Oral question asked in the House of Commons, by Ian Jnr Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party). It was answered on Tuesday, 1 November 2011 on behalf of the Northern Ireland Grand Committee.

Air Passenger Duty

Question: I welcome what the Government have done in listening to representations made from across the House on airport duty and in making the reduction, which is important as we try to rebalance our economy from the public to the private sector. Will the Minister have a word with the Chancellor to go the extra mile in encouraging local businesses? They are being squeezed to death by the Arthur Daley of banking—namely, Frank Daly of the National Asset Management Agency. Will the Minister have a word in the Chancellor’s ear and tell him to ease the pressure on local businesses in Northern Ireland, so that we can rebalance our economy?

Answer: I thank the hon. Gentleman for congratulating the Government on making the reduction. We did not do it entirely unilaterally; we delivered on the deal, but I very much appreciate the support that we received in trying to get the Treasury into the right place. That was a good example of our all working collectively well together at different levels. There is pressure on Northern Ireland’s businesses. I suggest that the pressure on businesses in NAMA or in banking would have been even more difficult had the Government not been involved in the package for the Government in Dublin. However, we are very aware of that pressure, particularly in the property sector. The hon. Gentleman will be aware of many people who are in NAMA in the Republic, and we will have to watch that situation. His colleague, the hon. Member for East Antrim, the Finance Minister, who is in his place, will no doubt also wish to take the issue very seriously, and we stand by to help in any way we can.

Secondary information