Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps the Government is taking to ensure the restoration of devolved government in Northern Ireland before the UK leaves the EU; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Shailesh Vara
Following the Oral Statement on 6 September, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland set out the Government’s clear plan to bring about a restored Executive, and has been engaging regularly with the five main parties in Northern Ireland to establish the basis for moving into the next round of more formal talks.
To that end the Secretary of State met the five main Northern Ireland parties, the Irish Government and church leaders on Monday 8 October and will continue to work with all parties to bring about the devolved power-sharing Executive that we all want to see.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps she is taking to ensure the implementation of the recommendations of the Hart Report in the absence of a functioning Northern Ireland Assembly; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Shailesh Vara
Victims of historical institutional abuse have shown huge courage and dignity in their fight for truth and redress. It is important to note, however, that the Hart report was commissioned by the NI Executive, and the method of response to the recommendations should be for a restored devolved Government to decide.
I am aware that the Head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service, David Sterling, has made a commitment to have legislation to implement the recommendations of the Hart report ready to publish soon, and I am assured that Mr Sterling will take what action he feels appropriate at this stage to keep the process moving forward so that a restored Executive may be able to action this work swiftly.
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland will of course consider carefully any invitation she receives from Judge Hart or the groups that represent victims of historical institutional abuse.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what plans she has to meet with Judge Hart before Christmas to discuss the implementation of the Hart Report recommendations into historical institutional abuse in Northern Ireland; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Shailesh Vara
Victims of historical institutional abuse have shown huge courage and dignity in their fight for truth and redress. It is important to note, however, that the Hart report was commissioned by the NI Executive, and the method of response to the recommendations should be for a restored devolved Government to decide.
I am aware that the Head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service, David Sterling, has made a commitment to have legislation to implement the recommendations of the Hart report ready to publish soon, and I am assured that Mr Sterling will take what action he feels appropriate at this stage to keep the process moving forward so that a restored Executive may be able to action this work swiftly.
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland will of course consider carefully any invitation she receives from Judge Hart or the groups that represent victims of historical institutional abuse.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps she is taking to ensure that in the absence of the Northern Ireland Executive NHS staff in Northern Ireland receive pay awards equivalent to those of NHS staff in other constituent parts of the UK; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Shailesh Vara
The UK Government has made the NHS its top spending priority. The Prime Minister recently pledged an additional £20.5 billion to the NHS by 2024, which means an extra £760 million a year by 2023/34 for Northern Ireland under the Barnett formula.
In the absence of a Northern Ireland Executive, it remains for the NICS to implement the NI departmental budgetary allocations flowing from the NI Block Grant.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, for what reasons the salaries of MLAs have not been reduced; and what the timescale is for reducing those salaries.
Answered by Shailesh Vara
The Northern Ireland Assembly Members (Pay) Act 2018 enables the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland to, by way of determination, vary the pay of MLAs while the Executive is not present.
The Secretary of State has already exercised that power to halt the planned £500 MLA pay rise, and on 6 September she announced that she will, by way of determination, exercise that power again to bring forward a two stage 27.5% reduction of MLA pay. The first reduction will come into effect from November.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to the Answer of 10 July 2018 to Question 161114, what representations she has received other than in written form from political parties in Northern Ireland on the subject of cutting MLA pay; and if she will publish the substance of such representations.
Answered by Shailesh Vara
As the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland told the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee on 4 July, she has had a number of meetings with party leaders and Members of the Northern Ireland Assembly that have included discussion of MLA pay and does not feel it appropriate to make public the contents of private meetings.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, with reference to her oral contribution of 21 March 2018, Official Report, column 337, if she will publish the representations made to her by each of the main political parties on cutting MLA salaries; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Shailesh Vara
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has received no written representations from the political parties on the issue of MLA pay, and is carefully considering all the issues and will set out the next steps on this matter in due course.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, which of the Northern Ireland political parties objects to the salaries of MLA's being cut in the continued absence of a functioning Northern Ireland Assembly; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Shailesh Vara
It would be a matter for the political parties to give their public position on the issue of MLA pay.
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland is carefully considering all the issues and will set out the next steps on this matter in due course.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, with reference to the Advice to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Members of the Northern Ireland Assembly Salaries, Expenses and Allowances from Trevor Reaney, published on 20 December 2017, for what reasons she has not implemented the recommendations in that advice, and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Shailesh Vara
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has made clear that she is carefully considering all the details and will set out the next steps on this matter in due course.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to her oral contribution of 5 June 2018, Official Report, column 220, what her policy is on reform of abortion law in Northern Ireland; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Karen Bradley
Abortion is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland. I am aware of the many strongly held views across all sides of the debate on this extremely sensitive issue. My priority is to secure the restoration of devolved government in Northern Ireland, so that locally elected, democratically accountable politicians can consider changes to Northern Ireland’s abortion law, and the people of Northern Ireland can contribute to the discussions and debate.
I refer the hon Member to the statement I made by way of an Urgent Question on Thursday 7 June.