Debate contribution: Tuesday 20 May 2025: Correction
Debate contribution by Mrs Deborah Erskine on .
- MLA
- Mrs Deborah Erskine
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 2 June 2025
- Type
- Debate contribution
- Business
- Assembly Business
- Heading
- Tuesday 20 May 2025: Correction
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 4980713
Read the official Assembly record
Text
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. I wish to correct the record regarding a debate on Tuesday 20 May on the impact of illegal immigration on Northern Ireland. It has come to my attention that, during the debate, I said:
"the annual cost of accommodating asylum seekers in Northern Ireland has exploded to £400 million." — [Official Report (Hansard), 20 May 2025, p43, col 2].
That is incorrect. I should have stated that that is the projected figure for a 10-year period between 2019 and 2029, rather than the annual cost. I apologise to the House for my error and for any confusion created. It was not my intention to mislead anyone or to create any annoyance by incorrectly stating that figure.
123 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: 0.06 (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 (0.84).
- Subject area: Immigration, asylum, race, ethnicity and Travellers.
- 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 | 0.08 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.01 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.08 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.03 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.06 | No |
| Overall judgement | 0.06 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 0.84 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.10 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.00 |
| Adopts it | 0.06 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| Immigration, asylum, race, ethnicity and Travellers | 0.98 |
| No identity-related subject | 0.02 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
| Parades, bonfires and commemorations | 0.00 |
| Irish language, Ulster-Scots and language policy | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 12:40 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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