Asked by: Ivan Lewis (Independent - Bury South)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment she has made of the potential effect in Northern Ireland of welfare reform measures announced in the Queen's Speech in May 2015.
Answered by Theresa Villiers
Welfare reform is a devolved matter and is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Executive. However, the UK Government believes that Northern Ireland would benefit from agreement by the Executive to replace the current welfare system with one that rewards work, protects the vulnerable and is fairer to taxpayers, as we have done in Great Britain.
Asked by: Ivan Lewis (Independent - Bury South)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment she has made of the potential effects of policy announcements made in the Queen's Speech in May 2015 on child poverty in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Theresa Villiers
Tackling child poverty is a devolved issue. However, this government’s commitment to raise the personal allowance to £12,500 alongside measures to ensure that anyone who works for more than 30 hours on the national minimum wage is taken out of tax altogether will benefit those families most at risk from child poverty. The Government also believes that the introduction of welfare reform in Northern Ireland will help tackle child poverty by ensuring through Universal Credit, that work always pays.
Asked by: Ivan Lewis (Independent - Bury South)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent assessment she has made of progress in closing the gender pay gap in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Theresa Villiers
In recent years the pay gap in Northern Ireland has continued to narrow. In Northern Ireland tackling the gender pay gap is mainly the responsibility of Northern Ireland Executive Ministers but the Government is also playing its part.
The gender pay gap in the UK has fallen to its lowest level ever and has been virtually eliminated among full-time workers under the age of 40, but our goal must be to eliminate it and as the Conservative Manifesto states, “we will push business to do so.” The Government is tackling systemic pay inequalities through a range of measures including extending flexible working and introducing shared parental leave.
The Conservative Manifesto makes clear this Government’s commitment to “full, genuine gender equality” and states that “we will to require companies with more than 250 employees to publish the difference between the average pay of their male and female employees.”
Asked by: Ivan Lewis (Independent - Bury South)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps her Department is taking to tackle the gender pay gap in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Theresa Villiers
In recent years the pay gap in Northern Ireland has continued to narrow. In Northern Ireland tackling the gender pay gap is mainly the responsibility of Northern Ireland Executive Ministers but the Government is also playing its part.
The gender pay gap in the UK has fallen to its lowest level ever and has been virtually eliminated among full-time workers under the age of 40, but our goal must be to eliminate it and as the Conservative Manifesto states, “we will push business to do so.” The Government is tackling systemic pay inequalities through a range of measures including extending flexible working and introducing shared parental leave.
The Conservative Manifesto makes clear this Government’s commitment to “full, genuine gender equality” and states that “we will to require companies with more than 250 employees to publish the difference between the average pay of their male and female employees.”
Asked by: Ivan Lewis (Independent - Bury South)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent discussions she has held with the Irish government on the potential implications of the European Union (Referendum) Bill on Northern Ireland.
Answered by Theresa Villiers
I regularly hold discussions with the Irish Government on a range of issues, including the UK Government’s approach to the EU and the forthcoming referendum.
Asked by: Ivan Lewis (Independent - Bury South)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment she has made of changes in technological skills and capacity of dissident republican groups and their potential effect on the peace process.
Answered by Theresa Villiers
The threat from Northern Ireland Related Terrorism remains severe. Dissident Republican groupings retain lethal intent and capability. The threat is being suppressed but the need for total vigilance remains. As we made clear in our Northern Ireland manifesto at the election we will always give the fullest possible backing to the brave men and women of the PSNI and MI5 who do such a superb job. Under this Government there will be no let-up in our efforts to ensure that terrorism never succeeds.
Asked by: Ivan Lewis (Independent - Bury South)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions she has had with Invest NI on the potential implications of the European Union (Referendum) Bill on investment to Northern Ireland.
Answered by Theresa Villiers
The Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Northern Ireland recently met the Chief Executive of Invest NI and discussed a range of issues in relation to the Northern Ireland economy, including foreign direct investment. I last met the Chief Executive when he and I took part in a seminar at the Japanese Embassy last week to promote investment in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Ivan Lewis (Independent - Bury South)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps she is taking to bring forward legislative proposals to implement the Stormont House Agreement.
Answered by Theresa Villiers
As announced by Her Majesty The Queen on 27 May 2015, legislation will be brought forward in this Parliament giving effect to the Stormont House Agreement in Northern Ireland. The Northern Ireland (Stormont House Agreement) Bill will establish the Historical Investigations Unit, and an Oral History Archive. My officials are working with officials from the devolved administration on various aspects of the Bill.
The Bill will also provide for the Independent Commission for Information Retrieval which is to be established by an international agreement between the UK and Irish Governments. The Bill represents an important step forward towards recognising the needs of victims and putting in place new mechanisms to help Northern Ireland deal with its past.