Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they had with (1) Scotland, (2) Wales, and (3) Northern Ireland about participation of children in those nations in puberty blocker trials; and whether they requested participants in the puberty blocker trials from the health departments of the devolved administration, or whether the health departments proactively volunteered those participants.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The PATHWAYS clinical trial of puberty-suppressing hormones expects to include 226 participants, a number which is not broken down geographically. As announced on 20 February 2026, the preliminary work in establishing the PATHWAYS clinical trial has been paused, following new concerns raised by the medicines regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). In the meantime, the trial will not start recruiting until issues raised by the MHRA have been resolved between the regulator and the trial clinicians.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many children are due to participate in puberty blocker trials in (1) England, (2) Scotland, (3) Wales, and (4) Northern Ireland.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The PATHWAYS clinical trial of puberty-suppressing hormones expects to include 226 participants, a number which is not broken down geographically. As announced on 20 February 2026, the preliminary work in establishing the PATHWAYS clinical trial has been paused, following new concerns raised by the medicines regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). In the meantime, the trial will not start recruiting until issues raised by the MHRA have been resolved between the regulator and the trial clinicians.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to implement a standardised, comprehensive system for dog control incidents, including details on breed, context and severity.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra is working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to encourage responsible dog ownership, to ensure dog control issues are addressed before they escalate.

As part of this work, we have reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce to explore measures to promote responsible dog ownership across all breeds of dog.

The taskforce is considering four themes: education, training for both dogs and their owners, enforcement, and improving data on dog attacks. We look forward to receiving the findings and recommendations from the taskforce in due course.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the scope and operation of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra is working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to encourage responsible dog ownership, to ensure dog control issues are addressed before they escalate.

As part of this work, we have reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce to explore measures to promote responsible dog ownership across all breeds of dog.

The taskforce is considering four themes: education, training for both dogs and their owners, enforcement, and improving data on dog attacks. We look forward to receiving the findings and recommendations from the taskforce in due course.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to promote and provide education about responsible dog ownership.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra is working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to encourage responsible dog ownership, to ensure dog control issues are addressed before they escalate.

As part of this work, we have reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce to explore measures to promote responsible dog ownership across all breeds of dog.

The taskforce is considering four themes: education, training for both dogs and their owners, enforcement, and improving data on dog attacks. We look forward to receiving the findings and recommendations from the taskforce in due course.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many private schools have closed since 1 September 2024, or have announced that they will close at the end of this academic year.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The number of private school closures is publicly available from the ‘Get Information about Schools’ website. Where local circumstances show that converting a private school into a state funded school would meet local demand for school places, the conversion may be considered through the established legal process.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to enable private schools to become state schools.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The number of private school closures is publicly available from the ‘Get Information about Schools’ website. Where local circumstances show that converting a private school into a state funded school would meet local demand for school places, the conversion may be considered through the established legal process.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many pupils have switched from private education to state education since 1 September 2024.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The information is not held by the department.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether funding from the UK Shipping Office for Reducing Emissions will extend to Northern Ireland and be available to companies for their work in Northern Ireland.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

UK SHORE funding is open to organisations in all four nations of the UK. There has been at least one project involving businesses from Northern Ireland in each round of the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competitions, and we anticipate Northern Irish businesses will apply for both the seventh round of the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition (CMDC7) and second round of the Zero Emission Vessels and Infrastructure competition (ZEVI2). Prospective applicants can seek further information from Innovate UK who are running roadshow events on the funding across the UK, including in Northern Ireland.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the compatibility with the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020 of the 50 per cent deduction from the UK Emissions Trading Scheme surrender obligation for Northern Ireland and the full exemption for Scottish islands.

Answered by Lord Whitehead - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The UK Emissions Trading Scheme applies a UK‑wide regulatory framework and is non‑discriminatory. Adjustments were designed to be consistent with the effective operation of the UK internal market.

The 50% surrender deduction for voyages between Great Britain and Northern Ireland ensures carbon pricing obligation equivalence on voyages across the Irish Sea, avoiding potential re-routing via Ireland and assisting in mitigating against any disproportionate impacts on businesses and consumers in Northern Ireland.

The exemption for ships operating Scottish ferry services reflects the unique challenges faced by those communities and the statutory duties on the Scottish Government to consider those communities.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask His Majesty's Government why ferry companies and the maritime sector have been given six months before the implementation of the extension of the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) compared to the European Union's ETS three year phase-in period.

Answered by Lord Whitehead - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The UK Emissions Trading Scheme Authority has since July 2023, and throughout extensive consultation with stakeholders, signalled its intent to include domestic maritime emissions in the scheme from 2026.

The vast majority (98%) of ships within scope are already required to monitor and report emissions in a very similar way under other policies, and so they should have in place the necessary equipment and processes to support compliance.

For the new obligation of surrendering UK allowances, the first deadline for maritime emissions will be 30 April 2028, providing significant additional time for maritime operators to prepare to comply.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to carry out an economic impact assessment for Northern Ireland as part of the Emissions Trading Scheme review in 2028.

Answered by Lord Whitehead - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government will be evaluating the decarbonisation and wider impacts of the maritime regime, including on consumers and businesses, in a review in 2028.

The full scope and detailed approach to the 2028 review of the UK Emissions Trading Scheme are still subject to agreement by the UK Emissions Trading Scheme Authority.

While the Government cannot therefore confirm at this stage the specific analytical products that will accompany that review, it will ensure that proportionate and robust analysis is produced to inform that review and support Authority decision‑making.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask His Majesty's Government when ferry companies and the maritime sector will be provided with all of the technical details required for the implementation of the Emissions Trading Scheme.

Answered by Lord Whitehead - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The digital system for emissions monitoring and reporting includes a step-by-step process to help operators understand and meet their obligations. For at least 96% of operators, free voluntary onboarding onto this system, and free assessment of their application for an emissions monitoring plan, has been available since November 2025.

Further guidance will be published in due course. In the meantime, the UK Emissions Trading Scheme Authority and the regulators of the scheme will continue to engage with the sector, including through newsletters, question and answer documents, and videos, to support operators. Operators can also direct queries to their regulator’s helpdesk.