Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in the light of the report by KPMG Illicit cigarette consumption in Europe, published on 11 June, what steps they are taking towards countering illicit cigarette consumption and the rise of counterfeit and non-duty-paid goods entering the UK market.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government has dedicated significant resource to tackling illicit tobacco and has set out its approach to doing so in successive strategies dating back to 2000. These strategies have been highly effective in reducing the estimated duty gap for cigarettes from 16.9% in 2005 to 10.5% in 2023/24 and for hand-rolling tobacco from 65.2% to 22.9% over the same period.
HMRC publishes annual data on seizures, criminal investigations and civil penalties related to tobacco. Between April 2023 and March 2024, HMRC and Border Force seized 1.36bn cigarettes and 92,435kg of hand-rolling tobacco.
In January 2024, HMRC and Border Force published the latest illicit tobacco strategy, ‘Stubbing Out the Problem’, setting out a continued commitment to reduce the trade in illicit tobacco with a focus on reducing demand, and to tackle and disrupt the organised crime groups behind the illicit tobacco trade. [1] The strategy was supported by £100 million of new smokefree funding over 5 years to boost existing HMRC and Border Force enforcement capability.
[1] Stubbing out the problem: A new strategy to tackle illicit tobacco - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they will announce the independent expert who will scope out the viability of a transition process within the remit of the Independent Reporting Commission.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland expects to be in a position to make an announcement on this appointment in the near future.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the 6 per cent levy on international student fees referred to in the Restoring control over the immigration system White Paper, published on 12 May, applies only to England or to the whole of the UK.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The immigration white paper sets out a series of measures that will achieve a reduction in net migration, while maintaining the UK’s globally competitive offer to international students and making a significant contribution to growth by boosting our skills base. This includes the commitment to explore the introduction of a levy on higher education (HE) provider income from international students, with proceeds to be reinvested in the domestic HE and skills system. We will set out more details around this in the Autumn Budget.
Analysis provided in the technical annex that accompanies the immigration white paper shows the potential impact of a 6% levy. This analysis is for illustrative purposes and is based on the levy applying to English HE providers only; education policy is devolved. We will fully consult all the devolved governments on the implementation of the international student levy and work with them on proposals.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions if any they had with the government of Ireland about the Omagh Bombing Inquiry at the British–Irish Intergovernmental Conference on 24 April.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government has the deepest sympathy for all of those affected by the Omagh bomb in August 1998. It was a terrible atrocity committed by the Real IRA at a time when the people of Northern Ireland were looking to a future without violence, and it caused immeasurable suffering to the families who lost loved ones and to those who were injured.
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has welcomed the Irish Government's public commitment to cooperate with the Omagh Bombing Inquiry, as outlined in the memorandum of understanding signed directly between the Inquiry and the Irish Government.
At the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference on 24 April, the Government and the Government of Ireland discussed Legacy issues, including the Omagh Inquiry, and the need for clear reciprocal commitments by the UK Government and the Government of Ireland. Ultimately, securing the confidence of victims, survivors, and families will remain at the heart of the work of both Governments.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the RetailNI survey results published in February which show that 74 per cent of the businesses surveyed expect to reduce the number of employees and other staff following the increase in employer National Insurance contributions and minimum wage.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Raising the revenue required to fix the public finances and rebuild public services has required difficult decisions on tax, which has meant asking some employers to contribute more.
The Government has protected the smallest employers by increasing the Employment Allowance to £10,500. This means that next year, 865,000 employers will pay no NICs at all and more than half of employers will see no change or will gain overall from this package.
The National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates are set on the independent and expert advice of the Low Pay Commission (LPC). The LPC has representatives from business, employee, and academic communities, and through their social partnership model reaches a consensus agreement on the rates. By seeking advice from the LPC when setting the minimum wage rates, the Government is able to ensure that the right balance is struck between the needs of workers, affordability for businesses and the impact on the economy.
Wider business support is devolved in Northern Ireland and is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Executive. The Northern Ireland Executive’s Spending Review settlement for 2025-26 is the largest in real terms of any settlement since devolution and they receive over 24% more funding per person than equivalent UK Government spending in the rest of the UK, including the 2024 restoration financial package.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the RetailNI survey results published in February which show that 86 per cent of the businesses surveyed expect to cancel expansion plans following the increase in employer National Insurance contributions and minimum wage.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Raising the revenue required to fix the public finances and rebuild public services has required difficult decisions on tax, which has meant asking some employers to contribute more.
The Government has protected the smallest employers by increasing the Employment Allowance to £10,500. This means that next year, 865,000 employers will pay no NICs at all and more than half of employers will see no change or will gain overall from this package.
The National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates are set on the independent and expert advice of the Low Pay Commission (LPC). The LPC has representatives from business, employee, and academic communities, and through their social partnership model reaches a consensus agreement on the rates. By seeking advice from the LPC when setting the minimum wage rates, the Government is able to ensure that the right balance is struck between the needs of workers, affordability for businesses and the impact on the economy.
Wider business support is devolved in Northern Ireland and is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Executive. The Northern Ireland Executive’s Spending Review settlement for 2025-26 is the largest in real terms of any settlement since devolution and they receive over 24% more funding per person than equivalent UK Government spending in the rest of the UK, including the 2024 restoration financial package.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many prosecutions there have been under section 1 of the Terrorism Act 2006; and how many of those have resulted in conviction.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice publishes data on prosecutions and convictions at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, including under section 1 of the Terrorism Act 2006. They can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics, using HO offence code 06653.
The following table provides the number of prosecutions and convictions from 2015 to 30 June 2024 (latest available data) for ‘Publishing or causing another to publish a statement intending or recklessly encouraging terrorism’:
| 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | Jan-Jun 2024 |
Proceeded against | 2 | 4 | 11 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 8 | 2 |
Convicted | 2 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 |
Source: Court Proceeding Database
Notes:
Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.
These figures are presented on a principal offence basis - i.e. reporting information relating to the most serious offence that a defendant was dealt with for. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.
Offences dealt with at magistrates’ court and subsequently committed to the Crown Court for trial or sentence are counted separately at each stage of the process, based on the year in which they receive an outcome at each respective court. For example, an offence committed from the magistrates’ court in 2022 may not receive a final outcome at the Crown Court until a subsequent year, meaning the prosecution and conviction are counted separately in different years. As a result, the number of convictions (or other outcomes) in a given year may exceed the number of prosecutions. Similarly, an offence convicted in one year may be sentenced the following year, meaning that the number of sentences issued may not match the number of convictions in any given year.
Additionally, more offences can be added to the indictment at the Crown Court after committal, meaning the number of outcomes at Crown Court for a given offence could exceed those at magistrates' court. A defendant may also be dealt with for a different offence at the Crown Court than for which they were originally proceeded against at magistrates’ court. For example, an individual initially prosecuted for murder may be convicted at Crown Court for manslaughter. This could also result in the total outcomes for a given offence exceeding the original number of prosecutions.
It is not advised to use this data to calculate conviction rate (the number of convictions as a proportion of the number of prosecutions). This is due to the Court Proceedings Database counting two separate records at two separate stages (one for prosecution, one for conviction). We cannot track the defendant throughout their court journey and an individual may appear at each court in separate years, or for a different principal offence at different stages. As a result, this rate is not an accurate measure of the proportion of prosecutions that result in a conviction.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government how it is envisaged that the new National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority will work with the devolved Administration in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) will have a role in relation to non-devolved UK government infrastructure responsibilities in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. NISTA will engage closely with Devolved Administrations and bodies under their jurisdictions as appropriate, particularly on matters where the respective infrastructure policy responsibilities of the UK government and devolved administrations interact.
As announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 10 October NISTA will combine the functions of the National Infrastructure Commission and Infrastructure and Projects Authority. NISTA will drive effective delivery of infrastructure across the country.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 5 November (HL1933), why they do not intend to repeal section 10(1)(b) of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, despite the commitment set in the Safeguarding the Union Command Paper (CP1021)
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government is committed to taking all necessary steps to protect the UK internal market while implementing the Windsor Framework in good faith, including having regard to all aspects of the Northern Ireland economy.
Section 10(1)(b) refers to the Joint Report between the UK and EU negotiators of October 2017, which makes reference, among other things, to the all-island economy. The all-island economy is a fact and greatly to the benefit of businesses and people in Northern Ireland, as is Northern Ireland’s trade within the UK internal market.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much revenue has been generated from charging Irish operators using the red lane through Northern Ireland ports, as set out in paragraph 132 of the Safeguarding the Union Command Paper (CP1021).
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is committed to ensuring the smooth flow of trade between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Charging arrangements for Irish operators using the red lane are not currently in place, the new Government are looking into this matter and will provide an update in due course.