Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of Israel's involvement in the sectarian violence and clashes between Druze and other groups in Suwayda; and what efforts they are undertaking to prevent the fragmentation and territorial annexation of parts of Syria by Israel.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are deeply concerned by the recent violence between different groups in southern Syria. We have been working closely with international partners to press for de-escalation and for all sides to engage in dialogue. We continue to call on Israel to respect Syria's territorial integrity, and uphold their obligations to peace, stability and security under international law. As the Foreign Secretary made clear during his call with Israel's Foreign Minister on 21 July, Israel's attacks in Damascus risk destabilising Syria. We reiterate that respect for Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity is crucial for both Syrian security and that of its neighbours. The only path to a better future for Syria is through an inclusive, representative and non-sectarian political process, that respects the rights of all Syrians, regardless of ethnic or religious background.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what pressure they have placed upon the Syrian transitional authorities to work seriously and transparently to ensure a comprehensive and unbiased Syrian transitional process.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We have consistently advocated for an inclusive political transition and underlined the importance of protecting the rights of all Syrians. The Foreign Secretary discussed this with President al Sharaa and Foreign Minister al Shaibani when he visited Damascus on 5 July. We welcome President al Sharaa's commitment to hold free and fair elections, and the announcement of the Supreme Electoral Committee for the People's Assembly Elections. This is an important step in building legitimate legislative and electoral processes. It is vital now that the political transition proceeds in a genuinely inclusive way, is representative, and respects the rights of all Syrians. We continue to press the Syrian Government on these issues. We will judge the Syrian Government by its actions not its words.
Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to make more affordable connectivity for people on very low incomes one of their priorities.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government aims to make online access affordable for everyone. The Digital Inclusion Action Plan, published in February 2025, targets the removal of affordability barriers by 2030, ensuring all citizens have affordable, reliable internet and suitable devices.
A range of social tariffs are available, including for those on very low incomes, provided for by the telecoms industry. We continue to urge the industry to raise awareness of these low cost deals for those on means tested benefits, and encourage them to maintain provision.
This is part of wider efforts to address digital exclusion, especially for low-income households, older people, disabled individuals, and the unemployed.
Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they will finalise their priorities for action on digital inclusion under the Digital Inclusion Action Plan: First Steps, published on 26 February.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government is delivering on the commitments it made in the Digital Inclusion Action Plan published in February. Progress continues to be made on each of these. Future priorities will be informed by the Call for Evidence launched alongside the Action Plan; this closed on 9 April 2025 and a summary of responses was published on GOV.UK on 17 July 2025. Ongoing collaboration across government departments and with external partners, input from the Digital Inclusion Action Committee and DSIT’s longer-term spending plans, currently still being considered, will also contribute to the shaping of priorities.
Asked by: Neil O'Brien (Conservative - Harborough, Oadby and Wigston)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much she plans to spend on the Best Start for Life programme in the (a) 2026-27, (b) 2027-28 and (c) 2028-29 financial years.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department has allocated close to £1.5 billion over the next three financial years on improving family services and early years education. This funding includes both programme and capital funding, and is separate from the additional funding being provided for early years entitlements.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate has she made of the number of children who will be eligible for Free School Meals under the plans to expand eligibility in (a) Birmingham Edgbaston constituency, (b) Birmingham and (c) the West Midlands.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity and tackling child poverty. We have now announced that we are extending free school meals to all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit from September 2026. This will lift 100,000 children across England out of poverty and put £500 back in families’ pockets, supporting parents in decisive action to improve lives ahead of the Child Poverty Strategy coming later this year.
Providing over half a million children from the most disadvantaged backgrounds with a free, nutritious lunchtime meal every school day will also lead to higher attainment, improved behaviour and better outcomes, meaning children get the best possible education and chance to succeed in work and life.
We have published data on the number of children who could benefit from expanded provision by constituency/region/local authority here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/free-school-meals-expansion-impact-on-poverty-levels.
Asked by: Lord Mott (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what guiding principles or policy frameworks are informing their internal discussions on the future of digital identity policy.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Office for Digital Identities and Attributes (OfDIA), within the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, is committed to enabling the use of secure and trusted digital verification services across the UK economy for those who want to use them.
In response to the findings of the 2019 call for evidence on digital identity, the Government set out six principles to inform the development of digital identity policy in the UK. These are privacy, transparency, inclusivity, interoperability, proportionality, and good governance. The Government’s UK digital identity and attributes trust framework, which sets out rules for digital verification services that wish to be certified as trustworthy and will be underpinned by provisions in the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, is based around these principles.
Asked by: Lord Mott (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to consult stakeholders, including civil society and industry representatives, on the potential introduction of a digital ID system.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Office for Digital Identities and Attributes (OfDIA), part of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, is committed to enabling the use of secure and trusted digital verification services across the UK economy for those who want to use them.
This work is informed by responses to a 2019 call for evidence on digital identity that requested views on how the Government can support the development and secure use of digital identities and was followed by an extensive consultation process.
OfDIA continues to regularly engage with stakeholders, including digital verification providers, industry bodies, civil society, academics and organisations interested in adopting digital identities.
Asked by: Lord Mott (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of international trends and standards in digital identity policy; and what discussions they have had with international partners regarding potential adoption of a digital identity policy.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government continues to assess international trends and standards in digital identity policy and implementation. This includes benchmarking the UK’s digital identity and attributes trust framework against other comparable international frameworks and guidelines. The Government also regularly engages with a range of international partners on a bilateral and multilateral basis.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she has taken to improve the safety of students with serious allergies in English educational institutions.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Section 100 of the Children and Families Act 2014 places a duty on maintained schools, academies and pupil referral units to make arrangements for supporting pupils with medical conditions. Schools should ensure they are aware of any pupils with medical conditions and have policies and processes in place to ensure these can be well managed. Policies should set out how staff will be supported in carrying out their role to support pupils, including how training needs are assessed and how training is commissioned and provided. Any member of school staff providing support to a pupil with medical needs should have received suitable training.
Schools can purchase spare adrenaline auto-injectors from a pharmacy without a prescription and for use in an emergency situation.
The department intends to consult on updated statutory guidance on supporting pupils with medical conditions later this year. The full guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supporting-pupils-at-school-with-medical-conditions--3.