Debate contribution: Education Inspections Bill: Second Stage

Debate contribution by Mr Danny Baker on 1 June 2026.

MLA: Mr Danny Baker
Party at the time: Sinn Féin
Date: 1 June 2026
Type: Debate contribution
Business: Executive Committee Business
Heading: Education Inspections Bill: Second Stage
Assembly identifier: Official Report component 5581822

Text

Go raibh maith agat, a Phríomh-Leas-Cheann Comhairle.
That means you are not getting any interventions. I have listened intently to the debate today, and I have listened to our teachers, our school leaders and our support staff. It was they who asked us to come here today and vote down the Bill. I share their view that the principle of the Bill, as set out by the Minister and as has been clear from the interactions with DUP Members, is about sanctioning our teachers. That is the premise of the Bill. I will address the issue of the Supreme Court judgement, because it is really unfortunate that it has been tagged onto this legislation. The Supreme Court judgement requires action, but it does not require that action to be tied to legislation that imposes professional misconduct sanctions on teachers. The RE issues could be addressed through a stand-alone legislative vehicle, subordinate legislation, a revised core syllabus, strengthened guidance or a combination of all of those measures. I take the points that Alliance Members have set out today. I wish them well in trying to amend the legislation, to get the issues ironed out and to get the outcomes that they really want. To be brutally honest, I do not think that that will happen.
To bring people along with you, you need to build trust and confidence. Teachers, school leaders and support staff do not trust the Minister. The House does not trust the Minister. Confidence in him was lost long ago. The Bill is not about safeguarding, RE or inspections; it is about facing down and intimidating teachers, because the Minister does not like scrutiny. At a time when the Education Minister should be working alongside our teachers to tackle workload, he would rather sanction them; in fact, the Minister would criminalise teachers if he got the chance. Let us be honest: just because legislation is coming out of the Executive that is not an endorsement. The Assembly is the place for debate and scrutiny, and it should be open and transparent. We are being so today. We are voting against the Bill at Second Stage, because we believe that the principle of the Bill is to sanction our teachers. We all have an opportunity to stand with teachers today and send a clear message to the Minister.
Not yet. The whole point of the Minister's legislation is to come after and sanction our teachers. How do we stop that today? We send a clear message that we do not stand with him. Why? At a time when schools across the North face enormous challenges, I have to ask whether this is really a priority. Schools struggle to recruit teachers and retain experienced staff. School leaders are dealing with unprecedented pressures. The Minister has continued to overwhelm school leaders and teachers with consultation after consultation. We have heard them say that at the Education Committee, but he ignores it. If he does not agree with them or if he does not agree with the responses to a consultation, as we saw on TransformED in respect of AS levels and coursework, he just completely ignores it. All the while, workload continues to increase. I will say that again: our teachers' workload continues to increase. What is the Minister doing here today? He is pushing ahead with legislation to create powers that could ultimately lead to teachers losing their jobs. Educational excellence can be achieved only by investing in and trusting our teachers. Teachers are not the problem. The teacher who spends evenings preparing lessons is not the problem. The teacher who buys classroom resources or feeds hungry children from their own pocket is not the problem. At a time when the Education Minister should be rebuilding relationships across education, his Bill just deepens division and mistrust. I ask all MLAs to reflect carefully. You have heard his engagement. He has given some commitments and then rowed back from them. You know what he is up to. Our teachers will be watching, and I ask you to vote the Bill down. There are other ways to get the RE stuff done. It will not be a vote on standards or inspection; it will be a vote on creating new dismissal powers linked to lawful industrial action. Today, you either stand with teachers or you do not; no ifs and no buts. You cannot dance on the head of a pin. Why would anybody enable the Minister to intimidate and bully our teachers and school leaders?

754 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

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