Philip Davies, the MP for Shipley, said: 'Although I appreciate it's largely as a result of the idiotic decision to lock down the country and the economy for the best part of two years, the chancellor nevertheless finds himself presiding over a high-tax, high-spend, low-growth, quasi-socialist economy. Unsurprisingly, some Conservatives are unimpressed with the level of taxation and spending in the fiscal statement. Watch as MPs question the Northern Ireland secretary here.Īway from Boris Johnson, MPs are still debating last week's budget in the House of Commons. He pushes back when Brexiteer Tory MP Craig Mackinlay describes the application of the Stormont brake - allowing Northern Irish parties to block any changes to, or newly created EU goods laws, via Westminster - as 'circuitous'.īut he admits he doesn't know how likely it is that members of the Northern Ireland Assembly will be able to activate the brake. In response to concerns that the process is being rushed, the NI secretary says he'd 'like to think we are giving people the time and space to go through all aspects' of the deal. 'Everybody wants prosperity, if we get this prosperity peace right, I think that helps guarantee the union for decades, generations to come,' he adds. He says he 'truly believe, hand on heart' that it will bring more prosperity.

Mr Heaton-Harris is pressed on whether he has 'put enough effort' into talking to the DUP about the benefits of the deal negotiated with the EU's consent. He tells the committee the deal is a 'massive improvement' for how things will work in Northern Ireland, despite echoing Mr Sunak's view that it is 'not perfect'.

Mr Heaton-Harris lays out the rudiments of Rishi Sunak's post-Brexit trade deal for Northern Ireland agreed by the UK and EU last month. Sir William Cash, who chairs the European scrutiny committee, is critical of how long it has taken to get a minister before the cross-party group of MPs for questioning before the session begins - later raising concern that the implementation of the framework is being 'rushed'. We reported yesterday that the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) has said it will vote against this part of the deal which builds on the Northern Ireland Protocol. It comes ahead of a crunch vote on a key part of the framework - the Stormont brake - tomorrow. Elsewhere in parliament, Northern Ireland secretary Chris Heaton-Harris is being questioned by MPs on the Windsor Framework.

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