Asked by: Lord Kilclooney (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they still intend to pursue the creation of Freeports in Northern Ireland; and whether doing so would cause any conflict with the Windsor Framework.
Answered by Lord Evans of Rainow - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Excellent progress has been made with Freeport delivery - all English Freeports are open for business and seven out of eight have final government approval. We have also announced two new Green Freeports in Scotland as well as two new Freeports in Wales. The location of each Freeport can be found on the Freeports page on GOV.UK.
The lack of a functioning Northern Ireland Executive has seriously limited the scope and nature of engagement in Northern Ireland on Freeports and on Investment Zones. Officials from the UK Government and the Northern Ireland Civil Service continue to work closely together. However, on this and on so many other areas where action is needed to grow the economy in Northern Ireland, we need rapid restoration of the Executive to allow projects like this to go ahead and to benefit from the opportunities provided by the Windsor Framework.
Asked by: Lord Kilclooney (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government which locations in Great Britain have been selected as Freeports.
Answered by Lord Evans of Rainow - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Excellent progress has been made with Freeport delivery - all English Freeports are open for business and seven out of eight have final government approval. We have also announced two new Green Freeports in Scotland as well as two new Freeports in Wales. The location of each Freeport can be found on the Freeports page on GOV.UK.
The lack of a functioning Northern Ireland Executive has seriously limited the scope and nature of engagement in Northern Ireland on Freeports and on Investment Zones. Officials from the UK Government and the Northern Ireland Civil Service continue to work closely together. However, on this and on so many other areas where action is needed to grow the economy in Northern Ireland, we need rapid restoration of the Executive to allow projects like this to go ahead and to benefit from the opportunities provided by the Windsor Framework.
Asked by: Lord Kilclooney (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether there are any UK armed forces in Kosovo; and if so, whether they are within a NATO or EU armed presence.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The UK routinely contributes 41 personnel to NATO's KFOR mission, including an important contribution to KFOR’s intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capability. Additionally, a defence advisor and a non-resident Defence Attaché support our bilateral relationship with Kosovo.
Following a request from Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) and as outlined in the Gov.uk press release published on 1 October 2023, the UK will also deploy the Strategic Reserve Force held at readiness in the UK. Around 200 soldiers from 1st Battalion of the Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment will join the 400-strong British contingent already in country as part of an annual exercise.
This follows on from the violent attack on Kosovo Police in northern Kosovo on 24 September and increasing tensions in the region.
Asked by: Lord Kilclooney (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much funding was received by Northern Ireland under the EU Erasmus programme in (1) 2014, (2) 2015, and (3) 2016.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Funding data has been published for the 2014-20 Erasmus+ programme by the British Council and Ecorys, who were acting as the UK National Agency. This data indicates that the amount of funding received by institutions in Northern Ireland for the years 2014, 2015, and 2016 was €6,336,885, €6,108,410 and €7,414,597 respectively.
Asked by: Lord Kilclooney (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect to identify a freeport in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Government has agreed and announced freeports with the Scottish and Welsh Governments and had previously engaged with the Northern Ireland Executive on this issue. However, given the absence of a functioning Northern Ireland Executive since February 2022, it is not possible to take this any further forward. The Government looks forward to pursuing further discussions with a restored Executive on extending the benefits of the freeports programme across the UK.
Asked by: Lord Kilclooney (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what was the most recent annual credit to Northern Ireland as a result of the Barnett Formula.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
As set out recently in the Main Estimates memoranda, the Northern Ireland Executive has received £2.0 billion through the Barnett formula for 2023-24 on top of the Spending Review 2021 baseline. This means the Northern Ireland Executive’s total block grant (Total DEL) funding for 2023-24 is £15.8 billion.
Asked by: Lord Kilclooney (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, what percentage of religious marriages in England were solemnised in (1) Anglican churches, (2) Reformed Evangelical churches, and (3) Roman Catholic churches, in the most recent year for which figures are available.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
A response to the noble Lord/Baroness’ Parliamentary Question of 28 February is attached.
The Rt Hon. the Lord Kilclooney
House of Lords
London
SW1A 0PW
7 March 2023
Dear Lord Kilclooney,
As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Questions asking how many marriages took place in England for the most recent year for which figures are available; and how many of those were secular (HL6000) and what percentage of religious marriages in England were solemnised in (1) Anglican churches, (2) Reformed Evangelical churches, and (3) Roman Catholic churches, in the most recent year for which figures are available. (HL6001).
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes ‘Marriages data for England and Wales’[1] with the most recent being for 2019. The total number of marriages in England in 2019 (including both civil and religious marriages) was 208,151 [2] . Of these, the total number of civil marriages in England was 170,634.[3,4]
The total number of religious marriages in England in 2019 was 37,517. 72.5 per cent of these were Church of England. Marriages in Reformed Evangelical churches are included in ‘Other Christian denominations’ which accounted for 11.4 per cent of religious marriages [5] . 10.4 per cent of religious marriages in England in 2019 were Roman Catholic.
If you need anything further, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Yours sincerely,
Professor Sir Ian Diamond
[1]https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/marriagecohabitationandcivilpartnerships/bulletins/marriagesinenglandandwalesprovisional/2019
[2]Figures include marriages to both same-sex and opposite-sex couples.
[3]Civil marriages are those which are carried out at either a register office or approved premises by or in the presence of a registrar, and do not include any religious content.
[4]Marriage statistics by manner of solemnisation (either civil or religious) can be misleading as some religious marriages (such as Muslim and Sikh) can take place at unregistered premises. To be registered as a legal marriage the couple have a further marriage ceremony in a register office or approved building. Such weddings are coded as civil marriages because only the civil marriage certificate is received.
[5] 'Evangelical Reformed churches’ are included in ‘Other Christian denominations' which also include Methodist, Calvinistic Methodist, United Reformed Church, Congregationalist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Society of Friends (Quakers), Salvation Army, Brethren, Mormon, Unitarian and Jehovah's Witnesses'.
Asked by: Lord Kilclooney (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many marriages took place in England for the most recent year for which figures are available; and how many of those were secular.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
A response to the noble Lord/Baroness’ Parliamentary Question of 28 February is attached.
The Rt Hon. the Lord Kilclooney
House of Lords
London
SW1A 0PW
7 March 2023
Dear Lord Kilclooney,
As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Questions asking how many marriages took place in England for the most recent year for which figures are available; and how many of those were secular (HL6000) and what percentage of religious marriages in England were solemnised in (1) Anglican churches, (2) Reformed Evangelical churches, and (3) Roman Catholic churches, in the most recent year for which figures are available. (HL6001).
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes ‘Marriages data for England and Wales’[1] with the most recent being for 2019. The total number of marriages in England in 2019 (including both civil and religious marriages) was 208,151 [2] . Of these, the total number of civil marriages in England was 170,634.[3,4]
The total number of religious marriages in England in 2019 was 37,517. 72.5 per cent of these were Church of England. Marriages in Reformed Evangelical churches are included in ‘Other Christian denominations’ which accounted for 11.4 per cent of religious marriages [5] . 10.4 per cent of religious marriages in England in 2019 were Roman Catholic.
If you need anything further, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Yours sincerely,
Professor Sir Ian Diamond
[1]https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/marriagecohabitationandcivilpartnerships/bulletins/marriagesinenglandandwalesprovisional/2019
[2]Figures include marriages to both same-sex and opposite-sex couples.
[3]Civil marriages are those which are carried out at either a register office or approved premises by or in the presence of a registrar, and do not include any religious content.
[4]Marriage statistics by manner of solemnisation (either civil or religious) can be misleading as some religious marriages (such as Muslim and Sikh) can take place at unregistered premises. To be registered as a legal marriage the couple have a further marriage ceremony in a register office or approved building. Such weddings are coded as civil marriages because only the civil marriage certificate is received.
[5] 'Evangelical Reformed churches’ are included in ‘Other Christian denominations' which also include Methodist, Calvinistic Methodist, United Reformed Church, Congregationalist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Society of Friends (Quakers), Salvation Army, Brethren, Mormon, Unitarian and Jehovah's Witnesses'.
Asked by: Lord Kilclooney (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland is compatible with the identification of a freeport in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are committed to extending the benefits of our Freeports programme across the UK and continue to work with stakeholders from sectors and places across Northern Ireland on how best to do so.
This is another important reason why we need to see a restored Executive.
Asked by: Lord Kilclooney (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what was the percentage of the contribution of wind energy to the electric power produced in Great Britain in each of the past 10 years.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The latest data is shown in the table below:
Wind’s share of electricity generation in Great Britain, 2012 - 2021[1]
Electricity generation (GWh) | Wind | Total GB generation | Wind’s share of GB generation (%) |
2012 | 18,805 | 356,492 | 5.3% |
2013 | 27,052 | 350,502 | 7.7% |
2014 | 30,501 | 330,216 | 9.2% |
2015 | 38,414 | 330,115 | 11.6% |
2016 | 35,426 | 329,971 | 10.7% |
2017 | 47,136 | 328,490 | 14.3% |
2018 | 53,974 | 323,413 | 16.7% |
2019 | 60,835 | 314,607 | 19.3% |
2020 | 72,350 | 302,615 | 23.9% |
2021 | 61,955 | 299,068 | 20.7% |
Provisional 2022 data for the UK will be published on Thursday March 30th 2023 in Energy Trends. 2022 data for Great Britain will be published in December in Energy Trends.
[1] Taken from data published by BEIS in Energy Trends: December 2022, special feature article - Electricity generation and supply in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England