Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the statement in the King's Speech made on 13 May that they will "unlock the benefits of airport expansion" refers to airports in England only or throughout the UK.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Following the King’s Speech, the Civil Aviation (Consumer Protection and Regulatory Reform) Bill was introduced to the House of Lords on 14 May.
The Bill has three core objectives: to promote economic growth and infrastructure development; strengthen consumer rights and protections; and enhance aviation safety. It will modernise the UK’s aviation legislative framework so it can keep pace with technological change, evolving consumer expectations and increasing operational complexity, while supporting a resilient sector aligned with international standards.
The Bill applies across the UK and will support the aviation sector nationwide to grow and remain competitive, while ensuring passengers can travel with confidence.
Its measures will help ensure the regulatory framework supports the efficient use of existing capacity and can accommodate future growth across airports across the UK.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in light of the outcomes of the recent elections in the devolved nations, what steps they plan to take to improve their capacity to "work closely with the devolved governments" as stated in the King's Speech made on 13 May.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
This government has been clear since day one that rebuilding the country requires UK-wide delivery, working effectively with all levels of government. Good intergovernmental relations remain a priority.
The Prime Minister has spoken to the First Ministers of Scotland and Wales following the recent elections and noted his desire for continued positive engagement between the governments in the interests of citizens across the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and the Minister for Intergovernmental Relations will continue to engage with the heads of the devolved governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and their deputies on shared interests. This is in addition to ongoing regular intergovernmental engagement between ministers at departmental level.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government will they ensure that the "Energy Independence Bill" proposed in the King's Speech made on 13 May includes provisions to augment energy storage through new pumped-storage hydroelectric schemes.
Answered by Lord Whitehead - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Energy Independence Bill will legislate for the powers the government needs to fight people’s corner and go further and faster on our clean energy mission. The full detail of the Energy Independence Bill and its policy measures will be set out in due course when it is introduced to Parliament.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the timeline for the "action necessary to safeguard the domestic production of steel" referred to in the King's Speech made on 13 May.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government introduced the Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Bill to Parliament on 14 May, the day following the King’s Speech. The Government is strongly minded to use the powers in the Bill to bring British Steel into public ownership to safeguard strategic capability, subject to the public interest test to be agreed by Parliament being met.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what recent discussions they have had with their counterparts in the government of the USA regarding the implementation of the two-state solution in Israel and Palestine.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
UK Ministers speak regularly to our US counterparts on a wide range of issues relating to Israel and Palestine, including progress on President Trump's 20-point Gaza peace plan, and the UK's commitment to the two-state solution.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will conduct early consultations with the Welsh Government regarding the "significant reforms to the police" referenced in the King's Speech made on 13 May.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Policing is a reserved matter for the UK Government, and we are taking forward a significant programme of police reform across England and Wales.
We will continue to work closely with the new Welsh Government, Welsh Policing and others on our reforms and to ensure that a new model for police governance works for Wales. We recognise the importance of working collaboratively where delivery depends on devolved services and partnerships.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many immigrants took residence in the UK in the latest year for which figures are available; and how many of those came to the UK by small boat crossing of the English Channel.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
Please see the letter attached from the Permanent Secretary for the Office of National Statistics.
Darren Tierney | Permanent Secretary
The Rt Hon. the Lord Wigley
House of Lords
London
SW1A 0PW
15 April 2026
Dear Lord Wigley,
As Permanent Secretary of the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking how many immigrants took residence in the UK in the latest year for which figures are available; and how many of those came to the UK by small boat crossing of the English Channel (HL15948).
Based on our latest estimates[1] which look at long-term international migration (long-term is where people change their usual place of residence for a period of 12 months or more). In the year ending June 2025, we estimated that:
898,000 people came to the UK for 12 months or more
693,000 people left the UK for 12 months or more
Therefore, net migration was estimated at 204,000[2]
While these figures include those arriving for asylum, the ONS does not produce estimates on the number of arrivals by small boat. However, the Home Office and Border Force provide data on small boat arrivals for the last 7 days[3] and a timeseries updated weekly back to 2018. In year ending June 2025, the Home Office estimates that the number of people recorded as arriving in the UK on small boats was 43,309[4].
Those arriving in small boats who claim asylum would appear in our asylum estimates. In year ending June 2025, the ONS immigration estimate includes a total of 96,000 people that came to the UK for asylum.
Yours sincerely,
Darren Tierney
[2] Net migration is calculated by subtracting emigration estimates from immigration estimates. We do this with unrounded estimates so the rounded numbers may not always match this calculation exactly.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many incidents have been reported of lithium batteries (1) exploding, or (2) causing fires, in the past five years.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government collects data on incidents attended by fire and rescue services in England, including information on the cause of the fire and the source of ignition.
This data is published in a range of fire statistics releases, available on GOV.UK at: Fire statistics - GOV.UK (attached).
Our new Fire and Rescue Analysis Platform (FaRDaP) has recently been rolled out, and work is ongoing to update the data it will collect, with data covering lithium-ion batteries role in fire incidents potentially able to be included in the future.
However, the data currently collected does not identify whether incidents attended by fire and rescue services were caused by or involved lithium‑ion battery failures, nor does it record whether a battery exploded. As a result, the Department is unable to provide figures for incidents involving lithium batteries in England over the past five years.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the latest figure for the gross domestic product per capita in Wales.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their latest estimate of the number of refugees from Ukraine currently resident in (1) England, (2) Scotland, (3) Wales, and (4) Northern Ireland.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Statistics regarding the resident population are produced by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) within the ‘Population estimates’ publication (https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates). However, the statistics are not broken down to the level of detail requested. The Home Office publishes data on the Ukraine schemes in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’.
As at the end of 2025 234,500 individuals have arrived in the UK under the Ukraine schemes. The statistics include the number of people who are believed to be out of the UK at the end of each quarter. See the chapter, “How many people come to the UK via safe and legal (humanitarian) routes?" The chapter shows “…as of the end of 2025, around 102,100 people (44%) who had previously arrived on the Ukraine schemes had exited the UK and were believed to be out of the country, although some may subsequently return.”
In addition to the Ukraine schemes, some Ukrainians have claimed asylum via the UK asylum process. Since the start of 2022 to the end of 2025, 70 Ukrainians have been granted refugee status (main applicants and dependants). There is no published data to confirm how many of these remain in the UK, or whether those who were granted refugee status in earlier years remain in the UK. Breakdowns by England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland are not published.