Speeches by Benn.

“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 Finucane inquiry is beginning its work. It will publish, as is normal, statements of the expenditure that it engages in. It depends how long the inquiry lasts and how much evidence is taken, but the hon. Gentleman can rest assured that he will receive an answer in due course, as that process unfolds.”

“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…”

“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…”

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

“The Government’s new strategic partnership with the EU will deliver a broad range of economic benefits for Northern Ireland. In particular, a new agreement on agrifood and plants will further smooth trade flows across the Irish sea, protect the UK’s internal market, reduce costs for businesses and improve consumer choi…”

“I can happily give my hon. Friend that assurance. He will have noticed how in another context—the trade agreement reached with the United States of America—we said that we would uphold our food standards in that agreement, and that is exactly what we have done.”

“Once we have negotiated the legal text and put our rulebook in line with current European arrangements, there will be: no need for SPS paperwork; no mandatory identity checks or physical checks on goods moving; no need for Northern Ireland plant health labels; an end to the ban on chilled frozen meats moving; an end to…”

“I have many and varied responsibilities, but I was not aware that the A9 was one of them. I hope that the Scottish Government will have heard my hon. Friend’s strong plea.”

“What lesson do I draw from that? Many people say, and quite rightly, they should have left the stage a long time ago, but they have not, and they continue to oppress communities and engage in rampant criminality. It is for the forces of law and order to catch those responsible and bring them before the judicial process…”

“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.”

“It will be the result of those discussions.”