Written question AQW 46005/22-27
Written question by Mr Timothy Gaston on .
- MLA
- Mr Timothy Gaston
- Party at the time
- Traditional Unionist Voice
- Date
- 11 May 2026
- Type
- Written question
- Assembly reference
- AQW 46005/22-27
- Department
- The Executive Office
- Business
- To the First Minister and deputy First Minister
- Assembly identifier
- Document 484178
Read the official Assembly record Open Data source
Text
To ask the First Minister and deputy First Minister, since the restoration of the Executive in February 2024, to detail (i) the amount spent by their Department and each arm’s-length body sponsored by their Department on translation and interpretation services, broken down by (a) financial year; (b) language; and (c) purpose; (ii) the amount spent by their Department and each arm’s-length body sponsored by their Department on the publication, production or dissemination of material in languages other than English, including, but not limited to, Irish, Ulster Scots and foreign languages, broken down by (a) financial year; (b) language; and (c) purpose; and (iii) a list of the publications, campaigns, documents or materials produced in languages other than English.
118 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: 0.14 (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 (0.83).
- No identity-based framing was identified (1.00).
- Subject area: Irish language, Ulster-Scots and language policy.
- 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 | 0.04 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.01 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.10 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.03 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.10 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.83 | Yes |
| Overall judgement | 0.14 | 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 |
|---|---|
| Irish language, Ulster-Scots and language policy | 1.00 |
| No identity-related subject | 0.00 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
| Parades, bonfires and commemorations | 0.00 |
| Sport (including the GAA), the arts and cultural bodies | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 06:47 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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