Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Budget 2020

Wednesday 18 March 2020 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 2 Partly answered 0 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Paula Barker asked about the lack of materialised funds for mental health in Northern Ireland despite government pledges.
  • Tobias Ellwood inquired about discussions between the Secretary of State and the Transport Secretary regarding the Air Passenger Duty review.
  • The Secretary of State assured ongoing focus on ensuring good connectivity across the United Kingdom.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Paula Barker Lab
Northern Ireland Mental Health
Context

The question focuses on the impact of Budget 2020 and unfulfilled promises made in a previous confidence and supply arrangement.

Question

Northern Ireland has the highest prevalence of mental illness in the UK. The Government pledged money to Northern Ireland as part of the confidence and supply arrangement to address those challenges, but that money has not materialised. What discussions has the Secretary of State had with the Chancellor in relation to that funding, and do the Government intend to keep their promise?

Answer from Brandon Lewis

The hon. Lady makes an important point. We all want good support for mental health and to see people with mental health issues getting the right support and healthcare. As I have outlined, we have a very substantial Budget for the Northern Ireland Executive, and I hope we will be able to see good provision. I spoke to the Health Minister yesterday about covid-19, but the issue that the hon. Lady raises is one of those that we will continue to have conversations about.

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Q2 Tobias Ellwood Con Bournemouth East
Taxation Transport
Context

Concerns about the stress on small and regional airports like Belfast due to Air Passenger Duty.

Question

What goes on in Belfast links with Southampton and Bournemouth. I know that the Secretary of State is very alive to this, but will he have conversations with the Transport Secretary to find out when the review on APD will be brought forward?

Answer from Brandon Lewis (The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland)

I can assure my right hon. Friend that the conversation between myself, the Transport Secretary and the Chancellor on the issue is ongoing. We are very focused on ensuring that there is good connectivity around the whole United Kingdom. I appreciate that Eastern is an important airline for connectivity around various regions. A number of other airlines are looking at picking up the routes for Belfast. We must also make sure that we have good connectivity with Derry/Londonderry and other places around the whole United Kingdom. We will look to deal with that as quickly as we can despite the challenges of coronavirus, which will make this a very difficult time for the airline industry, as per the Chancellor's comments last night.

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