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Vol. 750 Wednesday No. 86 11 December 2013 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) HOUSE OF LORDS OFFICIAL REPORT ORDER OF BUSINESS Questions Northern Ireland: Royal Residence..............................................................................773 Schools Careers Service: Apprenticeships....................................................................775 Payday Loans ................................................................................................................778 China: Exports ..............................................................................................................780 National Insurance Contributions Bill First Reading..................................................................................................................782 Energy Bill Commons Reason...........................................................................................................783 Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill Committee (7th Day) ...................................................................................................798 Criminal Defence Service (Very High Cost Cases) (Funding) Order 2013 Motion to Annul............................................................................................................869 Criminal Legal Aid (Remuneration) (Amendment) Regulations 2013 Motion to Annul............................................................................................................898 Grand Committee Olympic Legacy (S&T Report) Motion to Take Note ..............................................................................................GC 53 EU: Fraud (EUC Report) Motion to Take Note ............................................................................................GC 174 Written Statements......................................................................................................WS 73 Written Answers .........................................................................................................WA 111 £4·00 Lords wishing to be supplied with these Daily Reports should give notice to this effect to the Printed Paper Office. 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The first time a Member speaks to a new piece of parliamentary business, the following abbreviations are used to show their party affiliation: Abbreviation Party/Group CB Cross Bench Con Conservative Con Ind Conservative Independent DUP Democratic Unionist Party GP Green Party Ind Lab Independent Labour Ind LD Independent Liberal Democrat Lab Labour Lab Ind Labour Independent LD Liberal Democrat LD Ind Liberal Democrat Independent Non-afl Non-affiliated PC Plaid Cymru UKIP UK Independence Party UUP Ulster Unionist Party No party affiliation is given for Members serving the House in a formal capacity, the Lords spiritual, Members on leave of absence or Members who are otherwise disqualified from sitting in the House. © Parliamentary Copyright House of Lords 2013, this publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Open Parliament licence, which is published at www.parliament.uk/site-information/copyright/. 773 Northern Ireland: Royal Residence[11 DECEMBER 2013] Northern Ireland: Royal Residence 774 real possibility of tourist potential not just from within House of Lords Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom, but that many people south of the border will be keen Wednesday, 11 December 2013. to come to Hillsborough Castle for its associations with Her Majesty and the Royal Family, as well as the 3pm important political associations that it also has? Prayers—read by the Lord Bishop of Truro. Baroness Randerson: My Lords, the intention is that the new arrangements will make it easier to Northern Ireland: Royal Residence attract both domestic and foreign tourists to visit Question Hillsborough Castle. It is important to remember that as well as being a beautiful castle—a beautiful building 3.07 pm with beautiful grounds—it has tremendous historic Asked by Lord Lexden significance. It is important to remember that royal tourism alone is estimated to be worth £500 million a To ask Her Majesty’s Government what year to the United Kingdom. Therefore, it is important arrangements are being made to establish a permanent that we open up the castle as much as possible—and Royal Residence in Northern Ireland. considerably more than has been possible in the past. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Wales Office (Baroness Randerson) (LD): My Lords, in Northern Lord Empey (UUP): My Lords, in welcoming the Ireland Hillsborough Castle is the official residence of Minister’s reply, I will ask her two questions. Firstly, Her Majesty the Queen and has been the sovereign’s Hillsborough Castle is owned by the Northern Ireland residence since 1922. The castle is also the residence of Office. When is it anticipated that it will be transferred the Secretary of State and of the Minister for Northern to the Historic Royal Palaces trust, and will any additional Ireland. Current proposals are to pass the operation trustees, including a trustee from Northern Ireland, be of Hillsborough Castle to Historic Royal Palaces and added to the trust board? significantly to increase public access. However, full royal and ceremonial use will continue unchanged. Baroness Randerson: There will be no change to the ownership of Hillsborough Castle. An agreement will Lord Lexden (Con): My Lords, I thank the Minister be signed with Historic Royal Palaces. It is anticipated, for telling the House about the important decision to following negotiations, that it will be signed next April, place Hillsborough in the guardianship of the Historic but there will be a transition period of two to three Royal Palaces trust. Does not the existence of a permanent years before the full handover to the new arrangements royal residence both symbolise and underline the enduring is complete. On the question of trustees, a Northern commitment of the Royal Family to all sections of the Ireland group already exists in relation to Hillsborough community in this part of our country—a commitment Castle. It is intended that this should be refreshed and perhaps best expressed by the late Queen Elizabeth the set up anew under the new arrangements. It will have a Queen Mother, who once told my noble friend Lord strong representation from Northern Ireland, as well Molyneaux that each night she included in her prayers, as trustees appointed by Her Majesty the Queen. “God Bless Ulster”? Does my noble friend also agree that it is most fitting that the decision should come in Lord Hamilton of Epsom (Con): Does my noble the year that His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales friend accept that if Scotland votes for independence, celebrated his 65th birthday, for the cross-community the future of Balmoral must be called into question? work of his many charitable organisations contributes Would that situation not make it even more important significantly to progress in Northern Ireland today? that there is a royal residence in Northern Ireland? Baroness Randerson: My Lords, I agree with the Baroness Randerson: My Lords, along with many of noble Lord that the Royal Family is to be commended your Lordships, I am concentrating on supporting the for its loyalty and for the work that it has done with Better Together campaign. I am not making plans, Northern Ireland. We all remember the significance and neither are my noble friends, for any future situation almost two years ago of the Queen’s handshake. The in Balmoral. existence of Hillsborough Castle as a royal residence is guaranteed under the new arrangements, and full facilities for royal access will be there. It will be easy for Lord Bew (CB): My Lords, does the Minister accept members of the Royal Family to use the castle when that the fact that she is able to make this announcement they wish for their royal duties in Northern Ireland. today reverses the great historic error of the 19th century in not having a royal residence in Ireland, and that it Lord Alderdice (LD): My Lords, does my noble can only be done because of the stability brought to friend accept that, given the extraordinary—indeed, Northern Ireland’s constitutional status as a result of transformational—effect of Her Majesty’s visit to the the Good Friday agreement of 1998? Republic of Ireland, and the fact that Hillsborough Castle is not only a royal residence but a place of Baroness Randerson: Hillsborough