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Minister, do you agree that those costs are having a huge impact on major capital projects in, for example, Health and Education, which are being starved of capital funding? Is it down to the amount that they have to spend on climate change?
It is down to each Department to report those costs. I do not have those figures in front of me. I suspect that it would require information to come from each Department. Measured against those, however, I suspect that we would also have to look at the cost of doing nothing. Whatever your views on why climate is…
GRO has been expecting a significant initial demand for the service and has been preparing for it. I suspect that, as days go on, that demand will increase. We will continue to monitor the situation. Where necessary, we will bring in staff to ensure that demand is met.
I thank the Minister for his answer. In his answer to my colleague, he mentioned the GRO and that there have been, I believe, 1,800 applications over the past 24 hours. Does he have the confidence and assurance that GRO will be able to process that volume of applications? If he has any concerns, will he put in place…
At yesterday evening's launch, we had a number of charitable organisations with us that have been to the forefront of the project and have been crucial in ensuring that we engaged not only with them but with many parents on the make-up and delivery of the scheme. That engagement will continue with them because they…
I have asked my colleagues in the General Register Office to keep me updated on its progress. Given the scale of the numbers that will apply to the scheme, I suspect that there may be a number of glitches. In fairness to the GRO team, it put the system up very quickly, with support from across the Civil Service and…
I thank the Minister for that answer and acknowledge the success of the baby loss certificate scheme so far. The numbers show that the scheme was warranted and needed in the first place. That is welcome news. Has the Minister put in place some sort of review of the certificate scheme and applications to it so that we…
Yes, I will follow that up with the Member. By way of an update, in the past 24 hours, there have been 1,800 applications. That demonstrates how many parents out there want to access the scheme and enter the process. I will certainly follow that up and see why that was the case with Antrim Area Hospital.
Well, I find it disgraceful. People try to find angles and do everything that they can think of to target and point at that community. They are our workers, they are civil servants, and they carry out duties on behalf of everyone every day. I commend them for that. My answer remains the same: HR is law, and anybody…
Minister, you may cite an HR matter, but it is also a legal matter, and you are the Minister for the Department responsible for that workforce. Are you saying that you are going to ignore the legal advice and not pass that on to discourage anyone from participating in those parades when they are easily identifiable as…
That is a HR matter for the Civil Service, and I do not intervene in HR matters. Any advice that will be shared with civil servants will come from my permanent secretary in consultation with other permanent secretaries and the head of the Civil Service.
I note the recent announcement about summer activities and some of the measures that were taken in relation to the cost-of-living crisis that people are feeling. I think that the Government should have gone much further. They had the ability to go much further, and, if they had done that, perhaps they would not be in…
Thank you, Minister, for your answer. Minister, you will have noted that the Government recently announced a VAT cut for some family expenses for a range of activities over the summer. That is perhaps a change. Can you continue to press for a similar trial for VAT in the hospitality sector and offer Northern Ireland…
That matter has been raised at practically every meeting, if not every meeting, that I have ever had with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, and my officials raise it regularly with their counterparts in the Treasury. I know that it has been raised at the highest levels of government by the First Minister and deputy…
Austerity has been biting and consuming our public services for well over a decade. While other institutions are being funded above their level of need, the British Government have treated this place with utter contempt and disrespect. I have engaged with, and continue to engage with, the British Government about a…
Minister, we are not on holiday yet, but you appear to be in almost horizontal mode when it comes to the crisis. I am aware of public services that will be at risk this summer, including councils, community and voluntary sector organisations that operate holiday hunger services, community integration services and…
I welcome the fact that the Member has confirmed that he has not published anything. It is now on the public record that the leader of the Opposition has not published an alternative Budget or any documents to create the momentum behind the changes that are required for our public services moving forward. It is on the…
I have set aside £135 million in my draft Budget because transformation is having a significant impact on the delivery of public services. It has also allowed our civil servants and others to come together to think about transformation in a meaningful way and look at the outputs. One of the challenges of austerity has…
It is clear to me that the transformation fund is having a positive impact on the delivery of public services here. In March 2025, I announced the first tranche of projects that will be supported under the fund. While it is relatively early days in the implementation of the projects, they are already starting to have…
As I said, I will come to the Chamber next week to make further announcements. The matter will go out to consultation, and I intend to put energy behind it. I want to see it happen. I believe that it is a meaningful policy change that would create real change in our towns and villages. It is up to others how they…