The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2016-02-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have an agreement or understanding with the IRA that there will be no attempts to stop or bring to court its members on charges relating to tax fraud in South Armagh.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
The government does not have any agreement or understanding in place with the IRA.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2016-04-18.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have for the control of drones flying in UK air space.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
There are existing regulations in place that require users of drones to maintain direct, unaided visual contact with their vehicle and to not recklessly or negligently cause or permit an aircraft to endanger any person or property. Work is underway to better understand the risk posed by flying drones close to commercial planes. Guidance on tackling the risks of criminal drone use has been provided to constabularies across the UK.
The Department for Transport (DfT) is currently working with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) to develop consistent, EU-wide safety rules for drones. We have also completed a series of public dialogues ahead of a public consultation which will help to inform a government strategy to be published this year. The consultation will look at a range of options including regulation, registration and licensing options, and the potential for restrictions on purchase and use.
Education of drone users is vital. The DfT is working with the CAA on raising awareness of responsible drone use. This includes the CAA’s ‘Drone Code’ safety awareness campaign, the issuing of safety leaflets at the point of sale, publishing an animated video on their website, and running ‘small UAS’ (Unmanned Aerial Systems) Risk and Hazard workshops with industry as part of the Mid Air Collision Programme.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2016-06-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in relation to certificates of sponsorship used to support immigrants’ entry clearance or extension of stay applications, (1) how many sponsoring employers are currently registered, (2) where those employers are listed, (3) how many certificates of sponsorship are granted to each sponsoring employer, (4) whether such figures are available on application, and (5) what was the total number of those sponsored in the last two years.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
There are currently 30,181 sponsoring employers on the register of licensed sponsors.
The register is published on the “www.gov.uk” website and can be found on the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/register-of-licensed-sponsors-workers
The number of certificates granted to sponsoring employers differ depending on their recruitment requirements. Sponsoring employers may submit a request at the point their licence application is submitted. A sponsor can submit a further request to increase their allocation once licensed.
A sponsor is not granted a pre determined allocation of Certificates of sponsorship (CoS) at licensing stage.
The total number of CoS assigned to individuals in 2014 is 133,820.The total number of CoS assigned to individuals in 2015 is 131,617
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2015-11-03.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Dunlop on 27 October (HL2714) concerning activity under the 1998 Belfast Agreement, whether any representatives of the government of the Republic of Ireland were present at the most recent talks under Section 1 of the Belfast Agreement.
Lord Dunlop
I refer the Noble Lord to my previous answers on this subject. The involvement of the Irish Government is in accordance with the established three-stranded approach to Northern Ireland affairs and the 1998 Belfast Agreement.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2015-11-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether the parity of esteem required by the Belfast Agreement 1998 requires victims of civil unrest in Northern Ireland to be treated the same as terrorism victims in the rest of the UK.
Lord Dunlop
The Government believes in parity of esteem for all the people of Northern Ireland.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2015-12-10.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of the Republic of Ireland within the framework of the Belfast Agreement of 1998 about the provisions in that Agreement concerning the right of residence.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The UK and Irish Governments meet regularly both at ministerial and official level to discuss issues of mutual interest and concern. These include rights issues in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland as contained in the Belfast Agreement of 1998.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2016-01-13.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether in considering policy, they regard equality and parity of esteem to be the same, and if not, why not.
Lord Dunlop
The UK Government is committed to affording due respect and parity of esteem to all the people in Northern Ireland as underpinned by the 1998 Belfast Agreement and in accordance with the obligations on the Government to promote equality and prevent discrimination across the United Kingdom. The Northern Ireland Office and its agencies are subject to anti-discrimination law in Northern Ireland and to the provisions of section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998. This requires public authorities carrying out functions in Northern Ireland to have due regard to the need to promote equality of opportunity between a wide range of groups, specified in section 75(1), including persons of different religious belief or political opinion. They are also obliged to have regard to the desirability of promoting good relations between persons of different religious belief, political opinion or racial group.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2016-02-01.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Dunlop on 19 January (HL4894) concerning the Belfast Agreement 1998, what is meant by mutual interest and concern”.”
Lord Dunlop
Mutual interest and concern refers to matters that are of shared relevance or importance to the participants in the discussions, in this case the UK and Irish Governments.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2016-02-23.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government why there have been no meetings of the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference since 26 February 2007.
Lord Dunlop
There have been no meetings of the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference since 26 February 2007 largely because the scope of the BIIGC agenda is now much narrower, given the completion of devolution and the fact that the political situation is more stable. The Conference remains part of the architecture of the Belfast Agreement, but is no longer used as the significant forum it was in the past for interaction between the UK and Irish Governments.
Interaction between the governments of the UK and Ireland takes place regularly at all levels and in many different forums. These include an annual summit between the Prime Minister and the Taoiseach, and regular meetings between the heads of UK and Irish government departments.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2016-04-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Dunlop on 18 April (HL7513), whether parity of esteem only applies to people who live in Northern Ireland or includes people who come from Northern Ireland and live elsewhere in the UK.
Lord Dunlop
In the Belfast Agreement the concept of ‘parity of esteem’ is expressed and defined in relation to people living in Northern Ireland. The Government is committed to treating people fairly and with equal respect wherever they live in the United Kingdom.