Asked by: Lord Hay of Ballyore (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to bring forward additional financial assistance and practical support to fishing fleet and processors across the UK.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
On 19 May 2025, we announced the Fishing and Coastal Growth Fund. This new fund will invest £360 million over the next 12 years in the fisheries and seafood sector, and coastal communities, to support the next generation of fishermen and our coastal communities.
We will work with the industry to target investment where it matters most. For example, considering investment in new technology and equipment to modernise our fishing fleet, delivering training and investing in skills to back the next generation of fishers, and promoting the seafood sector to export our high-quality produce across the world.
Asked by: Lord Hay of Ballyore (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their timeline for implementing the sanitary and phytosanitary agreement with the EU.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Prime Minister welcomed President of the European Commission Ursula Von Der Leyen and President of the EU Council António Costa to London for a UK-EU Summit on 19 May.
At that Summit we have agreed the parameters for a Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Agreement making agrifood trade with our biggest market cheaper and easier, cutting costs and red tape for British producers and retailers.
We will start talks straight away and want to remove barriers as soon as possible.
Asked by: Lord Hay of Ballyore (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of EU laws that apply to Northern Ireland; and whether they have any plans to address their continued application to Northern Ireland.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Basildon - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal
The legal texts of the Windsor Framework are available online and set out the rules that are applicable. The Government submits Explanatory Memoranda to Parliament and the NI Assembly about proposed changes to those regulations to facilitate scrutiny, which can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/explanatory-memoranda-on-eu-documents
The Government remains committed to implementing the Windsor Framework and protecting the UK internal market.
Asked by: Lord Hay of Ballyore (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the UK education system remains globally competitive.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
The UK remains a highly attractive study destination for international students, with four universities in the top 10 and 15 universities in the top 100, alongside a wide array of high quality institutions which offer a fulfilling and enjoyable experience to international students from around the world.
As my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education made clear in her video message last year, this government welcomes international students who enrich our university campuses, forge lifelong friendships with our domestic students and become global ambassadors for the UK.
The immigration white paper, published on 12 May, confirmed that we will retain the graduate visa, but reduce its duration from two years to 18 months. This will maintain our competitive post-study offer whilst ensuring individuals on this route obtain employment in graduate level roles and contribute to the country’s skills needs more quickly. The department will issue further details on implementation of the white paper measures in due course.
Asked by: Lord Hay of Ballyore (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what measures they are taking to protect critical national infrastructure from security threats.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK Government works closely with Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) owners and operators through the Lead Government Department (LGD) model to build resilience against security threats.
Each LGD is responsible for routinely undertaking risk assessments for their sector, including assessing CNI risks within the internal, classified National Security Risk Assessment (NSRA). All NSRA risks are kept under review to ensure that they are the most appropriate scenarios to inform industry and government’s emergency preparedness and resilience activity, and reflect the evolving risk landscape. The external-facing National Risk Register, which mirrors the NSRA, was last updated in January 2025 and will be updated regularly to address changes to the risk landscape.
Alongside the LGD’s active engagement with industry, the National Technical Authorities (National Cyber Security Centre and National Protective Security Authority) also provide advice on best practice for CNI security and resilience.
Asked by: Lord Hay of Ballyore (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what initiatives they are undertaking to protect the union of nations within the United Kingdom.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
To ensure that we are indeed a United Kingdom, it is crucial to give greater importance to respect and collaboration, working in the service of people across the country. This is high on the list of this government’s priorities. The Prime Minister convened the first Council of the Nations and Regions earlier last month, delivering on a manifesto promise to rewire the way the UK Government operates.
Focussed on investment and growth, the Council saw First Ministers and Deputy First Minister from the Devolved Governments come together with regional mayors to collaborate and seize opportunities to secure long-term investment and boost growth. The agenda included discussion on how to boost growth and inward investment across the UK, including through an industrial strategy and the Investment Summit.
The Prime Minister also held bilateral meetings and a joint meeting with the Devolved Government First Ministers and Deputy First Minister focussed on supporting intergovernmental relations as we continue to reset our relationship and work together to deliver for people across the UK.
This Government was elected to deliver for people throughout the United Kingdom the public expect us to work together to deliver on their priorities.
Asked by: Lord Hay of Ballyore (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to establish Freeports in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The government has confirmed the continuation of the Freeport and Investment Zones programmes across the UK, which will promote investment opportunities, create additional jobs, and drive economic growth. Given the alignment between Freeport and Investment Zone objectives, in Northern Ireland these programmes have been combined into the Enhanced Investment Zone. This will bring together the overall funding envelopes of both programmes in a bespoke offer for Northern Ireland, reflecting its unique economy, sectoral strengths and opportunities. Northern Ireland’s combined allocation could be open to flexible use between tax incentives and spend.
The government will work in partnership with the Northern Ireland Executive to co-develop proposals for the Enhanced Investment Zone.
Asked by: Lord Hay of Ballyore (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to dismantle the border control posts at UK ports, following the publication of Safeguarding the Union in January (CP 1021).
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller
SPS facilities have always been necessary under all scenarios, as the Government has made clear, in order to administer red lane checks on goods moving on into the EU. This is reflected in the fact that the plans were brought forward, and the business case for the facilities was being prepared, during the passage of the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill.
Asked by: Lord Hay of Ballyore (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of efforts to reduce the numbers of illegal border crossings into the UK.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Shadow Minister (Business and Trade)
The Home Office’s priority is to deliver a safe and secure border and we will never compromise on this. We are relentless in our pursuit of those who seek to enter the UK illegally. Border Force have robust measures in place to detect clandestine entrants into the UK and stand ready to respond to any methods deployed.
Border Force, Immigration Enforcement and other law enforcement agencies work tirelessly, deploying to risk using tested, but continually assessed, intelligence and targeting techniques.
The Home Office publish irregular migration to the UK statistics on the GOV.UK website: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/irregular-migration-to-the-uk-year-ending-december-2023. In 2023, there were 36,704 irregular arrivals, one-third (33%) fewer than in 2022, and 80% of these arrived on small boats.
Asked by: Lord Hay of Ballyore (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many (1) asylum seekers, and (2) other migrants are being housed in hotel-style accommodation; and how much financial support they are providing in support of these arrangements.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Shadow Minister (Business and Trade)
Data on the number of supported asylum seekers in accommodation (including in contingency hotels and other contingency accommodation) is published in table Asy_D11 here: Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Data on other immigration groups is published in table Reg_01 of the Regional and local authority data. This includes the number of people accommodated in interim accommodation as part of the Afghan Resettlement Programme.
The standard weekly allowance is £49.18 for each supported asylum seeker in self-catered accommodation and £8.86 for each supported asylum seeker in catered accommodation. Further information on what support asylum seekers receive can be found in the attached link: https://www.gov.uk/asylum-support/what-youll-get.
Individuals on our resettlement schemes with Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) in the UK have access to mainstream benefits and services to enable their integration; and we are working across Government to ensure these services meet the needs of refugees.