Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether he plans to meet businesses affected by recent flooding in (a) Newry and (b) Downpatrick.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris
The floods that occurred have been devastating for those that have suffered the destruction of their homes and businesses. Both Lord Caine and I have separately visited affected areas over the past few days.
In the absence of the Executive, which could have acted swiftly, the UK Government will make available up to £15m of support through the reallocation of existing Northern Ireland funding. This will help with clean-up costs and support businesses to resume trading.
We will continue to work closely with the NI Civil Service and local councils to ensure that support gets to those who need it as quickly as possible.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will hold discussions with the Department for Communities on the adequacy of Local Housing Allowance rates in Northern Ireland in the context of recent trends in the level of rental costs.
Answered by Steve Baker
Housing is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland. The Northern Ireland Housing Executive reviews Local Housing Allowance rates and sets rent levels annually. Local Housing Allowance rates are based on rents and limited by legislation. It is for the Northern Ireland Housing Executive to provide information regarding Local Housing Allowance rates.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will hold discussions with the Department of Infrastructure on the continuation of funding to Lagan Valley Regional Park.
Answered by Steve Baker
Planning and environmental issues are devolved matters in Northern Ireland. In the absence of a Northern Ireland Executive and Ministers, it is for the Northern Ireland Department for Infrastructure to decide on the continuation of funding to Lagan Valley Regional Park and other spending decisions flowing from the 2023-24 budget allocation for the Department for Infrastructure.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will hold discussions with Departments in Northern Ireland on the potential (a) ecological, (b) environmental and (c) health impacts of conditions at Lough Neagh.
Answered by Steve Baker
Environmental matters including conditions at Lough Neagh are devolved. In the absence of a Northern Ireland Executive and Ministers, it is for the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs to work with the Northern Ireland Environment Agency on this matter.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether his Department has made a recent assessment of the effectiveness of the Lagan Valley Regional Park for managing the area surrounding the River Lagan.
Answered by Steve Baker
Planning and environmental issues are devolved matters in Northern Ireland. In the absence of a Northern Ireland Executive and Ministers, it is for the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs and the Department for Infrastructure to work with Belfast City Council and Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council, to assess the effectiveness of the Lagan Valley Regional Park in managing the area surrounding the River Lagan and making any necessary improvements.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the level of funding for the Department of Health in Northern Ireland to help tackle waiting lists.
Answered by Steve Baker
The Secretary of State and his officials engaged intensively with the Northern Ireland Civil Service to set the Northern Ireland Budget for the 2022-2023 and 2023-24 financial years. The Secretary of State has consistently prioritised funding for health, allocating £7.28 billion in 2022/23 to the Department of Health, representing an increase of £228m above 2021/22 spending which included significant COVID-19 funding, and £7.3 billion in 2024-2-25, an increase of £20 million above 2022/23. In the absence of an Executive, it is for each Northern Ireland department to manage its funding from within the allocated budget.
Whilst the Secretary of State has taken action to ensure governance can continue, including through setting two Northern Ireland budgets, this position is not sustainable. The Secretary of State has used his powers in the Northern Ireland (Interim Arrangements) Act 2023 to commission advice from the Northern Ireland Civil Service on the options for budget sustainability including options to raise additional revenue which is needed to progress much needed and long-promised public service transformation. It remains the UK Government’s firm view that the right people to set a budget and make spending decisions are locally elected politicians in a fully functioning devolved administration.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will bring forward proposals to permit the use of Kuvan for people with Phenylketonuria in Northern Ireland aged 21 and above.
Answered by Steve Baker
The use of Kuvan for people with Phenylketonuria in Northern Ireland is a matter for the Northern Ireland Department of Health.
The Northern Ireland Executive Formation etc. Act 2022 and subsequent Northern Ireland Interim Arrangements Act 2023 make powers available to Northern Ireland Departments to take decisions to maintain the delivery of public services in the absence of Northern Ireland Ministers and a Northern Ireland Executive.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the funding per pupil is for state schools in Northern Ireland; and what comparison he has made with such funding in each of the other nations of the UK.
Answered by Steve Baker
The education of young people is valued very highly across the UK, including in Northern Ireland. An Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) report published on 21 April this year identified spending per pupil across the UK in 2022-23 as follows: England, Wales, and Northern Ireland - approximately £7,200, Scotland - over £8,500.
The report found that spending per pupil in Northern Ireland has grown by 11% in real terms between 2018-19 and 2022-23 after falling for almost a decade.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether his Department issued guidance to Northern Ireland departments on the management of the changes in the levels of funding set out in the Northern Ireland Budget Act 2023.
Answered by Steve Baker
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and his officials engaged intensively with the Northern Ireland Civil Service to set the Northern Ireland Budget for the 2022-23 financial year.
Guidance intended to support Northern Ireland departments in taking decisions in the absence of a functioning Northern Ireland Executive was published alongside the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc.) Act 2022. In the absence of an Executive, it is for each Northern Ireland department to manage its funding from within the allocated budget.
However, it remains the UK Government’s firm view that the right people to set a budget and make spending decisions are locally elected politicians in a fully functioning devolved administration.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps his Department took to ensure the equality impact assessment requirement under Schedule 9(4)(2)(b) of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 was carried out for the Northern Ireland Budget Act 2023.
Answered by Steve Baker
Northern Ireland departments completed indicative assessments with regard to the Section 75 statutory equality duty under the Northern Ireland Act 1998 as part of the 2022-23 budget setting process which informed the budget allocations placed on a statutory footing through the Northern Ireland Budget Act 2023.
It was the responsibility of the Northern Ireland departments to consider what further equality impact assessments were required in accordance with the statutory equality duty under the Northern Ireland Act 1998 on the spending decisions which were needed to live within their final budget allocations.