Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the (a) contact details, (b) office address, (c) staffing complement and (d) operating budget of the Windsor Framework Independent Monitoring Panel is; and whether minutes of that Panel's meetings are published.

Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

This Government is committed to implementing the Windsor Framework and taking all steps necessary to protect the UK internal market. In support of that, I confirmed the appointment of Anna Jerzewska, Aidan Reilly and Alastair Hamilton as the Windsor Framework Independent Monitoring Panel on 19 September.

The Panel will report to Government on the basis set out in the Safeguarding the Union command paper. The arrangements for the Panel are in the process of being put in place and, consistent with their status, Panellists will not be employees of the UK Government. They will be supported by a secretariat function.

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the (a) contact details, (b) office address, (c) staffing complement and (d) operating budget of Intertrade UK is; and whether minutes of that body's meetings are published.

Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

This Government is committed to implementing the Windsor Framework and taking all steps necessary to protect the UK internal market. To that end, I confirmed the appointment of Baroness Foster as Chair of Intertrade UK on 19 September. The body is in the process of being established and more details of how it will operate to facilitate and boost trade across the UK will be announced in due course.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to reform the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Government is aware of the calls for legislative changes within the veterinary industry. Officials are working closely with stakeholders to consider all options to support the sector.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 11 September 2024 to Question 4577 on Northern Ireland Veterans Commissioner: Resignations, what recent steps the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust has taken to support veterans in Northern Ireland.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

Since 2021 the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust has provided £2.9 million funding for projects supporting veterans specifically in Northern Ireland (NI). In addition, £9.4 million has been provided for UK-wide projects, most of which have also benefitted veterans in NI. Together, this funding has supported 48 projects in NI and a further 68 UK-wide.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the Barnett consequentials applicable to Northern Ireland are from the pay rises for (a) consultants, (b) specialist, associate specialist and specialty doctors, (d) junior doctors and (e) train drivers.

Answered by Darren Jones - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

The Barnett formula applies to all increases or decreases to Departmental Expenditure Limits, rather than when policies or funding are announced. When UK Government departmental budgets change, the Barnett formula will apply in the usual way.

Any Barnett consequentials for the Northern Ireland Executive resulting from the recent public sector pay awards in England in 2024-25 would be confirmed at Autumn Budget 2024 or Supplementary Estimates 2024-25.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department has taken with external stakeholders to remove excess phosphorus from cattle and pig slurry.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

A recent £15 million round of the Farming Innovation Programme focussed on nutrient management, funding research projects to develop ideas and technology enabling farmers to manage their inputs and reduce environmental risk more effectively. Managing and recovering phosphorous in slurry is in scope of this competition and the successful projects will be announced in due course.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to protect the wild salmon population.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only.

Between 2019 and 2023, the Environment Agency mitigated 58 barriers to fish passage on England’s salmon rivers. The Environment Agency also manages salmon fisheries in England, ensuring that 95% of salmon catches in 2023 were released, alive, through a combination of voluntary and mandatory measures.

Cleaning up the water environment is a key priority for Defra. The Government will be carrying out a review of the water sector regulatory system, with further details to be set out later this year.

Defra is also working internationally to protect salmon populations through participation in the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation (NASCO). A full list of actions related to salmon conservation can be found in the England and Wales NASCO “Implementation Plan”, along with annual progress updates. The Environment Agency is currently re-assessing the key pressures on salmon, in England, ahead of producing a new Implementation Plan in 2025/26, to cover the 2025 – 2030 reporting cycle.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the cross-Government Taskforce on motor insurance will include representation from Northern Ireland.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

We recognise that the concerns the Taskforce will work on are shared across the UK. Therefore, we have proposed a meeting of the Taskforce that includes representatives from the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive to discuss any key differences in markets across the UK and how these affect the cost of insurance for consumers.

This Government committed in its manifesto to tackle the high costs of motor insurance. To deliver on this commitment, the UK Government formed a cross-government Taskforce on motor insurance, co-chaired by the Department for Transport and His Majesty’s Treasury, which met for the first time on 16th October.

The Taskforce is comprised of ministers from relevant Government Departments and by the Financial Conduct Authority and Competition and Markets Authority. The Taskforce is supported by a separate Stakeholder Panel of industry experts representing the insurance, motor, and consumer sector.

This Taskforce has a strategic remit to set the direction for UK Government policy, identifying short- and long-term actions for departments that may contribute to stabilising or reducing premiums, while maintaining appropriate levels of cover. It will evaluate the impact of increased insurance costs on consumers and the insurance industry, including how this impacts different demographics, geographies and communities.

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps the Government are taking to ensure the continued supply of medicines to Northern Ireland, in the context of the implementation of the Windsor Framework.

Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

The Windsor Framework secures the long-term stability of medicines supply to Northern Ireland, ensuring that medicines will be available in the same packaging and with a single licence across the UK, reflecting the long standing preference of industry.

The Government continues to work closely with industry to support readiness for the implementation of these arrangements from 1 January 2025 and ensure there is no disruption. Transitional measures are also available to support companies, such as the temporary use of stickers and the arrangement that all medicines that are on the market before 1 January 2025 can continue to be supplied in existing packaging.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Consumer Credit Directive, which came into force in Northern Ireland on 23 November 2023, on cancer patients and their families.

Answered by Tulip Siddiq - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

The European Union’s Consumer Credit Directive 2008 was implemented into UK law in 2010. In November 2023, the EU passed a new Consumer Credit Directive that will replace the previous Directive and which Member States must transpose into domestic law by November 2025. As the UK has left the European Union, this Directive will not apply in the UK, including Northern Ireland.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she plans to bring forward proposals to counter financial discrimination against cancer survivors.

Answered by Tulip Siddiq - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government recognises the importance of access to useful and appropriate financial products. We work closely with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the independent regulator of the UK's financial services sector, to ensure that customers are treated fairly by firms.

While the pricing and availability of financial services and products is a commercial decision for firms, FCA rules require the price a consumer pays for a product or service be reasonable compared to the overall benefits they can expect to receive. The FCA also expects that customers get the right support with their financial products, particularly where their personal circumstances, including health conditions, may make them more susceptible to harm.

The Government is committed to improving financial inclusion and will continue to work with regulators, firms, and the third sector to this end.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much has agricultural property relief been worth in Northern Ireland in each of the last three years.

Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

HMRC holds the information of those estates which make claims for Agricultural Property Relief (APR) within its digital administrative systems if the estate was taxpaying, or could be taxpaying after compliance checks have been performed.

It does not hold readily available information about the geographical location of the assets qualifying for the relief – it only holds the value of the assets qualifying for the relief, and the amount of relief given against those assets, in a format available for further analysis.

As such, it is not possible to provide this information within current cost limits.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department's press release entitled Government issues rallying cry to the nation to help fix NHS, published on 21 October 2024, whether he plans to have discussions with the devolved Administrations on the future of the NHS.

Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Department officials working on the 10-Year Health Plan have had, and will continue to have, meetings with working level contacts in each of the devolved administrations. These conversations will continue to explore how best to identify potential areas of United Kingdom-wide policy alignment, as the plan is developed.

Implications for rural communities of the Autumn Budget 2024