Debate contribution: Ad Hoc Committee to Consider Legislation to Prevent the Suspension of the Devolved Institutions
Debate contribution by Mr Jonathan Buckley on .
- MLA
- Mr Jonathan Buckley
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 4 March 2024
- Type
- Debate contribution
- Business
- Opposition Business
- Heading
- Ad Hoc Committee to Consider Legislation to Prevent the Suspension of the Devolved Institutions
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 4254801
Read the official Assembly record
Text
The Opposition will be glad to hear that I intend to be brief. There is no point in going over significant ground that was covered in the earlier Opposition debate. The party's position on the issues that have faced the Assembly over the past 25-odd years has been made clear. At the heart of it — all Members who spoke touched on this — is the need for consensus politics. That will be crucial, not only now but in the time to come. At different times, these institutions and the wider political scene faced troubles in Northern Ireland. It was only through consensus politics that we were able to chart a way through. It is no different now from how it was in times past.
Looking in particular at the formation of another Committee, I share the sentiment that was expressed by Sinn Féin's Pat Sheehan. The Opposition look at me with rolling eyes, but what is the point of the formation of another Committee? Surely this place is "committeed" to death. It is in the remit of the Assembly and established under its procedures that the Assembly and Executive Review Committee look at those very matters.
I have only three minutes, and I know that there will be time at the end. I chair that Committee, and I look forward to working constructively with every member of it to discuss the issues that have been raised in today's debate, whether by the Alliance Party, the SDLP or other parties. The vast majority, bar the TUV and People Before Profit, are represented on that Committee. We have a Sinn Féin Deputy Chair. We have the Alliance Party, the DUP, Sinn Féin again and Cara Hunter from the SDLP, who will represent the Opposition. That is the place in which those conversations will continue, in which parties can put their legitimate concerns on the record and in which the Committee can do a detailed piece of work and report its findings. The matter will be resolved, however, only if there is consensus across the House. That will be crucial if we are to cement long-term, sustainable devolution. I am afraid that provisions such as an Ad Hoc Committee or, indeed, those debated earlier will not provide that clarity or certainty.
379 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: 0.05 (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).
- No identity-based framing was identified (1.00).
- 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 | 0.06 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.03 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.02 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.06 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.03 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.37 | No |
| Overall judgement | 0.05 | 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 |
|---|---|
| No identity-related subject | 0.62 |
| Constitutional question, Brexit, the Windsor Framework and sovereignty | 0.27 |
| Sectarianism, hate crime and community relations | 0.07 |
| Legacy of the Troubles, victims and paramilitarism | 0.03 |
| Another identity-related subject | 0.01 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 09:43 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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