Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the informal implementation group for the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement set up with Sinn Féin is still in existence; and when it last met.
Answered by Lord Caine - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The group to which the Noble Baroness refers no longer exists.
Relevant documents relating to this issue are freely accessible in the National Archives at Kew, to which the Noble Baroness might wish to refer. The Government takes seriously its obligations under the Public Records Act 1958.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress has been made in establishing and making operational the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery on 1 May, in particular with regard to (1) assuming responsibility for Northern Ireland Troubles reinvestigations from Operation Kenova and the Police Service of Northern Ireland, and (2) replacing inquests.
Answered by Lord Caine - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
As I set out in a Written Ministerial Statement on 17 April, I can confirm that the ICRIR’s operational functions will be commenced and the Commission will be able to receive requests and carry out reviews as planned on 1 May 2024 - the point at which the Legacy Act automatically ends current investigations and inquests. From this date, following a request in accordance with the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023, the ICRIR will carry out reviews of Troubles-related deaths and serious injuries that occurred between 1966 and 1998.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress has been made on the memorialisation strategy for Northern Ireland.
Answered by Lord Caine - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government is committed to the memorialisation measures set out in Part 4 of the Legacy Act and elsewhere. While our focus since Royal Assent of the Act has been on establishing the ICRIR, we know these wider measures are also essential to deliver for victims and families in Northern Ireland. Further to previous announcements on Public History and the project to digitise Troubles-related Government files, we will set out further details in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government which plants, trees and seeds are not allowed to be sent to Northern Ireland from Great Britain as a result of the Windsor Framework.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Windsor Framework provides for simplified arrangements for the movement of plants and plant products between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, meaning a phytosanitary certificate is not required and that a wider variety of plants can move.
We have secured the lifting of a ban on the movement of twelve plant species - apple, Japanese / delavay privet, European crab apple, common hawthorn, Norway maple, Japanese maple, sycamore maple, field maple, English oak, sessile oak, European beech and, most recently, hazel. We are in active dialogue with the EU Commission on a number of other species which industry has proposed as priorities. We will continue to engage with industry to ensure the smooth movement of additional plant species. Further details can be found on Defra’s online Plant Health Portal.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the new EU law on protection of geographical indications for craft and industrial products will be introduced in Northern Ireland under the Windsor Framework via Article 13(4)(a), following the applicability motion on 19 March which did not gain cross-community consent.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
It is welcome that the restoration of the devolved institutions allows for the exercise of the democratic scrutiny mechanisms that have been put in place. Following the applicability motion on 19 March, the duties under Schedule 6B of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 apply. The Government will determine and set out its approach to Parliament in the usual way, respecting the statutory framework in full.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government which department will answer questions on matters relating to the Windsor Framework (Implementation) Regulations 2024.
Answered by Lord Caine - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Consistent with responsibility for the Windsor Framework, the Cabinet Office is responsible for the Windsor Framework (Implementation) Regulations 2024 overall. Any matters relating to the constitutional position of Northern Ireland or devolution would be for the Northern Ireland Office to answer.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Douglas-Miller on 11 March (HL2836), whether the requirement for moving seed potatoes between registered professional operators in Great Britain to professional operators in Northern Ireland prevents individuals from moving seed potatoes for personal use.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Under the Windsor Framework, seed potatoes can now move again from Great Britain to Northern Ireland under the terms of the NI plant health label scheme. This means professional operators in Great Britain can send seed potatoes to professional operators in Northern Ireland for commercial growing in Northern Ireland. Once these are planted in Northern Ireland and grown into potatoes for consumption, or used to produce further seed potatoes, they can be sold into Northern Ireland retailers and garden centres for personal use.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what continuing role they have in assessing and funding the Casement Park project for Euro 28, and what funding they have already committed or anticipated to be committed.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department for Communities in Northern Ireland is responsible for the redevelopment of Casement Park. Funding decisions are therefore primarily a matter for the Northern Ireland Executive.
We continue to work closely with partners in Northern Ireland to make sure that EURO 2028 leaves a lasting legacy across the whole United Kingdom.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many checks took place on goods moving between Great Britain to Northern Ireland via the UK Internal Market Scheme between 1 February and 10 March.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Full information on the goods moved under the UK Internal Market scheme between 1 February and 10 March 2024 is not currently available. The UK Internal Market Scheme is currently live with over 7700 businesses in the scheme as of 11 March 2024, which includes over 3000 new businesses that did not benefit from the previous UK Trader Scheme.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the EU's decision to prohibit the use and export of dental amalgam by 1 January 2025 on dentistry in Northern Ireland due to the Windsor Framework and Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The explanatory memorandum (EM) for European Union (EU) mercury products legislation COM(23)395 and C(23)4683, was published on 1 November 2023. The EM provides a summary of the proposal to amend EU regulation 2017/852 on the manufacture, import and export of mercury products. The Department of Health and Social Care is continuing to work with the Department of Health in Northern Ireland to assess all possible impacts of the decision.