's government that the situation in northern Gaza cannot continue and raised our serious concern about repeated strikes on Kamal Adwan hospital, and the safety of civilians and medical workers there.
Furthermore as the Minister for the Middle East reiterated on 8 January, Israel must urgently clarify the reasons for detaining health workers in Gaza, including Hassam Abu Safiya and Mohammed Hamouda, to ensure Gazans have access to effective healthcare and that civilians are protected at all costs.