With your permission, Mr Speaker, I would like to update the House, and the people of Northern Ireland, on the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol as part of the Withdrawal Agreement with the European Union.

Throughout 2020 we have worked intensively to ensure that the Withdrawal Agreement, in particular the Northern Ireland Protocol, will be fully operational on 1 January 2021.

Our aims, and the proportionate and pragmatic way we intended to pursue them, were set out in the Command Paper we published in May, ‘The UK’s approach to the Northern Ireland Protocol’ .

This set three key commitments that we believe needed to be respected in all scenarios:

We had to ensure that Northern Ireland businesses retained unfettered access to the rest of the UK market.

Northern Ireland’s place in the UK’s customs territory had to be protected – and that meant that goods that stayed in the UK were not subject to tariffs.

And we had to ensure that the important GB-NI trade flows, on which lives and livelihoods depend, were not disrupted; and we need to ensure a smooth flow of trade, with no need for new physical customs infrastructure.

And Mr Speaker, I am pleased to say that on Monday the European Commission Vice President Maroš Šefčovič and I – as co-chairs of the Joint Committee set up to negotiate the implementation of the protocol – came to an agreement in principle on a deal which meets all of those commitments, and puts the people of Northern Ireland first.

I would like to begin by paying tribute to Maroš and his team for their pragmatism, their collaborative spirit – and their determination to get a deal done that would work for both sides. And I’d also like to thank the first minister, the deputy first minister and all the members of the Northern Ireland executive for their crucial intervention at significant moments in order to ensure that the rights of the people of Northern Ireland were protected.

Turning now to that first Government commitment, the deal protects unfettered access for Northern Ireland businesses to their most important market.

As the Prime Minister underlined, this had to be protected in full – and that meant removing any prospect of export declarations for Northern Ireland goods moving from Northern Ireland to Great Britain.

And that’s what our agreement will do. There will be no additional requirements will be placed on Northern Ireland businesses for these movements, with the very limited and specific exception of trade in endangered species and conflict diamonds.

On the second commitment, Mr Speaker, the deal safeguards Northern Ireland’s place in the UK’s customs territory.

As recently as July, the Commission had envisaged a default tariffs scenario in which, and I quote:

all goods brought into Northern Ireland [would be] considered to be at risk …and are as such subject to the Common Customs Tariff.”

If that had been implemented that would have raised the prospect of a 58% tariff on a pint of milk going from Scotland to a supermarket in Strabane or 96% on a bag of sugar going from Liverpool to the shops of Belfast.

As we’ve repeatedly made clear, this could never have been an acceptable outcome.

So instead, I am pleased to say that under the agreement that we’ve reached, Northern Ireland businesses selling to consumers or using goods in Northern Ireland will be free of all tariffs.

Whether that is Nissan’s cars from Sunderland; or lamb from Montgomeryshire.

Internal UK trade will be protected as we promised – whether we have a Free Trade Agreement with the EU or not.

And third, Mr Speaker, this deal would keep goods flowing between Great Britain and Northern Ireland in January, and indeed provide some necessary additional flexibilities.

It protects Northern Ireland supermarket supplies. We heard throughout the year that traders needed time to adapt their systems.

That is why we have a grace period for supermarkets to update their procedures.

And our agreement also prevents any disruption at the end of the transition period on the movements of chilled meats. British sausages will continue to make their way to Belfast and Ballymena in the new year. And we have also got time for reciprocal agreements between the UK and EU on agri food to be discussed in the months ahead.

This deal also protects the flow of medicines and vet medicines into Northern Ireland. This means we’ll grant industry a period of up to 12 months to adapt to the rules under the protocol – so this will avoid any disruption to critical medical supplies.

So three commitments entered into, three commitments that we have upheld.

But this agreement in principle also goes further still, providing additional flexibility that will enable us to make the most of the opportunities that face us as the transition period ends.

As you know, Mr Speaker, this House has been concerned about the risk of so-called ‘reach back’ from the state aid provisions that the Protocol applies.

The concern that many colleagues had was that a company in Great Britain, with only a peripheral link to commercial operations in Northern Ireland, could be caught inadvertently by the tests within the Protocol’s text.

That would not have been acceptable; nor was it what the Protocol had envisaged.

That is why I am pleased that the agreement we have addresses that risk.

It means firms in GB stay outside state aid rules where there is no ‘genuine and direct’ link to Northern Ireland, and no ‘real foreseeable’ impact on NI-EU trade. It’s an important step forward, dealing with an issue raised by a number of honourable and right honourable members across this House.

Also, this deal ensures that Northern Ireland will be out of the Common Agricultural Policy, which means that the Northern Ireland Executive have full freedom to set their own agricultural subsidies for Northern Ireland’s farmers.

It also means appropriate and flexible arrangements which mean that more than £400m of spending each year is totally exempt from state aid rules. As well as this, the deal ensures that support for fishermen in Northern Ireland will also be exempt from EU state aid rules – and that means more than £15m of flexibilities for Northern Ireland’s fishermen over the next five years. And of course Northern Ireland’s services industries are totally outside the scope of the Protocol and its state aid measures.

The agreement also respects the Protocol provisions, which were endorsed by Parliament, that allow some EU officials to be present at Northern Ireland ports as UK authorities carry out our own procedures.

And let me be clear, there will be no Belfast ‘mini-embassy’ or mission, as the EU originally sought. And the EU officials will not have any powers to carry out checks themselves.

There will instead be sensible practical arrangements, cooperation,reciprocal data-sharing, so that both sides can have confidence in these unique arrangements.

We also want to leave no doubt about our ongoing commitments to peace and prosperity in Northern Ireland.

My Right Honourable Friend the Northern Ireland Secretary will set out, in the coming days, further measures of financial support, to help businesses and communities to prosper and thrive from the end of the year and beyond.

And Mr Speaker, we’ve been able to deliver a package which now means that the Protocol can be implemented in a pragmatic and a proportionate way. It takes account of the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement in all of its dimensions, and it protects the interests both of the EU single-market but more importantly, the territorial and constitutional integrity of the whole United Kingdom.

Now, this agreement will be approved officially at a Joint Committee meeting in the coming days.

And, of course this agreement that we have reached also enables the Government to withdraw clauses 44, 45 and 47 of the UK Internal Market Bill, and avoids the need for any additional provisions in the Taxation Bill.

Having put beyond doubt the primacy of the sovereignty of this place, as we leave the EU, we rest safe in the knowledge that such provisions are no longer required.

We know that we now need to get on and give further clarity to business as to the specifics of what this deal means for them, and how it will all work in detail in practice. And we will do this through the publication of further guidance.

And that will sit along the ongoing, intensive work we will take forward to implement the Protocol

But above all, Mr Speaker, we will always work with the interests of the people and businesses of Northern Ireland in mind – as this agreement, and the important flexibilities it will provide, reflects.

Because we must all remember if the Protocol is to work, it must work for the whole community in Northern Ireland. And whether it is to be maintained in the future, as the Protocol itself sets out, is for the people of Northern Ireland to decide through the democratic consent mechanism that my Rt Hon Friend the Prime Minister negotiated.

And on that critical, important note of the primacy of democracy, I recommend this statement to the House.

The Department for International Trade (DIT) has today launched new a global partnerships programme, Leading Edge, to help International Financial Institutions (IFIs) in priority markets access the best British fintech solutions – beginning with Singapore, Australia and the US.

Leading Edge is designed to help create the right conditions for new partnerships and trade and investment opportunities, supporting important global financial and professional services relationships and promoting the adoption of fintech, particularly of UK-grown solutions in areas such as RegTech, robotic process automation and Artificial Intelligence.

Large financial institutions will be able to make the most of the leading fintech scene in the UK, which is home to approximately 1600 fintech firms and this is expected to more than double by 2030. The UK fintech sector is estimated to be worth £11bn in revenue in 2019, up from £6.6bn in 2015, and now accounts for around 8% of total financial services output.

Minister for Investment, Gerry Grimstone, said:

At this year’s Singapore FinTech Festival, the UK is showcasing why collaboration and innovation are key pillars of our fintech philosophy and why digitisation is a core part of the future of financial services.

The digital adoption and transformation support offered by the UK’s leading firms will enable International Financial Institutions to remain not only competitive but also a viable part of the financial services sector of tomorrow.

I welcome the launch of Leading Edge, which will give these global firms in our partner countries, including Singapore, the opportunity to collaborate with and benefit from the UK’s world leading fintech expertise.

DBS CEO, Piyush Gupta, said:

DBS is excited to work with Leading Edge, which offers us the opportunity to tap into the extensive range of capabilities of UK fintechs.

This will further enhance our existing in-house programmes that not only engage, nurture and grow the startup community but through value exchange, create incremental value for our customers.

UOB Head of Group Technology and Operations, Susan Hwee, said:

At UOB, we focus on building on our customers’ trust by making banking simpler, smarter and safer.

In our pursuit to create greater value for them, we continually innovate and work with like-minded partners across the globe.

As the ecosystems we forged have enabled us to break new ground in developing customer-centric banking solutions, we look forward to collaborating with the best of UK FinTech firms in the Leading Edge programme.

In Singapore, DIT has agreed partnerships with the three major banks, DBS, OCBC and UOB. This announcement comes as part of the UK’s involvement in Singapore FinTech festival. DIT has a full programme of events, with speakers including Minister for Investment, Gerry Grimstone, HM Trade Commissioner for Asia Pacific Natalie Black CBE, and CEO of DBS, Piyush Gupta.

The UK and Singapore are both leaders in the global digital economy, with 65% of all UK services exports to the world delivered remotely in 2019. We are working closely with Singapore to ensure business continuity, and working towards the UK joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership; a key priority for government as we focus on strengthening our relationships with dynamic economies in the Indo-Pacific region.

More children with mental health needs are getting the right support at the right time, with local agencies learning from past failures, a new study finds. Given the impact of COVID-19 on children’s mental health, and increased pressure on services, building on this success is vital.

Published today [9 December 2020], the joint report from Ofsted, Care Quality Commission (CQC), HMI Constabulary, Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) and HMI Probation looks at how partners in 6 local authority areas are working together to help children with mental ill health. The report is based on inspections carried out between September 2019 and February 2020 – before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The report finds that restructures of child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS), along with a concerted effort by agencies to work together, has broadened the help available for a range of mental health needs. This has also led to more timely identification, referrals and support.

In many cases, professionals are knowledgeable and can recognise the signs of mental ill health. A single point of access for specialist advice on mental health is helping professionals respond more effectively, as are co-located services and improved involvement of voluntary and community sector organisations.

But although much progress has been achieved, this good work is not universal. Some agencies need to get better at identifying children suffering from mental ill health. In some cases, professionals are still focusing on presenting issues, and not looking beyond them for possible risks of mental ill health. This applies to some staff in emergency departments, GPs, police and social workers, even in circumstances where a child has self-harmed or behaves in a way that indicates they have suffered trauma. And too often, a child’s mental health problem is first picked up when they enter the youth justice system.

Schools have an important role to play in supporting children’s mental health, but they cannot do it alone, the report finds. Where schools are supported well by partners, children get specialist help when they need it. But there is wide variation in the quality of support that children receive from school nurses. Nursing services in half of the areas visited did not have the systems in place nor the capacity to identify children with mental health problems, meaning that opportunities to spot issues early were missed.

Many police forces in areas visited have well-developed training and support for officers to recognise and help children with mental ill health, but this is not consistent in all areas. Inspectors saw too many examples of children being kept in custody overnight and who were not helped to get the support that they needed with their mental health.

Despite improvements in partnership working being made in some areas, the report finds that specialist CAMHS are still limited in some areas and resources are overstretched. Some of the most vulnerable children have to wait far too long for their mental health needs to be identified and to get access to specialist services. This includes children with autism, ADHD, some children on child in need and child protection plans, and children in care.

Amanda Spielman, Ofsted’s Chief Inspector, said:

Children’s mental health has taken on a much higher profile in recent years, even before the pandemic, and services have been steadily improving. However, while we saw some excellent partnership work to better support children with mental ill health in the areas we visited, we know this will not be the experience of every child.

Single points of contact, accessible services and strong joint working make a real difference for children. But it’s also vital that each partner recognises their own role, and knows when to seek specialist advice, so that children get the right support at the right time. Given the added pressures that the pandemic is placing on mental health services, it would be tragic if these improvements were lost when they are needed more than ever.

Victoria Watkins, Deputy Chief Inspector of Primary, Integrated and Children’s Health Services at CQC said:

When we published ‘Are we listening?’, our review of children and young people’s mental health services in 2018, we noted that good care was more likely to be seen where local services were working together. Encouragingly, these joint inspections with Ofsted found strong partnership working, with the needs of the child at its heart. This is a testament to the tireless effort of people working in the system to improve the experience of children and young people with mental health needs.

Unfortunately, as we reported in 2018, some young people still wait too long for their needs to be identified or to access the mental health support that they need. There is still also a risk that people working with children and young people focus on immediate issues, such as seemingly disruptive or challenging behaviour, and miss the opportunity to address any mental health needs that might also be present.

It’s vital that we build on the progress made and good practice we have seen, and hold onto these lessons as the whole health and care system continues to respond to the pandemic and any impact it has on services.

Wendy Williams, HM Inspector of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services, said:

We know from previous inspections that responding to people with mental health needs is a complex issue that the police are faced with on a daily basis, often at a time of crisis for that individual. We are therefore pleased to see the police service is improving how its officers engage with, and respond to, children suffering with mental ill health. There are still areas we would like to see the police together with other services improve on, such as the early identification and provision of support for those children who suffer from mental ill health and are brought into police custody for other matters. We have seen where there is effective joint working with partner agencies it ensures vulnerable children are given the support they need in environments which improve, and not hinder, their well-being.

Justin Russell, Chief Inspector of Probation, said:

It remains of considerable concern that a referral to a youth offending service is often the first time a child’s mental health needs are identified and addressed. This alone demonstrates that change is crucial, and I welcome the findings of this report demonstrating the efforts being made to diagnose children at the earliest opportunity and tailor support to their individual needs.

We do not yet know the full impact COVID-19 may have had on children’s mental health, and how this will affect already over-stretched services in some areas. I urge all those who have worked together to make improvements to build on the momentum they have established – it is more important than ever that services work collaboratively for the sake of those most vulnerable in our society.

This report describes findings from 6 joint targeted area inspections (JTAIs) carried out between September 2019 and February 2020, along with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary, Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) and Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation (HMI Probation).

The 6 local authorities inspected were Bexley, East Sussex, Milton Keynes, Plymouth, Portsmouth and Sefton.

A focused review of children and young people’s mental health services through the JTAI programme was one of the commitments made by CQC in its report, ‘Are we listening? A review of children and young people’s mental health services’ requested by the then Prime Minister in 2017. The JTAI approach demonstrates the joined-up working expected in local systems.

A new way of taking intermediate level waste out of Sellafield’s Pile Fuel Storage Pond has been developed.

It means the material can be removed 6 years earlier than planned, saving millions of pounds for the UK taxpayer.

Like most technological breakthroughs, it’s a simple solution to a complex problem.

Originally, it was thought this waste would need to be taken out via a new processing facility called the Box Encapsulation Plant.

But decommissioning teams went back to the drawing board and came up with an alternative plan.

They designed a new waste export route using an existing Sellafield building, the Waste Encapsulation Plant.

It means the material can be removed immediately, rather than waiting until 2026.

The first basket of waste has now been successfully exported. Another 500 baskets will be removed over the next three to four years.

Dorothy Gradden, head of legacy ponds for Sellafield Ltd, said:

This is a major breakthrough. Everyone involved is justifiably proud of what we’ve achieved. It’s particularly pleasing to have it done it during COVID-19.

By finding a simple solution to a complicated problem, we’ve taken a significant step towards emptying the pond and retiring the risk from this legacy facility.

The pond was built in the 1940s to support the production of plutonium for Britain’s nuclear deterrent, Sellafield’s original mission.

It is one of four Sellafield buildings prioritised for clean-up by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.

The new waste route is a Sellafield Ltd/supply chain collaboration via the Decommissioning Delivery Partnership.

James Fisher Nuclear played a key role, helping to manufacture new equipment and tools.

Sellafield Ltd teams made a range of contributions including adapting software systems, introducing a micro-digger into the pond, and repurposing existing technologies and equipment.

Introducing a micro-digger

Other intermediate level waste projects at Sellafield will benefit from the lessons learned during this work.