Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to change by legislation any age-based legal entitlements other than voting age.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government committed in its manifesto to increasing the engagement of young people in our vibrant democracy, by giving 16- and 17-year-olds the right to vote in all UK elections – and we are intent on delivering on that promise.
We want to build and encourage long-lasting engagement with our democracy. Early engagement by younger voters will build the foundations for their lifetime participation in our electoral processes. Lowering the voting age will enable 16- and 17-year-olds in England and Northern Ireland to join their peers in Scotland and Wales, who are already able to vote in local and devolved elections.
As outlined in the recently published ‘Restoring trust in our democracy: Our strategy for modern and secure elections’, once registered, 16- and 17-year-olds will have the same rights as any other voters.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the integrity of elections carried out without the requirement for photographic voter identification.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Legitimate electors should not be prevented from voting and we are committed to ensuring that everyone eligible is able and encouraged to do so. We believe it is appropriate to retain the requirement to show ID to protect our electors from the risk of personation, but the current rules are too restrictive.
Allowing the use of UK issued bank cards will improve the policy by increasing accessibility and ease for legitimate electors to prove their identity, while maintaining a proportionate and secure ID check. UK banks conduct a range of rigorous identity verification and anti-money laundering processes before opening bank accounts for their clients and issuing bank cards.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what further measures they are taking to combat antisemitism.
Answered by Lord Khan of Burnley
Antisemitism has absolutely no place in our society, and tackling antisemitism in all its forms is a top priority for this Government. We are working closely with Lord John Mann as HMG’s Independent Adviser on Antisemitism on the most effective methods to tackle antisemitism and advocate for British Jewish communities. We will ensure that the Jewish communities concerns about antisemitism are heard and acted upon.
This Government has also allocated further funding of £54m for the Community Security Trust to enable them to continue their vital work in protecting UK Jewish communities until 2028.
Tackling hate crime will be a key part of this Government’s work to overcome divisions and create connections between all communities, and we are exploring a more integrated and cohesive approach to achieve this.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the current scale of antisemitic activity and incidents in the UK.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Shadow Minister (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government why Northern Ireland has been excluded from the Community Engagement Principles for countering extremism.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Shadow Minister (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Engagement undertaken in Northern Ireland is exempt from the engagement principles to reflect the unique political and historical circumstances in that country. The engagement principles do not apply to the engagement undertaken by the devolved administrations themselves.
The UK Government is in regular contact with the administrations in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they will take to ensure the implementation and application of the definition of extremism is consistent across all (1) Government departments, and (2) public bodies throughout England.
Answered by Baroness Swinburne
As I set out in the debate of Tuesday 19 March, the updated definition, and accompanying set of engagement principles, apply to engagement undertaken in England, Scotland, and Wales by UK Government ministerial departments to ensure they are not inadvertently providing a platform, funding or legitimacy to groups, organisations or individuals who attempt to advance extremist ideologies. Further guidance on the definition and engagement principles will be published in the coming months.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what the difference was in circumstances between the announcement of Round 2 of Levelling Up Funding in the Spring Statement on 23 March 2022, and the announcement of Round 3 of Funding, with regard to the exclusion of allocations of funding for Northern Ireland, given that there was no functioning devolved government on either occasion.
Answered by Baroness Penn
In Northern Ireland, the Government is not proceeding with this round of the Levelling Up Fund at this time. In the context of the growing pressure on NI budgets it is right that UK Government should consider its approach to funding available for NI in the round. £30 million has been reserved for Northern Ireland from LUF 3. As part of our commitment to levelling up, we want to work with a restored Executive to find the best approach to supporting people in Northern Ireland, taking account of current budget pressures.
We will continue to work closely with projects and places in Northern Ireland that were awarded a total of £120 million in the first two rounds of the Fund and work with stakeholders on how best to level up communities in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what are the Barnett consequentials for Northern Ireland for the levelling up funding that was announced for 55 towns.
Answered by Baroness Swinburne
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what criteria they used when selecting the 55 towns that received levelling up funding.
Answered by Baroness Swinburne
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they are supporting and strengthening the Union of the United Kingdom; and how much was spent on projects for that purpose in each of the last three years.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Shadow Minister (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We are committed to protecting and promoting our combined strengths and common values, ensuring our institutions deliver for people across the UK.
Through the £4.8 billion Levelling Up Fund, the £220 million Community Ownership Fund and the £2.6 billion UK Shared Prosperity Fund, the UK Government is delivering investment to regenerate our town centres and high streets, improve local transport links and invest in local culture.