Debate contribution: Tree Protection Bill: Second Stage
Debate contribution by Mrs Deborah Erskine on .
- MLA
- Mrs Deborah Erskine
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 21 September 2026
- Type
- Debate contribution
- Business
- Private Members' Business
- Heading
- Tree Protection Bill: Second Stage
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5742654
Read the official Assembly record
Text
It is hard to follow that bendy tree. I am quite disappointed that I spent some time in Newcastle on my summer holidays but never saw the bendy tree. I will have to go back to Newcastle and make a point of seeing it.
In all seriousness, however, I welcome the opportunity to contribute to this Second Stage debate on the Tree Protection Bill. I thank the Bill sponsor for outlining the legislation. I miss our interactions on the Infrastructure Committee; I know that the Bill is very important to him and that he is very passionate about it. I appreciate the time, effort and work that goes into creating a piece of legislation, so I appreciate his time and effort with the Bill. Northern Ireland's ancient trees and long-established woodlands form an important part of our natural and cultural heritage, and they contribute to biodiversity, the character of our countryside, flood management — very important in constituencies such as mine — and the quality of the places in which people live. Nowhere do I see that more than in the countryside of my constituency of Fermanagh and South Tyrone. Therefore, there is merit in examining the existing system of tree preservation orders and how the legislation seeks to support our countryside. However, as my colleague the Chair of the Infrastructure Committee said, supporting the objective of protecting important trees does not mean that we should accept every provision without scrutiny. There must be a balance between the environmental and the practical outworkings of the legislation. The Bill introduces substantial new duties for councils, restrictions in the planning system and potential financial liabilities for landowners. As I have outlined, I am concerned about some of those liabilities for our farming community. We must ensure that those provisions are workable, proportionate and sufficiently clear. Clause 1 significantly widens the basis on which a council may make a tree preservation order. Clause 1(4) states the need for a council to employ "a suitably qualified arboriculturist". I hope that I got that right. Do we know how many there are in Northern Ireland? What does "suitably qualified" mean? I ask that because I doubt that there are many in-house in our councils, and therefore this will come at a cost to councils across Northern Ireland. We all know that if there is a limited pool, they can charge councils a premium. We have to guard against that. When I asked the Bill sponsor about that in an earlier intervention, his answer was that the Woodland Trust would provide training to council staff and officers. Would that suffice, rather than requiring the services of an arboriculturist? With regard to clause 5(3), would the Woodland Trust also train landowners? I am happy to give way to the Member if he can deal with that now.
470 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Assessment
Jev’s structured answers met the documented threshold for “not flagged”.
- Overall probability that the activity is being used to promote, exploit or escalate an identity-based controversy: 0.02 (flagging needs at least 0.70; at or below 0.30 is not flagged).
- None of the five culture-war criteria was met (each was below 0.60).
- Assessed as legitimate policy scrutiny (0.94).
- No identity-based framing was identified (1.00).
- The overall probability was at or below the not-flagging threshold.
This is an AI-generated assessment of the text, made against published criteria. It is not a finding of fact about the MLA or their intentions. The Assembly record itself is the fact.
Jev’s structured answers
| Question | Probability | Met? |
|---|---|---|
| Identity framing | 0.02 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.02 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.02 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.02 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.02 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.94 | Yes |
| Overall judgement | 0.02 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 1.00 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.00 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.00 |
| Adopts it | 0.00 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-related subject | 1.00 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
| Parades, bonfires and commemorations | 0.00 |
| Irish language, Ulster-Scots and language policy | 0.00 |
| Sport (including the GAA), the arts and cultural bodies | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 16:36 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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