Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the level of strength and readiness of UK military forces stationed in and around the Falkland Islands; and what steps his Department is taking to ensure sufficient recruitment, retention and personnel levels to maintain the long-term defence of the Islands.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK Government is steadfast in its support for the Falkland Islanders’ right of self-determination.
The Ministry of Defence is committed to maintaining a defensive military presence in the South Atlantic to ensure the protection of the Falkland Islands. Our defences in the South Atlantic are robust, consisting of air, land, and maritime forces with a strong permanent presence on the Falkland Islands. I am confident that our military presence is at the appropriate level for the defence of the Islands, and we keep this under constant review.
The Government is focused upon improving Armed Forces recruitment, modernising and refining our policies and processes to attract the best possible talent across all roles and missions within the Armed Forces. Defence is already delivering a range of new and more flexible routes into service designed to widen participation, attract specialist talent and improve access to military careers.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of Professor Evelyn Collins CBE as Chair of the Parades Commission.
Answered by Sarah Owen - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Northern Ireland Office)
The Parades Commission performs a vital and complex quasi-judicial role in what can often be sensitive and difficult circumstances. Over the past three decades, Northern Ireland has made significant progress in easing tensions surrounding parades.
However, the recent High Court ruling has highlighted clear procedural defects. The Secretary of State met with the Commissioners on 1 September to discuss their response. Having considered it, he is satisfied that the issues raised are being taken seriously and that progress is being made.
To provide public assurance, support the Commission and ensure its operational framework is legally sound and procedurally fair, the Secretary of State has ordered an independent judge-led review into the Commission’s decision-making procedures and organisational governance.
This will strengthen the Commission’s immediate and future work. In the meantime, the current commissioners have the full backing of the Secretary of States. It is in the public interest that they continue their critical functions as we work together to restore public trust in this vital institution.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether the independent review into the Parades Commission will examine all determinations made by the Commission, not solely the 2026 Drumcree determination; and whether the review will consider procedural and decision-making issues in other parade cases.
Answered by Sarah Owen - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Northern Ireland Office)
As the Secretary of State set out in his Written Ministerial Statement of 2 September, although the terms of reference are still being finalised, the Judge-Led review will concentrate on the Commission's decision-making procedures - placing particular emphasis on ensuring that decisions are evidence-based, transparent, robust and fair in order to eradicate the procedural defects that were identified.
The legal framework of the parading sector, as set out in the Public Processions (Northern Ireland) Act 1998, remains outside the scope of this review.
Further information on the Judge-Led review will be published in due course.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether he has had recent discussions with the Northern Ireland Minister of Justice on the right to take industrial action for prison officers in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Sarah Owen - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Northern Ireland Office)
There is regular engagement with the Northern Ireland Department of Justice to discuss areas of mutual interest and concern.
As a result of the devolution of policing and justice in 2010, the Department of Justice (DoJ) is primarily responsible for the prison system in Northern Ireland. Terms and conditions for prison officers are set out in letters of appointment, the Northern Ireland Prison Service (NIPS) Professional Code of Ethics and Values and the NIPS Professional Code of Conduct, the Northern Ireland Civil Service Handbook and relevant Prison Service notices and circulars.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has held recent discussions with the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums on alternative feed sources for captive birds of prey and reptiles.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra officials routinely meet the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums and a range of subjects are discussed.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much public funding has been provided to InterTradeIreland in each financial year since 2020; from which departmental budget that funding has been allocated; and what the stated purpose of that funding is.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Responsibility for the funding and oversight of InterTradeIreland sits with the Northern Ireland Executive. Information on funding provided to InterTradeIreland should be sought from the relevant Northern Ireland Executive department.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the monetary value of trade between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom in each year since 2020; and if she will provide a breakdown of that trade by movements from Great Britain to Northern Ireland and from Northern Ireland to Great Britain, including goods and services.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with HM Treasury)
HMRC does not hold all the data requested. HMRC has published management information for 2021 to 2024 on goods moving into Northern Ireland from Great Britain:
To note: the total value published for 2022 was revised from ÂŁ14.1 billion to ÂŁ14.2 billion with the release of the 2023 data.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many supplementary declarations have been submitted to HMRC since 1 January 2021.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with HM Treasury)
The total number of supplementary customs declarations for international trade in goods that were submitted to HMRC and cleared between 2021 and 2025 was 264 million.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of trends in the value of trade between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland in each year since 2020; and if she will provide a breakdown of that trade by imports, exports, goods and services.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with HM Treasury)
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is responsible for the collection and publication of data on imports and exports of goods to and from the UK including published statistics on goods between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
HMRC releases this information quarterly, as an Accredited National Statistic called the UK Regional Trade in Goods Statistics (RTS), which is available via their dedicated website (www.uktradeinfo.com). From this website, it is possible to build your own data tables based upon bespoke search criteria.
If you need help or support in constructing a table from the data on uktradeinfo, please contact [email protected]. HMRC is only responsible for the collection and publication of data on imports and exports of goods, therefore we do not hold data on the supply of services moving between Northern Ireland and Ireland.
Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how much funding has been allocated to Intertrade UK since its establishment; from which departmental budget that funding has been provided; and what that funding is intended to support.
Answered by Hilary Benn
The UK Government provided Intertrade UK with ÂŁ2.25m funding as part of the wider ÂŁ16.6m Internal Market Package at Autumn Budget 2025. The funding allocation is split evenly over three financial years, commencing in 2026/2027.
Intertrade UK was established by the UK Government to advise on and promote trade across the UK’s internal market. The funding has been provided to enable Intertrade UK to deliver on its published work programme which can be viewed here.