All of Mrs Emma Little-Pengelly’s imported questions, contributions and motions in this mandate, newest first, including those assessed as not flagged, uncertain or not yet analysed.
The Member's question highlights once again how difficult our Budget is. The Budget for this year was divided up, with approximately 50% for the Department of Health, 30% for the Department of Education and 10% for the Department of Justice. That left just 10% to be divided among the other Departments, including the…
Absolutely. The Member will be aware that we have pushed forward with an outcomes-focused Programme for Government. Its purpose is to see the bigger picture when it comes to our objectives of having public services that deliver for people, of ensuring that what we do grows our economy and of providing a brighter,…
The Member will be aware that we have been pressing the UK Government on a range of issues pertaining to the Budget. The Northern Ireland Budget is incredibly difficult. We know its impact, not least on our health system and on waiting lists, and the associated pressures that it causes. We also know the pressures on…
The Member will be aware of how difficult the current fiscal situation and the Budget are for Northern Ireland. It is therefore a matter for the UK Government in ongoing discussions, and I know that a number of Ministers and others have been making representations to that end.
The head of the Civil Service launched an external recruitment exercise to fill vacancies in two permanent secretary roles in December 2023. The competition produced two successful candidates. One of the successful candidates, Mr Ian Snowden, was appointed to the Department for the Economy post on 28 March 2024. The…
It is important that all those issues are considered. Of course, in the roll-out of any public services, we have a shared objective and seek the same outcome, which is to ensure that those public services work for those who need them when they need them. We listen all the time to those who are trying to use services…
We have made the transformation of public services a key priority for the Executive. Many sectors need investment and reform in order to ensure equitable access to the high-quality services that our citizens expect and make the public finances sustainable. The Executive have agreed an approach proposed by the Finance…
Guidance has been published and is available online for everybody to take a look at. Of course, the devolved legislatures are not particularly impacted on by the period of purdah, but there are implications for Ministers in relation to announcements and their approach. It is a matter for each Minister, in accordance…
The Executive Committee will continue to meet during the pre-election period. The business of Departments will also continue as normal, subject only to any changes that are considered to be necessary to adhere to the pre-election guidance. Decisions on specific activities or items of business are a matter for each…
Yes, absolutely. For some considerable time, the Department has ensured that we evaluate projects, and for good reason: if we do not measure the impact of these programmes and projects, we do not know what impact they are having. Initially, we set baselines around attitudes and other indicators at individual project…
The commission's report is a substantive one. It contains significant analysis that was based on an extensive consultation process with stakeholders from throughout the community. While the recommendations were not all fully agreed by the commission, as a piece of work, the report is hugely valuable. That should…
I thank the Member for his question. Absolutely. Northern Ireland Alternatives does fantastic work in the local community and has done so for some considerable time. In this role, I have had the opportunity to go along and see some of its important work and its celebration events. Undoubtedly, over many years, NI…
The programme continues to be rolled out in this phase. Throughout this phase, we will evaluate those projects to ensure that we are pulling forward the best practice. The programme has had a significant positive impact across the communities where those projects have been rolled out. It is important to try to…
Communities in Transition has operated across eight designated areas since 2019. Our officials are carrying out a comprehensive review of phases 1 and 2 of the programme to inform planning and delivery of any future phase beyond March 2025, should funding become available. As part of that, consideration will be given…
The Member will be aware of how challenging the current Budget is, and the number-one priority initially must be to try to maintain our public services to the best standard that we possibly can within the budgetary envelope. That will inevitably limit the discretion and flexibility that we may have for new policies,…
The Member will be well aware of the difference between political discussions and being informed of ongoing issues and the duties that we, as Ministers, have to discharge in relation to the Programme for Government. Those are two entirely different processes. The Programme for Government process commenced when we took…
With your permission, Mr Speaker, I will answer questions 10 and 12 together. We are working to finalise a draft Programme for Government and hope to begin consultation soon. Publication and consultation dates are under consideration due to the pre-election period. We want to hear views on the draft document from as…
All those costs are, ultimately, scalable and dependent on how many staff there will be and on the agreement of the business and corporate plan. No body can ever do everything that it wanted to do, so it is about looking at whatever budget is available, and people being able to fit and to prioritise within that. Of…
Public appointments processes generally take between six to 12 months, especially if they are new recruitment processes. The financial implications for that in this year's budget will come from the cost of the recruitment competition. We will not know the actual cost of the proposed offices until we look at the…
They are public appointments. They are also statutory bodies. They are brand new. Therefore, considerable work has been done on their establishment through the legislation. Because they are public appointments regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments, we have to go through a number of necessary legal…
TEO is responsible for taking forward the necessary arrangements to implement the provisions of the Identity and Language (Northern Ireland) Act 2022, including the establishment of the Office of Identity and Cultural Expression, the Irish language commissioner and the commissioner for the Ulster-Scots and the…
I thank the Member for his question. Extensive work has been done on the review of the good relations strategy. Officials are finalising that strategy on the basis of the extensive consultation that they have done. We look forward to seeing those proposals coming forward.
Yes, absolutely. The first meeting of the BIC since devolution was restored will take place at the end of next week in the Isle of Man. We will participate in that. It is critical that we continue to build on those relationships. There has been significant change in the leadership of the participants. We look forward…
The issues that pertain to Lough Neagh are, of course, predominantly for the Northern Ireland Executive and the Minister of Agriculture. We had those discussions in the North/South format, particularly on sharing expertise and research. We know that those are longer-term issues, so that research and collaboration will…
Meetings of the North/South Ministerial Council resumed on 8 April with a plenary meeting in Armagh. Since then, Ministers have met to discuss a range of issues in sectoral format, including trade and business development, special EU programmes, education, agriculture, language and, just this morning, environment and…