Asked by: Conor McGinn (Independent - St Helens North)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, when he plans to announce the investment decision on Casement Park.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
My Department is engaging with the Department for Communities, which is responsible for the procurement process for the redevelopment of Casement Park, including direct engagement with local partners on their funding contribution. I wrote to the Northern Ireland Minister for Communities on 27 February to say that it is vital to understand what the most recent costs associated with the redevelopment of Casement Park are.
Asked by: Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to make cross-community consent mandatory in all Stormont decisions.
Answered by Lord Caine - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The principle of cross-community consent applies to matters for which the Northern Ireland Assembly is responsible. Trade is not one of those matters. This approach is entirely compatible with the Belfast Agreement.
We remain fully committed to the Agreement which ensures that the future of Northern Ireland is decided by the democratically expressed wishes of the people of Northern Ireland and reaffirms our commitment to the principle of consent.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether capital funding for shared and integrated education was included in the Assembly restoration financial settlement.
Answered by Steve Baker - Minister of State (Northern Ireland Office)
The UK Government is providing the Executive with a significant £3.3 billion spending settlement to stabilise its finances and protect public services. Within this package, we are increasing the spending power of the Executive by repurposing over £700 million of existing and new UK Government funds.
The Fresh Start agreement in 2015 made provision for funding for integrated and shared education over 10 years. As that capital funding was due to expire at the end of 2024-25, the decision to remove the ring-fence on £150m of Fresh Start Agreement funding was made by the UK Government after assessing existing funding in Northern Ireland. We came to a considered position in response to the challenging budgetary position faced by the Northern Ireland Executive.
The Northern Ireland Executive will be able to decide how it uses the non-ring fenced funding element of reprioritised and new UK Government funding streams which contribute to the settlement package.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they remain committed to the Fresh Start Agreement funding programme.
Answered by Lord Caine - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK Government remains committed to the Fresh Start Agreement and we will continue to invest and support educational integration in Northern Ireland as an essential aspect of reconciliation.
The Fresh Start agreement in 2015 made provision for funding for integrated and shared education over 10 years. As that funding was due to expire at the end of 2024-25, the decision to remove the ring-fence on £150m of Fresh Start Agreement funding was made by the UK Government on taking a coherent look across its existing funding in Northern Ireland. We came to a considered position in response to the challenging budgetary position faced by the Northern Ireland Executive.
This will enable the Executive to prioritise funding on public service transformation. Integrated education is a vital element of that.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government why money allocated to Fresh Start Agreement funding has been repurposed to the general Northern Ireland budget.
Answered by Lord Caine - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK Government is providing the Executive with a significant £3.3 billion spending settlement to stabilise its finances and protect public services. Within this package, we are increasing the spending power of the Executive by repurposing over £700 million of existing and new UK Government funds.
The Fresh Start agreement in 2015 made provision for funding for integrated and shared education over 10 years. As that funding was due to expire at the end of 2024-25, the decision to remove the ring-fence on £150m of Fresh Start Agreement funding was made by the UK Government on taking a coherent look across its existing funding in Northern Ireland. We came to a considered position in response to the challenging budgetary position faced by the Northern Ireland Executive.
The Northern Ireland Executive will be able to decide how it uses the non-ring fenced funding element of reprioritised and new UK Government funding streams which contribute to the settlement package.
In line with commitments in the Belfast Agreement, the Government will continue to invest in and support educational integration in Northern Ireland as an essential aspect of reconciliation.
Asked by: Nia Griffith (Labour - Llanelli)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how much funding his Department (a) allocated for (b) spent on magazine subscriptions in each of the last three financial years.
Answered by Steve Baker - Minister of State (Northern Ireland Office)
The Northern Ireland Office has not allocated or spent any funding on magazine subscriptions in each of the last three financial years.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they submitted any cross appeal on the finding of the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal in the matter of an application by James Allister and others that the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland created an inconsistency with Article 6 of the Acts of Union.
Answered by Lord Caine - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
In its judgement on appeal of this case on 8 February 2023, the Supreme Court did not make a specific determination on this point.
The Court rightly focused on the sovereignty of Parliament and affirmed, as Article Six of the Acts of Union itself recognised, ‘that it is the most fundamental rule of UK constitutional law’.
Asked by: Nia Griffith (Labour - Llanelli)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, which (a) newspapers, (b) magazines and (c) online journals his Department subscribed to in each of the last three financial years.
Answered by Steve Baker - Minister of State (Northern Ireland Office)
(a) Newspapers
The Northern Ireland Office has subscribed to the following newspapers in the last three financial years: The Belfast Telegraph online; The Financial Times online and print; The Independent online; The Irish News online; The Irish Independent online; The Irish Times online; The Newsletter online; The Telegraph online and print; The Times print and online; The Guardian print; Daily Mail print; Daily Express print; The Sun print; Daily Mirror print.
(b) Magazines and (c) online journals
The Northern Ireland Office has not subscribed to any magazines or online journals in the last three financial years.
Asked by: Nia Griffith (Labour - Llanelli)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many and what proportion of digital posts in his Department are vacant.
Answered by Steve Baker - Minister of State (Northern Ireland Office)
The Northern Ireland Office communications team is made up of nine employees. There are no vacant digital posts.
Asked by: Mary Kelly Foy (Labour - City of Durham)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether he has had discussions with the Northern Ireland Executive on trends in the level of childcare funding in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Steve Baker - Minister of State (Northern Ireland Office)
I welcome the recent debate in the Northern Ireland Assembly on childcare and the cross-party support for a childcare strategy to be delivered.
Whilst childcare in Northern Ireland is devolved, the UK Government is keen to see this work progressed so that parents are able to balance childcare alongside their work. Northern Ireland has already received the Barnett consequentials of childcare funding in England.
The UK Government has provided the NI Executive with a significant £3.3 billion package, including money to stabilise, which will support progress for key services.