Parliament and Government Summary — 5 June 2026

In the Lords, MPs and peers turned to both constitutional and social questions: they considered bills on sovereignty over the Chagos Islands and on cohabitation rights, alongside a debate on how artificial intelligence could affect human relationships and wider society. Across Government, departments also published fresh statistics and policy updates, including pupil attendance and absence in state schools, new figures on conceptions in England and Wales, and a clean-energy workers’ rights announcement tied to the Offshore Wind Fair Work Charter.

At a glance

• Legislation in the Lords: peers considered a bill focused on UK sovereignty over the Chagos Islands, alongside another bill aiming to change legal rights for people living together without being married.
• Rights and family law in focus: the cohabitation bill would set out how legal protections apply to unmarried couples, as peers also debated wider questions about how technology may reshape personal relationships.
• Government updates on public data and work: the Department for Education published attendance and absence figures for state-funded schools, ONS published 2023 conception statistics for England and Wales, and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero highlighted support for stronger offshore wind supply-chain workers’ rights.

In the Lords

• Peers considered the British Sovereignty Protection (Chagos Islands) Bill [HL], a bill dealing with UK sovereignty over the Chagos Islands. The measure reflects the Government and Parliament’s constitutional focus on the status of a UK overseas territory and how sovereignty claims are framed. [1]
• Peers considered the Cohabitation Rights Bill [HL], which would address rights for cohabiting partners. It is aimed at legal protections for unmarried couples living together, setting out how such relationships may be recognised in law. [2]
• Peers debated “Artificial Intelligence: Impact on Human Relationships and Society”, considering how AI may affect everyday social life and personal interactions. The debate focused on the potential societal effects of AI rather than a specific piece of legislation. [3]

Government announcements

• The Department for Education published official statistics on pupil attendance in state-funded primary, secondary and special schools, including levels of overall attendance and authorised and unauthorised absence. The release provides updated attendance data across school phases and absence types. [4]
• The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said offshore wind supply chain companies and trade unions backed the Offshore Wind Fair Work Charter to strengthen workers’ rights. The announcement links the charter to the offshore wind supply chain and the groups working within it. [5]
• The Office for National Statistics published annual conception statistics for England and Wales for 2023, including numbers and rates broken down by age group. The release includes figures for women under 18 as part of the age-group analysis. [6]

Committees

• The House of Commons Public Accounts Committee published its First Report on an analysis of the asylum system. The report focuses on how the asylum system operates and what that implies for effectiveness and accountability as a major public service. [7]
• The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee published its 1st Report on a sustainable veterinary workforce. It examines the veterinary workforce question under the Committee’s remit, tying workforce sustainability to the ability to deliver animal-health services. [8]

Sources used

1. British Sovereignty Protection (Chagos Islands) Bill [HL] — Hansard
2. Cohabitation Rights Bill [HL] — Hansard
3. Artificial Intelligence: Impact on Human Relationships and Society — Hansard
4. Pupil attendance in schools — GOV.UK
5. Companies agree to stronger workers’ rights in clean energy — GOV.UK
6. Conceptions in England and Wales: 2023 — GOV.UK
7. First Report – An analysis of the asylum system — UK Parliament Committees
8. 1st Report – A sustainable veterinary workforce — UK Parliament Committees

Licensing

Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.

Last updated

First published on 5 June 2026. No corrections at the time of publication.