My Lords, this Government believe that Northern Ireland is a core part of the United Kingdom. As regards our commitments and those made in Safeguarding the Union, we are not reneging on any of the Command Paper commitments but remain committed to implementing the Windsor Framework in good faith and taking forward commitments in a way that best delivers for
the people of Northern Ireland. I will come back to the noble Lord on the timetable for publication; we are still working.
My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness for her kind words and I associate myself with what she said about the flooding. A key commitment in Annexe B of the Safeguarding the Union Command Paper in January is for the Government unashamedly to make the positive case for Northern Ireland’s place within the United Kingdom. This was to be supported by papers setting out the considerable mutual benefits—political, economic, social, cultural and security—gained by Northern Ireland being an integral part of the union. Can the noble Baroness confirm that these remain firm government commitments? Can she update the House on the schedule for publication of these papers and the steps being taken to ensure their widespread circulation in order to counter the arguments of those seeking constitutional change?