Baroness Suttie Portrait

Baroness Suttie

Liberal Democrat - Life peer

Became Member: 17th September 2013

Liberal Democrat Lords Spokesperson (Northern Ireland)

(since October 2016)

4 APPG memberships (as of 24 Jan 2024)
British Council, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan
3 Former APPG memberships
Global Tuberculosis, Morocco, Tuberculosis
Constitution Committee
28th Jan 2021 - 31st Jan 2024
Electoral Registration and Administration Act 2013 Committee
13th Jun 2019 - 22nd Jun 2020
EU External Affairs Sub-Committee
12th Jun 2015 - 2nd Jul 2019
European Union Committee
8th Jun 2015 - 1st Jul 2019


Division Voting information

During the current Parliament, Baroness Suttie has voted in 477 divisions, and 1 time against the majority of their Party.

15 Jun 2020 - Abortion (Northern Ireland) (No. 2) Regulations 2020 - View Vote Context
Baroness Suttie voted No - against a party majority and against the House
One of 8 Liberal Democrat No votes vs 67 Liberal Democrat Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 355 Noes - 77
View All Baroness Suttie Division Votes

Debates during the 2019 Parliament

Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.

Sparring Partners
Lord Caine (Conservative)
Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
(18 debate interactions)
Lord Frost (Conservative)
(17 debate interactions)
Lord Murphy of Torfaen (Labour)
(16 debate interactions)
View All Sparring Partners
Department Debates
Northern Ireland Office
(63 debate contributions)
Cabinet Office
(17 debate contributions)
View All Department Debates
View all Baroness Suttie's debates

Lords initiatives

These initiatives were driven by Baroness Suttie, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.


Baroness Suttie has not introduced any legislation before Parliament

Baroness Suttie has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting


Latest 7 Written Questions

(View all written questions)
Written Questions can be tabled by MPs and Lords to request specific information information on the work, policy and activities of a Government Department
29th Jan 2020
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to maintain the current standards of cleanliness on UK beaches after Brexit; and, in particular, whether they intend to maintain the standards set out in the EU's Bathing Water and Water Framework Directives.

Leaving the EU does not change the UK’s ambition on the environment; the Government has no intention of weakening our current environmental protections now that we have left the EU. The UK has a long history of environmental protection, supported by a strong legal framework which predates our membership of the EU, and we will safeguard and improve on this record.

The European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 will ensure that the body of existing EU environmental law, including our Water Framework Directive regulations and the Bathing Water Regulations, continues to have effect in UK law now that we have left the EU.

Local authorities’ existing statutory duties to remove litter and refuse from beaches above the high-water mark are unaffected by our departure from the EU. The statutory Code of Practice on Litter and Refuse sets out the standards that local authorities are expected to achieve in doing so.

29th Jan 2020
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of public investments in research and development towards delivering the targets set out in Sustainable Development Goal 3 on health.

Public investments in research and development have had significant impact across a range of diseases and have contributed to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 3. For instance, UK support has been instrumental in the development of Coartem Dispersible, a child-friendly antimalarial drug. More than 390 million treatments of this life-saving drug have been delivered to over 50 countries since its launch in 2009. This is very likely to have helped reduce the number of deaths from malaria. DFID support also enabled the development of the first paediatric tuberculosis (TB) medicine, which is now available in 93 countries that account for 75% of the global paediatric TB burden.

4th Jul 2023
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to carry out research into the impact of ultra-processed foods on public health outcomes.

The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) is currently carrying out a scoping review of the evidence on processed foods and health and aims to publish its initial assessment in the summer of 2023. SACN’s scoping review will make a number of research recommendations in this area. This review will also include evaluating existing classifications of processed foods, including ultra-processed foods and the NOVA classification.

SACN is a committee of the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) and provides independent scientific advice and risk assessments on nutrition and related health issues. Members of SACN are appointed as independent scientific experts in their field. We are not aware of any plans to agree a definition internationally.

The Department funds research on health and social care through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health including ultra-processed foods. The usual practice of the NIHR is not to ring-fence funds for expenditure on particular topics.

4th Jul 2023
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they are having with (1) UK medical professionals and scientists, and (2) international partners, about (a) developing, and (b) agreeing, internationally recognised definitions of ultra-processed food.

The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) is currently carrying out a scoping review of the evidence on processed foods and health and aims to publish its initial assessment in the summer of 2023. SACN’s scoping review will make a number of research recommendations in this area. This review will also include evaluating existing classifications of processed foods, including ultra-processed foods and the NOVA classification.

SACN is a committee of the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) and provides independent scientific advice and risk assessments on nutrition and related health issues. Members of SACN are appointed as independent scientific experts in their field. We are not aware of any plans to agree a definition internationally.

The Department funds research on health and social care through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health including ultra-processed foods. The usual practice of the NIHR is not to ring-fence funds for expenditure on particular topics.

6th Dec 2022
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the World Health Organization (WHO) about approving the use of vaccines (1) to prevent, and (2) to mitigate, outbreaks of Ebola in endemic countries.

The UK regularly engages with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other international partners, including the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness (CEPI), to support research and use of vaccines to prevent and mitigate the spread of ebolavirus disease. For example, the UK supported research to develop an effective vaccine against the Zaire ebolavirus, which is approved by WHO and national regulatory authorities, and is used to control outbreaks in west and central Africa. The UK is also currently in regular dialogue with WHO, CEPI and other partners as part of our wider support to the Government of Uganda to take trials forward for candidate vaccines against the Sudan ebolavirus.

4th Mar 2021
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to disburse funding to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, according to the original schedule agreed to by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

The impact of COVID-19 on the UK economy has required us to take the difficult but necessary decision to reduce the overall amount we spend on ODA. However, Global Health remains one of the UK's ODA priorities, focusing on overcoming COVID-19 and supporting healthier and more resilient populations in developing countries.

The Foreign Secretary is currently leading a review of ODA spend for 21/22, the outcome of which will be announced in due course.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
4th Mar 2021
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the public health impact and (2) the role of UK funding in Product Development Partnerships over the last ten years in tackling poverty-associated diseases such as Tuberculosis.

UK Government funding by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office to Product Development Partnerships has contributed to 66 new health technologies, including diagnostics, drugs and vaccines being available for diseases and health threats that are underserved by commercial markets. These products have reached over 2.4 billion people around the world. This includes the game changing GenXpert technology to detect TB in 4 hours compared to several weeks previously. The technology was subsequently progressed to diagnose Ebola and COVID-19. This technology was developed with our core support by the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics and their partners. Since 2005, we are also one of the major donors to the TB Alliance, which has developed new treatments for TB, including the first child-friendly drug regimen and novel treatments for multi-drug resistant TB, such as Pretomanid, which, in combination with 2 other drugs, offers a highly effective, shorter and less toxic treatment option.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is a leading supporter of Product Development Partnerships, which bring together partners from the public, private and philanthropic sectors to develop new products in a way that de-links the cost of development from the final cost of product.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)