Asked by: Lord Robertson of Port Ellen (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, whether they plan to accelerate the Strategic Partnership Agreement with Kosovo in light of the election of a new President of Kosovo and the effect of that on the stability of Kosovo's institutions.
Answered by Lord Wood of Anfield - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK congratulates Kosovo's new President, Justina Shiroka Pula, on her election. We welcome progress towards greater political stability in Kosovo and encourage political leaders to work constructively to strengthen institutions and deliver effective governance. This will help advance Kosovo's Euro-Atlantic aspirations and create conditions for long-term economic growth.
The UK and Kosovo are close partners, with strong cooperation across defence, security, migration, serious organised crime and growing economic ties. We continue to engage closely with Kosovo on opportunities to deepen this cooperation and stand ready to explore further partnership across areas of shared interest.
Asked by: Lord Robertson of Port Ellen (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to withdraw the Home Office leaflet Do not photograph or film people in public, in light of the guidance from the Association of Chief Police Officers, Guidance for Photographers, published on 26 August 2010.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government has no plan to withdraw the document.
Asked by: Lord Robertson of Port Ellen (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to initiate international discussions to implement regulations comparable to the Geneva Conventions for the use of artificial intelligence in warfare.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington
The UK's current view is that existing International Humanitarian Law, including the Geneva Conventions, provides a robust and adaptable framework for the conduct of hostilities, including the use of AI-enabled capability. The UK believes that discussions should focus on norms of use and measures aimed at promoting the lawful design and responsible use of AI in the military domain. There are already a number of international discussions and processes examining these issues in which the UK is actively involved, and we keep these matters under regular review.
Asked by: Lord Robertson of Port Ellen (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to explain the whole-of-society approach to defence as outlined in the Strategic Defence Review 2025 to the wider public.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The whole-of-society approach to deterrence and defence sets out how Government, businesses, and the public all play a part in strengthening our national defence and resilience. This addresses the risks we face, including threats below and above the threshold of an armed attack.
The Cabinet Office-led Home Defence Programme, in which Defence plays a key role, has begun this work by starting to familiarise the public with their role in national security and resilience.
The Ministry of Defence is already delivering on reconnecting Defence with society. For example, an extra £70 million funding has been allocated to kickstart the cadet growth programme, expanding the cadet forces by 30% by 2030, and will continue to work to strengthen civilian-military links with communities and industry. This was a Strategic Defence Review recommendation.
Asked by: Lord Robertson of Port Ellen (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to lead a national conversation on defence as recommended in the Strategic Defence Review 2025; and, if so, who will be leading it.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
I refer the noble Lord to the reply given by my hon. Friend, the Minister for Armed Forces (Al Carns DSO OBE MC MP), in the House of Commons on the 2 December 2025 to the hon. Member for South Suffolk (Mr Cartlidge) in response to Question 93395.
Asked by: Lord Robertson of Port Ellen (Labour - Life peer)
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what departmental support they provide to the COP26 President, Alok Sharma MP.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
A dedicated COP26 Unit, comprising 230 staff, has been set up in the Cabinet Office to oversee preparations for COP26. The COP26 Unit works closely with other government departments and the global diplomatic network.
Asked by: Lord Robertson of Port Ellen (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Earl Howe on 6 February 2019 (HL Deb, col 410GC), what was the outcome of the consultation on the .50 calibre rifles; and what plans they have, if any, to ban such rifles.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
The Government ran a public consultation on a range of firearms safety issues between 24 November 2020 and 16 February 2021.
Amongst other issues, the consultation sought views on high muzzle energy rifles and whether enhanced security arrangements are necessary for these rifles to prevent them from falling into the wrong hands. Over 12,000 responses were received to the consultation. The Government is considering these responses carefully and will publish its response to the consultation in due course.
Asked by: Lord Robertson of Port Ellen (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what due diligence was carried out on PPE Medpro Ltd prior to it being awarded a contract for the supply of personal protective equipment to the NHS; and what account was taken of that company having been incorporated in May with a share capital of £100 prior to it being awarded that contract.
Answered by Lord Bethell
The Government issued a public call to action to support the increased requirements of personal protective equipment (PPE). The aim was to reach suppliers who had experience of supplying PPE and also those who had no prior experience but who had access to sources of PPE through their business contacts. To date this has resulted in 15,000 suppliers offering their help and support. All offers were prioritised based on volume, price, clinical acceptability and lead time – this is the time from an offer being accepted by the Department to the supplier delivering those items. Suppliers are evaluated by Departmental officials on their financial standing, compliance with minimum product specifications and ability to perform the contract. These were often private businesses whose net asset position is only one factor in evaluating their offer.
Contracts are awarded by the appropriate Departmental accounting officer in line with Departmental policy and procedures.
Asked by: Lord Robertson of Port Ellen (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government (1) how many, and (2) which, ministers they intend to send to the 3rd Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety, due to be held in Stockholm from 19 to 20 February.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
Her Majesty’s Government will be attending the 3rd Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety representing the United Kingdom and will share our world leading expertise in road safety.
Asked by: Lord Robertson of Port Ellen (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to deliver on the road safety aspects of the UN Global Sustainability Goals, as outlined in the 2017 UN report Road Safety: Consideration in support of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, published in 2017.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
The UK Government supports UN Global Sustainability Goals on road safety and has supported research to improve road safety and reduce the impact of road crashes on poor people in developing countries. The UK Government has invested £20 million through the Global Road Safety Facility through DFID and the Department of Health and Social Care. This facility has generated new evidence on road safety, and has influenced World Bank investments in roads. The facility succeeded in including Road Safety as a criteria in the Bank’s corporate Safeguarding Framework. Several other Multilateral Development Banks are now using this as a model. It is estimated by the World Bank that as a result of this work over 2,100 road deaths and injuries were avoided in developing countries in 2017.
DFID also works to share UK expertise on road safety with developing country governments including Nepal, Tanzania and Uganda. The Department for Transport held an International Conference on Road Safety in the UK in September 2019 and will lead the UK delegation at the UN’s 3rd Ministerial Conference on Road Safety in Sweden in February 2020.