Emergency Alert Service

Debate between Viscount Stansgate and Baroness Twycross

Thursday 5th September 2024 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Twycross (Lab)]

I will feed that point back to the department, but I did not say there will not be further testing. I said that one is not scheduled currently, but the point was very well made.

[Viscount Stansgate (Lab)]

My Lords, I do not know whether the House is aware that there is increasing scientific interest in the effect of heat on human beings. We are living in a world that is getting hotter, and recent studies such as that produced by the Physiological Society indicate that measures will need to be taken. Will my noble friend the Minister undertake to ensure that this Cabinet sub-committee considers the question of heat resilience and whether emergency responses of the kind we have been discussing in this exchange can be applied to situations where heat is the issue, rather than some other cause?

[Baroness Twycross (Lab)]

My noble friend rightly highlights the danger of heat in terms of its potential impact on the public. As he and other noble Lords will be aware, the summer of 2022 saw the highest ever recorded temperature in the UK. The capability was not in use at the time, but this is an example of the type of event in which an alert would be considered. More recent summers have been somewhat milder, but this is the type of incident that would be appropriate for the use of emergency alerts.

Global IT Outage

Debate between Viscount Stansgate and Baroness Twycross

Thursday 25th July 2024 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Twycross (Lab)]

I thank the noble Baroness for her question and her openness and engagement with me when she was a Minister. Her passion for improving resilience was clear in how she carried out the role. This is definitely a central concern of the incoming Government, which is why we introduced the cybersecurity and resilience Bill in the King’s Speech. I look forward to discussing that further with her and other noble Lords from around the House as it progresses through the legislative process.

[Viscount Stansgate (Lab)]

My Lords, as the Government continue to consider the issues arising from this serious outage, I invite my noble friend the Minister to consider seriously the reports issued by the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy, of which I have been a member, which deal with issues such as ransomware, against which the software was designed to protect us. These issues will only become more important in the years ahead.

[Baroness Twycross (Lab)]

My noble friend raises similar points to other noble Lords; Members across the House are quite rightly concerned about this. As part of the process of developing and taking the cybersecurity and resilience Bill through this House and the other place, all learning from a range of reviews, including some of the public inquiries that have reported and are yet to report, will be key to improving our country’s resilience.