Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps the Government is taking to improve cross-border cooperation on tackling (a) organised crime and (b) paramilitary activities in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The UK and Irish Governments work together to tackle security challenges and keep people on both sides of the border safe. The UK Government has regular discussions with the Irish Government on a range of issues, including cross-border security.
Non national security criminal justice matters are a matter for the devolved Department of Justice. The Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) on Cooperation on Criminal Justice Matters provides a mechanism for the Northern Ireland Justice Minister to meet her counterpart in the Irish Government to discuss matters of shared concern.
The NI Executive leads on tackling paramilitarism in Northern Ireland and the UK Government jointly funds the Executive Programme on Paramilitarism and Organised Crime (EPPOC). EPPOC aims to create safer communities, resilient to paramilitarism, criminality and coercive control by tackling paramilitary activity in all its forms.
I commend the PSNI and An Garda Síochána for their work in keeping people on both sides of the border safe, including the work of the cross border Joint Agency Task Force (JATF) which was established to tackle organised and cross jurisdictional crime.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many firearm licenses have been revoked in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Policing and justice are devolved matters. The control of firearms in Northern Ireland is exercised by the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). Figures relating to firearm licence revocations are held by the PSNI.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many firearms have been registered in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Policing and justice are devolved matters. The control of firearms in Northern Ireland is exercised by the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). Figures relating to firearm registration are held by the PSNI.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions he has had with the PSNI on the Provisional IRA Army Council.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The PSNI and UK security agencies continually assess the threat, risk and harm posed by paramilitary, terrorist and organised crime groups to inform the most appropriate operational response.
Although it is acknowledged that some individuals engaged in serious criminality may also have ties to former paramilitary Republican organisations, such activity does not present a threat to national security.
However, the national security threat in Northern Ireland is wholly driven by violent Dissident Republicans who reject the Good Friday Agreement (GFA), and not by Groups that support the GFA.
Where any criminality exists, I am clear that it should be dealt with fully by the police.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on steps to improve Northern Ireland’s transport connectivity with the rest of the UK.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Government is committed to ensuring greater connectivity and economic integration between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom.
The Secretary of State for Transport has already met with John O’Dowd MLA, Minister for Infrastructure, to discuss shared transport priorities, given that transport policy is largely devolved. By working together, both governments can encourage economic growth, deliver integrated transport networks, promote social mobility, and tackle regional inequalities by improving connectivity across the whole of the UK.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions he has had with the Northern Ireland Assembly on administration of Apprenticeship Levy funds.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Northern Ireland Executive receives its share of funding from the Apprenticeship Levy through the Block Grant. Policy on apprenticeships is devolved to the Northern Ireland Executive and it is up to the Executive to decide how to utilise this funding.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether he has had recent discussions with the British Medical Association Northern Ireland in the last 12 months.
Answered by Steve Baker
The Secretary of State has been corresponding with the BMA and understands their frustration over a pay award for healthcare professionals. The UK Government has no authority to negotiate pay in Northern Ireland. This is a devolved matter for the Northern Ireland Department of Health.
It remains the Government’s top priority to see the Executive restored with the support of all parties and for locally accountable political leaders to take fundamental decisions on public services and deliver better outcomes for the people of Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether parents will be able to opt their children out of the new Relationship and Sexuality Education curriculum in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris
Yes.
The Relationships and Sexuality Education (Northern Ireland) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 place a duty on the Department of Education to introduce regulations to ensure that a pupil may be withdrawn from education on sexual and reproductive health and rights or elements of that education, at the request of a parent. This follows the approach taken in England and Scotland.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether his Department plans to conduct a public consultation of (a) parents and (b) other stakeholders on Relationships and Sex Education before guidance in this area is implemented in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris
In line with my Department’s statutory obligations under section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998, and in consultation with the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland, my Department completed an equality screening, the outcome of which did not indicate a need to publicly consult on the policy.
Consultation with parents on Relationships and Sex Education is already common practice in Northern Ireland. The Department of Education requires each school to have in place its own written policy on how it will address the delivery of Relationships and Sex Education. A school’s Relationships and Sex Education policy should be subject to consultation with parents and endorsed by a school’s Board of Governors.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether a parent in Northern Ireland can excuse their child from Relationships and Sex Education,.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris
The Relationships and Sexuality Education (Northern Ireland) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 place a duty on the Department of Education to introduce regulations to ensure that a pupil may be withdrawn from education on sexual and reproductive health and rights or elements of that education, at the request of a parent. This follows the approach taken in England and Scotland.