Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund will be reopening for applications.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
In the 2024 Autumn Budget, the Government committed £163 million to continue delivery for all current projects in Phases 1 and 2 and the first Phase 3 competition window of the IETF (Spring 2024) through to completion.
Ministers are considering opportunities to support UK industry to decarbonize and reach Net Zero as part of the Spending Review. Further announcements will be made in due course.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much (a) her Department has and (b) her Department's arms length bodies have spent on hospitality in (i) each of the last five years and (ii) since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We do not routinely publish this data, as has been the case under successive administrations. All Business Units within the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government have a responsibility to carefully manage official hospitality costs and demonstrate good value for money.
Details of ministerial and senior official hospitality are published on a quarterly basis, and are available on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much (a) her Department has and (b) her Department's arms length bodies have spent on hospitality in (i) each of the last five years and (ii) since 5 July 2024.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
We do not routinely publish this data, as has been the case under successive administrations. All Business Units within the Chancellor’s Department have a responsibility to carefully manage official hospitality costs and demonstrate good value for money.
Details of ministerial and senior official hospitality are published on a quarterly basis, and are available on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much (a) his Department has and (b) his Department's arms length bodies have spent on hospitality in (i) each of the last five years and (ii) since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
We do not routinely publish this data, as has been the case under successive administrations. All Business Units within the Cabinet Office have a responsibility to carefully manage official hospitality costs and demonstrate good value for money.
Details of ministerial and senior official hospitality are published on a quarterly basis, and are available on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much (a) his Department has and (b) his Department's arms length bodies have spent on hospitality in (i) each of the last five years and (ii) since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We do not routinely publish this data, as has been the case under successive administrations. All Business Units within Defra have a responsibility to carefully manage official hospitality costs and demonstrate good value for money.
Details of ministerial and senior official hospitality are published on a quarterly basis, and are available on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how much (a) his Department has and (b) his Department's arms length bodies have spent on hospitality in (i) each of the last five years and (ii) since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
We do not routinely publish this data, as has been the case under successive administrations. All Business Units within the Northern Ireland Office have a responsibility to carefully manage official hospitality costs and demonstrate good value for money.
Details of ministerial and senior official hospitality are published on a quarterly basis, and are available on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether the conditions for notification to the EU that the Stormont Brake has been triggered have been met on Regulation (EU) 2024/2865 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2024 amending Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Government is under statutory obligations to assess any Stormont Brake notification against the tests set out by law. I will make a decision in due course.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much from the public purse the UK provided to the EU for any purpose in financial years (a) 2019-20, (b) 2020-21, (c) 2021-22, (d) 2022-23 and (e) 2023-24.
Answered by Darren Jones - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
As part of the Withdrawal Agreement, the UK agreed the Financial Settlement with the EU. This provides a methodology for settling pre-existing UK financial obligations and is not a fixed amount.
The European Union Finances Statement 2023 sets out HM Treasury’s estimates of the size of these obligations in more detail. As at 31st December 2023, the UK is estimated to have paid £23.8bn in net liabilities under the agreement since February 2020. HM Treasury will provide updated figures for 2024 in the next annual statement, expected in Spring 2025.
Other payments to the EU, such as those under the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, are reported in departments' annual accounts and normal budgetary disclosures.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions he has had with relevant stakeholders on ensuring the continuity of full employment at the Spirit AeroSystems site in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Government is working with the Northern Ireland Executive to help ensure the best outcome for Spirit Aerospace and all its skilled and hardworking staff.
The Northern Ireland Office and the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) are fully aware of the commercial discussions taking place about the potential acquisition of the Spirit business. DBT continues to be in contact with Spirit, Airbus, Boeing and other potential buyers, and we want to see an outcome that includes a commitment to develop Spirit and its supply chain as part of any acquisition and provides the best possible opportunity for growth in Northern Ireland.
DBT continues to provide over £13 million of support for Spirit’ Research and Development activity through the Aerospace Technology Institute programme.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the (a) effectiveness of the application of the Armed Forces Covenant in Northern Ireland and (b) adequacy of Armed Forces Covenant arrangements in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
Our election manifesto commitment to put the Armed Forces Covenant fully into law highlighted the need to strengthen the rights of the Armed Forces community and thus improve current and former service life on a broader scope. Work is currently underway to develop policy in a range of areas relevant to the Armed Forces community.
The Armed Forces Covenant applies across the whole of the UK including the Devolved Nations; its delivery is shaped by local and regional factors and jurisdictions. In Northern Ireland, government bodies and the charitable sector work together to provide practical support to the Armed Forces community, helping deliver the Covenant. Since 2015, Covenant delivery has been supported by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust, an Arm’s Length Body of the Ministry of Defence and a charity. In 2023-24, the Trust awarded a total of £31.7 million to projects across the UK, including Northern Ireland, in support of the Armed Forces community. From 2022-23 to date, £3.26 million across 51 grants in total have been awarded to projects in Northern Ireland.
A Covenant Legal Duty impact survey aimed at organisations subject to the Duty was completed in 2024. This included engagement with the Devolved Administrations. The survey was aimed at the whole of UK. Greater detail on the survey can be found in the Armed Forces Covenant Annual Report 2024, published in December 2024: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/676049f6cfbf84c3b2bcfacc/Armed_Forces_Covenant_annual_report_summary_2024.pdf
We are making good progress in delivering the Covenant in Northern Ireland, where unique circumstances require a different approach to be taken from the rest of the UK. We will continue to work closely with our stakeholders in Northern Ireland to ensure that the Covenant remains effective.