Debate contribution: Energy Prices
Debate contribution by Mr Phillip Brett on .
- MLA
- Mr Phillip Brett
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 13 April 2026
- Type
- Debate contribution
- Business
- Matters of the Day
- Heading
- Energy Prices
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5483098
Read the official Assembly record
Text
It is disappointing that Mrs Dillon accuses me of being a liar and then runs out of the Chamber before I have an opportunity to respond. My, my: the truth really hurts. The facts are clear: the net zero policies that some Members have championed year after year are now coming home to roost. Mr Honeyford got very angry during his deranged rant against the DUP without stating any facts, so let us give him some facts: since the legislation was rammed through by his party, £107 million has been set aside for net zero targets. Mr Honeyford, imagine what £107 million could do for my constituents and yours. What has been the impact of that legislation? A 1% reduction in energy targets. You have the audacity to come into the Chamber and try to lecture me and my colleagues on these Benches. It is no wonder that the Ulster Farmers' Union passed a motion of no confidence in your Minister; you have no idea what you are talking about. I have to do the Opposition's job for them. Who was it who found out that the Executive had £81 million to spend? It was not the Opposition. It was not members of the Opposition on the Economy Committee. It was left to this party to fight for the funding. Mrs Dillon said, "Oh no, the money doesn't exist" and then, "Oh yes, it does exist". It is like Punch and Judy politics. Ms Sheerin can sneer and laugh, as she does when any unionist speaks in the Chamber, but that is because the facts hurt, and Sinn Féin does not like the facts. When Keir Starmer was elected, we were told that the Opposition, as Labour's sister party, would be in a prime place to deliver for the people of Northern Ireland.
Yes. They moved seats to sit beside the Labour Party. I listened to the leader of the SDLP today on the radio. You would almost forget that she was elected to be a Member of Parliament, while she criticises the Assembly and the Executive. Where is the leader of the SDLP? What has she delivered while her sister party has been in government? Nothing. We hear lectures from Sinn Féin. The people in my constituency of North Belfast are seeing prices increase at the petrol pump. Our care workers cannot afford to go to work, and people cannot get oil. Our Member of Parliament, rather than turning up and doing his job to fight for the people of North Belfast, is too busy earning tens of thousands of pounds in other employment. I and the people of North Belfast will take no lectures from you. On Thursday, the Communities Minister will bring his paper to the Executive. Let us see whether your actions match your words: give us the money to support the people of Northern Ireland.
480 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: 0.50 (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 (0.56).
- Subject area: Sectarianism, hate crime and community relations.
- The overall probability was moderate at most and none of the culture-war criteria was close to being met.
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 | 0.32 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.22 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.03 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.37 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.33 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.44 | No |
| Overall judgement | 0.50 | Between thresholds |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 0.56 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.01 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.00 |
| Adopts it | 0.43 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| Sectarianism, hate crime and community relations | 0.49 |
| No identity-related subject | 0.33 |
| Another identity-related subject | 0.10 |
| Constitutional question, Brexit, the Windsor Framework and sovereignty | 0.06 |
| Religion and belief (including people of no religion), churches, faith communities and religious prejudice (including antisemitism and anti-Muslim prejudice) | 0.01 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 15:17 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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