Debate contribution: Sexual Offences Legal Advisers: Roll-out
Debate contribution by Mrs Naomi Long on .
- MLA
- Mrs Naomi Long
- Party at the time
- Alliance Party
- Date
- 3 February 2025
- Type
- Debate contribution (made as a minister)
- Business
- Oral Answers to Questions
- Heading
- Sexual Offences Legal Advisers: Roll-out
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 4774189
Read the official Assembly record
Text
In November 2024, I announced the extension of the adult sexual offences legal adviser — SOLA — pilot scheme for a further two years until 31 March 2027. The SOLA service is available to all adult complainants in serious sexual offence cases up to the point of trial and has provided free, independent legal advice to 2,000 complainants since its launch in April 2021. The pilot service, which is delivered by Victim Support NI, was initially established for two years with the option to extend in order to test the arrangements further. My Department is also consulting on legislative proposals for inclusion in a victims and witnesses of crime Bill that would allow SOLAs to provide representation for complainants at court pre-trial in certain circumstances. I encourage all those with an interest to respond to those proposals.
137 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).
- Subject area: Gender, sexuality, abortion and related social issues.
- 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 | 0.02 | 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 | 0.59 | 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 |
|---|---|
| Gender, sexuality, abortion and related social issues | 0.71 |
| Sexism, misogyny, ageism and other equality groups | 0.19 |
| No identity-related subject | 0.10 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
| Parades, bonfires and commemorations | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:52 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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