Asked by: Lord Turnberg (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any information on the proportion of deaths in Gaza reported by the Gazan Ministry of Health represented by (1) civilians, and (2) Hamas operatives.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Like many of our partners, the UK Government uses data from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) to report on daily casualties in the current Gaza conflict. OCHA draws on figures issued from the Gazan Ministry of Health (MoH). Producing reliable casualty statistics in contexts of violent conflict is never straightforward. The MoH verify and identify the dead by age, gender and ID number.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has consulted experts, including from the London School of Tropical Medicine, OCHA, the World Health Organization and Every Casualty Counts, and interrogates relevant research. Experts assess that the total number of deaths in Gaza since 7 October 2023 estimated by the Gaza Ministry of Health is a reasonable figure, and likely to be an underestimate. MoH data does not differentiate between civilians and Hamas operatives.
Asked by: Lord Turnberg (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what information they have about the condition of the Israeli hostages held by Hamas; and what assessment they have made of reports that the hostages are being denied medical care.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Reports of the mistreatment of the hostages held by Hamas, as set out by released hostages such as Eli Sharabi, are deeply concerning. We continue to call for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, including Avinatan Or, Shay Levinson, and Yossi Sharabi who have strong links to the UK.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has consistently shared that it hasn't been permitted access to hostages. The UK reaffirms our support for the ICRC as the only humanitarian actor with the experience, capability, independence and mandate to carry out their important responsibilities. We have reiterated our call for the ICRC to be granted unfettered and immediate access to the hostages in Gaza and Palestinian detainees to deliver on their independent visiting role, as enshrined within the 1949 Geneva Conventions. The ICRC has been facilitating the handover of hostages and the delivery of aid into Gaza.
Asked by: Lord Turnberg (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether Israeli hostages held by Hamas have access to the Red Cross.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has consistently said that it has not been permitted access to hostages. The ICRC has been facilitating the handover of hostages and the delivery of aid into Gaza. The UK reaffirms our support for the ICRC as the only humanitarian actor with the experience, capability, independence and mandate to carry out their important responsibilities. We have reiterated our call for the ICRC to be granted unfettered and immediate access to the hostages in Gaza and Palestinian detainees to deliver on their independent visiting role, as enshrined within the 1949 Geneva Conventions.
Asked by: Lord Turnberg (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to meet university vice-chancellors to discuss how they are dealing with the rising incidence of antisemitism on campuses.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
My right hon. Friend, Secretary of State for Education is due to host a roundtable shortly with leading vice chancellors to discuss what more can be done collectively, and at all levels, to make our universities safe and inclusive environments for all.
Departmental officials continue to liaise closely with Universities UK and with key Jewish community stakeholders, to remain appraised of issues and how they are being handled by universities.
Asked by: Lord Turnberg (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what information they have on the number of prevented terrorist attacks purportedly by Iran in the UK in the past 10 years.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government's top priority is our national security, and we will continue to use all appropriate tools at our disposal to protect the UK, and its people, from any Iran-linked threats. As is our longstanding position, the Home Office does not comment in detail on specific operational matters.
Asked by: Lord Turnberg (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what are the current vacancy rates for care workers in care homes in England and Wales; and whether these rates have changed in the last five years.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The policy for health and adult social care is devolved across the United Kingdom. The Department is responsible for adult social care in England, and therefore only captures information on vacancy rates for England. The following table shows estimates of the vacancy rates for the adult social care workforce, including the independent and local authority sectors, from 2019/20 to 2023/24:
Year | Vacancy rate |
2019/20 | 7.3% |
2020/21 | 7.0% |
2021/22 | 10.6% |
2022/23 | 9.9% |
2023/24 | 8.3% |
Source: Skills for Care using the Adult Social Care Workforce Data Set.
It is important to note that vacancies include roles advertised by independent providers and therefore reflect market conditions. Vacancies include both posts that are vacant in the short term, due to recent or anticipated staff turnover, and posts created by employers who want to expand and grow their businesses, rather than only roles needed to meet statutory entitlements. Therefore, vacancy rates are likely not the best measure of capacity, or lack of capacity.
Asked by: Lord Turnberg (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the proportion of overseas workers in the care workforce.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
According to Skills for Care’s The state of the adult social care sector and workforce in England 2024 publication, three quarters of the adult social care workforce had a British nationality in 2023/24, and the remaining quarter, 394,000 filled posts, had a non-British nationality.
Asked by: Lord Turnberg (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the average waiting time for patients with anxiety and depression to gain access to cognitive behavioural therapy.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
This information is not held in the format requested. NHS England publishes data on the average waiting time for patients to start treatment with NHS Talking Therapies services, but the condition with which a person may be presenting is not recorded.
Asked by: Lord Turnberg (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the current vacancy rate for clinical psychologists.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department does not hold the information requested. NHS England publishes quarterly National Health Service hospital trust vacancy and job advert data. The publication sets out vacancy rates for total NHS trust staff and, separately, for registered nurses and doctors at a national and regional level. The latest data for December 2024 shows that the vacancy rate for total NHS trust staff was 7.2%. The data is not detailed enough to identify vacancy rates for clinical psychologists.
Asked by: Lord Turnberg (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what conversations took place with the Emir of Qatar, during his recent visit to the UK, with a view to seeking his assistance in securing the release of British hostage Emily Damari, held by Hamas.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Qatar plays a vital role in negotiations towards a ceasefire deal to secure the release of all those being held hostage by Hamas, and bring the conflict in Gaza to an end. We thank Qatar, Egypt, the US, and all international partners, for their coordinating efforts. Securing an immediate ceasefire and the safe release of all hostages, including Emily Damari and three other hostages with strong UK links, remains the UK's top priority. During the State Visit of His Highness the Emir of Qatar to London, the Foreign Secretary thanked Qatar for its leadership in ceasefire negotiations and made clear what an absolute priority Emily and the hostages are for us. He raised the importance of ongoing efforts to secure a ceasefire in Gaza to enable their safe release, protect civilians and deliver a surge of aid.