Debate contribution: RHI (Closure of the Non-Domestic Scheme) Bill: Second Stage
Debate contribution by Ms Emma Sheerin on .
- MLA
- Ms Emma Sheerin
- Party at the time
- Sinn Féin
- Date
- 20 October 2025
- Type
- Debate contribution
- Business
- Executive Committee Business
- Heading
- RHI (Closure of the Non-Domestic Scheme) Bill: Second Stage
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5188330
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I will speak briefly in support of the legislation. I welcome the support for the Bill from the Members of other parties who have spoken already. The closure of the scheme was a commitment in NDNA. At that stage, all the main parties that signed up to that were clear that they wanted to see the scheme close. The Minister is trying to do that in a way that best suits the public purse and the people who entered the scheme in good faith, who, in some ways, have been collateral damage in the fallout from the mess that was made of the scheme at the beginning. It is important that we bear that in mind. As the Bill goes through the Committee, we will have the opportunity to scrutinise the fine detail. I welcome the commitment from the Minister that the team who are working on it will make themselves available. It will be positive to see the Bill pass its Second Stage today. We will progress the legislation and work together to deliver the best for everyone involved.
180 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: 0.03 (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 | 0.02 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.01 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.02 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.02 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.27 | No |
| Overall judgement | 0.03 | 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 | 1.00 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
| Parades, bonfires and commemorations | 0.00 |
| Irish language, Ulster-Scots and language policy | 0.00 |
| Sport (including the GAA), the arts and cultural bodies | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 13:31 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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