Every imported question, contribution and motion, with its classification. Unflagged, uncertain and not-yet-analysed records are all included so the analysis can be checked independently.
Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I thank Members for their contributions and welcome the interest in this important issue. Again, I thank the Economy Committee for its report. As I set out in my opening remarks, it is not yet clear how the Bill will operate in practice, as it is an enabling Bill. However,…
I appreciate the Member's giving way and his being willing to debate. Just to be clear and for the purpose of the record, given that the Member is clearly a passionate unionist, his position is that he does not want a UK Minister to be able to make regulation for Northern Ireland in relation to aligning with the EU.…
This legislative consent motion should concern every unionist in the House. The Bill that it concerns gives Westminster Ministers sweeping powers to make regulations not through debate, not by vote and not by parliamentary oversight but by diktat. Why? It is so that Great Britain may, at the discretion of the…
I was about to stand up and say just that. Thank you, Deputy Speaker, and thank you, Minister, for bringing the LCM. When it came through to Committee, there was concern about the communication between Belfast and London. Where we are is not ideal, but I appreciate the work that you have done in bringing the LCM…
I am sorry, Mr Deputy Speaker, but, from earlier in the Minister's speech, I was not entirely clear whether she was specifically seeking legislative consent for the Bill or was agreeing with it. For the purposes of the Assembly, may I clarify that she is satisfied that we should grant legislative consent and that that…
I beg to move Go raibh maith agat, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle. I regret that I am unable to move the motion in the way that I would have wished for the debate. I will provide an update on why that is the case and why I am unable to seek the Assembly's consent to all the clauses in the Bill that engage devolved matters.…
I beg to move The regulations are part of the annual uprating package and increase the lump sum compensation that is payable by the scheme under the Mesothelioma, etc., Act (Northern Ireland) 2008. Unlike the main benefits uprating order, there is no explicit requirement in the regulations to review the level of…
I beg to move The uprating package usually increases the rates of social security benefits, pensions and lump-sum payments each year in line with inflation. It begins at the beginning of the tax year. These two rules came into operation in April 2025. I seek the Assembly's approval of the two rules, which form part of…
To summarise, amending the Environmental Protection (Disposal of Polychlorinated Biphenyls and other Dangerous Substances) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2000 will require the removal of all PCB-contaminated equipment by the end of 2025. The amendment will result in Northern Ireland no longer being divergent from…
I oppose the draft statutory rule because of how and why the legislation is being brought forward. Let me be clear: these draft regulations are not simply a technical update but part of a broader and far more troubling pattern, which is the ongoing subjugation of Northern Ireland's lawmaking powers by the European…
I will place my comments in context, because it is important to reiterate my party's position. The Democratic Unionist Party believes that it is wrong that change to legislation in Northern Ireland be made at the behest of the EU as a result of the Windsor framework. Doing so is undemocratic and leaves those who elect…
I beg to move Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. I am grateful for the opportunity to move the motion today. The amendments to the Environmental Protection (Disposal of Polychlorinated Biphenyls and other Dangerous Substances) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2000 will prohibit the use of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).…
I thank the Member for his question and for bringing that to my attention. I am not aware of that, but, if he wants to write to me about it, I will certainly ask officials to look into it.
I pay tribute to Alma and all the campaigners in my constituency who stand for proper support and services for people with SEN. Minister, your statement referred to different pathways for young people, apprenticeships and other items. I am concerned about reports that I hear — I wonder whether you hear them too — of…
I thank the Member for his question. As I have set out, we will try, through the transition support service, to improve that read-across in the immediacy. Certainly, I am more than happy to work cross-departmentally to achieve that and also to engage with the Member and his constituents on it. Where good practice…
Minister, a number of months ago, Colin Crawford and I hosted the Education Minister at Castle Tower School in Ballymena. The principal is keen to pilot a scheme similar to that for colleges, which is set out in your statement, but it requires the buy-in from the Department of Education, the Department of Health and…
Minister, the statement is substantive. It is long and detailed, and most people would expect no less from you; you are a substantive politician. However, it is not what the Caleb's Cause campaign asked for, and the campaigners are genuinely disappointed, to say the least, today. Do we have a problem in our politics…
As chair of the all-party group on learning disability, I welcome the Minister's statement. It may not be everything that everyone had hoped for, but I hope that it is a turning point and a start that can and should be built on, with the other Departments, to ensure improved provision for all our young people with…
I thank the Minister, and I welcome the statement and the progress that has been made to date. I pay tribute to and am quite proud of Alma White and Dee Geary, in particular, who have advocated on behalf of children. For children and families that currently feel in limbo — those who are not under Health or Education —…
Minister, I spoke with Alma and Dee, the parents here today whose children have been damaged or impacted on by this statement. They do not want warm words. They do not want admiration. They want the support that their children need and are entitled to. They told me that they feel as though their children are…
I thank the Member for his question. It is clear that there is a real need to see better cross-departmental collaboration on this issue, in particular, and on others. The priority in the Programme for Government of special educational needs puts a particular focus on it from a cross-Executive perspective. Therefore,…
When we look at special educational needs provision in the school system, we see that there has been a systemic failure in Health and Education to collaboratively work together and deliver real change. You have highlighted the need for your Department to work together now with Education and Health to deliver not only…