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.
Thank you Mr Deputy Speaker. I thank the proposer of the motion and all who spoke for their contributions. I will make a few points before highlighting some of the points raised by Members who spoke previously. As my colleague from Lagan Valley said when proposing it, our amendment does not seek to change the motion,…
I thank the Minister for giving way and outlining all that. As part of the framework, will he indicate whether children whose first language is not English are being looked at? I am concerned that, potentially, there could be people with developmental or other problems that might not be picked up on if the health…
Thank you very much, Mr Deputy Speaker. I thank the proposer of the motion and the proposer of the amendment for bringing this important issue forward for debate today. One of the first Committees that I sat on when I was first elected was the Education Committee, and I became a fanboy of the late Professor Ken…
Discussions about our health and social care crisis often focus on ambulance waiting times, packed emergency departments and the unsustainability of general practice, pharmacy and dentistry. However, another crisis bubbling underneath the surface is one that involves babies and children missing out on basic healthcare…
This is an issue in which I have been interested for some time, as it links health and education directly. As mentioned by the Member for Lagan Valley, the first 1,000 days are critical. The first 1,000 days are the time in the womb and post birth. Specifically, it refers to the period until a child turns two, and the…
I support the motion and the amendment. I thank colleagues for proposing the motion, which emphasises the critical importance of the one-year-old health review and the indispensable role of health visitors in ensuring our children's well-being. I had already prepared my speech, but on Friday night, as part of the…
Importantly, the Member highlights the fact that we could have already debated a motion had this place been up and running. Equally, however, we could have had a Minister pulling ministerial levers to try to address the problem.
In addressing the motion, it is important that I set it in the context in which we find ourselves. The motion makes the important points that the fact that 15% of children across all health trusts are not being seen by a health visitor is alarming, that the fact that that percentage rose to 46% in the Southern Trust…
There is no doubt that home visits are a vital source of support for new parents and their children. The first few weeks and months of a child's life can be a nervous time for any new parent, no matter how experienced. That is why the visits from midwives and health visitors are so important. Those visits and the…
I thank the Members opposite for tabling this important motion. I will begin by saying that, as the father of four children and daideo — it is Irish for "grandfather" but sounds much younger — to two gariníonacha , I recognise and have witnessed first-hand the vital role of health visitors and the work that they do,…
Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. This great motion is really worthwhile, and I thank the proposer for moving it. Our amendment does not seek to remove anything from the original motion; it seeks to do two other things. First, it makes reference to the importance of delivering an updated Healthy Child, Healthy Future…
I beg to move Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. I am going to make some important points at the start of my speech, so it is to be regretted that the Minister is not here to hear them. I am sorry, Minister; thank you. It is good to see you. I tabled the motion because I believe that the debate is hugely important not just…
Go raibh maith agat, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle. I welcome the contributions from Members on the order, which relates to the rates exemption for ATMs in designated rural areas. As things stand, the scheme is worth continuing for those who live in isolated rural communities and still depend on the availability of cash…
I welcome the motion. Cash is king in Northern Ireland, and I welcome any motion that does its best to secure its availability. Individuals and businesses in Northern Ireland should have the right to access their cash free of charge, especially in rural areas, such as South Down, which I represent. The order, which…
I thank the Minister for coming to the Chamber and stepping in for his colleague. Minister Givan has been quick to point the finger of blame squarely at Sinn Féin for its collapse of the Assembly and this delay. Does he accept the role that his party's subsequent two-year collapse of the institutions has played in the…
There was creative dodging and weaving on the Minister's part, but the court found the Executive to be acting unlawfully by not progressing the anti-poverty strategy. Why did it take a court case for the Communities Minister to finally move on the strategy? Will every social inclusion or language strategy be subject…
Minister, I appreciate that you are not the Minister for Communities, but will you provide clarification? An Executive strategy is within the remit of the Executive; the Minister for Communities is not in charge of the Executive. Will you explain how we will monitor and measure the effectiveness of the anti-poverty…
Will the Minister confirm that the Communities Minister has engaged across the Executive on the forthcoming anti-poverty strategy and that it will include actions for every Department and, ultimately, be a strategy for the entire Northern Ireland Executive, not just one Department?
Day in, day out, community and voluntary groups and many other groups that deliver public services deal with the consequences of poverty in our communities. They are deeply frustrated by Mr Lyons's failure to produce an anti-poverty strategy to date. Does the Minister agree that the absence of a strategy inhibits our…
It is slightly bizarre to hear Members and, indeed, the Minister fall over themselves to say that no Minister was found to be in breach. The Executive were found to be in breach of their legal obligation to produce an anti-poverty strategy. That is shaming for the House. I ask the Minister, who is standing in for his…
The court's ruling last week was that, while the anti-poverty strategy is an outstanding commitment of the Executive as a whole, no individual Minister was in breach of their duty in the matter. Can the Minister confirm that Gordon Lyons, the current Minister for Communities, has stated repeatedly that he and his…