What's on in the Lords 14-18 October

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Questions

This week members press the government on processed sugar in food and drink, current negotiations on ending the situation in Gaza, creative arts tax reliefs, the use of biocidal products in hand and body washes, and the regulation of artificial intelligence.

Bills

Members check and change the Crown Estate Bill and Lords Spiritual (Women) Act 2015 (Extension) Bill at committee stage.

Debates

External auditing deficiencies, the Infected Blood Inquiry, priorities for rural communities, Lords report on electric vehicles, UN sustainable development goals, and the 40th anniversary of the Ethiopian famine are all on the agenda.

Committees

As part of its inquiry into engineering biology, the Science and Technology Committee hears from Sir Patrick Vallance, now Lord Vallance of Balham, as Minister of State for Science.
In the final evidence session of its inquiry on the future of news, the Communications and Digital Committee takes evidence from government ministers.
The Financial Services Regulation Committee continues its work on the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority’s secondary competitiveness and growth objective.

Read on for more.

Thursday

From 11am

Questions

The House of Lords questions the government on:

equality in schools
zero emission vehicle targets
regulation of artificial intelligence
fourth question to be determined.

Debates

The UN sustainable development goals, implications of levying VAT on independent schools, and the 40th anniversary of the Ethiopian famine are all on the agenda.

Friday

From 10am

Legislation

Members debate the key principles of the following private members' bills:

Education (Values of British Citizenship) Bill.
Refugees (Family Reunion) Bill.
Statutory Instruments (Amendment) Bill.
Environmental Targets (Public Authorities) Bill.

Catch up

Monday

From 2.30pm

Questions

Members questioned the government on:

conduct in the Lords chamber
processed sugar in food and drink
Independent Pornography Review
negotiations in Gaza.

Legislation

Members began their line by line check of the Crown Estate Bill at committee stage.

Debates

House of Lords debated external auditing deficiencies.

From 3.45pm in Grand Committee, work away from the chamber, members debated the Immigration (Guidance on Detention of Vulnerable Persons) Regulations 2024.

Tuesday

From 2.30pm

Questions

The House of Lords quizzed the government on:

Procurement Act 2023
Council of Europe Framework Convention
arts, music, and performance tax reliefs
fourth question to be determined.

Statement and urgent question

Members pressed the government following an urgent question on border checks in Gilbraltar and a statement on Afghan relocations.

Debates

The response to the Infected Blood Inquiry and priorities for rural communities were both on the agenda in Lords debates.

Orders and regulations

From 3.45pm

Members considered regulations on:

Russia sanctions
Syria sanctions
social security.

Wednesday

From 3pm

Questions

Members pressed the government on:

humanist weddings
use of biocidal products
medical product liability
fourth question to be determined.

Urgent question

Members also quizzed the government following an urgent question on Gaza and Lebanon.

Legislation

Members considered the Lords Spiritual (Women) Act 2015 (Extension) Bill at committee stage.

Debate

The report from the Environment and Climate Change Committee 'EV strategy: rapid recharge needed' was in the spotlight.

Get involved

Watch

Questions, debates and scrutiny of legislation are streamed live online for free. Watch chamber business and Lords committee meetings on Parliament TV.

Read

All business in the House of Lords chamber and in Grand Committee is transcribed and available to read from around three hours after it happens. Read it free online in Lords Hansard.

Follow on X

Visit @UKHouseofLords on X for highlights of each day’s work in the House.

Follow the hashtag #HouseOfLords for what’s happening, or #LordsQs for details of questions put to the government at the start of business Monday to Thursday.

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