Member's statement: Balmoral Show
Member's statement by Mr Jonathan Buckley on .
- MLA
- Mr Jonathan Buckley
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 21 May 2024
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- Balmoral Show
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 4491415
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I congratulate the organisers of and participants in the 155th Balmoral Show — Northern Ireland's largest agri-food event. Any Member who attended would have been blown away not only by the producers and the livestock that was on show but by those who supply our agri-food sector across the board. Over 100,000 people descended on the show this year over four days. That is testament to the hard yards put in by those who organised such a terrific event. I put on record my thanks to the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society and its president, Mr John Henning, who put on a stellar show for us all. Whether livestock or food, this is a time for the industry to come together, talk to one another and share concerns and successes. That was evident at this year's show. Quite often, the Balmoral Show is a litmus test for the feelings and thoughts of our rural and agricultural community. Whilst we can reflect on a successful show, we have to be aware of the challenges that our farmers face at present. If any Member took the time to have those conversations, they will have found that there is a lot of concern out there. There is concern about financial viability; concern over the rise in TB among livestock; concern regarding an ammonia strategy that has a long-term impact on the viability and advancement of our hugely successful agri-food sector, particularly the poultry industry; and concern about fair prices. All those issues, and many more, are bubbling away, facing our farming community. Whilst we can get out and support farmers at the Balmoral Show, which showcases what Northern Ireland has to offer, there is a real need — I say this to Members across the board, from all political parties — for us to look at farming not as a problem but as part of the solution. Our farming communities go to the very heart of this society. They feel very vulnerable at the moment. They feel that political voices — not only here in the Northern Ireland Assembly but in London and Brussels — have forgotten about them. We need to recommit ourselves, not only in the Chamber but in legislation and in our actions outside the Chamber. We need to reconnect, refocus and support the proud tradition of farming and our agri-food sector.
391 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: 0.03 (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 | 0.04 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.02 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.02 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.02 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.03 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.46 | No |
| Overall judgement | 0.03 | 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 | 0.91 |
| Sport (including the GAA), the arts and cultural bodies | 0.04 |
| Constitutional question, Brexit, the Windsor Framework and sovereignty | 0.02 |
| Another identity-related subject | 0.02 |
| Gender, sexuality, abortion and related social issues | 0.01 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 10:31 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
Disagree with this assessment?
Classifications can be challenged. A person reads every challenge, and any change is recorded publicly above with its reason.