Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent discussions he has had with business representatives on the recovery of the Northern Irish economy from the covid-19 outbreak.

Northern Ireland Office Ministers have engaged extensively and regularly with Northern Ireland business representatives and businesses through a programme of business roundtable events; individual business engagements; and webinars to inform the UK Government response to Covid-19 and economic recovery in Northern Ireland. When Covid restrictions have allowed, we have also visited Northern Ireland businesses to hear first-hand their experience and the experience of employees at this challenging time.

This Government will do everything it can to help people and businesses through this extraordinary time and businesses in Northern Ireland will continue to benefit from the Furlough Scheme, VAT reductions and the extension of bounce back loans, which have all been extended to the end of March 2021.

Businesses in Northern Ireland have always exhibited a tremendous resilience and ability to bounce back from adversity, and I have been impressed by their resilience and adaptability through this crisis. We will continue to work closely with businesses, with the Northern Ireland Executive and other local partners to get the Northern Ireland economy back up and running, to lay the foundations for economic growth and to seize the opportunities ahead.