Member's statement: International Healthcare Staff: Attacks

Member's statement by Mr Danny Donnelly on 15 June 2026.

MLA

Mr Danny Donnelly

Party at the time

Alliance Party

Date

15 June 2026

Type

Member's statement

Business

Members' Statements

Heading

International Healthcare Staff: Attacks

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5613319

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I will speak today about the attacks on our international healthcare staff. I begin by saying that my thoughts are with the victim of the brutal attack in north Belfast and his family. I hope that he recovers well. Violence has no place in our society. Over the past week, Northern Ireland has made headlines around the world for all the wrong reasons. Images of families fleeing their homes, of homes and businesses being attacked and of buses and our infrastructure burning have travelled far beyond these shores. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has rightly expressed alarm at the violence, racial hatred and divisive narratives that have fuelled the attacks. As a nurse, I condemn the attacks in the strongest possible terms and highlight the specific impact that they have had on people who care for us when we are at our most vulnerable. Over recent days, we have heard deeply troubling accounts from international healthcare workers in Northern Ireland: nurses who are afraid to travel to work, healthcare staff who are fearful of being identified in public and people who have dedicated themselves to caring for others who now question whether they have a future here. Without international healthcare workers, our health and social care system would not function. The overwhelming majority of staff have come here from other countries to build a life, contribute to our communities and care for our loved ones. Every day, they treat patients with skill, compassion and professionalism. Let us be absolutely clear: when a nurse is intimidated on her way to work and chased by masked men into the Ulster Hospital, that is an attack on our health service. When a care worker is made to fear for their family's safety at racial checkpoints that have been set up outside our hospitals, that is an attack on our health service. When talented and dedicated professionals begin to consider leaving Northern Ireland because they no longer feel welcome, that is an attack on our health service. The overwhelming majority of people in Northern Ireland reject racism, hatred and violence. We value those who have chosen to make their lives here. We value those who have chosen to care for our communities, and we recognise that our health service would collapse without them. To every international doctor, nurse, care worker, healthcare assistant, porter and allied health professional working across Northern Ireland today, or anyone else who feels frightened or intimidated by the events of the past week, the Assembly should send a simple message: you are welcome here, you are valued here and you belong here.

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

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 15:47 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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