Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Wales Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Welsh Government regarding the reconfiguration of career patterns within the Civil Service in Wales to maximise recruitment of such staff from Wales.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK and Welsh Governments work closely together on matters relating to the civil service. Both governments participate in civil service learning and development schemes aimed at supporting career progression such as the Future Leadership Scheme (FLS) operated by the Cabinet Office. The Places for Growth Programme has also relocated 1,304 civil service roles to Wales, strengthening opportunities and career pathways. As one of the 13 growth areas announced by the then Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster in May, Cardiff is set to benefit from the relocation of even more government jobs over the Spending Review period.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the volume and value of trade passing through the ports of (1) Holyhead, and (2) Fishguard; and how these figures compare to corresponding figures from 2015.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The volume and value of trade passing through the ports of Holyhead and Fishguard in 2015 and 2024 (latest complete year of data) is as follows:
|
| EU trade | non-EU Trade |
2015 | - | 0 |
2024 | 13,257,529,744 | 20,840,991 |
1b: Trade in Goods Volume (kg) through Holyhead for 2015 and 2024 |
| EU trade | non-EU Trade |
2015 | - | 0 |
2024 | 2,038,324,780 | 968,560 |
| ||||
2a. Trade in Goods Value (£) through Fishguard for 2015 and 2024 | ||||
| ||||||||||||
| EU trade | non-EU Trade |
| |||||||||
2015 | - | 23,343 |
| |||||||||
2024 | 231,002,478 | 65,770,180 |
| |||||||||
Source: HMRC Overseas Trade Statistics, uktradeinfo, compiled on 10th September 2025
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) does not have port data prior to 2021 for EU trade as the UK was part of the European Union and customs declarations were not required for these movements. Trade data for intra-EU movements was collected via monthly Intrastat declarations which did not collect information on ports.
Figures for EU trade combine EU imports and EU exports. Similarly, figures for non-EU trade combine Non-EU imports and non-EU exports
The figures above exclude trade in low value consignments (namely imports and exports of an individual value of £873 or less) since HMRC does not have port data for trade in low value consignments.
Holyhead is primarily an EU facing port with no reported data for goods moving from/to non-EU countries in 2015.
The data provided covers goods that have been declared for import or export from either Holyhead or Fishguard but excludes data for goods entering Customs warehouses, freezones or freeports, and goods in transit (even when transhipment or temporary admissions are involved).
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is responsible for the collection and publication of data on imports and exports of goods to and from the UK. HMRC releases this information monthly, as an accredited official statistic called the Overseas Trade in Goods Statistics (OTS), which is available via their dedicated website (www.uktradeinfo.com).
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what changes they have made over the past five years in the application of comparability factors to the Barnett formula for determining cash payments to the Welsh government consequential to expenditure on railway services located solely in England.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Comparability factors are used to determine the extent to which a UK Government department’s spending is comparable (where policy is devolved) to the Welsh Government.
Comparability factors are generally updated prior to each spending review. In the past five years, the Department for Transport’s comparability factors were updated at the Spending Review in 2020 and again at the Spending Review in 2025. The most recent comparability factor applied to changes in the Department for Transport budgets at the Spending Review in 2025 was 33.5% for Wales. A comparability factor of 36.6% was applied at the Spending Reviews in 2020 and 2021.
Full details of changes to comparability factors over the past five years, including those for the Department for Transport, are published in the relevant Statement of Funding Policy:
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the anticipated increase in defence procurement expenditure placed with businesses operating in (1) Wales, (2) Scotland, and (3) Northern Ireland.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Defence Industrial Strategy set out how defence will work with the Devolved Governments to launch Growth Deals in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The level of investment in defence procurement in individual regions will be set out in the Defence Investment Plan, which will be published in the autumn.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have received concerning the making of military awards for bravery for those involved in the activities of Unit 731 in Southeast Asia during the Second World War.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Unit 731 was a Japanese secret research facility which operated between 1933 and 1945 and conducted human experiments to test potential military uses of biological and chemical agents.
The victims, who were all killed, were predominantly Chinese, and to a lesser extent, Russian, Korean and Mongolian. Reports of Western and Commonwealth Prisoners of War being victims of Unit 731 are unverified and there is no confirmed evidence of UK nationals being held there.
The Ministry Of Defence has received no correspondence making representations for military awards for bravery, in respect of those involved in the activities of Unit 731 during the Second World War.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of additional Government expenditure arising from the war in Ukraine in each of the past three years.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Following Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine over three years ago, the UK has committed £21.8 billion for Ukraine.
The UK has been at the forefront in providing military, financial and humanitarian support to Ukraine for as long as it takes. This has included:
The UK will continue to honour the Prime Minister’s commitment to provide Ukraine with £3bn of military support each year until the end of the decade or for as long as needed. Securing a lasting peace for Ukraine is in the UK and wider Europe’s economic and security interests.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations, if any, they have received so far this year from the Welsh government ales about a review of the operation of the Barnett formula.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Welsh Government has made regular representations to the UK Government this year on reviewing the operation of the Barnett formula at both official and ministerial level, and in person between the Chief Secretary to the Treasury and the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Welsh Language at the Finance: Interministerial Standing Committee.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of (1) adults, and (2) children, in England who have autism.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
There is varied evidence on the ‘true prevalence’ of autism, which is the proportion of the population who would meet the criteria for a diagnosis if they were to be assessed, regardless of whether or not they have received a formal diagnosis.
Part II of the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey, due to be released in Autumn 2025, will give us an indication of autism prevalence. We are also exploring options through the National Institute for Health and Care Research to improve our current understanding of autism prevalence.
In respect of numbers of people diagnosed as autistic, the NHS Network Contract Direct Enhanced Service dataset shows that, as of March 2025, 968,651 people, both children and adults, had an autism diagnosis recorded in their general practice (GP) records, based on 98.21% of the GP-registered population.
Evidence shows that there is variation in rates of autism diagnosis by age. Some information on diagnosis rates by age group can be taken from the Health and Care of People with Learning Disabilities, Experimental Statistics 2023 to 2024, published by NHS England, and based on 54.7% of registered patients. This data shows that 3.41% of zero to 17-year-olds have an autism diagnosis, compared to 0.79% in adults aged 18 years old and over. Evidence suggests that diagnosis rates remain below the levels indicated by evidence on prevalence in some cohorts, such as older people, but are higher than the most recent prevalence estimates in other cohorts, such as younger people.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether every person who has served a prison sentence as a result of a wrongful conviction is eligible for financial compensation.
Answered by Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede
Individuals who have had their conviction quashed in an out of time appeal following a qualifying miscarriage of justice are eligible to apply for compensation through the Miscarriage of Justice Application Service (MOJAS). S.133 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 sets out the circumstances in which the Government will provide compensation under this scheme. Under subsection 1ZA, compensation will only be awarded if the conviction has been overturned as a result of a new or newly discovered fact that shows beyond reasonable doubt that the person did not commit the offence.
MOJAS compensation is just one route by which someone whose conviction is quashed can receive compensation, with other options including making a civil claim based on malicious prosecution or misfeasance in a public office, for example.
The Miscarriage of Justice Support Service which is part of Citizens Advice and funded by HM Prison and Probation Service, also provides support to all individuals who have had their conviction quashed by the Court of Appeal. They are able to support with accessing accommodation, benefits and signposting to psychological support.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their policy on supporting education in the medium of Welsh for pupils living in England.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government recognises the cultural and linguistic importance of the Welsh language, which is reflected in the provision of Welsh-medium teaching for pupils living in Wales. In England, there is no requirement for schools to provide education through the medium of Welsh. However, schools have the flexibility to support pupils who speak Welsh or wish to learn the language.