Member's statement: Stanley Tomkins
Member's statement by Ms Diane Forsythe on .
- MLA
- Ms Diane Forsythe
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 24 September 2024
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- Stanley Tomkins
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 4644765
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I congratulate Kilkeel man Stanley Tomkins on winning the Northern Ireland Pride of Britain award on Friday night past. The Pride of Britain Awards have been honouring our nation's unsung heroes for the past 25 years, celebrating the achievements of truly remarkable people who make our world a better place. Stanley Tomkins certainly fits that description. Now 87 years old, Stanley has been an inspirational part of our community in Kilkeel for decades, and he is still as motivated as ever. He has rallied to lead the way in fundraising for a number of charities, and, in that time, he has raised an estimated incredible £750,000. Stanley has raised money for a number of charities, including Save the Children and Cancer Research UK, which is particularly close to his heart. Stanley is a modest and humble man who was motivated in his fundraising action after suffering unimaginable personal loss.
Sadly, Stanley's wife died from cancer, and one of his daughters died more recently with a brain tumour. Another of Stanley's key fundraising efforts has been his support for the JIMS Youth Centre in Kilkeel. I am especially grateful for the centre, as all my children benefit from it. From after-school clubs to summer schemes, drop-in sessions and the Step Up leadership programmes, it offers amazing services. It also provides a vital mental health hub for children and young people in Kilkeel. The centre would not have those great facilities had it not been for Stanley's fundraising. On Friday night, the young people at JIMS were overjoyed as they huddled round the TV to see Stanley win the Pride of Britain award. I got a few wee texts from the girls that said, "Our guy won". Stanley is an amazing man. He truly inspires all of us to do our part for our local community and charities. He has long been the pride of his family and friends. He is the pride of Kilkeel and the Mournes, and we are all extremely proud to see him crowned as Northern Ireland's Pride of Britain 2024 winner. I wish Stanley all the very best as he travels to London for the Pride of Britain awards dinner. Congratulations Stanley, it is so well deserved.
370 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: 0.02 (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 | 0.03 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.01 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.01 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.01 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.02 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.03 | No |
| Overall judgement | 0.02 | 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 | 0.56 |
| Sexism, misogyny, ageism and other equality groups | 0.33 |
| Another identity-related subject | 0.04 |
| Gender, sexuality, abortion and related social issues | 0.02 |
| Disability (including neurodivergence and mental health), disabled people and disability or sickness benefits | 0.02 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:06 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.