Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

UK-EU Agreement on Trade from Northern Ireland

Wednesday 19 November 2025 · 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 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The Government's new partnership with the European Union aims to deliver economic benefits for Northern Ireland, including smoother trade flows and reduced costs for businesses.
  • The Secretary of State agrees that aligning safety standards and reducing red tape supports business growth and trade.
  • The partnership agreement reached with the EU in May was welcomed by the agrifood sector in Northern Ireland for its potential benefits.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Matt Turmaine Lab Watford
Northern Ireland Brexit Business & Trade
Context

The question follows an assessment by the Department for potential impacts of a recent UK-EU trade agreement in Northern Ireland.

Question

What assessment has the Secretary of State's Department made of the potential impact of the recent UK-EU agreement on trade from Northern Ireland?

Answer from The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Hilary Benn)

The Government’s new partnership with the European Union aims to deliver a broad range of economic benefits for Northern Ireland, including smoother flows of trade, protection for the UK’s internal market, reduced costs for businesses and benefits for firms that move agrifood and plants from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.

Partly answered
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Q2 Matt Turmaine Lab Watford
Northern Ireland Brexit Business & Trade
Context

Following the Secretary of State's initial response, Matt Turmaine asked whether aligning safety standards and reducing red tape would deliver support for growth and trade as promised.

Question

Does the Secretary of State agree that aligning safety standards and cutting red tape—checks and paperwork—is precisely the kind of support for growth and trade that this Government promised to deliver for business when they were elected last year?

Answer from The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Hilary Benn)

I agree with my hon. Friend. The partnership agreement reached with the EU back in May was widely welcomed in Northern Ireland, particularly by those in the agrifood sector, because as we take that forward and turn it into a full sanitary and phytosanitary agreement, it will bring enormous benefits to firms that are moving those products across the Irish sea from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.

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