Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
These initiatives were driven by Lord Roberts of Llandudno, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
A bill to make provision for unaccompanied asylum seeking children to receive legal advice and for extending the deadline for an unaccompanied asylum seeking child to appeal an asylum decision
Lord Roberts of Llandudno has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting
The Government attaches great importance to informative and accurate ministerial statements. The right of parliamentarians to take up issues directly with the Government is a key part of the democratic process and underlines the accountability of Ministers to Parliament. It is important that ministers give accurate and truthful information to Parliament and that they correct any inadvertent error at the earliest opportunity.
The Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities report makes an important contribution to both the national conversation about race, and our efforts to level up and unite the whole country.
We are carefully considering the report’s findings and recommendations. We will publish a Government response in due course. This Government remains fully committed to building a fairer Britain and taking the action needed to address disparities wherever they exist.
The Commission engaged with a wide range of stakeholders, including banks and financial institutions not limited to HSBC, either to hear evidence or to discuss recommendations. The list of those with whom the Commission engaged is available in ‘Appendix D: Stakeholders’ of the report.
The Government’s Race Disparity Audit (RDA) and its website, Ethnicity Facts and Figures, was launched in October 2017. The website is a world first and has been welcomed internationally for its open and data-driven approach to highlighting inequalities of outcomes.
In response to its findings, Government has taken action to address disparities in criminal justice, increasing diversity in employment, mental health, school exclusions, and barriers to progress for young people.
To date, the Race Disparity Unit has worked across Whitehall and with local authorities to co-produce interventions to address disparities. These include:
? In the last 12 months, we have undertaken work to improve trust between police forces and the local communities that they serve, including increasing diversity in the police workforce and developing additional training
? We continue to provide targeted employment support in twenty areas around the country with high rates of ethnic minority unemployment to boost earning potential
? Last year, we announced measures to drive change in tackling inequalities between ethnic groups in higher education, and the last 10 years have seen a significant increase in the rates of 18 year olds from ethnic minority groups going to university;
? And we are acting on the findings of the Public Health England Review into disparities in the risks and outcomes of COVID-19 to ensure we take the right steps to protect and minimise the risks to vulnerable groups.
In addition, this year the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities was established and is examining all aspects of continuing racial and ethnic disparities in Britain. The Commission aims to set out a new, positive agenda for change - balancing the needs of individuals, communities and society, maximising opportunities and ensuring fairness for all.
It is building on the work of the Race Disparity Unit. The Commission is carrying out a deeper examination of what the causes of these disparities are, and is seeking to establish what works to address them effectively.
The Ministerial Code sets out the standards of conduct expected of ministers and how they discharge their duty. Notably:
Section 8.3: Ministers should ensure that their statements are consistent with collective Government policy;
Section 6.5: Ministers are free to make their views about constituency matters known to the responsible Minister by correspondence, leading deputations or by personal interview provided they make clear that they are acting as their constituents’ representative and not as a Minister.
The Ministerial Code can be viewed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministerial-code
It is a long-standing convention that outgoing Prime Ministers can draw up a ‘Dissolution’ or ‘Resignation’ List. This has been the case under past governments from across the political spectrum. This convention has been the case throughout the 20th Century, originating in the 19th Century.
This question was debated in the House of Lords, during the Report stage of the Procurement Bill on Wednesday 30 November 2022.
The Bill’s current clauses provide strong safeguards to preserve the integrity of a procurement. Clause 76 sets out the people in respect of whom conflicts of interest should be identified. This covers anyone acting for or on behalf of the contracting authority in relation to a procurement, including those who influence a decision made by, or on behalf of, a contracting authority related to the procurement. Clause 77(3) states that if a conflict of interest puts a supplier at an unfair advantage, and if steps to mitigate cannot avoid that advantage, the supplier must be excluded.
This, combined with the Bill’s requirements on transparency and equal treatment, will mean that contracting authorities will not be allowed to give preferential treatment to suppliers recommended by Members of Parliament.
It is a long-standing convention that individuals can be nominated for an honour in recognition of their public and political service, and that Prime Ministers can draw up a ‘Dissolution’ or ‘Resignation’ List (after a general election or when resigning from office). This has been the case under past governments from across the political spectrum.
It would not be appropriate to speculate on any possible Resignation Honours Lists which is a matter for both former Prime Ministers and the current Prime Minister.
The Public Duty Cost Allowance is available to former Prime Ministers and is a reimbursement of incurred expenses for necessary office and secretarial costs arising from the fulfilment of public duties, up to a maximum of £115,000. The amount claimed by each recipient under the Public Duty Cost Allowance is published each year in the Cabinet Office Annual Reports and Accounts.
It is against the law to 'sell' honours or peerages - offering cash for awards - under the Honours (Prevention of Abuses) Act 1925. Life peerages are vetted by the House of Lords Appointments Commission for matters of propriety, who seek advice from Government Departments and Agencies where appropriate.
It is against the law to 'sell' honours or peerages - offering cash for awards - under the Honours (Prevention of Abuses) Act 1925. Life peerages are vetted by the House of Lords Appointments Commission for matters of propriety, who seek advice from Government Departments and Agencies where appropriate.
Details of the Prime Minister’s overseas travel are published quarterly and will be made available on GOV.UK in due course.
Details of the Prime Minister’s overseas travel are published quarterly and will be made available on GOV.UK in due course.
The Prime Minister has tasked the Chancellor, CDL, the Minister for Government Efficiency and the Cabinet Secretary to work together on producing a plan for returning the Civil Service workforce numbers to 2016 levels over the next three years. This work will be overseen by the Efficiency and Value for Money Cabinet Committee. Secretaries of State will lead the drive for reductions within their departments and the Civil Service organisations for which they have responsibility.
Our new migration and economic development partnership is a world first, which will tackle head-on the imbalance between illegal and legal migration routes. It will ensure that those who are in genuine need of protection will be safe and secure in a host country recognised globally for its record on welcoming and integrating migrants. And it will disrupt the business model of organised crime gangs and deter migrants from putting their lives at risk.
As has been the practice under successive Administrations, for security reasons, future engagements by the Prime Minister are announced as and when appropriate.
I refer the noble Lord to the Cabinet Office update from the Second Permanent Secretary which has been published on GOV.UK and placed in the Library of the House.
It would not be appropriate for the Government to comment further while the Metropolitan Police Service’s investigation is ongoing. At the end of the process, the Prime Minister will ask the Second Permanent Secretary to update her findings, which will be published in line with the Terms of Reference.
The principle of collective responsibility applies to all Government Ministers. The Ministerial Code sets out the expectations for ministers with regards to both collective responsibility and making announcements to Parliament.
Civil servants support Ministers in providing information to Parliament. When providing advice and briefing, civil servants are subject to the professional standards set out in the Civil Service Code and internal clearance procedures.
Ministers are accountable to Parliament for the statements they make to the House. Parliament has long-established mechanisms for the record to be corrected should any errors be identified.
Each government department is responsible for managing security risk when procuring any service based on their own risk appetite. Cabinet Office and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) provides guidance on how to do this including through the provision of commercial frameworks which include cyber security clauses. This is made clear in the Minimum Cyber Security Standard for Government which state that “Departments shall understand and manage security issues that arise because of dependencies on external suppliers or through their supply chain”.
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) provides extensive guidance and recommended security frameworks that apply to a wide range of digital services. Buying organisations are encouraged to use these in determining their requirements to ensure that appropriate security controls are specified according to risk.
Personnel with a responsibility for Critical National Infrastructure sectors from Lead Government Departments and agencies have been engaging closely with the National Cyber Security Centre to develop the Knowledge Base tool and provide validation of the content.
This work will enable government to better understand risks to CNI and prioritise efforts more effectively. The majority of departments responsible for CNI sectors have already been able to benefit from the Knowledge Base’s analytical capabilities through the support provided by NCSC.
Lead Government Departments have primary responsibility for the designation and governance of Critical National Infrastructure in their respective sectors, and will have access to the Knowledge Base tool, along with other relevant parts of HM Government. Due to the sensitivity of the amalgamated information stored within the tool, operators and companies will not have direct access.
It is not possible to not share further details around usage of the tool due to security considerations.
The Ministerial Cyber Steering Group is chaired by the First Secretary of State. Other members are the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (currently delegated to the Paymaster General), the Home Secretary, the Defence Secretary and the Culture Secretary. Other ministers are invited to attend depending on the topics being discussed and senior officials from intelligence and law enforcement also attend. The meeting is supported by the National Security Unit in the Cabinet Office.
The Government's Integrated Review set out an objective to cement the UK's position as a leading responsible and democratic cyber power. To support this, the Government intends to adopt a new comprehensive cyber strategy, considering the full range of our capabilities and critical cyber technologies, as well as international action to influence the future of cyberspace. Work is well underway to develop this strategy and it will be published later this year, succeeding the National Cyber Security Strategy 2016-21.
£9.3m has been allocated in the 2021/22 spending review for development of a National Situation Centre, spanning establishing a permanent team, data and analytic capabilities, and physical build.
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond.
Professor Sir Ian Diamond | National Statistician
The Lord Roberts of Llandudno
House of Lords
London
SW1A 0PW
05 February 2021
Dear Lord Roberts,
As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking how many people were employed in the agricultural sector in Wales in (1) 1991, (2) 2000, (3) 2010, and (4) 2019 (HL12843).
Agricultural employment estimates are produced using a combination of DEFRA surveys and Office for National Statistics (ONS) employment surveys. Employment estimates by year, industry and geographic location are available to download on the employment surveys datasets area of NOMIS[1].
Table 1 below shows agricultural employment in Wales in 1991, 2000, 2010 and 2019.
Table 1: Agricultural employment in Wales[2]
Year | All employees, thousands |
1991 [3] | 20,000 |
2000 [4] | 12,000 |
2010 [5] | 15,000 |
2019 4 | 14,000 |
Yours sincerely,
Professor Sir Ian Diamond
[1] https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/select/getdatasetbytheme.asp?opt=3&theme=&subgrp=
[2] Numbers are rounded to the nearest thousand
[3] ONS source is the Annual Employment Survey
[4] ONS source is the Annual Business Inquiry
[5] ONS source is the Business Register Employment Survey
We have received representations from Parliamentarians on this issue, and we are currently considering the matter.
We will keep Parliament updated on the election preparations, will engage with political parties and will publish detailed guidance in due course.
The Government believes that leaving the EU will lead to long-term benefits for the UK economy. Whilst many businesses would have been preparing for the end of the Transition Period since last year, we recognise the impact COVID-19 will have had on their ability to plan and prepare.
We have a number of support schemes available including loans, grants, income support schemes and tax deferrals to support businesses through this period. Details are available on GOV.UK.
The Government was elected on a manifesto which made clear our plans to exit the EU, that the transition period will end on 31 December 2020, and that we will have recovered our economic and political independence.
Many millions of people welcome this outcome and will mark it in their own private ways. A ceremony is not appropriate at a time of COVID restrictions.
The Government is working with the electoral administrators and Public Health England to identify and resolve challenges involved in delivering the May 2021 elections, including ensuring polling stations are safe and covid-secure places to vote. People will be able participate in the polls safely, and in a way of their choice, whether by post, proxy or in-person.
This was outlined in the Minister for the Constitution and Devolution’s letter to Electoral Returning Officers, which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/letter-from-chloe-smith-mp-to-returning-officers
For the devolved administrations to hold a referendum in relation to any reserved matter, an order under the Scotland Act 1998 or Government of Wales Act 2006, or Westminster primary legislation, would be required.
The Government has been working closely with key electoral stakeholders, as well as Public Health England and representatives of political parties, regarding local and mayoral elections in England and the Police and Crime Commissioner elections in England and Wales in May 2021.
Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) have the statutory responsibility for maintaining complete and accurate registers for their areas. The Government is committed to encouraging democratic engagement amongst all electors, including young people, and we want to build upon recent record levels of individuals registering to vote for elections. Our Register to Vote website is widely used by young people, with almost 8 million online applications submitted by 16-24 year olds since the service was introduced in 2014.
The Government has been working closely with key electoral stakeholders, as well as Public Health England and representatives of political parties, regarding local and mayoral elections in England and the Police and Crime Commissioner elections in England and Wales in May 2021.
The Government has been working closely with key electoral stakeholders, as well as Public Health England and representatives of political parties, regarding local and mayoral elections in England and the Police and Crime Commissioner elections in England and Wales in May 2021.
As has been the case under successive administrations, appointments to the House of Lords are a matter for the Prime Minister. Members of the House of Lords are appointed from a wide range of backgrounds to ensure the House is able to carry out its scrutiny work effectively.
The UK’s approach to implementing the Northern Ireland Protocol was set out in the Government’s Command Paper on The UK's Approach to the Northern Ireland Protocol, published on 20 May. As the document made clear, there will be no new physical customs infrastructure in Northern Ireland.
We have however, always been clear that some process will be required on agri-food goods entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain, in order to respect the pre-existing status of the island of Ireland as a single epidemiological unit.
On 13 July, the Government announced a £705 million funding package in 2020/21 for border infrastructure, staffing and IT to ensure GB border systems are fully operational when the UK takes back control of its border after the end of the transition period. The £705 million will be split between £470 million for port and inland infrastructure and £235 million for new staff and IT systems.
As Ministers have previously set out, a breakdown will be provided, port by port and region by region, in due course.
Our priority is to ensure that patients continue to have access to medicines and medical products that they need. We are working closely with industry, the NHS and others in the supply chain to ensure that precautions are in place.
The Government continues to hold stockpiles of medicines to cope with a range of scenarios, and robust contingency planning continues to ensure that the country is prepared for the end of the transition period.
There are no plans. At the second meeting of the WAJC on 12 June, the UK formally notified the EU that it will neither accept nor seek any extension to the Transition Period.
The deadline for extension has now passed.
The UK will regain its economic and political independence on 31 December at the end of the transition period and uphold a key demand of the British people.
Ministers are accountable to Parliament for the policies, decisions and actions of their departments and agencies, as set out in the Ministerial Code. As has long been the case, advisers advise but ministers decide and are accountable for those decisions.
The Government always strives to give accurate and timely responses to both oral and written questions, with guidance on both set out in its Guide to Parliamentary Work.
We are at a stage of the epidemic where the number of infections has come down considerably from its peak and the virus is broadly under control in the majority of the UK. The Government keeps the situation under constant review and remains ready to take further action if required. We have made regulations in response to local outbreaks. We have also amended the border restrictions on various occasions in response to changes in the spread of the virus in other countries. As is always the case, decisions on health and other such measures are made on the basis of official advice, informed by expert scientific advisers.
The Security and Intelligence Agencies produce and contribute to regular assessments of the threat posed by Hostile State Activity. We keep such assessments under review and, where necessary, update them in response to new intelligence. It is, and will always be, an absolute priority to protect our democracy and elections. In July 2019 we announced the Defending Democracy programme to bring together government, civil society and private sector organisations to ensure our democracy stays open, vibrant and transparent.
I refer the noble Lord to the oral statement made by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office on 13 July in the Other Place about the publication of a detailed Border Operating Model, which I repeated in this House on 15 July 2020. This will allow Welsh border industry and traders to prepare for the end of the transition period.
None. At the second meeting of the WAJC on 12 June, the UK formally notified the EU that it will neither accept nor seek any extension to the Transition Period.
The deadline for extension has now passed.
The UK will regain its economic and political independence on 1 January 2021 at the end of the transition period and uphold a key demand of the British people.
Last week the UK completed its fourth round of negotiations. Negotiations covered the full range of issues and were mostly constructive and positive in tone, including on the most difficult issues such as fisheries, governance, and the so called “level playing field” where our differences are the most acute.
We believe it still would be straightforward to agree a suite of agreements with a Free Trade Agreement at the core, like those the EU has agreed with other close partners around the world, and that this could be done quickly.
A Written Ministerial Statement (HLWS267) was made on 8 June to update the House on the progress of negotiations.
I refer the noble Lord to the answer I gave to PQ HL3150 on 28 April 2020.
I refer the noble Lord to the Prime Minister’s address to the nation given on Friday 31 January 2020.
The commemorations for this historic day included the release into circulation of a new 50p coin, and a light display at Downing Street, alongside a special address by the Prime Minister. Union Jack flags also lined Parliament Square and the Mall on 31 January and the public saw government buildings in Whitehall lit up throughout the evening. The costs of these events were drawn from existing budgets.
Tata Steel and National Grid have been working closely to ensure the deliverability of a grid connection in line with the project requirements.