Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer given by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 5 November (HL11229), what advice they have received from the European Court of Human Rights regarding the current status of the Republic of Ireland's interstate case against the United Kingdom; and what plans they have to propose that the government of Ireland withdraw the case at the 1545th meeting of the Ministers' Deputies at the Council of Europe in December.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Ireland v. the United Kingdom (III) at the European Court of Human Rights has not progressed beyond preliminary stages since it was lodged by Ireland in January 2024. On 2 July 2025, the United Kingdom received correspondence from the Court to confirm that it had adjourned its proceedings pending the final outcome of the ongoing domestic proceedings for judicial review in the case Dillon and Others, which is currently awaiting judgment by the United Kingdom Supreme Court.
The withdrawal of the case is a matter for the Irish Government. The UK Government is clear that the implementation of the Troubles Bill, which seeks to fulfil long standing commitments made by this Government, will mean that the basis for any interstate case will fall away.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to appoint anyone with a paramilitary background to the proposed legacy commission.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Northern Ireland Troubles Bill already sets out that a person may not be appointed as a Commissioner, a Director of Investigations or a Judicial Panel member if they have been convicted of an offence. The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland therefore cannot, and will not, appoint anyone to the Commission who has been convicted of an offence, related to paramilitary activity or otherwise.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to the Answer of 17 November 2025 to Question 90013 on UK Internal Trade, with reference to the Windsor Framework Independent Monitory Panel Report on the first reporting period for the UK Internal Market Guarantee for 1 January - 30 June 2025, what proportion of the 96% movements by value moved without the payment of a duty (a) were made in compliance with (i) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2023/1128 of 24 March 2023 and (ii) Regulation (EU) 2023/1231 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 June 2023 and (b) were made under the full EU Customs Code, Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 October 2013.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The role of the Independent Monitoring Panel does not cover reporting on the legislative basis under which movements between Great Britain and Northern Ireland take place.
Asked by: Julian Lewis (Conservative - New Forest East)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of removing immunity from prosecution of perpetrators of crimes during the Troubles on their likelihood of (a) giving and (b) withholding testimony about unsolved murders of which they have knowledge; and what the evidence basis is for that assessment.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The provisions in the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023 on immunity were found to be incompatible with our human rights obligations and never commenced. Those provisions were, in any case, opposed by political parties, by victims and survivors across communities in Northern Ireland, and by those veterans who saw immunity as an affront to the rule of law that they sought to protect, and as implying a moral equivalence between those who served the State in Northern Ireland and those who committed heinous terrorist crimes.
The Northern Ireland Troubles Bill will provide victims and families with the greatest possible opportunity to obtain the information they seek regarding Troubles-related incidents. The Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery already has significant powers, including powers to require disclosure from state bodies (that will, of course, include significant records pertaining to the actions of terrorist organisations), and the power to compel witnesses.
It is using those powers as part of its ongoing investigations into cases such as the Guildford Pub Bombings, the M62 Coach Bombings, and the Warrenpoint attack. All of these incidents were perpetrated by the IRA, and the ICRIR is seeking to provide answers for bereaved families of service personnel who were brutally murdered in those attacks.
Building on these powers, the Troubles Bill introduces provisions to further enhance the Commission’s investigative functions, and to further strengthen the disclosure regime to ensure that it is fair and transparent, and allows the greatest possible amount of information to be published, within the necessary safeguards of national security. This will be supported by the Irish Government’s commitment to provide the fullest possible cooperation of the Irish authorities with a reformed Commission, giving access to information for families that would otherwise not be available.
Furthermore, the Troubles Bill sets out that the Government will establish, alongside the Irish Government and on a pilot basis, the Independent Commission on Information Retrieval. This will be an international body that will seek to give families an additional means to retrieve information about Troubles-related deaths. Any information disclosed by individuals to the ICIR will be inadmissible in criminal and civil proceedings. The work of the ICIR must not impinge on criminal investigations.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, with reference to the assurances he gave during his opening speech at the Second Reading of the Northern Ireland Troubles Bill, that nobody who had taken part in paramilitary activity would be able to participate in the Victims and Survivors Advisory Group, what clause within the Bill underpins those assurances.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Clause 8(3) of the Northern Ireland Troubles Bill sets out that appointments to the Victims and Survivors Advisory Group are made by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, following the consultation set out in Clause 9.
The Government will not appoint anyone who was previously involved in paramilitary activity to the Victims and Survivors Advisory Group.
Asked by: Jess Asato (Labour - Lowestoft)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether his Department has (a) implemented a domestic abuse policy for staff and (b) trained line managers to effectively respond to staff who are experiencing domestic abuse.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Northern Ireland Office (NIO) follows the Ministry of Justice for its HR policies. The MoJ published updated domestic abuse guidance and support on their intranet in August 2025, helping staff and managers assess safety concerns, and providing information on how best to support individuals and teams. This guidance is readily accessible to all staff in the NIO alongside a range of wellbeing support.
Asked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps he is taking to replace the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
I introduced the Northern Ireland Troubles Bill on 14 October – a significant step in fulfilling our commitment to repeal and replace the Legacy Act.
The Bill received its Second Reading yesterday, and I look forward to continued debate and scrutiny as it progresses through Parliament.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps he is taking to replace the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
I introduced the Northern Ireland Troubles Bill on 14 October – a significant step in fulfilling our commitment to repeal and replace the Legacy Act.
The Bill received its Second Reading yesterday, and I look forward to continued debate and scrutiny as it progresses through Parliament.
Asked by: John Slinger (Labour - Rugby)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the UK's membership of the European Convention on Human Rights on the Good Friday Agreement.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The UK is a proud signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights which underpins many international agreements on trade, security and migration, as well as the Good Friday Agreement.
That Agreement also required domestic incorporation of the ECHR into Northern Ireland law which was enacted through the Human Rights Act 1998.
Asked by: Warinder Juss (Labour - Wolverhampton West)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the UK's membership of the European Convention on Human Rights on the Good Friday Agreement.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The UK is a proud signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights which underpins many international agreements on trade, security and migration, as well as the Good Friday Agreement.
That Agreement also required domestic incorporation of the ECHR into Northern Ireland law which was enacted through the Human Rights Act 1998.