Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government further to the remarks by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 27 November (HL Deb col 684), whether Ministers have ceased to be subject to any legal duties to promote an all-Ireland economy.

Section 10(1)(b) of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 contains duties on Government Ministers to have due regard to the Joint Report between the UK and EU negotiators of October 2017. That report makes reference in general terms to, among other things, the ‘all-island economy’, alongside a range of other considerations relevant to Brexit. In practice, the report’s contents have been superseded by the internationally binding arrangements under the Windsor Framework and wider Withdrawal Agreement.