Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many people will be employed at ports in Great Britain to work on monitoring, supervising or implementing the Northern Ireland pet travel scheme for pet animals moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Officials will be available at the GB ports to support and assist those travelling under the Northern Ireland Pet Travel Scheme. To simplify non-commercial pet movements (cats, dogs, including assistance dogs, and ferrets) from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, the scheme will enable travel from Great Britain to Northern Ireland with a simple lifelong pet travel document.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many live animals have been exported for slaughter in each year from 2022 to date from Northern Ireland to (1) countries within the EU other than the Irish Republic, and (2) countries outside the EU.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

This is a devolved matter and the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Executive.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure eligible people over State Pension age are aware that they may be entitled to Carer's Allowance.

Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Information on the availability of Carer’s Allowance is widely available, including online via GOV.UK and from places such as Carers Trust and Citizens Advice. DWP continually seeks to improve the information it makes available so as to encourage people to claim Carer’s Allowance where they may be entitled.

Although there is no upper age limit to claiming Carer’s Allowance, it cannot normally be paid with the State Pension. It has been a long-held feature of the GB benefit system, under successive Governments, that where someone is entitled to two benefits for the same contingency, then whilst there may be entitlement to both benefits, only one will be paid to avoid duplication for the same need. Although entitlement to State Pension and Carer’s Allowance arise in different circumstances they are nevertheless designed for the same contingency – as an income replacement. Carer’s Allowance replaces income where the carer has given up the opportunity of full-time employment in order to care for a severely disabled person and is unable to undertake full time employment due to their caring responsibilities, while State Pension replaces income in retirement. For this reason, social security rules operate to prevent them being paid together, to avoid duplicate provision for the same need.

However, if a carer’s State Pension is less than Carer's Allowance, State Pension is paid and topped up with Carer's Allowance to the basic weekly rate of Carer's Allowance which is currently £81.90.

Where Carer’s Allowance cannot be paid, the person will keep underlying entitlement to the benefit. This gives access to the additional amount for carers in Pension Credit of £45.60 a week and potentially other means-tested support. Around 125,000 people are receiving the Carer Premium with their Pension Credit. And even if a pensioner’s income is above the limit for Pension Credit, they may still be able to receive Housing Benefit.

Social Security is a transferred matter in Northern Ireland.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that older people can access all the benefits and allowances to which they are entitled.

Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Government wants all pensioners to get the support to which they are rightly entitled. That is why we have been running the biggest ever Pension Credit take-up campaign.

We know there are low-income pensioners who aren’t claiming Pension Credit, which provides a vital safety net by guaranteeing a minimum level of income – and will also passport them to receive other benefits (including Winter Fuel Payments, help with rent, council tax, fuel bills and a free TV licence for those over 75).

Our drive to increase Pension Credit take up has successfully boosted applications, with the Department receiving around 235,000 Pension Credit applications in the 30 weeks since the Winter Fuel Payment announcement and making 117,800 new Pension Credit awards over the same period.  The campaign has included adverts on Television, radio, social media such as Facebook and Instagram, on YouTube, on advertising screens, including on GP and Post Office screens as well as in the press.

We are now writing to all pensioners who make a new claim for Housing Benefit and who appear to be entitled to Pension Credit – directly targeting this group and encouraging them to make a claim. In the longer term, we will be bringing together the administration of Pension Credit and Housing Benefit, so that pensioners receive both Housing Benefit and any Pension Credit that they are entitled to.

For State Pensions, DWP sends out a letter to customers four months prior to their State Pension age, inviting a claim to State Pension. The letter signposts the customer to claim online which is the quickest and easiest way to claim and also includes the telephone number to call to make their claim to State Pension over the telephone. The customer can also request a paper claim form.

Attendance Allowance is currently undergoing a significant modernisation reform through the piloting of an on-line digital claim process as a part of the department’s wider Service Modernisation plans. This aims to provide a more streamlined alternative application method in addition to the current paper form. Online claims are currently being tested with a view to this becoming more widely available in due course.

Information and advice about entitlement to Attendance Allowance and other benefits may be available from a range of outlets including Jobcentre Plus offices, DWP and other helplines, gov.uk and other internet sites, local authorities, Citizens Advice and welfare benefit offices, Social Services, voluntary organisations, such as, Age UK and MacMillan, public libraries, health clinics, doctors' surgeries and health visitors.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the total cost of building and completing each of the Border Control Posts in Northern Ireland; and what is the estimated date of completion of each one.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

In line with the commitments we have made under the Windsor Framework, SPS inspection facilities are under construction in Northern Ireland at the ports of Belfast, Larne, Foyle and Warrenpoint. Preparations are well underway, and they will be operationally ready by July 2025.

The Government has committed to a maximum funding envelope of £192.3 million. Of this envelope, Defra has spent £70.7 million up to 28 February 2025, the latest data currently available.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what is the total cost to date of the construction of each of the border control posts being built in Northern Ireland, including all administrative fees.

Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

In line with the commitments we have made under the Windsor Framework, SPS inspection facilities are under construction in Northern Ireland at the ports of Belfast, Larne, Foyle and Warrenpoint. Preparations are well underway, and they will be operationally ready by July 2025.

The Government has committed to a maximum funding envelope of £192.3 million. Of this envelope, Defra has spent £70.7 million up to 28 February 2025, the latest data currently available.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what actions they are considering to address the persecution of Uyghur refugees in China, including coercive birth control measures; and what steps they are taking to engage with international partners to address these concerns.

Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

This government stands firm on human rights, including in Xinjiang, where China continues to persecute and arbitrarily detain Uyghurs and other predominantly Muslim minorities.

We raise our concerns at the highest levels: the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary, Chancellor and Energy Secretary all raised human rights recently with their counterparts (President Xi, Foreign Minister Wang, Vice Premier He and Vice Premier Ding respectively). We continue to coordinate efforts with our international partners and work in multilateral fora to hold China to account for human rights violations. Most recently we raised the persecution of Uyghurs within our Item 4 statement at the Human Rights Council.

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many staff are employed by the Windsor Framework Independent Monitoring Panel; and how many times the body has met since it was created.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

I refer the Noble Lord to the answer given by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on 18 March 2025 (UIN 38339).

In accordance with paragraph 160 of the Safeguarding the Union command paper, a Secretariat is provided by the UK Government to the Panel, and the Panel receives relevant data to support its monitoring functions. The Panel does not directly employ staff.

It is a matter for the Panel to determine the structure and cadence of its meetings and panellists regularly engage with each other as well as having recently met the Secretary of State on 3 March.

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what resources they are providing to the working of the Windsor Framework Independent Monitoring Panel.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

I refer the Noble Lord to the answer given by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on 18 March 2025 (UIN 38339).

In accordance with paragraph 160 of the Safeguarding the Union command paper, a Secretariat is provided by the UK Government to the Panel, and the Panel receives relevant data to support its monitoring functions. The Panel does not directly employ staff.

It is a matter for the Panel to determine the structure and cadence of its meetings and panellists regularly engage with each other as well as having recently met the Secretary of State on 3 March.

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government how and when they intend to respond to the passing of the Regulation (EU) 2023/2411 Applicability Motion in the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Government continues to evaluate the implications of Regulation 2023/2411, in the light of the applicability motion vote in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the conditions set out in Schedule 6B of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government how much foreign direct investment into Northern Ireland from the United States of America there has been in each year since 2019.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

Please see the letter attached from the National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority.

The Rt Hon. the Lord Dodds of Duncairn

House of Lords

London

SW1A 0PW

21 March 2025

Dear Lord Dodds,

As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking how much foreign direct investment into Northern Ireland from the United States of America there has been in each year since 2019 (HL5989).

Foreign direct investment positions are the value of stocks of investment at a given point in time. Flows measure the movement of funds received by Northern Ireland from the United States of America during the year. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes experimental subnational UK estimates, which currently includes data up to 2021.1.

Further information on Northern Ireland positions, flows and earnings with the United States of America can be found on the ONS website1.

Table 1: Northern Ireland Inward Foreign Direct Investment positions and flows with the United States of America, 2019-20212,3 . £million

Source: Office for National Statistics

Yours sincerely,

Professor Sir Ian Diamond

1 https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/nationalaccounts/balanceofpayments/articles/foreigndirectinvestme ntexperimentaluksubnationalstatistics/2021

2 A negative sign before a value indicates net disinvestment in Northern Ireland.

3 These statistics exclude FDI related to banks, bank holding companies, property and public corporations.

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what its policy is on deciding whether to consult stakeholders in Northern Ireland on changes to European Union legislation which are imposed on Northern Ireland under the Windsor Framework.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Government regularly consults with stakeholders in Northern Ireland on a wide range of policy issues, including those relating to the Windsor Framework.

Regulations that apply under the Windsor Framework are also subject to scrutiny both in Parliament and, as provided for in law, in the Northern Ireland Assembly. The Government will continue to uphold these scrutiny commitments, which include the provision of explanatory materials on amended or replaced EU legislation which is included in the annexes to the Framework.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many applications they have received to the Duty Reimbursement Scheme in each year since the scheme was set up, and how much has been reimbursed in each year.

Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Duty Reimbursement Scheme (DRS) has been operational since 30 June 2023, allowing businesses who move goods into Northern Ireland to reclaim or remit duty provided that the goods can be shown not to have subsequently entered the EU.

As of 3 April 2025, 1407 claims have been submitted under the DRS.

Businesses also have a three-year window from the date they were notified of the duty being owed to make a claim under the DRS.

HMRC has published extensive guidance and will continue to support businesses to use the scheme effectively, as well as other schemes like the Customs Duty Waiver Scheme.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address the rising number of prisoners of conscience detained for their religious beliefs worldwide; and what assessment they have made of international law as a framework for holding governments accountable for violations of freedom of religion or belief.

Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The UK champions, and remains strongly committed to, freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all abroad. It is our firm opinion that no one should live in fear because of what they do or do not believe in. We are championing the right to FoRB and promoting tolerance and mutual respect through our engagement in multilateral organisations, our bilateral work, working with the Special Envoy for FoRB, David Smith, and our programme funding, including the Rule of Law (ROLE UK) legal reform programme.

We also use our skilled global diplomatic network to engage directly with governments. Ministers and FCDO officials regularly raise specific cases of concern, and do not shy away from challenging those we believe are not meeting their obligations, whether publicly or in private. The UK continues to hold countries to account on their FoRB commitments and obligations, through our engagement with the UN's Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and at the UN Human Rights Council. This work is mutually reinforcing of our wider human rights efforts, underpinning our belief that human rights are universal.

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