Every parliamentary written question tabled by Carla Lockhart this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 221–240 of 366 · this parliament
What assessment she has made of the value for money of the Trader Support Service for business support outcomes in Northern Ireland.
The Government considers the Trader Support Service a vital element of support to help traders moving goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland access the benefits of the Windsor Framework.
What steps her Department plans to take to ensure that the recommendations of the Motor Insurance Taskforce are implemented equitably in all regions; and how she plans to monitor this.
The cross-Government Motor Insurance Taskforce remains a priority, with active policy development underway. Further details, including the Taskforce’s conclusions, will be set out in due course. The Taskforce is comprised of Ministers from relevant government departments, the Financial Conduct Authority and the Competition and Markets Authority. It is supported by a separate stakeholder panel of industry experts representing the insurance, motor, and consumer sectors. We continue to engage with interested parties, including consumer groups. A meeting of the stakeholder panel was held on 2 July. We are also aware of the unique features of the motor insurance market in Northern Ireland. The Secretary of State met with the Northern Ireland Executive’s Minister for the Economy and officials from the Department for Infrastructure on 6 May, to hear their perspective on the market and relevant policy options. I met with the Minister of Finance and Minister for Infrastructure on 8 July to discuss motor insurance.
What the total cost to the public purse is for the Trader Support Service since 11 June 2020, broken down by financial year.
The costs of the Trader Support Service by financial year are set out below. Financial YearCosts2020/21£100.62m2021/22£148.80m2022/23£114.68m2023/24£105.19m2024/25£88.15m
Whether she has allocated funding to continue the Trader Support Service beyond 2025-26.
The Government is committed to ongoing support to businesses moving goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and published details of the procurement opportunity for the next phase of the Trader Support Service from January 2026 onwards on 17 February 2025.
What proportion of the Trader Support Service’s costs are spent on (a) administrative and (b) operational overheads.
It is not possible to disaggregate the costs of administrative and operational overheads for the Trader Support Service.
How many small and medium-sized enterprises in Northern Ireland have used the Trader Support Service; and what proportion of the service’s costs have supported those businesses.
The Trader Support Service (TSS) is available to businesses of all sizes to support them with moving goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It is not possible to specify the numbers of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) that use the TSS, and therefore not possible to disaggregate the costs of provision of support to those SMEs from the overall support the TSS provides to business.
Whether the Motor Insurance Taskforce (a) has analysed and (b) will publish regional insurance pricing data.
The cross-Government Motor Insurance Taskforce remains a priority, with active policy development underway. Further details, including the Taskforce’s conclusions, will be set out in due course. The Taskforce is comprised of Ministers from relevant government departments, the Financial Conduct Authority and the Competition and Markets Authority. It is supported by a separate stakeholder panel of industry experts representing the insurance, motor, and consumer sectors. We continue to engage with interested parties, including consumer groups. A meeting of the stakeholder panel was held on 2 July. We are also aware of the unique features of the motor insurance market in Northern Ireland. The Secretary of State met with the Northern Ireland Executive’s Minister for the Economy and officials from the Department for Infrastructure on 6 May, to hear their perspective on the market and relevant policy options. I met with the Minister of Finance and Minister for Infrastructure on 8 July to discuss motor insurance.
Which (a) consumer representatives and (b) regional insurers in Northern Ireland have been consulted by the Motor Insurance Taskforce.
The cross-Government Motor Insurance Taskforce remains a priority, with active policy development underway. Further details, including the Taskforce’s conclusions, will be set out in due course. The Taskforce is comprised of Ministers from relevant government departments, the Financial Conduct Authority and the Competition and Markets Authority. It is supported by a separate stakeholder panel of industry experts representing the insurance, motor, and consumer sectors. We continue to engage with interested parties, including consumer groups. A meeting of the stakeholder panel was held on 2 July. We are also aware of the unique features of the motor insurance market in Northern Ireland. The Secretary of State met with the Northern Ireland Executive’s Minister for the Economy and officials from the Department for Infrastructure on 6 May, to hear their perspective on the market and relevant policy options. I met with the Minister of Finance and Minister for Infrastructure on 8 July to discuss motor insurance.
Whether the Motor Insurance Taskforce has considered the motor insurance market in Northern Ireland.
The cross-Government Motor Insurance Taskforce remains a priority, with active policy development underway. Further details, including the Taskforce’s conclusions, will be set out in due course. The Taskforce is comprised of Ministers from relevant government departments, the Financial Conduct Authority and the Competition and Markets Authority. It is supported by a separate stakeholder panel of industry experts representing the insurance, motor, and consumer sectors. We continue to engage with interested parties, including consumer groups. A meeting of the stakeholder panel was held on 2 July. We are also aware of the unique features of the motor insurance market in Northern Ireland. The Secretary of State met with the Northern Ireland Executive’s Minister for the Economy and officials from the Department for Infrastructure on 6 May, to hear their perspective on the market and relevant policy options. I met with the Minister of Finance and Minister for Infrastructure on 8 July to discuss motor insurance.
What her planned timetable is for the publication of the Motor Insurance Taskforce's final report; and whether it will include regional breakdowns of findings and recommendations.
The cross-Government Motor Insurance Taskforce remains a priority, with active policy development underway. Further details, including the Taskforce’s conclusions, will be set out in due course. The Taskforce is comprised of Ministers from relevant government departments, the Financial Conduct Authority and the Competition and Markets Authority. It is supported by a separate stakeholder panel of industry experts representing the insurance, motor, and consumer sectors. We continue to engage with interested parties, including consumer groups. A meeting of the stakeholder panel was held on 2 July. We are also aware of the unique features of the motor insurance market in Northern Ireland. The Secretary of State met with the Northern Ireland Executive’s Minister for the Economy and officials from the Department for Infrastructure on 6 May, to hear their perspective on the market and relevant policy options. I met with the Minister of Finance and Minister for Infrastructure on 8 July to discuss motor insurance.
What steps her Department is taking to help tackle online radicalisation in Northern Ireland; and whether she plans to introduce region-specific counter-extremism initiatives.
This Government is committed to tackling those who spread views that divide communities and inflame tensions across the entirety of the UK.Alongside the Online Safety Act, the Home Office encourages industry partners to increase action to tackle online content used to radicalise, recruit and incite terrorism by providing threat assessment, insight and support.We also work closely with like-minded international partners both bilaterally and through multilateral fora such as the Global internet Forum to Counter Terrorism to collaborate on tackling online radicalisation, and influence and align policies where possible.In addition, Youth Diversion Orders (YDOs) are being introduced in the Crime and Policing Bill to provide a new counter-terrorism tool for police to manage the risks posed by young people involved in terrorism-related activity, including online. The new legislation will apply across the whole of the UK.
If she will publish an assessment of the economic impact of legally binding net zero targets on infrastructure investment in the UK.
This Government is creating the conditions that drive investment, including into the transition to net zero, and we have seen over £40 billion of private investment in clean energy since July 2024. At the Spending Review in June, we invested £63 billion in capital funding to clean energy, climate and nature, including nuclear. The recently published Industrial Strategy and 10-Year Infrastructure Strategy map out how government will ensure that net zero infrastructure investment will boost UK jobs and growth. The Climate Change Committee (CCC) advises the government on its approach to net zero and considers economic impacts in its advice. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) also assesses the impact of capital investment by government, including on net zero infrastructure, in their macroeconomic forecasts.
Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to improve cyber resilience among (a) small businesses and (b) local authorities in Northern Ireland.
Cyber security is a priority for the government. We are taking action to protect businesses, citizens and essential services against cyber threats. The forthcoming Cyber Security and Resilience Bill will improve the UK’s cyber defences and ensure there are robust levels of cyber security in the digital services and infrastructure which small businesses and local authorities rely upon.The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) offers a range of free guidance, training and tools to help small businesses improve their cyber resilience, including the Cyber Action Plan, Small Business Guide and Check Your Cyber Security Tool. The government’s highly effective Cyber Essentials scheme is available to help small businesses and local authorities get good technical measures in place which prevent common cyber attacks. Local authorities can use the Cyber Governance Code of Practice to manage their digital risks. The Northern Ireland Cyber Security Centre (NICSC), part of the Department of Finance, works in close partnership with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology to advance a variety of cyber initiatives aimed at strengthening cyber resilience among small businesses and local authorities across Northern Ireland.
With reference to the Strategic Defence Review 2025, whether he plans to locate a munitions factory in Northern Ireland.
The Strategic Defence Review committed £1.5 billion investment for an "always on" pipeline for munitions and to build at least six new energetics and munitions factories in the UK. Feasibility studies are already underway to explore potential manufacturing sites across all four nations. Accordingly, the Ministry of Defence will work closely with cross-Government partners to identify locations for manufacturing sites.
Whether his Department has made a recent assessment of the potential role Northern Ireland-based industries might play in helping support the UK’s nuclear (a) deterrent and (b) wider defence supply chains.
Northern Ireland plays a crucial role in the defence of the United Kingdom, with a defence industrial base that is at the forefront of advanced manufacturing and our enduring support to Ukraine. The UK Government will set out in the Defence Industrial Strategy how we will make defence an engine for growth, ensuring that our defence spending boosts prosperity, jobs and security for working people across all the nations and regions of the UK, including in Northern Ireland.
Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to ensure effective coordination between Government departments to tackle (a) the spread of child sexual abuse (i) material and (ii) harmful algorithms and (b) other online harms to children.
Government departments work together on a range of online safety matters, with child online safety and wellbeing being a particular priority.The Online Safety Act gives user-to-user and search services new duties to safeguard children from illegal content and activity, including child sexual abuse material and harmful content. Platforms’ duties to tackle illegal content began in March.The child safety duties will be fully in force from 25 July and require providers to establish significant protections for children, including requiring services to consider how algorithms and recommender systems impact children’s exposure to both illegal and harmful content.
What steps his Department is taking to promote careers in the Armed Forces among young people in Northern Ireland.
The current Government inherited a crisis in recruitment and retention from the last administration. Since July 2024 we have taken decisive measures to redress the recruitment crisis, to attract and recruit more from across the United Kingdom including Northern Ireland, as well as maximise the number of applicants that successfully enter and remain in Armed Forces employment. Policies have included one of the largest pay increases in the last 20 years for existing personnel, slashing the time it takes to access medical records from weeks to hours and restructuring the Army’s recruitment organisation. These activities and their impacts will inform the development of the Armed Forces Recruitment Service which is being implemented to further improve the speed with which highly motivated and capable people can join our Armed Forces, wherever they are from across the United Kingdom. The results are clear: year on year inflow is up 19%, outflow is down 7%, the Navy’s yearly recruiting target has been exceeded, the RAF’s applications are up 34% compared to early 2024, and the Army is seeing a seven-year high in applications. In addition to the existing national recruitment campaigns including online material, the Services conduct recruitment that is tailored to Northern Ireland. The Services use Outreach stands to facilitate face to face recruitment and attend recruitment fairs such as the UK Careers Fair Belfast and the NI Graduate Recruitment Fair. They also attend local events such as the Portrush Airshow and the Northern Ireland Armed Forces Day.
What steps his Department is taking to help support research into immunotherapy treatments for (a) pancreatic, (b) brain and (c) other difficult-to-treat cancers; and whether he plans to provide additional funding to clinical trials in this area.
The Department invests in research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR continues to welcome high quality, high impact funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and care, including research into immunotherapy treatments.The Department is committed to ensuring that all patients, including those with pancreatic, brain, and other difficult-to-treat cancers, have access to cutting-edge clinical trials and innovative, lifesaving treatments. The Department is committed to turbocharging clinical research and delivering better patient care, to make the United Kingdom a world-leading destination for clinical research. We are working to fast-track clinical trials to drive global investment into life sciences, improve health outcomes, and accelerate the development of medicines and therapies of the future, including treatments for cancer.The Office for Life Sciences’ Cancer Healthcare Goals programme and the Medical Research Council have co-funded and awarded a £9 million grant to the MANIFEST immunotherapy platform. The MANIFEST consortium is led by the Francis Crick Institute and is composed of academia, the National Health Service, and industry partners, with the aim of expanding and advancing UK immunotherapy research and development capabilities, supporting better targeting and improved efficacy of these expensive treatments, and will look to onboard new cancer types and indications as activity progresses.
What steps her Department is taking to (a) monitor and (b) prevent illegal migration into Northern Ireland via the Common Travel Area.
The UK and Ireland have a close and collaborative working relationship on a range of issues, including migration and border security. That collaboration includes a joint commitment to protect the Common Travel Area (CTA) from abuse while preserving the rights of British and Irish citizens.Everyone entering the UK, regardless of where they enter from, is required to meet UK’s immigration requirements. Anyone identified attempting to circumvent UK border controls is liable to be detained and, if they are not lawfully present within the UK, removed.
Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of reports about the treatment of (a) non-Orthodox and (b) minority faith groups in Ukrainian territories under Russian occupation.
We are deeply disturbed by the impact of Russia's illegal war on Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) in the occupied territories of Ukraine. Orthodox Church of Ukraine clergy, Crimean Tatars, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and Protestant Churches suffer repression and physical abuse, including the prohibition of religious literature and arbitrary arrests and detentions. Religious figures are reportedly subjected to torture. Jehovah's Witnesses have been banned altogether. The UK condemns Russia's attempt to destroy Ukraine's religious and belief communities. We engage regularly with Ukrainian religious groups on this issue. In February, a delegation of the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches met Parliamentarians and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office officials to discuss religious persecutions. I was personally appalled to hear and see evidence of Russian actions against the religious communities in Bucha during their earlier occupation when I visited earlier this year and met with local civic and religious leaders.