Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Shared Prosperity Fund

Wednesday 27 April 2022 · 4 questions

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

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 3 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Northern Ireland has received the largest block grant budget since 1998.
  • The Conservative manifesto promised the shared prosperity fund would match EU structural funding at a minimum.
  • Northern Ireland received 3% less in levelling-up funding compared to Wales and Scotland in the first round.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Ruth Jones Lab Newport West and Islwyn
Economy Northern Ireland
Context

The latest Asda Cebr income tracker shows Northern Ireland experienced the largest relative fall in discretionary income, amounting to a 13.3% drop. This makes living standards in Northern Ireland under the most pressure across the UK.

Question

According to the latest Asda Cebr income tracker, Northern Ireland has seen the largest relative fall in discretionary income, amounting to a huge drop of 13.3%. Living standards in Northern Ireland are under the most pressure in the UK, thanks to the Tory cost of living crisis, made in Downing Street. Does the Secretary of State agree that short-changing Northern Ireland with the shared prosperity fund, as in Wales, will only make things worse?

Answer from Brandon Lewis

Actually, we are boosting our investment in Northern Ireland. If the hon. Lady looks back over the past couple of years, to the previous spending review and the current one, she will see that we have just put in the largest block grant budget for Northern Ireland since devolution began in 1998, and that is aside from the extra investment we are making through the community renewal fund and the new deal, with £400 million for a range of infrastructure projects. We are making the biggest investment in Northern Ireland in decades, and I am proud of that.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The lack of specific figures to match or surpass previous EU funding levels was not addressed

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Q2 Ruth Jones Lab Newport West and Islwyn
Economy Northern Ireland
Context

The Northern Ireland Finance Minister has stated that the shared prosperity fund money allocated to Northern Ireland is £90 million short of what was provided by the EU.

Question

According to the Northern Ireland Finance Minister, the shared prosperity money for Northern Ireland is £90 million short of what was provided by the EU. The Conservative manifesto promised that the shared prosperity fund would “at a minimum match” the size of the EU structural funding it replaced. When can we expect the shortfall to be made up?

Answer from Brandon Lewis

It is worth the hon. Gentleman's while having a clear look at all the figures going into Northern Ireland, because he is not making a like-for-like comparison. At the spending review we announced that the funding for the UK SPF will ramp up over the years, so that we get to a point where it will at least match the receipts of the EU structural funds.

Partly answered

Not addressed: No specific timeline or figures were provided to address the £90 million shortfall

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Q3 Peter Kyle Lab Hove and Portslade
Northern Ireland Scotland Wales
Context

In the first round of levelling-up funding, Wales applied for and received almost 50% more than allocated, while Scotland got 10%, yet Northern Ireland received 3% less.

Question

But is the Secretary of State aware that in the first round of levelling-up funding, Wales applied for and received almost 50% more than was first allocated, and for Scotland the figure was 10%, yet Northern Ireland got 3% less? Will he assure us today that the same will not happen with the shared prosperity fund, and that levelling up for Northern Ireland means more than just being hit by the same tax rises that are being inflicted on the rest of the UK by this Tory Government?

Answer from Brandon Lewis

Again, the hon. Gentleman needs to look at the figures in the round and realise that, as I have said, we have been making the biggest investment in Northern Ireland in decades—indeed, he may want to apologise for the previous Labour Government's lack of funding for Northern Ireland. We now have the biggest sum of funding since devolution began in 1998.

Not addressed: The question about levelling-up and shared prosperity fund allocations was not directly addressed, instead focusing on past Labour Government funding

How: Redirect To Past Government'S Actions

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Q4 Peter Kyle Lab Hove and Portslade
Northern Ireland
Context

There is £300 million in a bank account at Stormont that cannot be spent due to the Democratic Unionist party walking out of the Executive.

Question

The Secretary of State will know that there is £300 million in a bank account in Stormont that cannot be spent because the Democratic Unionist party walked out of the Executive. He also knows that there are families in Northern Ireland who cannot heat their homes or feed their children. If the Executive cannot meet after the election, will he commit to working with me to get that money into people's pockets as soon as possible?

Answer from Brandon Lewis

I agree in part with the hon. Gentleman because I want to see that money being spent for the benefit of people in Northern Ireland, but I disagree with his analysis of why it is not being spent. That is money from last year's budget, and for a couple of years running now the current Department of Finance in Northern Ireland has consistently underspent.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The questioner's request to work together was partially addressed but with disagreement on reasons why funds are not being spent

How: Disagreement On Analysis

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