Debate contribution: Victims’ Payments Board: Oversight
Debate contribution by Mrs Emma Little-Pengelly on .
- MLA
- Mrs Emma Little-Pengelly
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 5 October 2026
- Type
- Debate contribution (made as a minister)
- Business
- Oral Answers to Questions
- Heading
- Victims’ Payments Board: Oversight
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5774168
Read the official Assembly record
Text
Thank you. It is really important that we recognise that this is a scheme that takes time. It was designed, in part, like that, because we did not want victims and survivors to have to gather all of the evidence themselves prior to their putting in an application. The way in which the system is set up means that the applications go in and then the process of reaching out to, say, the MOD, the armed forces, the PSNI, the legacy bodies or the health trusts and others starts. We recognise that all of those bodies are under significant pressure. For example, I understand that just a small number of people are working on the information requests, so I have been liaising with the MOD on my concern about the lack of a significant dedicated team in that area. That holds up the information coming to the panel and its ability to process it. Unfortunately, it will take a number of years to get through all of the applications. I welcome the fact that there was such interest in the scheme. It shows that there is a real need.
One thing that we did not anticipate was so many bereaved coming forward who perhaps did not fit perfectly within the criteria of this scheme but are clearly looking for acknowledgement, support and help, and that is something that we absolutely need to take forward.
234 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
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