Written question AQW 37788/22-27
Written question by Ms Paula Bradshaw on .
- MLA
- Ms Paula Bradshaw
- Party at the time
- Alliance Party
- Date
- 8 January 2026
- Type
- Written question
- Assembly reference
- AQW 37788/22-27
- Department
- Department for Infrastructure
- Business
- To the Minister for Infrastructure
- Assembly identifier
- Document 465350
Read the official Assembly record Open Data source
Text
To ask the Minister for Infrastructure to detail (i) what constitutes as clear community support, for the removal of unauthorised flags and emblems from Departmental property, as used in a recent response from her Department, including (a) any evidence that is required; (b) how such evidence is gathered and assessed; and (c) whether her Department has established any formal threshold or criteria for determining community support.
66 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: 0.26 (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 (0.76).
- The text reports, quotes or asks about the framing rather than adopting it (0.68).
- Subject area: Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials.
- 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 | 0.14 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.02 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.36 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.18 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.29 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.76 | Yes |
| Overall judgement | 0.26 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing | 0.26 |
| Reports or questions it (chosen) | 0.68 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.00 |
| Adopts it | 0.06 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.99 |
| Sectarianism, hate crime and community relations | 0.01 |
| No identity-related subject | 0.00 |
| Parades, bonfires and commemorations | 0.00 |
| Irish language, Ulster-Scots and language policy | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 05:26 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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