Debate contribution: Waiting Times
Debate contribution by Mr Mike Nesbitt on .
- MLA
- Mr Mike Nesbitt
- Party at the time
- Ulster Unionist Party
- Date
- 13 January 2026
- Type
- Debate contribution (made as a minister)
- Business
- Oral Answers to Questions
- Heading
- Waiting Times
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5316254
Read the official Assembly record
Text
It has not failed, and I did not say that it would take five years to fix the Ambulance Service. I said that it could take five years to build the community capacity to ensure that we do not have so many people who are medically fit for discharge still in acute beds. When I was at the Ulster Hospital on Wednesday, there were 104 people who were medically fit for discharge but were not being discharged. By the way, at Lagan Valley Hospital, they told me that there were 35 such people, which is a smaller number but is 40% of the beds there. If you do not trust me, ask any of the chief execs whom I spoke to yesterday. To build that community capacity will take time, but, in the meantime, a lot is being done: Phone First, urgent care centres and ambulatory centres. They are imaginative ways of trying to keep people out of emergency departments to relieve the pressure on EDs and create space for people to come in. Let me tell the Member one other thing. Last week, I visited three EDs, which were all extremely busy, but I visited a fourth ED in the past month: Antrim Area Hospital emergency department. At 10.30 am on Christmas Day, two people were waiting in reception, and, on the far side, most of the cubicles were empty. My question is this: if that can be done on 25 December, why can it not be done on 25 January?
252 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).
- Assessed as legitimate policy scrutiny (0.94).
- 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 | 0.02 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.02 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.01 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.08 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.02 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.94 | Yes |
| 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 | 0.89 |
| Disability (including neurodivergence and mental health), disabled people and disability or sickness benefits | 0.11 |
| 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 14:17 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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