Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps his Department has taken to encourage international companies to (a) invest and (b) base themselves in Northern Ireland in the last six months.
Answered by Steve Baker
International investment makes an important contribution towards Northern Ireland's prosperity.
The Northern Ireland Investment Summit, led by the Department for Business and Trade in partnership with the Northern Ireland Office and Invest NI, welcomed over 180 global investors to the region in September. The Summit showcased Northern Ireland’s innovation, sector strengths and opportunities for inward investment to a truly global audience.
We are already seeing new international investment in Northern Ireland’s key growth sectors as a result, along with established companies already based in Northern Ireland announcing that they will be expanding their operations in the region.
My Department continues to work closely with the Department for Business and Trade to maximise opportunities to encourage investment. I attended the Global Investment Summit that the UK hosted in November and met with many businesses interested in setting and scaling up in the UK. My clear message to them was that Northern Ireland within the United Kingdom has all of the right ingredients for economic success: exceptional talent, unique opportunities, a tradition of creativity and a healthy spirit of private sector entrepreneurship.
A key factor for international investment is of course business certainty. We thus welcome the restoration of devolved governance in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in Northern Ireland on trends in the number of barristers working in Northern Ireland since 2019.
Answered by Steve Baker
This is a devolved matter for the Northern Ireland Department of Justice. The Secretary of State has had no recent discussions on this issue.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether he has had recent discussions with the PSNI on the time taken to issue firearms licenses in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Steve Baker
The issuing of firearms licences is a devolved matter overseen by the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland. The Secretary of State has a limited role relating to certain appeals against the decision of the Chief Constable not to issue firearms licences. He has not been involved in any recent discussions with the PSNI on this issue, however, Northern Ireland Office officials engage with PSNI colleagues on a regular basis. The Hon Member will know that Northern Ireland Office ministers are not an alternative to functioning devolved government and I hope he will use his considerable influence to promote the restoration of a Northern Ireland Executive so that matters such as this may be dealt with in the proper manner.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of his Department adopting the British Standard on Menstruation, menstrual health, and menopause in the workplace (BS 30416:2023), published in June 2023.
Answered by Steve Baker
The Northern Ireland Office follows the Ministry of Justice Corporate policies which adhere to the Civil Service HR's wider model.
This Department is committed to providing an inclusive and supportive working environment where all employees are treated fairly, with dignity, respect and understanding, and their health and wellbeing is fully supported.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions he has had with representatives of the Northern Ireland Administration on a strategy on ending violence against women and girls.
Answered by Steve Baker
The Secretary of State recently visited the Women’s Aid Federation NI in Belfast as part of the 16 Days of Action against gender-based violence, to hear about this important issue.
It is disappointing that Northern Ireland remains the only region of the UK without a dedicated strategy to tackle violence against women and girls. The UK Government notes the significant work currently underway in the Executive Office to develop a Strategic Framework to End Violence Against Women and Girls. It is vital that the Northern Ireland Executive is restored to approve and implement this strategy.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what information his Department holds on the number of incidents of violence against shop workers in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.
Answered by Steve Baker
The Department does not hold this information.
Following the devolution of policing and justice in April 2010, the majority of statutory functions relating to justice matters were transferred to the Department of Justice.
Due to the current political situation in Northern Ireland, there is no Justice Minister currently in place. In the absence of a Minister, responsibility for Department of Justice matters sits with the Permanent Under Secretary of the Department of Justice to whom the Honourable Member may wish to write to on this matter.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to provide funding for the installation of the Northern Ireland Centenary Stone.
Answered by Steve Baker
The UK Government provided £3m of New Decade, New Approach funding to support the marking of the 2021 Centenary. This UK Government funding was used to successfully deliver a wide-ranging programme of events that reflected on Northern Ireland’s history, on the people, and showcased what makes Northern Ireland a great place to live.
The installation and funding of a Centenary Stone is a devolved matter and one which should be decided by a restored functioning Northern Ireland Executive.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment the Government has made of the potential implications for its policies of differences between duty free arrangements for people in (a) England, Scotland and Wales and (b) Northern Ireland.
Answered by Steve Baker
The Government is committed to preserving frictionless movement of people and goods between Northern Ireland and Ireland, which is a member of the EU.
Allowing duty-free shopping between the two would require introducing border controls between Northern Ireland and Ireland which risks undermining the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement. It could also lead to significant revenue loss for both the UK and the EU.
Airports in Great Britain have extended duty-free shopping to EU destinations. However, to do so in Northern Ireland would allow goods such as alcohol and cigarettes to be bought duty-free in Northern Ireland and then sold in Ireland, or brought overland to Northern Ireland without paying duties.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will take steps to (a) reduce the variation and (b) improve outcomes in the management of anticoagulant-associated bleeds between Health and Social Care Trusts in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Steve Baker
The management of anticoagulant-associated bleeds between Health and Social Care Trusts in Northern Ireland is a matter for the Department of Health and the Health Trusts in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many patients were admitted to hospital for (a) upper and (b) lower gastrointestinal haemorrhages in (i) Strangford constituency and (ii) Northern Ireland in each year since 2019.
Answered by Steve Baker
The release of statistics in relation to hospital admissions in Northern Ireland is a matter for the Northern Ireland Department of Health.