Debate contribution: Education (Holiday Meal Payments) Bill: Further Consideration Stage
Debate contribution by Mr Peter Martin on .
- MLA
- Mr Peter Martin
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 12 October 2026
- Type
- Debate contribution
- Business
- Private Members' Business
- Heading
- Education (Holiday Meal Payments) Bill: Further Consideration Stage
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5786404
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I thank the Chair of the Education Committee for allowing me an intervention. He has made a whole range of points, some of which I agree with and some of which I do not agree with. I was quite struck, however, by the examples that he used on the way through his contribution. He cited a few, and I will not repeat them all, but he mentioned the word "choice", saying that Ministers have choices when it comes to how they spend their budgets. Does the Member agree that, because the Bill is primary legislation, the Minister will have no choice but to simply take £23 million out of his budget and spend it in this way?
117 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
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