Asked by: Lord Strathcarron (Non-affiliated - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the TS Shtandart is prohibited from entering UK territorial waters; if so, what is the legal basis for that restriction, including any sanctions, maritime regulations or national security considerations; whether any guidance has been issued to port authorities or maritime enforcement agencies regarding the treatment of the vessel; and whether any exemptions or conditions exist by which that vessel may be permitted entry.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
As the UK is a party to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, any vessel with a valid flag status has the right to innocent passage through the UK’s territorial sea.
Asked by: Lord Strathcarron (Non-affiliated - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they knew in November 2025, when Hive Energy Ltd secured a £60 million loan from HSBC guaranteed by UK Export Finance, that it was close to bankruptcy; who authorised the loan on behalf of His Majesty's Government; and what due diligence was performed in connection with this.
Answered by Lord Stockwood - Minister of State (HM Treasury)
This transaction was originally underwritten in 2023 and renewed in 2025 by UKEF. As with all its transactions, UKEF applied its rigorous risk criteria and continues to monitor Hive Energy. UKEF provided Hive Energy with a General Export Facility alongside Hive’s partner bank, with which it shares the risk of default.
UKEF charges a commercial, risk-based premium and operates at no net cost to the taxpayer over the economic cycle – returning £146 million in profit to the Exchequer in the last financial year.
Asked by: Lord Strathcarron (Non-affiliated - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they arrived at the estimate in the Clean Energy Campaign that it costs approximately £2,000 a year to heat a typical three-bedroom house with a gas boiler; and what assessment they have made of the accuracy of Ofgem’s estimate of the cost of heating a typical three-bedroom house with a gas boiler.
Answered by Lord Whitehead - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The cost estimates used in the Clean Energy Campaign are based on the total energy for a home with a gas boiler including both gas and electricity costs (e.g. for lighting and appliances). Details for the assumptions behind the analysis are provided in the section marked “*How we calculated heat pump savings” on the campaign web page https://cleanenergy.campaign.gov.uk/heat-pump/. The analysis in the campaign assumed an annual gas demand of 12,200kWh, which is well aligned to OFGEM’s ‘Medium’ typical domestic consumption value of 11,500kWh.
Asked by: Lord Strathcarron (Non-affiliated - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government why the cost of upgrading the electricity grid is estimated at £60 billion in the report Clean Power 2030, published on 5 November 2024 by the National Energy System Operator, and at £80 billion in the Ofgem press release on 1 July about initial investment in energy security; and whether they will update their costing.
Answered by Lord Wilson of Sedgefield - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The £80bn cost estimate in Ofgem’s Draft Determinations for RIIO ET3, which covers 2026/27 to 2030/31, is not exclusively spending required to deliver the transmission network needed to deliver 2030 Clean Power, but also takes into account wider operational costs such as maintenance of existing assets, and includes some spend beyond 2030. Ofgem and NESO regularly review and update their cost estimates for electricity networks.
Asked by: Lord Strathcarron (Non-affiliated - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Merron on 23 April (HL Deb col 741), what evidence is there that "There are around five times more people smoking non-cigarette tobacco, such as cigars, than a decade ago"; and what are the precise statistics for different categories of non-cigarette, including hand-made cigars, machine-made cigars, pipe tobacco and shisha, within that statement.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Tobacco is the single most important entirely preventable cause of ill health, disability, and death in this country, and is responsible for approximately 80,000 deaths in the United Kingdom each year. There is no safe level of tobacco consumption. All tobacco products are harmful.
A paper by Dr Sarah E Jackson, Dr Lion Shahab, and Dr Jamie Brown titled Trends in Exclusive Non-Cigarette Tobacco Smoking in England: A Population Survey 2013–2023 provides the evidence behind the statement on other tobacco products. The available data does not provide the precise statistics for the different categories of other tobacco products.
Asked by: Lord Strathcarron (Non-affiliated - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many pieces of content the National Security Online Information Team has flagged for review by social media platforms in the past 12 months.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
In 2024, 180 examples of content were provided to platforms across national security and public safety risks.
Asked by: Lord Strathcarron (Non-affiliated - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they intend online intermediaries to combat misinformation and disinformation on their websites, as set out in their Draft Statement of Strategic Priorities for online safety, published on 20 November, when this is not explicitly referenced in the Online Safety Act 2023.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
The Online Safety Act requires companies to take action against mis/disinformation where it constitutes illegal content or content harmful to children. The Act will also ensure platforms are transparent and accountable to their users about what legal content they allow on their services and are consistent in its treatment.
The draft Statement of Strategic Priorities calls for Ofcom to enhance its media literacy initiatives, empowering users to critically assess potentially misleading online content. If Parliament approves the final statement, Ofcom must then set out how it will have regard to the priorities, including those relating to mis/disinformation, when exercising its functions.
Asked by: Lord Strathcarron (Non-affiliated - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the adequacy of the work of the National Security Online Information Team, and (2) the impact of that work on freedom of speech.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
The work and remit of the National Security and Online Information Team (NSOIT) is kept under regular review by ministers. This includes the role which NSOIT played in responding to the recent public disorder following the tragic incident in Southport.
NSOIT’s commitment to protecting freedom of expression is embedded in its policies and practices. For example, NSOIT has a blanket ban on referring content from journalists and politicians to social media platforms. Its privacy notices are available on gov.uk.
Asked by: Lord Strathcarron (Non-affiliated - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what remit they intend to give to the National Security Online Information Team.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
NSOIT’s remit is to tackle the greatest national security risks and public safety which the UK faces from mis and disinformation. This revised remit is kept under regular review by ministers, including to support recent events surrounding Southport.
Asked by: Lord Strathcarron (Non-affiliated - Excepted Hereditary)
Question
To ask His Majesty's Government which abbreviation they prefer to use when referring collectively to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government uses the term LGBT+. This reflects the breadth and diversity of the community as well as the preferences of most LGBT+ people. This term also resonates with language used by international partners and institutions. Whilst this is the Government's standard terminology, there may be occasions where it is appropriate to utilise variations that reflect a different focus.