Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 3 July 2017 to Question 2657, on the Democratic Unionist Party, if he will publish the names of those hon. Members who attend each meeting of the Coordination Committee; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Damian Green
Pursuant to the Answer of 3 July 2017 to Question 2657, the modus operandi of the coordination committee will be agreed between the Conservative party and the Democratic Unionist party.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the (a) composition and (b) frequency of meetings is of the Co-ordination Committee agreed to be established on 26 June 2017 in the confidence and supply deal agreed between the Democratic Unionist Party and the Government; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Damian Green
The modus operandi of the coordination committee will be agreed between the Conservative party and the Democratic Unionist party. It will be attended by members of the Conservative Party and the DUP to support the agreement made between the two parties.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the constitutional status of the Co-ordination Committee to be established between the Government and the Democratic Unionist Party in accordance with the deal agreed between them on 26 June 2017; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Damian Green
The Coordination Committee will be established to support the political agreement made between the Conservative party and the Democratic Unionist party.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will extend the membership of the Coordination Committee to be established between the Government and the Democratic Unionist Party to the hon. Member for North Down.
Answered by Damian Green
The modus operandi of the coordination committee will need to be agreed between the Conservative party and the Democratic Unionist party. It will be attended by members of the Conservative Party and the DUP to support the agreement made between the two parties.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether ending the anonymity of political donations to parties in Northern Ireland was discussed with the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) before the deal was signed between the Government and the DUP on 26 June 2017; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Damian Green
The terms of the deal between the Conservative party and the DUP have been set out in the agreement.
The rules about transparency of political donations are set out in the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000. The Government intends to bring forward legislation to extend transparency that already exists for political parties in Great Britain to also cover donations and loans received by Northern Ireland parties on or after 1 July 2017.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Prime Minister, when she next plans to visit Northern Ireland; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Theresa May
I visit all parts of the United Kingdom regularly. Details of my visits within the United Kingdom are published on the gov.uk website.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Prime Minister, whether she plans to attend the next British-Irish Council meeting; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Theresa May
The British Irish Council provides a unique opportunity for the eight member administrations to work together on matters of mutual interest. The composition of the UK Government's delegation to the Council will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps are being taken to introduce the requirement of photographic identification for votes to eliminate electoral fraud; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
The Government is committed to tackling fraud and making our electoral process more secure. We have already taken steps to improve the security of UK polls through the introduction of Individual Electoral Registration (IER).
The Government has welcomed Sir Eric Pickles’ report on his review into electoral fraud. The report sets out a number of findings and recommendations including in relation to voter identification. We are considering these carefully and will respond shortly.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the oral contribution by the Minister for the Cabinet Office, of 26 January 2016, Official Report, column 231, what steps he has taken to contact the Northern Ireland Executive in relation to the reform of charities legislation to include social investment; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Rob Wilson
Charity law is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland. Officials in the Office for Civil Society kept their counterparts in the Department for Social Development, Northern Ireland, informed of progress as the measures which are now contained in the Charities (Protection and Social Investment) Bill were consulted on and developed.
I have written to Lord Morrow MLA, Minister for Social Development, following the Third Reading of the Charities (Protection and Social Investment) Bill, to draw his attention to the debate and the provisions of the Bill.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether any charities registered in the UK are donating funds or other support to Islamic State militants; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Brooks Newmark
Charity regulation is a devolved matter in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
The annual accounts of charities in England and Wales are available on the Charity Commission’s website but the data requested on funding sources is not routinely held. Some charities may include information about the source of their donations in their accounts but they are not required to do so.
The Charity Commission is alert to the potential abuse of humanitarian aid efforts through facilitating travel for individuals for other purposes, particularly to conflict zones where terrorist groups are known to operate or exert control, including in Syria and Iraq.
There is a risk that charities working in certain areas, including those where so-called Islamic State militants operate, may be abused for non-charitable purposes. This is of serious concern to the Charity Commission. The Charity Commission has issued alerts to charities operating in these areas and advice to members of the public of how to give safely to ensure that their donations reach the intended charitable target. This information is available on the Charity Commission’s website.
Where there are concerns about suspected terrorist or extremist abuse connected to a charity the Charity Commission will support the Police in conducting criminal investigations.