Asked by: Peter Bedford (Conservative - Mid Leicestershire)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many permanent civil servants had contracts of employment terminated for poor performance in (a) 2022-23, (b) 2023-24 and (c) 2024-25.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
No permanent civil servants have had their contracts of employment terminated for poor performance in the time frame given.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many civil cases have been lodged with the Northern Ireland Office in relation to the 2020 Supreme Court decision that the signing of interim custody orders by a Minister or official other than a Secretary of State was unlawful; when were the interim custody orders signed; how many of the claimants are deceased; how many cases have been determined; and at what cost they were determined.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Approximately 100 civil damages claims relating to Interim Custody Orders signed by a Minister or official other than the Secretary of State have been lodged with the Northern Ireland Office since the decision of the Supreme Court in 2020. Around a tenth of these have been brought on behalf of an individual who is deceased. The relevant date period for an ICO claim relating to the signing of an order by a Minister or official other than a Secretary of State is between 24 March 1972 and 5 December 1975. None of the claims have yet been determined by a judge.
Jun. 13 2025
Source Page: Secretary of State announces Chair of the Patrick Finucane InquiryAsked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many permanent civil servants in his Department are staff without assigned posts; and how many are placed in an equivalent (a) people action team, (b) priority movers list, (c) redeployment register, (d) talent pool and (e) skills match hub in the most recent period for which data is available.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
At any point in time, there is likely to be a small number of individuals who have been displaced due to restructures within their cost centres or, for example, have returned from a loan from another department and their role no longer exists. The exact number changes on a day-to-day basis.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in Northern Ireland on waiting times for ADHD (a) medication and (b) treatment for children.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
This Government is committed to working with the Executive to transform its public services and improve outcomes for people living in Northern Ireland, including children. That is why I and other UK Government Ministers regularly engage with Executive Ministers in Northern Ireland, including the Health Minister, to discuss plans to improve public services.
However, I also recognise that health is devolved in Northern Ireland and directly tackling waiting lists is a matter for the NI Health Minister and his department. I welcome the recent steps he has taken to improve waiting times. Improving outcomes in Northern Ireland will take time and we will continue to be an active partner and work supportively with the Executive as best we can.
Correspondence Jun. 12 2025
Committee: Northern Ireland Affairs Committee (Department: Northern Ireland Office)