All of Mr Andrew Muir’s imported questions, contributions and motions in this mandate, newest first, including those assessed as not flagged, uncertain or not yet analysed.
1,669 records match, page 61 of 67.
I thank the Member for her supplementary. I would be delighted to do so. Many examples of community intervention are taking place here. With a small amount of grant funding, they are able to achieve quite a lot, not just on forestry cover but in bringing benefits to the local community. I would be delighted to get…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Tree Planting Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Tree Planting
I thank the Member for her question. Tree planting is quite important to me and to tackling climate change. Increasing the area of forest and woodland is a key challenge and focus for my Department. We need to significantly accelerate the annual planting rates so that forest and woodland reach 12% of land area by…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Tree Planting Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Tree Planting
I am happy to consider the Member's invite. Obviously, if there is an ongoing investigation and enforcement action, we need to tread carefully. I am happy to speak to the Member outside the Chamber today on any particular issues that he may have.
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Derelict Buildings: Council Action Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Derelict Buildings: Council Action
I understand the Member's question and the concerns that local residents will have on that issue. District councils are often the bodies with responsibility for enforcement in that area. If there are particular concerns, I ask the Member to write to me, and we can correspond and see what we can do about them.
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Derelict Buildings: Council Action Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Derelict Buildings: Council Action
I do not want to prejudge what it will say, and the action plan that we hope to launch next month will give a bit more information on that, but the interventions will require funding. Many people have been in correspondence with my Department to bring forward technical solutions or suggestions, which we are evaluating…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Lough Neagh: Blue-green Algae Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Lough Neagh: Blue-green Algae
There are two aspects to that. The Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) has done a research study to give statistical evidence on what is contributing to the situation. We have rough percentages about what is contributing to the issues in Lough Neagh. The initiative that you referred to will be a two-year study…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Lough Neagh: Blue-green Algae Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Lough Neagh: Blue-green Algae
The test and vaccinate or remove — TVR — research project was carried out over five years between 2014 and 2018. The project sought to capture badgers, test them for TB and then vaccinate those with negative results or remove those infected with the disease. It encompassed an area of approximately 100 square…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Test and Vaccinate or Remove: Results Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Test and Vaccinate or Remove: Results
I thank the Member for his question. Zebra mussels are part of a mix of problems that affect Lough Neagh, and, as I said, this month, I hope to launch an environmental improvement plan for Northern Ireland. That reflects the fact that it is not just the soil and bed of Lough Neagh that are affected; it is the…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Rivers: Water Quality Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Rivers: Water Quality
I thank the Member for her question. I have concerns about the levels of overspills and the fact that we do not have reliable data on when that is occurring, and I will seek a meeting with Northern Ireland Water to discuss that. The issue of waste water infrastructure in Northern Ireland is concerning. It is not fit…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Rivers: Water Quality Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Rivers: Water Quality
I thank the Member for her question. When I met Charlie McConalogue, the Minister in the South, two weeks ago, we talked about that, because there are learnings that we can take from European Union policy on how we can ensure that our environmental standards are good in Northern Ireland. The 'State of Our Rivers'…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Rivers: Water Quality Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Rivers: Water Quality
I thank the Member for her question. I am aware that water quality is not what it should be — that is a bit of an understatement, frankly. Work to improve the water quality of rivers will require collective action across government, the public and private sectors and wider society. I intend to bring the draft…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Rivers: Water Quality Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Rivers: Water Quality
I thank the Member for his question. The rural micro capital grant scheme will make small capital grants available to rural community and voluntary groups to purchase capital items that enhance and/or provide new services that can help to alleviate poverty, reduce isolation and improve health and well-being in their…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Rural Micro Capital Grant Scheme Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Rural Micro Capital Grant Scheme
I will do whatever I can to ensure that financial support gets out to rural communities. The budget for next year will determine what I can do with regard to this. I also want to take a fresh approach. The scheme needs to go ahead, and we need to get the money out. It is about how we do grant schemes for rural…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Rural Micro Capital Grant Scheme Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Rural Micro Capital Grant Scheme
I thank the Member for his question and for his engagement with me in previous weeks with regard to this. I met officials last week, and we talked about the scheme. It is my desire not to delay it and get it off the ground as soon as possible.
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Rural Micro Capital Grant Scheme Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Rural Micro Capital Grant Scheme
With your permission, Madam Principal Deputy Speaker, I will answer questions 6 and 12 together. Both questions ask for updates on the opening of the rural micro capital grant scheme. My officials have completed an evaluation of the 2022 rural micro capital grant scheme. The findings, lessons learned and…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Rural Micro Capital Grant Scheme Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Rural Micro Capital Grant Scheme
Work is ongoing to scope out and refine the cost associated with delivering the commitments that will be set out in Northern Ireland's first climate action plan. Some of them will fall to DAERA, but other Departments will bear costs. The Department of Finance commissioned a Budget 2024-25 exercise for Departments on…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022
I thank the Member for his question. It is important that all Departments live up to their legal obligations arising from the Act. I will engage with the Minister for Infrastructure alongside the Minister for the Economy and the Minister for Communities, all of whom have significant input on the climate action plan,…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022
I thank the Member for his question. The issue of climate change must be central to the next Programme for Government. It is my top priority as Minister, but it should be the top priority across the Government, because there are opportunities arising out of it. If we do not make the associated investment, we will not…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022
Progress has been made on key requirements of the Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022, but the absence of a sitting Government for two years has had a real impact on what I can do and what Government can do to implement the obligations set out in the Act. An extensive consultation exercise on public body…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022
My overall ambition is to eliminate bovine TB in Northern Ireland because of the impact that it has on the farming community and our budget. I must be science- and evidence-led, but I also need to bring stakeholders with me. That is why I did not come here today and announce initial decisions. I will engage with the…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Bovine TB: Compensation Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Bovine TB: Compensation
I thank the Member for his question. I am conscious that whilst we have a 100% compensation rate, it does not cover the full consequential losses to the farm business. The fact that it is referred to as "compensation" implies that we do not fully understand the impact that TB has on the farming community. The budget I…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Bovine TB: Compensation Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Bovine TB: Compensation
I thank the Member for his question. I have engaged with my counterparts in Ireland and Scotland. I met Charlie McConalogue recently and my Scottish counterpart last week. We discussed the whole issue of bovine TB, which is multifaceted and complex. I am conscious that, whilst our herd infection rate is about 10%, it…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Bovine TB: Compensation Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Bovine TB: Compensation
I agree with the Member. It is not my proposal. The Secretary of State proposed to consult about reducing the compensation rate to 90% and then 75%. That was a consequence of this place not sitting and us being unable to make our own policy decisions. I am determined to bring a fresh approach to the issue and see how…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Bovine TB: Compensation Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Bovine TB: Compensation
As Members will be aware, in September 2023, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland directed my Department to consult on a proposal to reduce the compensation rate for cattle that are removed under the bovine TB programme. My party's position on the Secretary of State's stance on that and his intervention on…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: Bovine TB: Compensation Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: Bovine TB: Compensation
I thank the Member for her question. Perhaps, that is one of the biggest issues in the correspondence that we receive as elected Members. The default go-to is the Department for Infrastructure. We need to find a way in which to ensure that those issues are moved along much quicker, because there are public safety…
Assessment details for Debate contribution: High Hedges Act (Northern Ireland) 2011 Official Assembly record for Debate contribution: High Hedges Act (Northern Ireland) 2011
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