Motion or amendment: Independent Inquiry into the Alleged Use of Wiretapping of Northern Ireland Journalists
Motion or amendment by Mr Matthew O'Toole on .
- MLA
- Mr Matthew O'Toole
- Party at the time
- Social Democratic and Labour Party
- Date
- 21 May 2024
- Type
- Motion or amendment
- Business
- Motion · Private Members' Motion
- Heading
- Independent Inquiry into the Alleged Use of Wiretapping of Northern Ireland Journalists
- Assembly identifier
- Document 402509
Read the official Assembly record Open Data source
Text
Independent Inquiry into the Alleged Use of Wiretapping of Northern Ireland Journalists
That this Assembly recognises the essential role of a free press in an open and democratic society; understands that a vital part of that role is the investigation and scrutiny of public bodies, including the legitimate use and protection of sources; affirms that the press cannot be expected to operate effectively if journalists can be intimidated, harassed or subject to unwarranted or unjustified surveillance; and calls on the Minister of Justice to launch an independent inquiry into the alleged use of wiretapping and other unlawful practices against journalists.
100 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: 0.07 (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 (0.90).
- No identity-based framing was identified (0.99).
- 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 | 0.02 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.02 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.02 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.05 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.90 | Yes |
| Overall judgement | 0.07 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 0.99 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.00 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.01 |
| Adopts it | 0.00 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-related subject | 0.96 |
| Another identity-related subject | 0.02 |
| Constitutional question, Brexit, the Windsor Framework and sovereignty | 0.01 |
| Gender, sexuality, abortion and related social issues | 0.01 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 08:55 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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