Debate contribution: Communities in Transition: West Belfast
Debate contribution by Ms Aisling Reilly on .
- MLA
- Ms Aisling Reilly
- Party at the time
- Sinn Féin
- Date
- 26 May 2026
- Type
- Debate contribution
- Business
- Oral Answers to Questions
- Heading
- Communities in Transition: West Belfast
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5582697
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I thank the Member for her question. It is fair and true to say that there has been important progress to date, particularly in CIT. It has evolved. As I mentioned, the programme is moving from the thematic approach to focus more on the real issues that affect people in our communities every day. They include growing challenges around mental health; addiction; exploitation, including criminal, sexual and financial exploitation, and its impact on our young people; and the continuing influence of paramilitarism on the physical and social landscape of our communities. We have to adapt our response to the legacy and ongoing impact of the conflict. For me, that means recognising and addressing the real issues of mental health, addiction and intergenerational trauma that continue to affect families and communities across the North. Do we still have more to do? Absolutely, but we are travelling along the path. The CIT programme has shown that, with the right partnerships and the right community-led approaches, we can make progress.
167 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
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