Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, for what reason complaints about Government departments and other public organisations must be referred to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman by a Member of Parliament.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The statutory requirement for complaints to be made to a Member of the House of Commons is longstanding and is consistent with the Ombudsman’s accountability to Parliament.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the Government’s response to the statement from the EU Commission dated 30 June 2021 entitled EU-UK relations: solutions found to help implementation of the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
The Government has been clear that it welcomes Vice President Sefcovic’s indications that the EU is looking at further solutions.
However, the issues raised are only a smaller subset of a much larger set of problems created by the way the Protocol is being implemented – we need engagement on these fundamental barriers that we have identified during discussions.
In addition, where solutions were flagged, discussions are generally not advanced enough to determine whether they sufficiently address even the narrow issues with which they are concerned. We would need to see the full details of the proposals and discuss further to ensure any of these will work in practice.
We are considering our next steps and discussing with all those with an interest. We will set out our approach to Parliament in a considered way before the summer recess.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Answer of 23 March 2021 to Question 171772 on UK Trade with EU: Northern Ireland, what discussions he has had with (a) the European Commission and (b) individual EU member states on instances in which parcels or packets coming directly from Northern Ireland into the EU have been incorrectly required to have CN22 customers labels.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
The Government has worked with parcel operators to ensure processes are set up such that importing EU countries should be clear that goods from Northern Ireland should not face customs processes. Where instances of non-compliance with the Protocol have been identified, we have been raising these issues with the Commission as part of our wider work to address outstanding issues with the Protocol, in order to minimise disruption to everyday lives in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will set out the proposed membership of the Joint Consultative Working Group in relation to the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
The Joint Consultative Working Group (JCWG) is an official level group and Article 15(2) of the Northern Ireland Protocol establishes that the JCWG shall be composed of representatives of the United Kingdom and the European Union.
The Group’s rules of procedure set out that, where appropriate and by decision of the co-chairs, experts or other persons who are not members of delegations may be invited to attend meetings of the JCWG in order to provide information on a particular subject. This has not been necessary so far.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans the Government has to include representation from trade unions on the Joint Consultative Working Group in respect of the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
The Joint Consultative Working Group (JCWG) is an official level group and Article 15(2) of the Northern Ireland Protocol establishes that the JCWG shall be composed of representatives of the United Kingdom and the European Union.
The Group’s rules of procedure set out that, where appropriate and by decision of the co-chairs, experts or other persons who are not members of delegations may be invited to attend meetings of the JCWG in order to provide information on a particular subject. This has not been necessary so far.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government is taking to convene a meeting of the SPS Specialised Committee under the UK-EU Trade and Co-operation Agreement.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
Now that the Trade and Cooperation Agreement has been ratified, its committees will begin their work. The dates and arrangements for the first meeting of each committee, including the SPS Specialised Committee, are yet to be finalised.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the EU27 states are aware that there is no requirement for CN22 customers labels on parcels or packets being directly sent from Northern Ireland.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
We have set out through clear guidance the temporary arrangements that apply for movements between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It is for the European Union to ensure that it and Member States are upholding their obligations in full, including with regard to the fact that movements from Northern Ireland into the EU should not be subject to any controls that do not otherwise apply to movements within the EU.
We also engage regularly with operators regarding these arrangements, during which we have underlined the fact that parcel movements from Northern Ireland directly to the EU should be treated on the same basis as movements within the EU. However it is for the European Union to ensure that the rights of Northern Ireland operators are given full effect in EU Member States. We have and will continue to raise any issues in that regard with the Commission.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the attendance of the Joint Consultative Working Group on 29 January 2021; and how membership of that group was determined.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
Article 15(2) of the Northern Ireland Protocol establishes that the Joint Consultative Working Group shall be composed of representatives of the United Kingdom and the European Union. The Government has committed to including representatives of the Northern Ireland Executive as part of the UK delegation to meetings. The JCWG briefly convened for a very short period on 29 January to adopt the Rules of Procedure. This was not a full meeting so was attended by limited delegations of only three officials from each side.
The Rules of Procedure adopted by that Working Group were those included as an Annex to the EU’s Council Decision 2020/1599 adopted on 23 October 2020; and no amendments were made.
The Working Group will continue to meet at dates decided by the co-chairs.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of implementing a bespoke mechanism to facilitate the timely passage of guide dog puppies from Great Britain to Northern Ireland with an agreed derogation from the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
I refer the hon. Member to the response by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster to the urgent question on 2 February 2021, and the letter by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster to the European Commission Vice-President. Further steps are necessary to address regulatory barriers and provide time for a light-touch long-term approach to be codified.
The Government is engaging with the Northern Ireland Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) and Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) to explore means to streamline pet travel between the UK and Ireland, recognising the high standards of animal health that the UK and Ireland share.
In the meantime, DAERA have confirmed that there will be no routine compliance checks on pets/assistance dogs entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain until 1 July 2021. NI-based pets/assistance dogs returning to Northern Ireland from Great Britain can continue to use an NI-issued EU Pet Passport to re-enter Northern Ireland, and will not need an animal health certificate. Further guidance is set out here: https://www.daera-ni.gov.uk/articles/travelling-pets
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government is taking to ensure the continued flow of parcels and other deliveries from Great Britain to Northern Ireland in light of the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
I refer the hon. Member to the response by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster to the urgent question on 2 February 2021, and the letter by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster to the European Commission Vice-President. Further steps are necessary to address regulatory barriers and provide time for a light-touch long-term approach to be codified.
The Government is engaging with the Northern Ireland Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) and Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) to explore means to streamline pet travel between the UK and Ireland, recognising the high standards of animal health that the UK and Ireland share.
In the meantime, DAERA have confirmed that there will be no routine compliance checks on pets/assistance dogs entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain until 1 July 2021. NI-based pets/assistance dogs returning to Northern Ireland from Great Britain can continue to use an NI-issued EU Pet Passport to re-enter Northern Ireland, and will not need an animal health certificate. Further guidance is set out here: https://www.daera-ni.gov.uk/articles/travelling-pets