Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Streatham and Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to Annex A of the Secretary of State's letter of 30 October 2017 to the Chair of the Lords Sub-Committee on EU External Affairs, for what reason his Department has not included the charity sector in its list of sectors to help structure analytical work on EU exit.
Answered by Robin Walker
As part of our work preparing to make a success of our departure from the European Union we are carrying out a full suite of analysis as you would expect a responsible Government to do. This means looking at 58 sectors as well as cross-cutting regulatory, economic and social issues to help inform our negotiation positions.
Charities cover a wide range of issues and sectors, as such, they do not necessarily all face the same issues. Specific charities will however share many characteristics that affect particular sectors, which are included in the list. For example Charities relating to medical research will be covered by medical services and pharmaceuticals sectors.
Taking a cross-Whitehall approach to engagement we have been working closely with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport to ensure that we speak to stakeholders who represent a cross-section of groups. We continue to hold engagements with a range of charitable organisations at both ministerial and official level.
There are many breakdowns and names of sectors used by different organisations. It is entirely to be expected that our list will not map directly onto every other such list. Regardless, this list is not the only way we are looking at sectors, and we draw on the full range of information available in our assessments and analysis of cross-cutting issues.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Streatham and Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, how many times he has visited (a) Northern Ireland and (b) the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland since his appointment as Secretary of State.
Answered by Robin Walker
The Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union visited Northern Ireland in September 2016 meeting with the then Northern Ireland Executive and stakeholders including NI Screen and SONI (System Operator for Northern Ireland). He also visited Dublin last September for his first overseas visit following his appointment as Secretary of State. He has not visited the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, however I have visited Northern Ireland twice since joining the Department as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State and accompanied the Secretary of State on his Dublin visit. During my most recent trip in September 2017 I visited the border and met with Re-Gen waste, a cross-border waste management company and InterTradeIreland, which offers practical support to cross-border businesses.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Streatham and Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what steps he plans to take to ensure that local government representatives are included in the process of exiting the EU.
Answered by David Jones
As the Secretary of State said in his statement of 5 September, we are going to listen and talk to as many organisations, companies and institutions as possible – from the large PLCs to small business, from the devolved administrations through to councils, local government associations and the major metropolitan bodies.