Asked by: Robin Swann (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Open Book exercise on the Northern Ireland Executive budget.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Open Book review of the Northern Ireland Executive’s budget identified up to £3.3 billion in potential annual savings and additional spending power.
It is now vital the Executive consider these findings and take the necessary decisions to place its finances on a sustainable footing.
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and I are keen to support the Executive in this work, and I have met with the Finance Minister to discuss the budget.
Asked by: Robin Swann (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Northern Ireland Environment, Agricultural and Rural Affairs Minister on steps to prevent screw worm infection of cattle herd.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
No discussions have taken place at Ministerial level, however Defra and DAERA officials work closely together on a range of biosecurity issues as necessary.
Asked by: Robin Swann (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the financial allocation supplied directly to the i) Northern Ireland Department of Justice and ii) Police Service of Northern Ireland from the Transformation Fund was.
Answered by Hilary Benn
The UK Government is investing £235m to transform public services in Northern Ireland. The Northern Ireland Department of Justice has been allocated a total of £22.64m of this funding, following recommendations from the Public Sector Transformation Board, for two projects:
£20.45m for “Speeding Up and Transforming the Criminal Justice System” which will reduce delay and maximise efficiencies through more timely engagement between the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), as well as the prosecution and defence; and
£2.19m for “Modernisation of Electronic Monitoring” which will provide a more accurate, real‑time, way to track movement and compliance of individuals who are released into the community, through the introduction of GPS monitoring.
The PSNI will also benefit from the funding for these projects, with 4,000 hours of police time saved in the first year alone.
Asked by: Robin Swann (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what role he has in (i) the Chief Constable of the PSNI requesting and (ii) other UK Police forces supplying, mutual aid to the PSNI.
Answered by Hilary Benn
The provision of Mutual Aid between constabularies in the UK is routine and is coordinated by the National Police Coordination Centre (NPoCC) which is a body of the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC). There is no role for the Secretary of State.
Asked by: Robin Swann (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what role his Department has in the (a) approval, (b) payment of and (c) cost recovery when mutual aid is supplied to the PSNI from other UK Police Forces.
Answered by Hilary Benn
The provision of Mutual Aid between constabularies in the UK is coordinated by the National Police Coordination Centre (NPoCC) which is a body of the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC). There is no role for the Secretary of State.
The host force is strictly liable for all costs associated with the receipt of aid.
The PSNI’s main budget is allocated by the Northern Ireland Department of Justice (DoJ). The UK Government is providing the PSNI with £37.8m in additional security funding each financial year until 2028/29.