Member's statement: Sporting Success
Member's statement by Mr David Honeyford on .
- MLA
- Mr David Honeyford
- Party at the time
- Alliance Party
- Date
- 18 March 2025
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- Sporting Success
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 4860260
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I echo the comments that have already been made about the success of Lucy Best and Caolan McConville at the Special Olympics World Winter Games. I was at the launch several months ago at the slopes in Craigavon. That day was full of excitement, and it was fantastic to see. What a journey they have been on. I also congratulate your old school, Mr Speaker. I salute Wallace High School's success in finally winning the Schools' Cup yesterday for the first time. It is such a fantastic achievement for the boys, and it was an absolute pleasure to be there yesterday to cheer on the school and watch the kids of friends of mine play and excel on that team. That is really well done, and I pass on my congratulations to everyone who was there. Such wins are delivered by a team or a squad over 70 minutes, but there is much more to that squad of players than who is on the pitch. A shout-out has to go to all the parents. I have been that rugby dad, and I know about the journeying, driving around and taxiing every morning and afternoon. The parents deserve a lot of credit as well. There is the coaching staff, and Derek Suffern has been mentioned. He has been there for quite a while and has worked away for years. Successes such as this do not happen in one season; they are built over many years. I pass my congratulations on to the coaching team at Wallace. Deborah O'Hare is the principal, and this is her final year, so what an achievement this is for her as she retires and moves on. I am delighted for her. Well done Wallace, Lisburn and the wider area. Enjoy the celebrations. I know that quite a few of the team are going on to professional sport, but I hope that those who are not will get involved in their local clubs and enjoy sport in the community. I also want to point out that over half that team play for Dromara Gaelic Athletic Club in Down. It is fantastic that we are starting to see the breakdown of barriers and our community being brought together. Having a Down player on that team and having those changes are brilliant to see in Lagan Valley. Finally, I give a shout-out to Danske Bank. Danske has supported youth and school sport for many years. We appreciate the finance that goes into sport to allow all those things to happen.
421 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: 0.04 (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 (0.98).
- Subject area: Sport (including the GAA), the arts and cultural bodies.
- 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 | 0.01 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.04 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.02 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.04 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.03 | No |
| Overall judgement | 0.04 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 0.98 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.00 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.02 |
| Adopts it | 0.00 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| Sport (including the GAA), the arts and cultural bodies | 0.49 |
| Disability (including neurodivergence and mental health), disabled people and disability or sickness benefits | 0.25 |
| Sectarianism, hate crime and community relations | 0.23 |
| Education structures, integration and community division | 0.02 |
| No identity-related subject | 0.01 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 12:08 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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