Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Livermore on 12 February (HL14156), what assessment framework is used to assess the effectiveness of due diligence checks on politically exposed persons undertaken by financial institutions in the United Kingdom.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The FCA is responsible for overseeing compliance by financial institutions with due diligence checks on politically exposed persons. The overall effectiveness of the UK’s anti-money laundering regime is assessed on a regular basis by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global body for standard setting on anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing (AML/CFT). The methodology used by the FATF for assessments, including of the effectiveness of due diligence checks undertaken by financial institutions, is available online. [1] The next FATF assessment of the UK will take place by 2028.
[1] https://www.fatf-gafi.org/content/dam/fatf-gafi/methodology/FATF-Assessment-Methodology-2022.pdf
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made with the storage of nuclear waste in Anglesey.
Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Wylfa A a former Magnox nuclear power plant located on Anglesey, currently being decommissioned by Nuclear Restoration Services under the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA), continues to safely and securely store Intermediate Level Waste in line with site license conditions set by the Office for Nuclear Regulations. Any Low-Level Waste that arises from operations is safely transferred off site for further management, including disposal at the NDAs Low Level Waste Repository.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - 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 26 January (HL13493), and in the light of the statement by Caroline Quinn, UK deputy political coordinator, at the United Nations Security Council meeting on 8 January, what specific technical assistance they provided to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons' Syria missions in 2025.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
I have no further information to provide the Noble Lord at this time beyond that cited in his question.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what support they are offering to assist in the rebuilding of medical facilities in Gaza.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
The UK is providing £81 million for humanitarian and early recovery support for Palestine this financial year, we are helping to explore the mobilisation of private-sector finance to support Palestinian-led reconstruction of Gaza, and we have deployed UK civilian and military experts to support the Civil-Military Coordination Centre that aims to support those reconstruction efforts.
Our funding includes £4 million for the United Nations Mine Action Service in Gaza. This will help surge in experts to clear rubble and 7,500 tonnes of unexploded munitions, protect Palestinians and aid workers, and enable the safe delivery of the aid Gaza so desperately needs.
We will continue to prioritise the humanitarian and healthcare needs of the Palestinian people as part of our wider support for the US-led plan for Gaza's post-conflict stability.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans, if any, they have to add to the number of marine parks around Wales; and to what timeline such plans are operating.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This is a devolved matter and the responsibility of the Welsh Government.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they are liaising with Westminster City Council to assist the homeless people found in the Westminster underground station and vicinity.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government engages closely with councils across England to support them to help people experiencing and at risk of homelessness and rough sleeping in their areas including Westminster City Council. This year we have provided more than £1 billion for homelessness and rough sleeping services across England, including more than £26 million to Westminster City Council. My department’s team of homelessness and rough sleeping advisers meet with councils, including Westminster City Council, regularly to discuss challenges and share best practice.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to increase the number of bomb shelters in the UK.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government continues to develop a wide range of plans designed to deter potential hostile actors and mitigate the impacts of risks facing the UK.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to issue a civil preparedness document in case of crisis or war, equivalent to that issued by the government of Sweden.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Advice for the general public on how to prepare for emergencies is published at GOV.UK/Prepare. The website provides simple and effective steps that individuals, households and communities can take to be more prepared for a range of emergencies.
We regularly review the website's content and continue to explore options for improving it, and for increasing public awareness of emergency preparedness advice beyond the website.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they plan to apportion responsibility for the management of another global pandemic between the central and devolved governments.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
There is detailed guidance and processes in place which set out the arrangements whereby the UK Government will work with the devolved governments to plan for and manage the response to a pandemic. These are underpinned by the principles for responding to crises agreed with the devolved governments set out in the Amber Book - Managing Crisis in Central Government; and which is available for download from the gov.uk website.
Taken together, these arrangements reinforce the commitment to partnership working, recognising health is a devolved matter but seeking alignment of approaches to ensure consistent outcomes.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to prepare for another global pandemic.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Ensuring the United Kingdom is prepared for a future pandemic is a top priority for the Government, and we are embedding lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic in our approach to pandemic preparedness. We aim to have flexible, adaptable, and scalable capabilities that can respond to any infectious disease or other threat, rather than relying on plans for specific threats.
The Government is committed to learning the lessons from the UK COVID-19 Inquiry to protect and prepare us for the future. On 16 January 2025, the Government published its response to the inquiry’s module one report on resilience and preparedness. A copy of the response is attached. The Department has committed, as part of this response, to publishing a new pandemic preparedness strategy that will show how we are embedding our new approach to pandemic preparedness.
In the 2024 Autumn budget, my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced that £460 million of investment has been allocated to strengthen the UK’s pandemic preparedness and health protection, including replenishing personal protective equipment, vaccine, and medicines stockpiles.
In autumn 2025, the Department and the UK Health Security Agency conducted Exercise Pegasus, a national exercise on the UK’s preparedness for a pandemic. It tested our ability to respond to a pandemic, involving all regions and nations of the UK and thousands of participants. The exercise has provided valuable experience which is being used to inform our strategy and planning. The Government has committed to communicating the findings through the post-exercise report this winter.
An established clinical countermeasures programme is a core component of our pandemic preparedness and set of response capabilities. These countermeasures include personal protective equipment and hygiene consumables, as well as vaccines and therapeutics, such as influenza antivirals and antibiotics.