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Written Question
Alcoholic Drinks: Excise Duties
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Lord Dodds of Duncairn (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether the UK can apply any duty rate on alcoholic beverages in Northern Ireland which are below the EU minimum rate.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The same alcohol duty rates apply across the whole UK. The new alcohol duty system was implemented on 1 August 2023 and moves all alcohol to taxation by strength for the first time. The rates were set at the right level to support businesses and meet public health objectives.

We have implemented these broad reforms across the whole of the UK: taxation by strength, Draught Relief, and Small Producer Relief. This was impossible in Northern Ireland under the original Protocol. The Windsor Framework secured substantive, legally binding changes to ensure that Northern Ireland benefits from the same VAT and alcohol taxes as apply in the rest of the United Kingdom.


Written Question
Public Expenditure: Northern Ireland
Wednesday 20th March 2024

Asked by: Lord Dodds of Duncairn (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government how much is to be allocated to the Northern Ireland Executive in the Spring Budget from (1) Barnett consequentials, and (2) direct allocation.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

As a result of decisions taken at Spring Budget, the Northern Ireland Executive will receive around £100 million through the Barnett formula.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer also announced £20 million of funding for each of Derry-Londonderry and Coleraine through the Long-Term Plan for Towns, £2 million of funding to boost global investment and trade opportunities in Northern Ireland, and £2.2 million for the redevelopment of the South Stand at Crusaders FC in Belfast into a unique state of the art community centre.

Northern Ireland will also benefit from UK-wide tax and spending measures.


Written Question
Independent Fiscal Council of Northern Ireland
Wednesday 20th March 2024

Asked by: Lord Dodds of Duncairn (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the working relationship between the Treasury and the Fiscal Council of Northern Ireland.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

HM Treasury regularly engages with the Northern Ireland Fiscal Council, including discussions on its work to scrutinise the public finances of Northern Ireland.


Written Question
Arts: Northern Ireland
Wednesday 13th March 2024

Asked by: Lord Dodds of Duncairn (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the economic benefit to creative industries in Northern Ireland of the tax measures announced in the Spring Budget.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government recognises the cultural and economic value of the UK’s world-leading creative sector. At Spring Budget 2024 the Government went further to support the sector through the creative sector tax reliefs, which companies in Northern Ireland benefit from.

The announcements include a new tax credit for independent UK films with budgets of less than £15 million and a 5 percentage point increase in tax relief UK visual effects costs in film and high-end TV.

The Government also announced that from 1 April 2025, orchestras, museums, galleries and theatres will benefit from tax relief set permanently at 45% (for touring productions and all orchestra productions) and 40% for non-touring productions).

These measures will apply UK-wide.


Written Question
EU Law: Northern Ireland
Tuesday 13th February 2024

Asked by: Lord Dodds of Duncairn (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the continuing operation of EU excise and VAT law concerning goods in Northern Ireland.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The arrangements in Northern Ireland under the Windsor Framework guarantee Northern Ireland’s position within the UK’s VAT and excise area, while still maintaining frictionless arrangements for those businesses trading with the EU - granting Northern Ireland businesses the ability to benefit from new UK changes and ensuring that Northern Ireland households can benefit from the UK’s Brexit freedoms.

The freedoms secured under the Windsor Framework have already delivered benefits for NI people and businesses, including: the application of zero rates on the installation of energy-saving materials; the rollout of new alcohol duty reforms across the whole UK; and the UK-wide application of the changes agreed at Autumn Statement, such as the removal of VAT on period underwear.


Written Question
Trader Support Service
Monday 31st July 2023

Asked by: Lord Dodds of Duncairn (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether any changes to the criteria against which the Trader Support Service should be audited have been made since the time the tender was first awarded.

Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)

No changes were made to the award criteria.


Written Question
Trader Support Service
Wednesday 26th July 2023

Asked by: Lord Dodds of Duncairn (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many tender applications for the provision of the Trader Support Service were received.

Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)

Four tender responses were received for the provision of Trader Support Service.


Written Question
Trader Support Service
Wednesday 26th July 2023

Asked by: Lord Dodds of Duncairn (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what are their criteria for assessing tenders for running the Trader Support Service.

Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)

HMRC’s followed its standard evaluation award criteria for Trade Support Service (TSS) which split it into the following 2 areas including the weighting of each:

  • Quality (80 per cent weighting)
  • Price (20 per cent weighting)

The quality measures were around the Design of Service ‘Build’, Live Service ‘Run’ – declaration system availability/fix incident response times etc, Capacity, SME (Subject Matter Expertise) - skills knowledge and capability eg Tariff/Comm Codes, Ability to mobilise and Exit Approach.


Written Question
Trader Support Service
Wednesday 26th July 2023

Asked by: Lord Dodds of Duncairn (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government against what criteria was it agreed that they should audit the provision of the Trader Support Service at the time the tender was awarded.

Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)

HMRC’s followed its standard evaluation award criteria for Trade Support Service (TSS) which split it into the following 2 areas including the weighting of each:

  • Quality (80 per cent weighting)
  • Price (20 per cent weighting)

The quality measures were around the Design of Service ‘Build’, Live Service ‘Run’ – declaration system availability/fix incident response times etc, Capacity, SME (Subject Matter Expertise) - skills knowledge and capability eg Tariff/Comm Codes, Ability to mobilise and Exit Approach.


Written Question
Trader Support Service
Tuesday 25th July 2023

Asked by: Lord Dodds of Duncairn (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government how much public money was spent on designing the Trader Support Service; which organisations received public monies as a result of this; and how much each organisation received.

Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)

I refer the Noble Lord to the answer given to PQ UIN 146816 on 22 February 2023.