Asked by: Simon Hoare (Conservative - North Dorset)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding from the Elective Recovery Fund has been allocated to neurology elective care in England broken down by NHS region.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Information on how much of the £1 billion Elective Recovery Fund has been allocated to each National Health Service region and elective service in England is not held centrally, as it will not be distributed through set allocations. As set out in NHS Planning Guidance for 2021-22, systems are asked to deliver activity levels above set thresholds in order to access this additional funding.
Asked by: Simon Hoare (Conservative - North Dorset)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding from the Elective Recovery Fund has been allocated to neurology elective care in England since that fund's creation.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Information on how much of the £1 billion Elective Recovery Fund has been allocated to each National Health Service region and elective service in England is not held centrally, as it will not be distributed through set allocations. As set out in NHS Planning Guidance for 2021-22, systems are asked to deliver activity levels above set thresholds in order to access this additional funding.
Asked by: Simon Hoare (Conservative - North Dorset)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, with reference to his Department's announcement on 29 June of a Framework for Multiparty Talks on Northern Ireland Legacy issues, whether he plans to bring forward proposals for addressing the legacy of Northern Ireland's past before the House rises for summer recess.
Answered by Robin Walker
It is clear that the current system for dealing with the legacy of the past is not working for anyone. It is failing to bring satisfactory outcomes for families, placing a heavy burden on the criminal justice system, and leaving society in Northern Ireland hamstrung by its past.
This is why the UK Government - along with the Irish Government - has begun a process of intensive engagement with the Northern Ireland parties and all relevant stakeholders and civil society, including victims groups, with a view to making progress on this issue as soon as possible.
The UK Government has committed to bringing forward proposals, and to introducing legislation to address the legacy of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, as soon as possible.
Asked by: Simon Hoare (Conservative - North Dorset)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to publish the rules and timing of the tariff reimbursement scheme for goods not captured under the UK Trader Scheme; and whether that scheme will be (a) retrospective and (b) limited by state aid caps.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government has committed to a tariff reimbursement scheme in the NI Command Papers and work continues to develop the scheme. Once the scheme is live, it will enable traders to be reimbursed where they are unable to draw upon the alternative mechanisms to remove tariffs, but can demonstrate after goods have moved into Northern Ireland that they have not entered and will not enter the EU. Further details of the tariff reimbursement scheme and the evidence that will be required for traders to make a claim will be set out in due course. Once arrangements are finalised, the Government will ensure they are well signposted to businesses.
Asked by: Simon Hoare (Conservative - North Dorset)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to ensure the adequacy of VAT use and enjoyment rules relating to rental and leased vehicle movements between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Answered by Jesse Norman
At the end of the transition period, the VAT rules for the place of supply of services, including the use and enjoyment rules, were amended to reflect that the UK is not part of the EU Single Market. The use and enjoyment rules for the short term hire and leasing of vehicles ensure that UK VAT is due when the vehicles are effectively being used in the UK.
Asked by: Simon Hoare (Conservative - North Dorset)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to improve the adequacy of the Trader Support Service system for vehicle rental and leasing businesses using the UK Trader Scheme to declare goods not at risk.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Trader Support Service (TSS) has been established to provide education and guidance and to submit declarations on behalf of traders operating under the NI Protocol. This service is live, operating well and TSS is implementing improvements regularly based on customer feedback.
Alongside the TSS, the Government has introduced the UK Trader Scheme (UKTS) for authorised traders to be able to declare goods ‘not at risk’. In order to qualify for full authorisation for the UKTS, traders need to meet certain conditions, including that they are established in Northern Ireland. Where not established, they must have a fixed place of business in Northern Ireland, carry out their customs elsewhere in the UK and have an indirect customs representative (such as the TSS).
However, the Government has also introduced a temporary easement for traders who are not established in Northern Ireland, or who do not have a fixed place of business in Northern Ireland; the Government is aware that this is the case for some GB-based businesses providing vehicle rental and leasing services in Northern Ireland. The easement is designed to assist businesses while they make preparations to meet the full requirements in cases where the trader delivers to fixed places of business in Northern Ireland from where goods are sold to or used by end consumers in Northern Ireland. In order to be authorised for the UKTS until 1 November 2021, the trader must still carry out customs operations elsewhere in the UK and have an indirect customs representative established in Northern Ireland. Further guidance on the easement is available on GOV.UK. HMRC continue to work with businesses to improve this process based on their feedback.
Asked by: Simon Hoare (Conservative - North Dorset)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether her Department has carried out an economic assessment of the effect on UK farming of removing tariffs on all agricultural products on all trade deals under negotiation.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
I refer my hon. Friend for North Dorset to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Harrow West on 25th May, UIN 2866.
Asked by: Simon Hoare (Conservative - North Dorset)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether her Department has made an assessment of the effect of changes in the UK's trading relationships with Australia’s main export markets on the potential volume of exports to the UK under a tariff-free trade agreement between the UK and Australia.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The scoping assessment for a UK-Australia agreement, published back in June 2020, assessed the potential impact on Australian exports to the UK under an illustrative scenario of a tariff-free trade agreement between the UK and Australia. It does not include an assessment of the effects of changes to the UK’s trading relationship with Australia’s main export markets.
Following the conclusion of negotiations, a full impact assessment will be published prior to implementation.
Asked by: Simon Hoare (Conservative - North Dorset)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, with reference to his letter to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee of 7 October 2020, when the Government plans to bring forward legislative proposals for a longer-lasting regime to define Qualifying Northern Ireland Goods.
Answered by Robin Walker
The Government has introduced significant and robust protections as part of the UK Internal Market Act. This enables “qualifying” goods to continue to be placed on the whole UK market and prohibits checks and controls as goods move from Northern Ireland to the rest of the UK. To ensure these measures were in place from 1 January and to avoid disruption, this approach provides protection to all goods in free circulation in Northern Ireland.
The Government is developing a longer-lasting regime in discussion with Northern Ireland business. As we have done more broadly, it is right to take sensible, practical steps to phase in our approach in a way that is supported by business.
Asked by: Simon Hoare (Conservative - North Dorset)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people in (a) Northern Ireland and (b) Great Britain have been (i) granted and (ii) refused renunciation of their British citizenship in each of the last 10 years.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Home Office publishes UK data on renunciations of British Nationality in the ‘Immigration Statistics Quarterly Release’.
Data on grants and refusals for renunciations of British Nationality are published in table Cit_05 of the Citizenship summary tables, year ending December 2020 (publishing.service.gov.uk) dataset. The latest data relates to year ending December 2020.
The Home Office does not hold data on renunciations of British Nationality by location or country of residence, and so a breakdown of the data is not available for separate nations of the UK.