Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when she plans to publish the next action plan for antimicrobial resistance.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
In 2019, the Government published the first of four five-year national action plans (NAP), aimed at tackling antimicrobial resistance (AMR) within and beyond our own borders. This plan is available at the following link:
We are now in the process of developing the second five-year NAP, which will run from 2024 to 2029. It will be designed to ensure progress is maintained towards delivering our 20-year vision on AMR, in which resistance is effectively contained and controlled by 2040. Further information on the 20-year vision is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-20-year-vision-for-antimicrobial-resistance
The 2024 to 2029 AMR NAP is being co-developed across the Government, its agencies, and the administrations in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, with support from a wide range of external stakeholders, and informed by the responses to the Call for Evidence. The NAP is expected to be published in 2024.
The 2024 to 2029 AMR NAP will build on the achievements of the 2019 to 2024 NAP, whilst recognising where there is more to do, and will be aligned with global plans and frameworks for action.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has had discussions with the Northern Ireland Minister for Justice on tackling female (a) trafficking, (b) exploitation and (c) sexual exploitation in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)
Criminal justice is devolved in Northern Ireland, with responsibility for the policy and legislative response to modern slavery resting with the Northern Ireland Executive. However, we recognise that trafficking can involve the movement of vulnerable individuals across borders, and we work closely with our partners in the Northern Ireland Executive to ensure that our response to modern slavery across the UK is joined-up and the legislation is complementary.
This includes, at official level, regular engagement with representatives from the Devolved Administrations, through quarterly meetings and the Modern Slavery Engagement Forums. These Forums focus on key policy areas, including enforcement, prevention, adult victim support, and child and victim support policy. Officials also engage in quarterly meetings with representatives on commercial sexual exploitation.
The Home Office also engages with First Responder Organisations, across the whole of the United Kingdom. In Northern Ireland this includes the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), Health and Social Care trusts and Belfast and Lisburn Women’s Aid. First Responders are trained by their respective organisations to identify indicators of modern slavery and refer potential victims into the National Referral Mechanism (NRM). In 2023, there were 462 NRM referrals sent to the PSNI for investigation, accounting for 3% of all referrals received, as published in the National Referral Mechanism statistics on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for his policies of the report by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration entitled An inspection of contingency asylum accommodation for asylum seeking families with children in Northern Ireland, published on 29 February 2024.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The former Independent Chief Inspector of Borders Immigration has identified several areas for improvement and made 5 recommendations. The Home Office has fully accepted two and partially accepted three recommendations.
Work is already underway to take forward the recommendations in this report to ensure that we continue to meet not only our statutory obligations in Northern Ireland, but also to support the delivery of the Home Office’s broader aims in the UK, in response to the findings.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on what dates he plans to publish the inspections completed by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration on (a) Country of Origin Information – Thematic review of statelessness, (b) Afghan resettlement schemes, (c) ePassport gates, (d) the use of powers to deprive British nationals of citizenship, (e) contingency asylum accommodation for families with children in Northern Ireland, (f) Border Force operations at Portsmouth International Port, (g) Border Force’s fast parcel operations, (h) Border Force practices and procedures in relation to firearms, (i) the use of hotels for housing unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, (j) illegal working enforcement activity, (k) country of origin information, Albania and Pakistan, (l) asylum casework and (m) the immigration system as it relates to the social care sector.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The department takes every inspection report seriously and considers the findings and recommendations carefully. This can sometimes mean the publication process is longer than expected. We will publish the reports in due course.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he plans to introduce routine checks on electronic travel authorisations in Northern Ireland when that scheme begins.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
On 25 October 2023, the Government launched the UK’s Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme to secure our borders and make the UK safer. The scheme is open to nationals of Qatar and will continue to be implemented in a phased manner, on a nationality basis, in 2024.
The Government remains committed to the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement and ensuring there is no hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland. As is the case now, the UK will not operate routine immigration controls on journeys from within the Common Travel Area (CTA), with no immigration controls whatsoever on the Ireland-Northern Ireland land border.
Whilst there will continue to be no routine immigration controls on journeys within the CTA, the introduction of the ETA scheme will, for the first time, allow us to have a comprehensive understanding of who is seeking to come to the UK and refuse them permission where appropriate.
It is a well-established requirement that individuals visiting the UK, including those arriving from Ireland, are required to enter in line with the UK’s immigration framework. Visa nationals are already required to obtain a visa for the UK when travelling via Ireland, in order to lawfully enter the UK and we are simply extending this same principle to those who will require an ETA.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the likely impact of the introduction of Electronic Travel Authorisations under the Nationality and Borders Act 2021 on tourism in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Lord Caine - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
As is the case now, under the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme, the UK will not operate immigration controls on the Ireland-Northern Ireland land border. All those travelling to the UK will need to continue to meet UK immigration requirements, which will include obtaining an ETA if they are required to do so.
The Government remains committed to working with a wide range of relevant bodies to ensure the ETA scheme is understood and to mitigate any risks that it is, or is perceived to be, an increased barrier to tourism in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Daniel Zeichner (Labour - Cambridge)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the expected annual (a) resource and (b) capital expenditure will be on the Major Projects Portfolio projects entitled (i) Biosecurity, Borders and Trade Programme, (ii) Science Capability in Animal Health Programme, (iii) Future Farming and Countryside Programme UK Seafood Fund and (iv) Northern Ireland Programme in each financial year of those projects; and if he will place that information in the House of Commons Library.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
(i) The Biosecurity, Borders and Trade Programme is responsible for the design and delivery of all Defra import controls and export processes. The cost of the programme that has been approved by HM Treasury in September 2021 is an average of £90 million per annum in resource costs (FY 2022/2023 – FY 2024/2025 inclusive), a large proportion of which is the initial operating costs of two BCPs, and digital infrastructure to support traders. Capital expenditure is £57 million in in FY 2022/2023 and reduces significantly to £6 million in FY 2024/2025.
HM Government announced a delay to the introduction of full import controls in April 2022 and committed to delivering a new target operating model. This new model will be risk-based and proportionate, minimise the administrative burden on traders and embrace technology. There are a number of options being considered. Once a decision has been made on the final scope of the programme, a fresh business case will be submitted to Treasury setting out the annual cost.
(ii) Regarding the Science Capability in Animal Health (SCAH) programme, the budget for this Spending Review is £30 million in FY 2022/2023, £80 million in FY 2023/2024, and £69 million in FY 2024/2025.
(iii) Spending for the Future Farming and Countryside Programme will be in line with the manifesto commitment at an average of £2.4 billion/year.
(iv) The table below shows the expected resource and capital expenditure for the UK Seafood Fund as agreed at the last Spending Review. We will be adjusting this profile of funding at the Supplementary Estimates to reflect the extension of the Fund to March 2025.
Financial Year | Capitol | Resource | Total |
2021/22 | 5.6 | 5.6 | |
2022/23 | 22.6 | 24.7 | 47.3 |
2023/24 | 31.4 | 15.2 | 46.6 |
2024/25 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.5 |
Total | 54.3 | 45.7 | 100.0 |
(v) Spending under the Northern Ireland programme is detailed in the table below:
Type of Spend* | FY 2020-21 | FY 2021-22 | FY 2022-23 | FY 2023-24 | FY 2024-25 | To end SR | Post SR Annual Costs |
Resource** | 8.40 | 22.54 | 29.21 | 43.99 | 19.41 | 123.68 | 13.34 to 15.74 |
Capital*** | 3.20 | 7.79 | 7.37 | 18.28 | 14.45 | 51.09 | - |
Total Spend / Forecast | 11.60 | 30.33 | 36.68 | 62.27 | 33.86 | 174.74 | 13.34 to 15.74 |
*Includes ringfenced funding by HMT in support of Digital Assistance Scheme (DAS) delivery against the Northern Ireland Agri-Food Scheme Business Case. DAS costs for 2023-24 and beyond mirror the Programme Business Case approved by HMT.
**Resource expenditure (RDEL) consists of NI Directorate BAU, Movement Assistance Scheme(MAS) and DAS funding.
***Capital expenditure( CDEL) consists of DAS funding.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the report by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration entitled An inspection of contingency asylum accommodation, published on 12 May 2022, what assessment she has made of the potential implications of the report for Northern Ireland; and whether her Department plans to implement the recommendations of the report in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The department has reviewed the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration’s report internally to understand the impacts of this for our teams and providers and their respective regions, and work on realising the recommendations put forth is already underway.
The recommendations are estate wide and the department will work to ensure they are followed throughout the entirety of the UK through the well-established assurance and project governance structures, alongside relevant recommendations from previous reports.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential economic impact of a suspension of the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
It is for the Office for Budget Responsibility to provide economic and fiscal forecasting.
The UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement ensures that the UK has control of our laws, borders, money and fisheries, ending any role for the European Court.
The UK Government’s overriding priority has been, and continues to be, preserving peace and stability in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Lord Green of Deddington (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 24 January (HL5259), what immigration controls will be put in place under the proposed ETA system at (1) sea crossings between the Republic of Ireland and the UK and (2) sea crossings between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Common Travel Area (CTA) supports the long-standing principle of movement for British and Irish citizens between the UK, Jersey, Guernsey, Isle of Man and Ireland.
As now, the UK will not operate routine immigration controls on journeys from within the CTA. There are no border controls for travel within the UK including from Northern Ireland to Great Britain.