Debate contribution: Hate: Executive Approach

Debate contribution by Mr Brian Kingston on 22 September 2025.

MLA

Mr Brian Kingston

Party at the time

Democratic Unionist Party

Date

22 September 2025

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Opposition Business

Heading

Hate: Executive Approach

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5124392

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. We had an extensive debate on the topic last Tuesday on a motion condemning the racist and sectarian attacks and intimidation that occurred over the summer. That motion was agreed without opposition, so I do not need to repeat all that I said in that debate. Sadly, it has been necessary for me to visit homes and venues that were targeted over the summer to speak to those who were victims, support those who were affected and engage with community groups, statutory agencies and the police to prevent further attacks. Some of those meetings to move situations forward are ongoing. The Democratic Unionist Party remains committed to building a safe and inclusive society in Northern Ireland. The DUP is absolutely clear that violence is wrong. It is wrong now as it was in the past. All of us who have been elected to the Assembly have a duty to promote peaceful, democratic and respectful means to address and manage the political and societal issues that arise. We in the DUP do not dismiss people's concerns or patronise them by saying that they have no legitimate concerns, as some parties have done. Equally, I recognise that there are intolerant elements in society that seek to set an agenda of intolerance of difference, and we have a responsibility to stand against that.

At times, incidents have occurred that have caused public outrage. Some have exploited that outrage to direct intolerance against entire ethnic minority communities unfairly. Everyone should be equally subject to the law and to the protections of the law. There should be zero tolerance for attacks and intimidation in our society. We support the police and all relevant authorities when it comes to tackling those issues. Perpetrators must feel the full force of our legal system and, in particular, there needs to be an effective multi-agency response from the criminal justice system to ensure that such offences are investigated swiftly and that punishment, including sentencing, fits the crime. There are Members who talk about the condemnation of hate and violence but have continued for years to justify violence that took place against people right across our society. We will always call out that hypocrisy, and I regret the Sinn Féin Member's failure to respond to the request to condemn the sectarian murder of 10 Protestant workmen at Kingsmills. Paul Frew, in proposing our amendment, said that it strengthened the original motion. It does; it notes the Executive's statement, which committed to partnership working with all sectors, and it calls for action by the Justice Minister. He also highlighted the concerns that the definition of hate crime should not be based on the perception alone of the person who was the victim of a crime. Colin McGrath from the SDLP, who is no longer in the Chamber, thought that there was about 95% agreement on everything before us. When I look at the wording of the two amendments and the motion, I see a lot of agreement. Unfortunately, the SDLP has framed its motion as a criticism of the Executive, rather than looking for solutions. The motion is about taking forward the debate from last week. As I said, my colleague Paul Frew noted the Executive commitment and highlighted actions for the Minister of Justice:

"to detail, and consult on, her plans to include a statutory aggravation offence model for hate crime in sentencing legislation"

and

" to provide additional resources to the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunal Service (NICTS), the PSNI and the tackling paramilitarism, criminality and organised crime programme."

A programme that is mentioned in both amendments and the motion. I am not sure whether we will divide. In our view, the Justice Minister should take the lead on these matters. The Alliance amendment seems to say that it is up to the Executive as a whole to provide funding, and every Minister will say that — it is common — but I do not think that there is a need to divide on the matter. The Justice Minister should take the lead on the matters that are under her responsibility.

687 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 13:15 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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