Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of Northern Ireland being the only part of the UK unable to offer abiraterone routinely to eligible prostate cancer patients.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are no current plans to hold discussions with the Northern Irish Department of Health or the Health and Social Care Board on abiraterone access in Northern Ireland. Decisions on the availability of medicines in Northern Ireland are a matter for the Northern Ireland Executive.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has had discussions with the Northern Ireland (a) Department of Health and (b) Health and Social Care Board on levels of accessibility to abiraterone for non-metastatic prostate cancer across the UK.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are no current plans to hold discussions with the Northern Irish Department of Health or the Health and Social Care Board on abiraterone access in Northern Ireland. Decisions on the availability of medicines in Northern Ireland are a matter for the Northern Ireland Executive.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the transition from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to the Local Growth Fund on community and voluntary sector organisations in Northern Ireland, including the number of organisations that have closed, reduced services, or issued redundancy notices since the transition process began.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government is working in close partnership with the Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive designing an Investment Plan for delivery of the new Local Growth Fund. The Local Growth Fund represents a significant step change in UK investment strategy, supporting each nation and region to deliver long-term infrastructure for sustained economic growth.
The devolved governments, including the Northern Ireland Executive have also received substantial budget increases through the Barnett formula as a result of greater funding for English local authorities. This provides the devolved governments with additional flexibility enabling them to target resource to their priorities.
We appreciate the urgency of providing certainty about Local Growth Fund delivery and acknowledge the pressures facing the voluntary and community sector. The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government has therefore agreed with the Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive to commission economic inactivity delivery for 2026-27, and engagement with project deliverers is already underway. In addition, MHCLG are also providing additional flexibility to projects to use any UK Shared Prosperity Fund budget that remains unspent at the end of March 2026, for activities up to September 2026.
The Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive are also planning engagement from early 2026 to collaborate with the sector to design economic inactivity support from 2027 onwards.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what engagement his Department has undertaken to date with community and voluntary sector organisations in Northern Ireland on the design and delivery of the Local Growth Fund, and whether he will publish a timetable and list of stakeholders engaged prior to the commencement of the Fund in April 2026.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government is working in close partnership with the Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive designing an Investment Plan for delivery of the new Local Growth Fund. The Local Growth Fund represents a significant step change in UK investment strategy, supporting each nation and region to deliver long-term infrastructure for sustained economic growth.
The devolved governments, including the Northern Ireland Executive have also received substantial budget increases through the Barnett formula as a result of greater funding for English local authorities. This provides the devolved governments with additional flexibility enabling them to target resource to their priorities.
We appreciate the urgency of providing certainty about Local Growth Fund delivery and acknowledge the pressures facing the voluntary and community sector. The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government has therefore agreed with the Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive to commission economic inactivity delivery for 2026-27, and engagement with project deliverers is already underway. In addition, MHCLG are also providing additional flexibility to projects to use any UK Shared Prosperity Fund budget that remains unspent at the end of March 2026, for activities up to September 2026.
The Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive are also planning engagement from early 2026 to collaborate with the sector to design economic inactivity support from 2027 onwards.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department will conduct an impact assessment of the transition from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to the Local Growth Fund in Northern Ireland, including on the loss of community and voluntary sector services in areas of deprivation.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government is working in close partnership with the Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive designing an Investment Plan for delivery of the new Local Growth Fund. The Local Growth Fund represents a significant step change in UK investment strategy, supporting each nation and region to deliver long-term infrastructure for sustained economic growth.
The devolved governments, including the Northern Ireland Executive have also received substantial budget increases through the Barnett formula as a result of greater funding for English local authorities. This provides the devolved governments with additional flexibility enabling them to target resource to their priorities.
We appreciate the urgency of providing certainty about Local Growth Fund delivery and acknowledge the pressures facing the voluntary and community sector. The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government has therefore agreed with the Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive to commission economic inactivity delivery for 2026-27, and engagement with project deliverers is already underway. In addition, MHCLG are also providing additional flexibility to projects to use any UK Shared Prosperity Fund budget that remains unspent at the end of March 2026, for activities up to September 2026.
The Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive are also planning engagement from early 2026 to collaborate with the sector to design economic inactivity support from 2027 onwards.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to help address changes to the level of funding for community and voluntary sector organisations in Northern Ireland during the transition from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to the Local Growth Fund.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government is working in close partnership with the Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive designing an Investment Plan for delivery of the new Local Growth Fund. The Local Growth Fund represents a significant step change in UK investment strategy, supporting each nation and region to deliver long-term infrastructure for sustained economic growth.
The devolved governments, including the Northern Ireland Executive have also received substantial budget increases through the Barnett formula as a result of greater funding for English local authorities. This provides the devolved governments with additional flexibility enabling them to target resource to their priorities.
We appreciate the urgency of providing certainty about Local Growth Fund delivery and acknowledge the pressures facing the voluntary and community sector. The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government has therefore agreed with the Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive to commission economic inactivity delivery for 2026-27, and engagement with project deliverers is already underway. In addition, MHCLG are also providing additional flexibility to projects to use any UK Shared Prosperity Fund budget that remains unspent at the end of March 2026, for activities up to September 2026.
The Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive are also planning engagement from early 2026 to collaborate with the sector to design economic inactivity support from 2027 onwards.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will outline how community and voluntary sector organisations in Northern Ireland will be formally involved in the design of the Local Growth Fund delivery model.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government is working in close partnership with the Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive designing an Investment Plan for delivery of the new Local Growth Fund. The Local Growth Fund represents a significant step change in UK investment strategy, supporting each nation and region to deliver long-term infrastructure for sustained economic growth.
The devolved governments, including the Northern Ireland Executive have also received substantial budget increases through the Barnett formula as a result of greater funding for English local authorities. This provides the devolved governments with additional flexibility enabling them to target resource to their priorities.
We appreciate the urgency of providing certainty about Local Growth Fund delivery and acknowledge the pressures facing the voluntary and community sector. The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government has therefore agreed with the Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive to commission economic inactivity delivery for 2026-27, and engagement with project deliverers is already underway. In addition, MHCLG are also providing additional flexibility to projects to use any UK Shared Prosperity Fund budget that remains unspent at the end of March 2026, for activities up to September 2026.
The Northern Ireland Office and the Northern Ireland Executive are also planning engagement from early 2026 to collaborate with the sector to design economic inactivity support from 2027 onwards.
Asked by: Sorcha Eastwood (Alliance - Lagan Valley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether any forthcoming additional support announced for pubs in England to mitigate increases in business rates will result in Barnett consequentials for Northern Ireland.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Any Barnett consequentials for the Northern Ireland Executive resulting from policy changes will be confirmed at the relevant fiscal event.