Debate contribution: Programme for Government: Public Consultation
Debate contribution by Ms Michelle O'Neill on .
- MLA
- Ms Michelle O'Neill
- Party at the time
- Sinn Féin
- Date
- 9 September 2024
- Type
- Debate contribution (made as a minister)
- Business
- Ministerial Statement
- Heading
- Programme for Government: Public Consultation
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 4511229
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I just do not agree. It is as simple as that. I say to the people who are on waiting lists and have been waiting a long time to get treatment that we will do absolutely everything that we can to help them get their treatment. We will work night and day to fix the health service, which has been put on its knees by a Tory austerity agenda for over 14 years. The Member knows that rightly. That is why his party signed up to the cross-party memo that we sent when we first re-formed the Executive. This place has been underfunded, and we need to turn that picture. We are determined, as the four-party Executive, to make that happen. I am glad that we will go to the Treasury again this week and continue our engagement. We have been able to make some progress. We are determined to fight the fight for good finances here. We are determined to fight for a fair funding model. We are determined to fight for investment in our health service, because, on one hand, people are languishing on waiting lists, and, at the same time, the health service that they depend on has been starved because of deliberate policy set in London. That is not acceptable. We will continue to make the case for proper funding so that we can invest in our health service. I am sure that, if you are sitting at home and have been waiting on a waiting list for a considerable period, what you want to know is this: "What is the solution?", "When will I get my appointment?", "How will it be fixed?", and "When will the health service be able to respond to individuals' needs?". That is what we will try to deliver.
298 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).
- Assessed as legitimate policy scrutiny (0.76).
- 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 | 0.05 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.03 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.01 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.05 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.03 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.76 | Yes |
| Overall judgement | 0.05 | 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 | 0.00 |
| Adopts it | 0.01 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-related subject | 0.97 |
| Disability (including neurodivergence and mental health), disabled people and disability or sickness benefits | 0.02 |
| Constitutional question, Brexit, the Windsor Framework and sovereignty | 0.01 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
| Parades, bonfires and commemorations | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 10:58 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
Disagree with this assessment?
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