Asked by: Lord Steel of Aikwood (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Scottish Government about the effect of Brexit on Scottish fisheries.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government is working closely with the Devolved Administrations to deliver a future fishing policy that works for the whole of the UK and reflects the different needs and circumstances of fisheries in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England.
There has been extensive, positive and productive discussions at Ministerial and official level between Defra and the DAs, including the Scottish Government. The Secretary of State meets regularly with his Ministerial counterparts in the Scottish and Welsh Governments and senior officials from Northern Ireland. Officials have also established joint Defra-DA working groups to strengthen collaborative working and preparedness as we consider the implications of exiting the EU on UK fisheries.
Asked by: Lord Steel of Aikwood (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Scottish Government about the findings of a report by Scotland's Rural College on the effect of Brexit on sheep farming in Scotland.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Ministers and Defra officials meet regularly with the Scottish Government, along with their counterparts in Wales and Northern Ireland to discuss a range of issues connected with the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union. In connection with this, HM Government is undertaking a wide range of analysis and examining all areas of the UK economy, seeking input from a wide range of stakeholders. The report from Scotland’s Rural College “Assessing the impacts of alternative post-Brexit trade and agricultural support policy scenarios on Scottish farming systems” makes a contribution to that process.
Asked by: Lord Steel of Aikwood (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, following the announcement by the Palestinian Ministry of Health that because of fuel shortages affecting hospitals and clinics “urgent action is needed to prevent collapse of Gaza’s health system”, they are planning to offer any assistance.
Answered by Lord Bates
We remain concerned about the humanitarian situation in Gaza and continue to monitor it closely, including the effect electricity shortages are having on the health sector. The UK will continue to urge all the parties to prioritise progress towards reaching a durable solution for Gaza and to take the necessary practical steps to improve conditions, including restoring the availability of electricity as a matter of urgency. The UK is supporting approximately 1 million Gazans by addressing critical water, sanitation and hygiene needs through the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and is a long-term supporter of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA), which provides basic services to 1.3 million people in Gaza, including basic health care.
Asked by: Lord Steel of Aikwood (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to have discussions with the major banks about the use of contactless credit cards for sums under £30 and the ease with which such cards might be misused.
Answered by Lord Bates
Treasury ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. This includes regular meetings with consumer organisations to discuss relevant regulatory issues, including consumer protection on payment instruments.
Government takes all fraud extremely seriously. In February 2016 the government set up the Joint Fraud Taskforce, which aims to use the collective powers, systems and resources of banks, payment providers, police, wider law enforcement and regulators to tackle fraud, and raise awareness of the risk of fraud among consumers.
The Taskforce is currently focused on: developing a national fraud prevention campaign to provide targeted advice to the public; improving the police response to fraud at national, regional and local level; exploring ways in which more victims of fraud can have their losses repaid; removing vulnerabilities fraudsters exploit to commit certain types of fraud; and, improving support for victims of fraud which will ensure a consistent response including for those who may be more vulnerable or susceptible to fraud.
Industry statistics received from Financial Fraud Action UK indicate that in the first half of 2016 there were £2.9 million losses attributed to fraud on contactless cards compared to a spend of £9.27 billion. This is just 0.031% of spending on contactless technology. According to the industry, fraud on contactless cards accounts for less than 1% of card fraud losses.
Asked by: Lord Steel of Aikwood (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many reported credit card frauds there were in each of the last available three years; and what was the total sum involved.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
The Home Office collects quarterly fraud data, including banking and credit card industry fraud data, from the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB).
These data are published by the ONS on a quarterly basis. The latest data are for year to June 2017 and are available in Table A5 at the link below: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/datasets/crimeinenglandandwalesappendixtables
Published tables for earlier quarters are also available at the above link.
Asked by: Lord Steel of Aikwood (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the implications for cross-straits harmony and stability of the announcement by China on 4 January of four air routes in the Taiwan Straits without prior communication with Taiwan and of Taiwan's belief that this violates the negotiation results reached between the Taipei Airlines Association and China Air Transport Association in March 2015; and what representations they intend to make to the government of China in this regard.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
We understand that the opening of the four new air routes in the Taiwan Strait on 4 January is a cause of concern for the authorities in Taiwan.
Her Majesty's Government is assessing whether the introduction of these new northbound flights in the Straits will have any impact on aviation safety in the region.
In line with our longstanding position, we encourage China and Taiwan to engage in dialogue to resolve this issue.
Asked by: Lord Steel of Aikwood (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to amending the Letters Patent to limit the terms of new appointments to the House of Lords to 15 years.
Answered by Lord Young of Cookham
Any such amendments to the Letters Patent of new members of the House of Lords would require primary legislation. The Government has been clear that comprehensive reform of this House, which requires legislation, is not a priority for the current Parliament.
Asked by: Lord Steel of Aikwood (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the comments by Doddie Weir, reported on 1 December, concerning his frustration that there have been no new drugs to treat motor neurone disease developed in the last 22 years; and what steps they are taking to promote research into such treatments.
Answered by Lord O'Shaughnessy
There are currently no new drugs under assessment for a marketing authorisation to treat Motor Neurone Disease (MND). The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has approved 16 trials in the last five years in the indication of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). Three of these trials remain active, the remainder have completed or ended early.
The Department funds research mainly through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The Medical Research Council (MRC), a research funding body which receives its grant in aid from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, also funds medical research.
The usual practice of the NIHR and of the MRC is not to ring-fence funds for expenditure on particular topics: research proposals in all areas compete for the funding available. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including MND. The NIHR Clinical Research Network (CRN) is currently recruiting patients to 24 trials and studies in MND. The NIHR Clinical Research Network is developing and nurturing relationships with industry, so that the United Kingdom remains attractive as a site for the innovative therapies.
The MRC currently spends approximately £5.3 million per year on research relating to MND. The MRC, as part of the Network of Centres of Excellence in Neurodegeneration, has recently made available up to £1 million to support research in the UK. The current ‘Pathfinder call’ aims to stimulate new and unconventional approaches and creative solutions to the challenges of neurodegeneration research by undertaking high-risk/high-payoff research and is open to researchers who are involved in MND research.
Asked by: Lord Steel of Aikwood (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to support the participation of Taiwan in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The United Kingdom believes that Taiwan has a valuable contribution to make on global issues such as the Sustainable Development Goals
The UK's longstanding policy on Taiwan remains the same. The UK supports Taiwanese membership of international organisations where statehood is not a pre-requisite for membership. In situations where Taiwanese membership of international organisations is not possible, we welcome pragmatic solutions that allow Taiwan to contribute to the global good, such as Taiwan's voluntary efforts to support the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Asked by: Lord Steel of Aikwood (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government why they propose to apply the European directive on testing motorcycles in 2018, given that the directive is deferred to 2022; and whether they will reconsider that decision to allow more time to consult further with motorcycle producers, users, and clubs.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
In Great Britain, for road safety reasons, motorcycles are already included in the vehicle testing regime, despite this not being required by European rules until 2022. EU Directive 2014/45/EU on periodic technical inspections of vehicles makes a number of changes to roadworthiness testing requirements, which must be implemented by 20 May 2018. It updates some of the technical test standards, broadly reflecting developments in vehicle and testing technology and the regulatory environment, such as improved emissions standards. It is important that our roadworthiness testing requirements keep pace with improving vehicle standards.
Alongside the changes required by the Directive by 20 May 2018, the Government has decided to apply the relevant technical changes to motorcycle testing because there are road safety and environmental benefits of doing so. There was a public consultation in 2016 about the changes.