Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking across Government to promote equality and inclusion as part of the National Year of Reading.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The National Year of Reading is a UK-wide campaign designed to tackle the steep decline in reading for enjoyment amongst children, young people and adults, and to engage new audiences with reading. It aims to achieve a lasting change to the nation’s reading habits and is a campaign made available for all ages and communities. The campaign reflects that the decline in reading for enjoyment affects all sectors of society, however there will be a targeted focus on certain priority groups, including boys aged 10 to 16, parents from disadvantaged communities, and early years children.
‘Go All In’ is a fully inclusive campaign, encouraging people to read about whatever interests them, via any genre and all mediums of reading, from physical books, to comics, to e-books. The campaign includes support from a diverse range of authors, celebrities and content creators representing a range of different ages, backgrounds and cultures from communities across the UK. The campaign will reach communities across the UK through schools, libraries, businesses and local partners. Libraries, as free to access community hubs, will play a central role in supporting participation and helping people of all ages and from all sectors of society to develop a lasting love of reading.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what funding they are providing in 2026–27 for chess in schools; and whether the tendering process for any projects will be completed in time to enable full implementation.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
From the 2026/27 financial year, the department intends to invest up to £250,000 per year for three years (a total of £750,000) to partner with an organisation to deliver a national programme for chess in schools.
It will aim to increase pupils’ participation in chess, embed sustainable provision, and ensure regular opportunities to play chess are made available across all nine regions of England. This includes resources and training for staff, support for pupil-led delivery, and opportunities for schools to join local and online tournaments to celebrate achievement and encourage engagement.
We will prioritise mainstream primary and secondary schools with higher proportions of pupils eligible for free school meals, as well as special schools and alternative provision settings, and improve access for girls and pupils with special educational needs and disabilities.
The department intends to publish an invitation to tender for delivery of the programme in due course.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to promote the National Year of Reading in (1) early years settings, (2) primary schools, (3) secondary schools, (4) further education, and (5) higher education.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The National Year of Reading is a UK-wide campaign to address long-term declines in reading enjoyment.
It includes a major physical and online marketing campaign, as well as exciting events, webinars, resources, and activities in communities, libraries, schools and early years settings throughout the year. Reading together is one of the most powerful ways to build a child’s language and communication skills, strengthen early bonds, and spark a lifelong love of reading, which is why early years is one of the priority groups for the National Year of Reading.
We are raising awareness of the National Year of Reading through a range of methods, such as via departmental communication channels, the National Year of Reading mailing list and social media, communications from the National Literacy Trust, and promotion via the English Hubs network.
All interested parties are encouraged to sign up to the National Year of Reading website for more information: https://goallin.org.uk/.
To further support reading for pleasure, this government has committed over £10 million of dormant assets funding to guarantee a library for every primary school by the end of this parliament, and a further £5 million for secondary schools to purchase books to encourage reading enjoyment amongst their pupils.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
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.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
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.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
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.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
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.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
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.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
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.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
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.