Asked by: Robin Swann (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when her Department first briefed the Irish Government on her proposed changes on asylum.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The UK and Ireland have a close and collaborative working relationship on a range of issues, including migration and border security. That collaboration includes a joint commitment to protect the Common Travel Area from abuse while preserving the rights of British and Irish citizens.
Asked by: Robin Swann (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to ensure that deaf and disabled people and Deaf and Disabled People's Organisations from Northern Ireland can engage in the Timms Review, including through the proposed Panel.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Listening to the lived experience and expertise of disabled people will be critical to the Review’s success. Over the summer, I met with representatives from more than 50 organisations across the disability, welfare and co-production spaces, including organisations from all four nations.
While PIP is a transferred matter in Northern Ireland, there is a long-standing principle of parity between the social security systems of the Northern Ireland Executive and the UK Government. It is therefore important that the Review hears from disabled people in Northern Ireland and the organisations that represent them.
We have launched an open and accessible Expression of Interest to join the Review’s steering group, and we strongly encourage applications from people across the UK, regardless of background or location. The steering group will include a majority of disabled people or representatives of Disabled People’s Organisations.
Once in place, the steering group will oversee a programme of engagement and participation that brings together the full range of views and voices.
Asked by: Robin Swann (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Timms Review what steps he has taken to engage with deaf and disabled people and Deaf and Disabled People's Organisations in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Listening to the lived experience and expertise of disabled people will be critical to the Review’s success. Over the summer, I met with representatives from more than 50 organisations across the disability, welfare and co-production spaces, including organisations from all four nations.
While PIP is a transferred matter in Northern Ireland, there is a long-standing principle of parity between the social security systems of the Northern Ireland Executive and the UK Government. It is therefore important that the Review hears from disabled people in Northern Ireland and the organisations that represent them.
We have launched an open and accessible Expression of Interest to join the Review’s steering group, and we strongly encourage applications from people across the UK, regardless of background or location. The steering group will include a majority of disabled people or representatives of Disabled People’s Organisations.
Once in place, the steering group will oversee a programme of engagement and participation that brings together the full range of views and voices.
Asked by: Robin Swann (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has received the feasibility study for the reopening of the Antrim to Lisburn rail line from the Northern Ireland Minister of Infrastructure.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
I can confirm that my officials have received a copy of the feasibility study from Translink. The Department will continue to contribute constructively to devolved transport priorities, fully respecting the devolved settlement.
Asked by: Robin Swann (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether additional support will be given to NHS dentistry in the context of the decision at the Sixth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury on ending the use of dental amalgam.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Following the decision made at the sixth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury, we are in the process of planning in detail the necessary steps. This includes establishing what changes may be required for National Health Service dentistry to move towards and implement a phase-out of dental amalgam by 2034.
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, with reference to the Farming Profitability Review, which stakeholders in Northern Ireland gave evidence to the Review.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Under the Terms of Reference, Baroness Batters’s Farming Profitability Review is an England-only review. Baroness Batters wrote an open letter to stakeholders and received responses from organisations that represent farmers in Northern Ireland. This included Northern Ireland-specific organisations, and organisations covering the whole of the UK. The department is considering her recommendations carefully.
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, pursuant to the Answer of 4 November 2025 to Question 85623 on Bovine Tuberculosis: Vaccination, for what reason Northern Ireland was not included in the marketing authorisation.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
To maintain Northern Ireland’s full access to the EU’s single market, from 1 January 2026, the movement of veterinary medicines into Northern Ireland must comply with relevant EU rules under the Windsor Framework. This includes the current EU-wide prohibition on the use of the bovine tuberculosis vaccine in cattle.
Asked by: Robin Swann (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2025 to Question 81693 on General Practitioners: Insurance, answered on 12th October 2025, how many GPs are covered under the professional indemnity insurance; and what the cost to the public purse of this insurance was in the last 12 months.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The cost to the public purse of the state clinical indemnity schemes, such as the Clinical Negligence Scheme for General Practice and the Existing Liabilities Scheme for General Practice, for 2024/2025 is outlined in NHS Resolution’s corporate accounts, which are available at the following link:
https://resolution.nhs.uk/about/corporate-reports-and-publications/
State funded schemes for clinical indemnity cover general practice (GP) activities under National Health Service contracts, such as the General Medical Services contact, the Personal Medical Services contact, and the Alternative Provider Medical Services contact. Costs incurred under the state funded clinical indemnity schemes therefore include GPs, practice nurses, and other staff carrying out activities in connection with GP activities under NHS contracts. We do not hold information on these costs which are disaggregated by GPs.
Asked by: Robin Swann (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she made of the potential merits of reducing Corporation Tax in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
This is a matter for the NI Executive. The 2014 Stormont House Agreement between the UK Government and the Northern Ireland Executive agreed, in principle, for the power to set the rate of Corporation Tax in Northern Ireland on certain trading profits to be devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly.
The Agreement set out that the Executive would need to formally request the power to change the Corporation Tax rate in Northern Ireland. The Executive would also need to demonstrate that its finances were on a sustainable footing, and that the Executive’s block grant would need to be adjusted to reflect the Corporation Tax revenues foregone if the devolved power were exercised.
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, whether the cattle vaccine against bovine tuberculosis undergoing Phase 3 trials by the Animal and Plant Health Agency will be available in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The field trials and the cattle vaccine will not be available in Northern Ireland. Defra and the Animal and Plant Health Agency are only seeking marketing authorisation in Great Britain at this stage.