House of Lords

Session 2017-19 Monday No. 92 16 April 2018 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) HOUSE OF LORDS WRITTEN STATEMENTS AND WRITTEN ANSWERS Written Statements ................................ ................ 1 Written Answers ................................ ..................... 3 [I] indicates that the member concerned has a relevant registered interest. The full register of interests can be found at http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/standards-and-interests/register-of-lords-interests/ Members who want a printed copy of Written Answers and Written Statements should notify the Printed Paper Office. This printed edition is a reproduction of the original text of Answers and Statements, which can be found on the internet at http://www.parliament.uk/writtenanswers/. Ministers and others who make Statements or answer Questions are referred to only by name, not their ministerial or other title. The current list of ministerial and other responsibilities is as follows. Minister Responsibilities Baroness Evans of Bowes Park Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal Earl Howe Minister of State, Ministry of Defence and Deputy Leader of the House of Lords Lord Agnew of Oulton Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office Lord Ashton of Hyde Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Lord Bates Minister of State, Department for International Development Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and Wales Office Baroness Buscombe Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Work and Pensions Lord Callanan Minister of State, Department for Exiting the European Union Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen Whip Earl of Courtown Deputy Chief Whip Lord Duncan of Springbank Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Northern Ireland Office and Scotland Office Baroness Fairhead Minister of State, Department for International Trade Lord Gardiner of Kimble Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Baroness Goldie Whip Lord Henley Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Lord Keen of Elie Advocate-General for Scotland and Ministry of Justice Spokesperson Lord O'Shaughnessy Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health and Social Care Baroness Stedman-Scott Whip Baroness Sugg Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Transport, Whip Lord Taylor of Holbeach Chief Whip Baroness Vere of Norbiton Whip Baroness Williams of Trafford Minister of State, Home Office Lord Young of Cookham Whip Viscount Younger of Leckie Whip © Parliamentary Copyright House of Lords 2018 This publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Open Parliament licence, which is published at www.parliament.uk/site-information/copyright/ Written Statements 16 April 2018 Page 1 and on-going management of buildings in relation to fire Written Statements safety. The Government welcomed an interim report, published in December 2017, and has already taken action Monday, 16 April 2018 to implement some of its recommendations, including by recently publishing a consultation on the use of desktop Building Safety Update studies to assess the fire performance of construction [HLWS602] products. A final report is expected in the late spring and the Government stands ready to consider and respond to Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: My Rt Hon. Friend the this report. Public safety is paramount and I will continue Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local to keep the House updated on progress. Government (Sajid Javid) has today made the following Written Ministerial Statement. Energy Policy In my update on building safety on 15th March 2018, I informed the House that a glazed fire door from Grenfell [HLWS599] Tower manufactured by Manse Masterdor, around five Lord Henley: My hon friend Richard Harrington, the years ago, and marketed to resist fire for at least 30 Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Minister for minutes failed testing after approximately 15 minutes. Business and Industry has made the following written The Government immediately sought advice from the ministerial statement: independent Expert Panel on the test findings to see I hereby give notice of the Department of Business, whether any action was required as a result. The Panel Energy & Industrial Strategy’s intention to seek an consulted representatives from the Metropolitan Police, advance from the Contingencies Fund in the amount of the Government’s Chief Scientific Advisers and the £4,626,000 for FY 2018/19 to provide financial cover to National Fire Chiefs’ Council. Following that, the Expert the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR). Panel advised that there was no change to the fire safety advice that the public should follow, and further This cash advance is sought to enable the ONR to investigations into doors from Manse Masterdor and undertake project activities planned for FY 2018/19 (i.e. others should be undertaken. from April 2018 onwards) to ensure the UK can have a th domestic nuclear safeguards regime that meets As I outlined in the statement on 15 March, we have international nuclear safeguards standards in place from taken forward further investigations. These investigations day one of exit. are focusing on fire doors manufactured by Manse Masterdor, this company is no longer trading and is not ONR has already made progress towards delivering this associated with organisations of a similar name. regime with financial support provided from the previous Contingencies Fund advance, notice of which was given We are engaging with the industry, and have also on 02 February, and which covered the period up to the established a Technical Group of experts who are able to end of March 2018. provide us with specialist advice on fire doors. We have secured capacity to test fire doors at accredited The Government’s commitment to establish a new domestic safeguards regime was announced on 14 th test houses and testing is ongoing. September 2017 and forms a vital part of this We are working closely with Devolved Administrations Department’s EU Exit preparations for the UK’s nuclear and are engaging with local authorities who are industry. supporting us in our investigation. Parliamentary approval for additional resources of We continue to consult the Expert Panel as these £4,626,000 for this new service will be sought in a investigations progress. I committed to updating the Supplementary Estimate for the Department of Business, House before the end of April and can confirm that at the Energy & Industrial Strategy. Pending that approval, present time, the Expert Panel’s advice remains urgent expenditure estimated at £4,626,000 will be met unchanged. via repayable cash advances from the Contingencies As a result of my department’s investigations to date, Fund. the Expert Panel has advised me that further testing is The cash advance will be repaid upon receiving Royal required, which will take time. I intend to update the Assent on the Nuclear Safeguards Bill and the Supply and House further as and when the Expert Panel provides Appropriation Bill. further advice, or no later than the end of May. I want to reassure Honourable Members that my Machinery of Government Changes department is doing all it can as quickly as possible to properly investigate these issues and to make sure that [HLWS601] where needed appropriate action will be taken. Baroness Evans of Bowes Park: An administrative As part of our wider effort to ensure that people are safe error has been identified in the Written Ministerial now and in the future I commissioned an independent Statement made by the Leader of the House of Lords on review, led by Dame Judith Hackitt to look at the 29th March, where the last paragraph was omitted. Please regulatory framework around construction, maintenance find the appropriate correction. Page 2 16 April 2018 Written Statements My Rt Hon. Friend the Prime Minister has made the I am pleased to inform the House that on 31 March the following statement to the House of Commons: British Army took a major step forward in securing a This written statement confirms that the data policy and potential deal to get a fleet of new armoured vehicles by governance functions of the Government Digital Service re-joining the Boxer programme, which could support at (GDS) will transfer from the Cabinet Office to the least 1,000 British jobs. The UK will re-join the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport programme and explore options to equip the Army with (DCMS). The transfer includes responsibility for data the state-of-the-art 8x8 troop carriers (Mechanised sharing (including coordination of Part 5 of the Digital Infantry Vehicles) to modernise its vehicle fleet. The UK Economy Act 2017), data ethics, open data and data played a major role in the design, development and testing governance. of Boxer, and would reassume the rights it had as an original project partner, thus allowing the option for the At the same time policy responsibility for digital vehicle to be built and exported from the UK. The signatures will move from the Department for Business, intention would be for at least 60% of the manufacturing Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) to DCMS, which to be within British industry, sustaining and developing will also jointly lead with BEIS on the relationship

Load more