All of Mr Andrew Muir’s imported questions, contributions and motions in this mandate, newest first, including those assessed as not qualifying, uncertain or not yet analysed.
I thank the Member for his question. The legislation states that the complaint progresses only if: "the council considers— (a) that the complainant has not taken all reasonable steps to resolve the matters complained of without proceeding by way of such a complaint to the council". That is the bar that is set before…
I thank the Member for his question. The legislation, as it is drafted, is meant to be a last resort in resolving those issues. Statistics that have been presented to me show that a very small percentage of people actually go towards using the legislation. I am happy to meet the Member if he has any particular…
I thank the Member for his question. The High Hedges Act (Northern Ireland) 2011 is intended to provide a mechanism by which a complainant can resolve a problem that is caused by a high evergreen hedge through their local council if they have approached their neighbour and asked them to reduce its height but have been…
I thank the Member for his question. I am very conscious that, under the Rural Needs Act, there is a duty on public authorities to have due regard to the social and economic needs of people in rural areas when exercising their functions. My Department continues to provide support to public authorities to help to…
I thank the Member for her question. It is important that we evaluate a lot of these funds and see how effective they are. Some of them were cast in a previous era when we were a member of the EU, so we need to make sure that we are meeting the needs of rural communities. In rural communities, I am seeing a sense of…
I thank the Member for his question. I agree with him. I met officials last week to discuss our overall rural development programmes and the policies around this. As Minister, I intend to bring a fresh approach to this to see what more we can do to ensure that rural needs are fully reflected by all Departments,…
I thank the Member for his question. My Department has a contract with six rural support networks to deliver the rural community development support service across all rural areas of Northern Ireland. Since 2020-21, my Department has provided additional financial assistance to rural support networks through those…
With your permission, Mr Speaker, I will make a statement on my decision on how Northern Ireland will deal with XL bully breed-type dogs. Like all Members, I am acutely aware of the devastating impact that can arise when dogs become out of control. Sadly, as we have seen across the UK and Ireland in recent months, the…
I will start by thanking Members for bringing the issues to the Floor for discussion. A number of points have been raised in the debate. I will seek to pick them up in my ministerial response. As Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, it is my strong desire to work with Members and the fisheries…
I cannot give that commitment because I do not know what my budget will be for next year. That is the reality. Whatever settlement I get for next year will have a significant impact on how we can deliver functions for Northern Ireland. I will not seek to reduce it, but I am very conscious of the financial situation. I…
I am aware of those recommendations. As I said, I engaged last week and will engage in the time ahead with the Ulster Farmers' Union to get its views. Many different suggestions are coming forward to me. I am conscious that time may not be on our side for the budget for next year that is associated with this. I am…
In approaching the Lough Neagh issue, we have probably three tools: one is education, and that is probably the one that we need to divert to first; the second is regulation; and the last is enforcement. If we get into the game of issuing fines, we have failed. We will probably have to move to that, because some people…
Many issues will be discussed in the meeting this week. If people think that ownership will be the solution to the problems of Lough Neagh, they are badly mistaken. There are big issues there that we need to address. We all have to face up to some really hard decisions, and I will outline those in the next weeks. Let…
Councils in Northern Ireland play a key role in waste management. I will seek a meeting with the Northern Ireland Local Government Association (NILGA), SOLACE, Arc21 and other organisations in the time ahead to discuss the way forward. I welcome the developments in Belfast City Council on glass collection. The…
My Department's remit is quite wide and includes waste management. I am conscious that those responsibilities include strategy, policy, legislation and, where funds permit, grant support. We have requirements outlined in the Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 and the Waste and Contaminated Land (Northern…
I thank the Member for his question. I have asked my officials for more guidance on that to see how we can progress it. I am aware of how the funding goes through, and you have acknowledged the value of that. In my Department, money can go much further, and the opportunities and benefits for rural communities can be…
I was conscious, on taking up office, that some people refer to me as "the Minister of Agriculture", so I usually finish that sentence with, "Environment and Rural Affairs". Sometimes, rural affairs has been second fiddle to the rest of the Department. I am keen to see how we can move forward. The development…
I am very aware of the issues and of the associated legal challenges that arose. One element of bovine TB is a wildlife strategy, and we have to consider that. Let us engage. Let us see whether we can find a way forward. I am aware of my party's policy. People will not be surprised by it. In the time ahead, as…
I am very conscious and aware of the issue of bovine TB. I was briefed on the issue on the Saturday on which I took office. The honeymoon ends quickly when you leave the Chamber. There are challenges around that issue, because it is not sustainable for farms, and it is not financially sustainable for the Department. I…
I thank the Member for his question. I am conscious that our farming community is a key part of our economy and that, on a lot of occasions, people putting long hours and a lot of dedication into the family business is a generational thing. We need to find ways in the Department to support that. I am conscious of the…
I am aware of the issues and the associated media reports at the weekend. There are always issues with the roll-out of IT systems; usually, they do not go exactly as planned. However, if people have particular concerns, they should raise them with the Department pretty promptly so that we can investigate them. In the…
The focus over the next number of weeks will be on putting bids into the Department of Finance for the budget for next year. I am conscious that finance is the key element that constrains what my Department can do, whether in grant support, education or enforcement. I intend to make an ambitious bid to the Department…
As was once said, all politics is local. I am aware of those issues. I have been briefed by my Department on that. Anyone who becomes aware of such issues should report them immediately to the pollution hotline. Without those immediate reports, any investigation will be impeded.
I am conscious that, informed by the requirements of the legislation in place to cover decision-making in the absence of Ministers, my officials took a decision that they could no longer rely on published ammonia standing advice, also known as the operational protocol, as the basis for statutory advice on planning…
As Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, I am keen to work North/South and east-west. There are a lot of commonalities, and the reality is that trade moves both ways. Last Thursday, I spoke to Pippa Hackett from the South. I have also been in contact with Charlie McConalogue, and I am engaging with…