Speeches by Benn.

“It is the requirement of the Windsor framework, which the last Government negotiated, to address the basic problem of having two different systems and an open border. Everybody knows that agricultural machinery needs to be properly cleaned. If that is the case and the appropriate label, which is straightforward, is app…”

“I do not accept the hon. Gentleman’s characterisation. At some point, he has to acknowledge that following our departure from the European Union—this was the issue that the previous Government had to address—the United Kingdom has one set of rules, the EU has another and there is an open border. How do we deal with tha…”

“We will continue to consult as widely as possible in taking forward the agreement that has been reached and outlined with the European Union. There is help available for small businesses. It is important that it is as effective and easy to understand for those who seek to trade. I will look carefully at the report that…”

“Goods flow freely from Northern Ireland to the rest of the United Kingdom. Further, one of the great advantages of the trade agreements that have been negotiated with India, the United States of America and the European Union is, in the case of India, a significant reduction of tariffs on whisky, which will benefit pro…”

“There are other small businesses that are able to trade perfectly—[Interruption.] The point that the hon. Gentleman needs to recognise is that if some small businesses manage to move their goods from GB to Northern Ireland, others can do so. In the end, it is a decision for an individual business where it chooses to se…”

“I was interested by that observation in the FSB report because, as the House will testify, I spend a lot of my time extolling the virtues of the dual market access that Northern Ireland has as a result of the Windsor framework. I meet companies as I travel around Northern Ireland who tell me about the benefits of it th…”

“I regularly meet the Northern Ireland Finance Minister to discuss funding. The Government will provide Northern Ireland with a record settlement of £19.3 billion per year on average—the largest in the history of devolution—and the Executive will also continue to receive over 24% more per person, in line with their inde…”

“The spending review settlement does indeed reflect the Government’s commitment to providing resources right across the United Kingdom. A year ago, people were saying there was going to be a fiscal cliff edge, but the money being made available for Northern Ireland means that no one is saying that now.”

“My hon. Friend will have noticed the funding made available for local growth. As part of the spending review, discussions on the fiscal framework will be taken forward by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury and the Department of Finance, to talk about things like the Holtham review and capital borrowing by the Northern…”

“The spending review gives the Northern Ireland Executive more funds to disperse as they see fit. It comes alongside the publication of the industrial strategy, the funds that the Government are making available and the £30 million that will come to Northern Ireland through UK Research and Innovation. There is funding a…”

“The Government make funding available to the Northern Ireland Executive through the block grant. As the hon. Gentleman will know, it is for the Northern Ireland Executive to decide how they distribute the money between all the needs in Northern Ireland, including health, where of course there are significant pressures.…”

“The hon. Gentleman needs to keep up. I answered a parliamentary question yesterday in which I made it clear that we will deal with this issue, which arises because of the application of the Carltona principle in the Supreme Court judgment of 2020, which the last Government could not sort out in two and a half years. We…”

“The answer to the right hon. Gentleman is that it is additional.”

“If the right hon. Gentleman just bears with us, I hope we can see progress on that in the not-too-distant future.”

“Yes, my name is Hilary Benn. I am the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.”

“It was a pretty good outcome, really: a record settlement, a real-terms increase over the three years and a multi-year settlement that allows the Executive to plan more than it has been able to in the recent past. I was very struck by the fact that the Finance Minister, John O’Dowd, said, “My agreement with Treasury ha…”

“Well, I expect them to begin straight away, because that is what the Chief Secretary has said he is going to do. The honest answer is that it depends on their consideration of all of the issues that will be raised. That includes the Holtham review, which arrived fairly late in the day for the spending review process, a…”

“For agriculture, the funding was ringfenced previously, then it was unringfenced. In agreeing the figure that the spending review has for funding for Northern Ireland, once again, it will be funded at more than the 124%, compared with what is being spent in the UK. That was identified by the Northern Ireland Fiscal Cou…”

“I do not think you can look at the local growth fund in isolation from the other investment that the Government are making. That is why I referred to the £30 million that will be coming to Northern Ireland as part of UKRI innovation investment. The Government, as you know, had to make some really quite difficult decisi…”

“It is going to be a discussion between ourselves, MHCLG, which has the accounting officer responsibility, and the Executive.”