Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions she had with the Secretary of State for Transport before the decision of that Department to display the Union flag on driving licences only in England, Scotland and Wales.

My hon Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State and I have regular discussions with ministerial colleagues on a range of matters concerning Northern Ireland, and have discussed the issue of proposals for the Union Flag to appear in Great Britain driving licences. However, driving licences are a devolved matter in Northern Ireland and it is for the devolved authorities to decide whether to adopt changes made elsewhere in the United Kingdom.