Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of proposed EU (a) taxes and (b) charges on small packages entering the EU on Northern Ireland, including parcels sent within the United Kingdom internal market.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
We are aware of changes to the EU’s rules of low value imports and the announcement in December of its intention to introduce customs duty on these goods from 1 July 2026.
At Autumn Budget 2025, the Chancellor announced the removal of the UK's relief from customs duty on goods below £135 from March 2029 at the latest.
There is currently a consultation on these changes that closes on 6th March 2026.
We are committed to ensuring that the current facilitations available for parcels under the Windsor Framework continue to operate. This means that goods eligible to move under the UK Carrier Scheme and the UK Internal Market Scheme will continue to do so. These schemes are designed to protect goods moving within the UK internal market from incurring duty.
The benefits of the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement will also continue to be available.
The Government continues to engage with industry and the EU to ensure any applicable arrangements are implemented correctly and to minimise any negative impacts on Northern Ireland consumers and businesses.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress her Department has made on proposals to prohibit the import into the UK of hunting trophies; and when she expects to bring forward legislation to implement such a prohibition.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is committed to banning the import of hunting trophies from species of conservation concern.
The department continues to engage with relevant stakeholders to ensure that we can implement a robust ban.
Timeframes for introducing legislation will be provided once the Parliamentary timetable for future sessions is determined.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking, bilaterally and with international partners, in response to reports of arbitrary detention, torture and executions of protesters in Iran; and whether she plans to make further designations under the Global Human Rights Sanctions Regulations 2020 in relation to individuals responsible.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the statement the Foreign Secretary made to the House on 13 January, and her responses to the questions raised in that debate.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations her Department has made to the Government of Syria on recent sectarian attacks on members of the Alawite minority in Homs.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Further to the answer given on 18 September to question 74583, I raised this issue with the Syrian Foreign Minister during his visit to London in November, and we continue to monitor the situation closely.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations her Department has made to the Government of Syria on protecting the rights of religious minorities, such as Christian Orthodox people, Protestants and Catholics.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer given on 18 September 2025 to Question 74583.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many applications have been (a) received, (b) awarded and (c) refused under the Troubles Permanent Disablement Payment Scheme; and in how many refused cases the applicant was in receipt of an occupational injury award, including (i) Civil Service Injury Benefit and (ii) an equivalent injury pension.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Troubles Permanent Disablement Payment Scheme is a devolved matter and is run by the Victims’ Payments Board on behalf of the Northern Ireland Executive.
Statistics on applications are publicly available on the Victims’ Payments Board’s website.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she expects the independent inquiry into grooming gangs to commence taking evidence; and what steps she is taking to support cross-Government cooperation with the inquiry.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
On 9 December 2025 the Home Secretary announced Baroness Anne Longfield as Chair of the Independent Inquiry into Grooming Gangs, alongside panellists Zoë Billingham CBE and Eleanor Kelly CBE. She also published the draft Terms of Reference, which she has asked the Chair to consult on. The final version will be published by 31 March 2026, after which the inquiry will formally commence. Under the Inquiries Act 2005, the conduct and procedure of the inquiry are a matter for the Chair.
The Home Secretary has been clear that the inquiry will act without fear or favour, identifying individual, institutional and systemic failure, inadequate organisational responses, and failures of leadership. The government is fully committed to supporting the Inquiry.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department holds information on whether accommodation providers or subcontractors have used third-party agencies to purchase residential properties in Northern Ireland intended for use in accommodating asylum seekers.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Home Office accommodation Providers procure accommodation on behalf of the Home Office for use as asylum accommodation, this can be either via purchasing or letting accommodation available on the property market and they work with a range of landlords and agents to do so.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of procuring residential accommodation for asylum seekers in Northern Ireland on (a) the availability of and (b) waiting times for social housing.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Accommodation for people seeking asylum in Northern Ireland is procured by Home Office Asylum Accommodation and Support Contract providers from the private rented sector and does not draw on social housing stock. Northern Ireland is not part of the Full Dispersal arrangements, so only those who claim asylum in Northern Ireland are accommodated there. On that basis, the Department does not assess a direct impact on either the availability of, or waiting times for, social housing.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to (a) the report of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on communication of changes to women’s State Pension age and (b) the Work and Pensions Committee’s recommendations of May 2024 on compensation for women born in the 1950s affected by those changes, what the Government's policy is on establishing a compensation scheme for that cohort; and what assessment has been of the implications for Government policy of recent legal challenges regarding the basis on which compensation was declined.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Secretary of State announced in his Oral Statement of 11 November that we will retake the decision made last December as it relates to the communications on state pension age. Information that was not considered at the time of the original decision has come to light. In retaking the decision, we will review the evidence alongside evidence previously considered.
The process to retake the decision is underway and we will update the House on the decision as soon as a conclusion is reached.