Robin Swann MP: speeches 2025

Speeches

• 19 Nov 2025 · UK-EU Agreement on Trade from Northern Ireland · Hansard source

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  Come 1 January, veterinary medicines in Northern Ireland will be reduced by 40%, according to suppliers over there. What steps are the Government taking to ensure that veterinary medicines are supplied to Northern Ireland? They ensure animal health but are linked to human health as well.

• 18 Nov 2025 · Northern Ireland Troubles Bill · Hansard source

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  “For your tomorrow, we gave our today”, would have been the phrase that many in this House stood for in honour, sombre, last Remembrance Sunday, as we stood across this country, remembering those who served and those who sacrificed. When I stood at those memorials in South Antrim, at Ballyclare and Antrim and Crumlin, and I saw wreaths laid for the members of the UDR, the RUC and the home battalions, it brought home why, when we talk about veterans in this place, we must also reflect and respect those veterans from Northern Ireland who did not return to home or to barracks in England, Scotland or Wales, but who every night returned to their own homes, having defended their neighbours, their loved ones, their families and workmates. With regards to the victims have been mentioned, I note that the Secretary of State listed a number of atrocities but he did not mention Teebane, when 14 construction workers who were returning home from Omagh were blown up because the IRA considered them targets. They were working on a military base, and therefore the IRA described them as collaborating with forces of occupation. Our veterans and innocent victims are still waiting for their tomorrow, and they suffer, reflect, and carry the scars and pains of the 30-year terrorism campaign that was delivered on the doors and workplaces of their neighbours. What is challenging about this, then? The former Secretary of State, the right hon. Member for Skipton and Ripon (Sir Julian Smith), mentioned that the trust and involvement of the Irish Government in this process is particularly challenging and galling. The Belfast agreement has been mentioned a number of times. I do look with honour and respect at what my party delivered in bringing forward that peace process, but it was delivered in three strands: a Northern Ireland only basis, a north-south basis and an east-west basis. I have asked the Secretary of State this question before and I will do so again now: where does legacy sit within those three strands? It seems now that the Secretary of State is abdicating, and that he is working in parallel with the Irish Government to bring this forward. He stood on 19 September beside the Tánaiste, Simon Harris, who told the media afterwards that there would be no specific protections for veterans—and, as we have seen, there are no specific protections for veterans in the Bill. The example that has been used once again is that veterans will not have to go to Northern Ireland to give evidence. Tell that to a Northern Ireland veteran! What protection—what special coverage—are this Government actually giving those men and women who served over there? Yesterday, after the British-Irish intergovernmental conference, the Irish Government insisted that the legislation must remain “true” to the framework that had been agreed. So where are the amendments that will come from this place, and from the elected representatives of the United Kingdom? We will look for those amendments that are necessary to the Bill—I look for support across the House—and we will look for the definition of an innocent victim; we will have the opportunity to clarify that those responsible for the planning or implementation of an unlawful conflict or related incident are not included. Crimes that trigger an investigation must include sexual crimes as well, as we should not underestimate the use and deployment of sexual crime by terrorists and terrorist organisations to influence and control the population of Northern Ireland. As has been raised by the right hon. Member for Belfast East (Gavin Robinson), what powers with the second director of investigations have, and why? Those powers will be in the gift and patronage of this Secretary of State, and they will include the power to appoint a constable. If that second director of investigations is from outside the United Kingdom, not only will they have access to all the information and detailed records that our military and police services hold, but they will be able to appoint someone with the powers of a constable. There is no special reference to a veteran being on the victims and survivors advisory group. Where is the place for the Northern Ireland veterans commissioner or the commissioner for victims and survivors in regards to who may be appointed—

• 17 Nov 2025 · Asylum Policy · Hansard source

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  The common travel area allows movement across the UK, Northern Ireland and to the Republic of Ireland. It has been reported in the Irish media that a UK Home Office official briefed the Irish Department of Justice in regard to what the Home Secretary is bringing forward. Can I ask her what is the Irish Government’s response to the proposals?

• 4 Nov 2025 · Cross-border Healthcare · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for raising a valid point that comes to the crux of this debate and of what has been said by every Member so far. It is about putting the “national” back in our national health service, and doing so across borders without the unnecessary bureaucracy that often comes with how we look after our patients. There is still more to do on this issue, and no system is perfect. I know from engaging with our current Health Minister in Northern Ireland, my party colleague, that there is potential for further north-south co-operation in other specialist paediatric services that lend themselves to an all-island approach, including the hugely emotive and sensitive issue of perinatal and paediatric pathology. Northern Ireland has been without a paediatric pathologist for some time, so an all-island solution should be looked at. As the hon. Member said, ambulances in Northern Ireland regularly cross the border in both directions to save lives. Our two ambulance services have an agreement in place to provide mutual aid, with personnel from either service able to cross the border to assist in emergencies. I believe that the future of healthcare will be defined by the digital innovation that has been referred to, and it will be a great step forward when we can get the national health services talking to each other—it is only recently that we have been able to get our five trusts in Northern Ireland sharing digital information. The will is there if the finance and support are there on genomic medicine, workforce planning and the interoperability of electronic health records. By collaborating on the genomics of rare disease and planning jointly for a workforce that can identify and close future gaps in work, we can ensure that the entire island—and islands—benefit from technological and medical advances. Our co-operation should not just be practical; it should actually improve outcomes. It is proof that where health is concerned, cross-border partnerships really work. I encourage the Minister to take forward the recommendations made in this debate today.

• 4 Nov 2025 · Cross-border Healthcare · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Dowd. I congratulate the hon. Member for Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe (David Chadwick) on securing a debate on cross-border healthcare, because we in Northern Ireland know only too well that health outcomes are not, and should not be, defined by borders—whether an internal UK border or one with an entirely separate sovereign jurisdiction. Sickness does not discriminate. In fact, as the only part of the United Kingdom to share a land boundary with another nation, the issue of cross-border healthcare is something on which every Northern Irish MP, I am sure, will have an opinion. Despite our constitutional sensitivities, I for one have absolutely no hesitation in saying that I am deeply proud of the progress we have made in cross-border healthcare in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The progress in recent decades has shown what can be achieved when we actually work together with a shared purpose. I take note of what other hon. Members have said about the challenges across an internal UK border, which I believe we should not have in healthcare. Despite that, in Northern Ireland we need only to look at the success of the radiotherapy unit at our hospital in Altnagelvin, and more widely the north-west cancer centre based in Londonderry. Those services demonstrate the tangible benefits of co-operation for patients and communities from both sides of the border. When I was Health Minister in 2021, I was pleased to come together with the Governments of Ireland and the United States of America to sign a new memorandum of understanding to reinvigorate the Ireland-Northern Ireland-US National Cancer Institute cancer consortium, which is an often forgotten and unsung part of the negotiations of the ’98 Belfast agreement. When it comes to cancer, we should leave no stone unturned. There are undoubtedly people on both sides of the border who are alive today because of that practical and sensible co-operation. By continuing to refine that service level agreement, expanding areas such as skin cancer treatment, and deepening our joint research in clinical trials, Northern Ireland will once again be strengthening cancer services and helping to advance the fight against rare and specialist cancers across the island. The same collaborative spirit is exemplified in paediatric cardiac care. Our all-island congenital heart disease network—an issue to which my family is as close as we can be—has ensured that children with complex needs can access world-class treatment without unnecessary delay or travel. I have seen at first hand that such cross-border co-operation works. Our youngest son was eight months old when he needed his first open-heart surgery, and that was conducted at Birmingham children’s hospital. He was 10 years old when he needed his pacemaker replaced, but that was done in the children’s hospital in Dublin because of that cross-border work. We in Northern Ireland know all too well about our reliance on the working relationships that we have across borders, should that be across the UK or with our partners in the Republic of Ireland.

• 3 Nov 2025 · “Soldier F” Trial Verdict · Hansard source

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  As we approach Remembrance Sunday, many of those who served in Operation Banner will reflect on comrades whom they lost, comrades who were injured and comrades who still suffer mentally as a result of their deployment in that operation—the British Army’s longest continuous deployment. The Secretary of State has said from the Dispatch Box that his Northern Ireland Troubles Bill will bring strong protections for veterans. It does not; it brings the same protections for everyone under that Bill, including those who possibly perpetrated murderous acts of terrorism in Northern Ireland. So what can he actually provide regarding continuous support for veterans—something set out on the face of the Bill, rather than something that is not in the legislation but is promised by Government?

• 3 Nov 2025 · Cadet Numbers · Hansard source

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  The Northern Ireland Universities Air Squadron is based in Aldergrove in my constituency. Can the Minister reassure me that any support for cadets will be expanded to every cadet and every base across the UK?

• 30 Oct 2025 · Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I will not take the dig about being short personally, Mr Speaker. The industrial strategy and the strategic defence review both offer great opportunities to the entire United Kingdom. Can I seek reassurances from the Minister that he will work with the Northern Ireland Executive to ensure that Northern Ireland and Northern Ireland businesses get benefit out of both?

• 30 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  The Royal Horticultural Society has today launched its report, “Space to Grow”, realising the potential of the community gardening movement. Will the Leader of the House join me in recognising and celebrating the work of Tidy Randalstown in my South Antrim constituency, and look at the opportunity for the Government, along with devolved Governments, to embed the space to grow campaign in legislation and policy?

• 28 Oct 2025 · Family Farming in Northern Ireland · Hansard source

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  I congratulate the hon. Member on securing a debate that focuses specifically on Northern Ireland. Does she agree that what the Treasury and the Government have missed in the proposal is the unique nature of farms in Northern Ireland, where 99% are actually family owned? Even that promise of the opportunity to spread the tax bill over 10 years restricts families who want to invest in their farms, and puts pressure on not only the older generation who are concerned about the farm they are leaving, but the younger generation who are looking to the future.

• 23 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  May I join the Leader of the House in his acknowledgment of the start of the poppy appeal? Is he aware that our British Legion in Northern Ireland is now required to have an appointed EU rep to handle compliance for safety issues for products distributed, sold or given for donation during the poppy appeal. Does the Leader of the House agree that that is ridiculous and will he speak to the appropriate Minister so we can have a meeting about it?

• 23 Oct 2025 · Voluntary Sector: Partnership Working · Hansard source

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  I welcome the Minister’s reassurance. The UK shared prosperity fund is about to come to an end, to be replaced by the local growth fund, and voluntary and community organisations in Northern Ireland have real concerns that they will be left in limbo between one ending and the other starting. I recognise what the Minister just said about the two-year funding pot, but what reassurances can he give those organisations in Northern Ireland that their funding will carry over? They support some of the most vulnerable people in our community.

• 22 Oct 2025 · Draft Control of Mercury (Enforcement) (Amendment) Regulations 2025 · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Lewell. I am the former Northern Ireland Health Minister, and when the issue of moving away from dental amalgam kicked off, it was quite serious. It was raised by all political parties, the British Dental Association and its representatives in the Northern Ireland Assembly, and all sectors. We have heard about the use of amalgam in dentistry, but it is mostly used in our national health dentistry. While we were struggling, and are still struggling in the rest of the UK, to get NHS dentists, the inability to use amalgam for basic fillings would add an extraordinary cost to businesses. The shadow Minister asked and, if I recall it right, the charge at that point was in the region of £26 million. With regard to the specifics, the draft statutory instrument includes only “mercury” in its title, but it focuses solely on amalgam. I ask the Minister, are there any other implications for the utilisation or import of other mercury products, or for other utilisations of mercury in other machineries, that might be affected by the SI? Also, in the setting out of this, there were conversations about what the UK Government were able to achieve. EU Commission notice C/2024/4675 stated that the Commission permitted this regulation and the change that enabled Northern Ireland dentistry to continue to use dental amalgam, as stated, until 31 December 2034 or until the date agreed under the global Minamata convention, to which the UK is a signatory. I therefore seek input from the Minister on that. Should the convention move earlier than the agreed deadline of 31 December 2034, what steps have the Government put in place—working with the Departments of Health and of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland—to ensure that preparatory work is being done now? Originally, the Northern Ireland Executive established a mercury working group, which was under the leadership of the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs. I note that in the explanatory memorandum, under “Consultation”, the Government had consulted not only the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency, but the Department of Health in Northern Ireland—they “were consulted on the approach taken during the drafting of this instrument and were given the opportunity to propose amendments to the text.” May I seek clarity from the Minister? Did they reply, and if so, what did they say? No reference to that is included.

• 22 Oct 2025 · Heathrow: National Airports Review · Hansard source

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  As far back as 2019 there was talk of manufacturing and logistics hubs for the Heathrow hub being sited in Northern Ireland. Can the Secretary of State still give a reassurance that the whole of the UK will be considered in support of the manufacture of the third runway, should it go ahead? Will sites be considered in my constituency, for example, which is critical to Belfast international airport?

• 22 Oct 2025 · Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund · Hansard source

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  Third time lucky. I welcome the Minister’s announcement of the fund for life sciences with regard to the companies we have in North Antrim and South Antrim. Could the Minister also ensure that any research and development tax credits that companies can apply for are fully supported, utilised and brought forward at speed so that companies are able to utilise not just the fund but the tax credits that come through R&D as well?

• 22 Oct 2025 · Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund · Hansard source

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  Will the Minister give way?

• 22 Oct 2025 · Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund · Hansard source

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  Will the Minister give way?

• 22 Oct 2025 · Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund · Hansard source

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  Will the Minister give way?

• 20 Oct 2025 · Alleged Spying Case: Home Office Involvement · Hansard source

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  Chinese officials recently briefed Stormont’s Finance Minister on the status of a local company in his constituency owned by the Chinese state. Information on that briefing, released under the Freedom of Information Act by the Department of Finance, withheld details, citing freedom of information laws that protect confidential information obtained from a foreign state. In the current climate and in the interests of openness and transparency, does the Minister agree that it would be best to release all the details of that meeting, rather than hide behind FOI laws?

• 15 Oct 2025 · Defence Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  May I welcome the Minister to his place as well? Will he ensure that there is that co-working across the Northern Ireland Executive and the Ministry of Defence with regard to the Executive’s investment strategy, which is also integral to the defence industrial strategy, and that the NIE will work to remove any blockages that would prevent the two being merged?

• 14 Oct 2025 · Middle East · Hansard source

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  I congratulate the Prime Minister on getting us to this point. The Labour Government’s role in decommissioning in Northern Ireland is not as complete as portrayed. In a memo of 17 January 2003, an adviser to the then Prime Minister, Tony Blair, said: “The IRA will never be able to account for all their weapons or retrieve them. What we should perhaps aim for is a few more big symbolic acts of decommissioning, and then declare that the process is complete…” That adviser was a certain Jonathan Powell, now the National Security Adviser. So will the Prime Minister give assurances that, should the Government be given such a role, they will not be as lax?

• 14 Oct 2025 · Northern Ireland Troubles · Hansard source

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  On that assurance from the Secretary of State about the protections for veterans, on 19 September he stood beside the Irish Government when he made this announcement, and later that evening the Tánaiste, Simon Harris, went on Irish media and clearly said that there were no added protections for veterans in the legacy deal. Will the Secretary of State give assurance to the House: are there protections for veterans in this legacy deal, or not?

• 10 Sept 2025 · Windsor Framework: Internal Market Guarantee · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. and learned Gentleman for securing this debate and for continuing to raise what is an important issue. He mentioned the manufacturers, but would he also agree about the impact on the Road Haulage Association? We have seen not only the implementation of additional bureaucracy and costs but the recent introduction of the import control system 2—ICS2—which the Government said would go live in September. They then told hauliers that it would be live in December of this year, but they actually put the system live in August without engagement or interaction with the Road Haulage Association and hauliers in Northern Ireland, increasing bureaucracy and costs.

• 8 Sept 2025 · Defence Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I welcome the Government’s announcement of a dedicated procurement hub in Northern Ireland to support our SMEs, although I note that no location has been announced in Northern Ireland. Can I remind the Minister of the excellent opportunity that the Aldergrove base in my constituency presents and how it would be an excellent location for an uncrewed systems centre? Will he meet me and the leadership of Antrim and Newtownabbey borough council to develop that opportunity further?

• 3 Sept 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  I am joined today in the Gallery by the leadership of the Young Farmers’ Clubs of Ulster, an organisation and young people who are passionate about youth work, our rural countryside and the future of farming and agriculture. Agriculture policy is devolved, but the Prime Minister’s agricultural inheritance tax is the thing that has them and young farmers across all the country despairing not just for their future, but the future of food security. When will the Prime Minister change course on the farm family inheritance tax, now that he is taking control of tax policy?