A service from mySociety A service from mySociety

TheyWorkForYou

Menu

Baby Milk Powder: Cereulide - Question

Part of the debate – in the House of Lords at 3:37 pm on 4 February 2026.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Baroness Walmsley Baroness Walmsley Chair, Childhood Vaccinations Committee, Chair, Childhood Vaccinations Committee 3:37, 4 February 2026

My Lords, is the Minister aware that it took Nestlé four weeks from its first notification of contamination to the Dutch Government to initiate the first product recall on 5 January, following further tests? Does she agree that there should be independent testing, rather than relying on in-house testing by the formula producers? Does she agree that that independent testing should be triggered, at the very least, at the first whiff of any possible contamination?

Minister

Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.