Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 23 October (HL1672), whether they will now answer the question put; namely, what financial support they have provided to Intertrade UK; on how many occasions it has met; what decisions it has taken; who was invited to attend such meetings; and who actually attended.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Intertrade UK has not met as yet.
Following the appointment of Baroness Foster as the chair of Intertrade UK, the next steps will be to appoint the other members of the group and we will announce these appointments in due course.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what financial support they have provided to Intertrade UK; on how many occasions it has met; what decisions it has taken; who was invited to attend such meetings; and who actually attended.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland confirmed the appointment of Baroness Foster as the chair of Intertrade UK on 19 September.
The Government will be providing further details on how the work of the group will be taken forward in due course.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what undertakings they have given, if any, to the family of the late Patrick Finucane that the scope or terms of the public inquiry into his murder, announced on 11 September, will differ from those of the inquiry previously proposed to the family.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government will follow due process under the Inquiries Act 2005 in establishing the inquiry into the death of Patrick Finucane. This will include consulting the Inquiry Chair, once appointed, on the Terms of Reference. As set out to Parliament on 11 September, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland supports the assessment from the High Court that the Inquiry should ‘build on the significant investigative foundations which are already in place’. The Secretary of State has informed Mrs Finucane and her family that he will keep them updated on progress on establishing the Inquiry.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the reasons behind, and (2) the consequences of, the resignation of the Northern Ireland Veterans Commissioner: and whether they intend to seek a successor.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Over the last four years, Northern Ireland’s first Veterans Commissioner, Danny Kinahan, worked on a range of important issues that affect veterans in everyday life, including health, housing, and welfare. The Government would like to thank Danny for his dedicated work on behalf of veterans and families living in Northern Ireland. On 5 September, he resigned from the role. A statement setting out his position has been published on the Veterans Commissioner’s website.
The Government is committed to continuing to support veterans in Northern Ireland, and will set out next steps for the appointment of a new Northern Ireland Veterans Commissioner in due course.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to amend (1) the terms of reference, and (2) the remit, of the Northern Ireland Veterans Commissioner.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We are committed to continuing to support veterans in Northern Ireland and we will set out next steps for the appointment of a new Northern Ireland Veterans Commissioner in due course.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to hold further public inquiries into Troubles-related terrorist activity in Northern Ireland; and if so, what criteria they use to determine which incidents should be prioritised.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The decision to establish a public inquiry must always be taken with full consideration of the particular factors of each case. The Government will continue to consider the merits of establishing a public inquiry on a case-by-case basis, noting that it is for the Government to determine how to effectively discharge its procedural obligations under Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Safeguarding the Union Command Paper (CP 1021), published on 31 January; and whether they will be implementing all of the measures outlined in it.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government is committed to implementing the Windsor Framework in good faith and to taking all necessary steps to protect the UK internal market.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to publish directions made under the Windsor Framework (Implementation) Regulations 2024.
Answered by Lord Caine - Shadow Minister (Northern Ireland)
Government decisions, including those exercised under the Windsor Framework (Implementation) Regulations, are subject to scrutiny by Parliament. The Government does not routinely publish details of the engagement with officials working under its direction, whether under the terms of those regulations or otherwise.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what local revenue raising conditions were attached to the recent financial package awarded to the Northern Ireland Executive.
Answered by Lord Caine - Shadow Minister (Northern Ireland)
The UK Government remains determined to support the Executive to maximise the opportunities presented by the financial package.
To help stabilise the Executive’s financial position, the UK Government has agreed to pause its debt repayments from 2022-23 and 2023-24 of up to £559 million and will no longer require these funds to be repaid, subject to the Executive publishing a plan, which outlines how it will deliver sustainable public finances and services, and demonstrating implementation of that plan by May 2025.
This sustainability plan must include the delivery of a balanced budget for 2024-25 by raising a minimum of £113 million through locally generated income. It will be for the Executive to determine if it will consider a different course of action to deliver the public services that Northern Ireland needs as part of its plan for financial sustainability.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to introduce legislation to clarify the constitutional position of Northern Ireland within the UK.
Answered by Lord Caine - Shadow Minister (Northern Ireland)
The constitutional position of Northern Ireland within the UK is clearly set out in the Northern Ireland Act 1998, which declares, consistent with the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement, that Northern Ireland in its entirety remains part of the United Kingdom and shall not cease to be so without the consent of a majority of its people.
This Government’s steadfast commitment to the Union, and Northern Ireland’s position within it, has been stated many times. In our view, Northern Ireland’s place in the Union is strong and protected by the Windsor Framework.