Arlene Foster
Fermanagh and South Tyrone · Ulster Unionist Party · Northern Ireland
“Yet, like too many projects, it has been tied up in legal wrangles. Too many infrastructure projects are being swallowed up in the courts. We need to improve the expertise in infrastructure delivery. We need better infrastructure for the next generation, but key projects being delayed by 10-plus years is unsustainable.”
“Any agreement involves compromises but NDNA had two central pillars that, I believe, remain important: ambition for devolution and a new cultural deal. The breadth and depth of issues that NDNA set us all to deliver on would have been enough to fill an entire term or perhaps more, let alone two years of government.”
“That confidence-and-supply agreement will leave a legacy but also highlights our challenges. Some £150 million has been rolled out via Project Stratum to bring broadband to rural areas and leave Northern Ireland as the best-connected region in Europe. When it is completed, the project will be transformational to our economy.”
“However, such short-term advantage comes at the cost of long-term harm to relationships. It is not a real partnership. Imbalance and instability are built in that will fester and deteriorate. If Brussels continues to think that the protocol is enough, it is in denial.”
“Colleagues inside and outside the House know very well that all periods of leadership must come to an end. That is why, when we are privileged and, indeed, honoured to hold such a position, we must not waste a moment in frivolous brinkmanship but forge ahead on behalf of those whom we represent.”
“The recommendations of the Commission on Flags, Identity, Culture and Tradition (FICT) are to be taken forward as well. I encourage all of you to do all of it, to take it forward in its totality and to speak of and implement it as one complete, independent package: a new cultural deal for Northern Ireland's new century.”
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Every one of 3,345 lines we hold for Arlene Foster, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 44 of 67.
“I hear some commentary that it is unspent. I hope that it is not being suggested that we should withdraw those projects. If you want us to proceed in Upper Bann and other areas, we have to ensure that it is done in a sustainable way and that it provides value for money. I accept that it is frustrating for project promoters, but, if we work collaboratively, we will make this happen, and there will be a legacy right across Northern Ireland.”
“As at 11 September of this year, the social investment fund has approved 39 projects with associated costs of over £53 million across all nine investment zones.”
“There is little point in building structures across Northern Ireland if they will not be sustainable in the longer term. We have been looking closely at that through the appraisal process. It is frustrating — I accept that — but we want to ensure that there will be a legacy from this programme in the longer term.”
“Absolutely. I can appreciate the frustration felt by some of the promoters, but an innovative and progressive strategy was laid out. It has taken some time to get to where we are. We appreciate that a number of projects remain to be approved. That is frustrating for the steering group and the lead partners, but the appraisal process is very robust because we want to ensure not only that we get value for money for the projects but that the projects will be sustainable into the future.”
“<BR /> <BR />Three other projects in the southern zone have been prioritised by the steering group. Armagh Harps, a new two-storey build to a GAA facility, was approved for funding, but costs have risen significantly. Work is now ongoing to minimise the increase and impact on affordability. The remaining two projects — the community sports programme, which is focused on capital works to four pitches, and the jobs market employment programme — continue to be considered for funding through the economic appraisal process. Officials are working with promoters to expedite approval, where possible, and move to letter of offer, subject to affordability.”
“Three projects are at an advanced stage of delivery in the southern zone that will directly benefit those living in the Upper Bann constituency. They are an employment project called Work It, which will launch later this month, and two capital projects, New Directions and Sustaining the Infrastructure. New Directions is a project to redevelop two community premises in Lurgan and Markethill, and it is out to tender for a design team. Sustaining the Infrastructure, a project to redevelop or refurbish 14 community facilities across the zone, has a number of design teams in place. Work is ongoing to progress the appointment of contractors and the remaining design teams. Both those significant construction projects are being led by Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council.”
“Mr Allister is, of course, talking about an issue that we are talking about in the talks. There is a very real need to deal with the death of Kevin McGuigan and those who killed him and the assessment that then came from the Chief Constable on the issue. I am dealing with the issue, and we are dealing with it in the talks. The way to solve it is through the talks. It will certainly not be solved by standing outside shouting about it.”
“I thank the Member for his question and commentary; indeed, it underlies what I have been saying. There is a duty on people who report something as fact when it is not fact. It causes a lot of distress and does a lot of harm. It puts more pressure on the services available to victims and survivors. <BR /> <BR />There has been a lot of confusion about a draft Bill that has been produced by Amnesty International, the Committee on the Administration of Justice (CAJ) and others, which outlines a number of provisions. They have brought together a Bill that, to all intents and purposes, looks as if it has been drafted by draftsmen either here or in Westminster, but it is not a government Bill. It is certainly not what was agreed in the Stormont House Agreement and therefore should be seen as a commentary provided by outside bodies.”
“Yes, the Stormont House Agreement stated that, while limited services are in place to provide basic support, there is an urgent need to work collaboratively with victims and survivors and service providers to determine the characteristics of advocacy services provision and associated costs. That is very much something that was agreed by all the parties at Stormont House. A draft paper was presented to the implementation group on 17 August. Departmental officials continue to research advocacy provision to ensure appropriate and adequate future provision. I believe that that is a very important part of the Stormont House Agreement, and it has been lacking, particularly for individuals who do not want to join the various groups and therefore have no voice when they want to come forward. The advocacy provisions are very important.”
“Those who have reported on an amnesty in that way should look at what they are doing to victims and survivors.”
“I am glad that the Member has brought that up, because there have been a lot of confusing reports in the media recently in relation to amnesty. Of course, there is no proposal for any amnesty for those who come forward to the truth recovery mechanism under the Stormont House Agreement: that is very clear in the Stormont House Agreement. There is no agreement to that. No amnesty has been suggested or discussed by party leaders at the Stormont House implementation group. There is no intention to include it in any legislation that will be progressed at Westminster. <BR /> <BR />I have to say that the reporting of the matter, which is wholly untrue, has been very upsetting for a wide range of people who suffered during the Troubles. It is very irresponsible and has caused a lot of distress, and we have seen that reported in the media.”
“Key strands of work are also being taken forward under the Stormont House Agreement in relation to advocacy, a pension and the establishment of a mental trauma service.”
“That programme has already made progress, such as improved monitoring and evaluation for groups and greater flexibility for individuals. Extensive engagement with a range of groups, as well as individual victims and survivors, has provided positive feedback that will provide a useful steer to build on the improvements to services that have occurred in recent months. <BR /> <BR />A VSS-led pilot in the use of personalised budgets, caseworkers and the assessment process commenced in July 2015. That approach will identify whether changes can be made to current service delivery systems to improve the outcome for victims and survivors in receipt of services through the VSS programmes.”
“We remain committed to ensuring that victims and survivors receive the best services possible. In this financial year, over £14 million has been allocated to victims' services with an opening budget for the Victims and Survivors Service (VSS) of £13·245 million. Following on from the independent review of VSS in 2014, our Department, in collaboration with the Commission for Victims and Survivors and the VSS itself, continues to improve services to victims. The recruitment of a new Victims' Commissioner and additional members to the VSS board aims to ensure that, going forward, the needs and interests of all victims and survivors are both promoted and safeguarded. In addition, a collaborative design programme has been set up to develop an improved model for service delivery that better meets the needs of all victims and survivors.”
“NI Water will use it to develop an integrated constructed wetlands, and that will replace the waste water treatment works that has been dealing with Ballykelly village for some time. It is a very innovative way to move forward, as I say, with land that otherwise may not be used.”
“In respect of the DARD headquarters, that is probably more of an issue for the Minister of Agriculture, but the relocation of staff, I understand, is expected to be phased, with approximately 350 staff taking up position in 2017 and up to 350 more expected to relocate after phase 2 of the construction when it is completed in 2020. That is in respect of the DARD headquarters. <BR /> <BR />In respect of the Northern Ireland Water situation, OFMDFM intends to sell approximately 85·8 acres of the site to NI Water to develop. It is a very innovative way of using land that otherwise might not have been used.”
“No. I am not aware of anyone raising any particular issues in relation to the site. Overall, this House is very much aware of the fact that, when we have stability here in Northern Ireland, it is a great enabler to people looking at Northern Ireland for investment. However, I think that the House should be very pleased to hear that over 70 expressions of interest have come forward in respect of Ballykelly, and we look forward to seeing what comes out of those.”
“The aim is to maximise the potential of the site. That is certainly what has been talked about by officials in OFMDFM and by Ministers. Officials have had a number of meetings, as I am sure the Member is aware, with Ballykelly Community Association to discuss various community benefits from future use of the site. In fact, it will be interesting to see the different proposals in respect of community benefit that come forward from those people who put forward a purchase price, and we may see some new and innovative ideas for the benefit of the community. This is absolutely a good-news story, and we look forward to 2 October when the bids will come in.”
“Obviously, those may not all come forward as bids, but that says to me that there is a lot of interest.”
“The Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister very much believes that the sale of what is a huge area of land up in the north-west will act very much as a catalyst for economic development in that region. That is one of the reasons why, when deciding on who should be the purchaser of the site, they have placed weightings in relation to different elements. So, for example, job creation has a weighting of 45% in terms of whether the purchaser should be identified as the correct purchaser. Obviously, they look at the financial offer as well, but they also look at community and environmental benefit to the particular area, so those four elements will be looked at very carefully. We have had over 70 expressions of interest in the site, so there is a lot of interest in it.”
“With DARD's relocation plans also well under way, it really is an exciting time for Ballykelly and the north-west.”
“The Shackleton site is one of massive opportunity. We are determined to maximise the benefits that it can deliver for not just Ballykelly but the wider north-west. To unlock the full potential of the site, we placed approximately 622 acres of it for sale on the open market on 30 June. There has been significant interest in the site, and it will remain on the market until 2 October. A key element of the sale is the creation of jobs. Any potential purchaser will need to demonstrate how their plans will create employment opportunities and deliver community and environmental benefits. Northern Ireland Water has confirmed that it will purchase approximately 85 acres of the site to develop an integrated constructed wetlands to replace the waste water treatment works that currently deals with waste from Ballykelly village.”
“That is right. We do not want to put people out of work because of childcare costs. We want to be able to facilitate them to go into work. That is the whole purpose. As well as the development of the individual children, we want to be able to free parents up so that they can go into and be active in the area of work. That is why those twin strategic approaches in relation to the strategy have been adopted. It is about developing a child, but it is also very much about freeing parents up to go to work.”
“I am sure that she is aware that people who are disadvantaged in one way or another are already given priority in respect of movement into the early years sector. I am sure that that is a policy that will continue into the future. There is a need for us to address children of all different strata and to make sure that, not only in early years but at school age, they are able to have childcare provided to them in an affordable way. That is important. You will recall that OFMDFM had to step in because there was literally a stand off between the Department of Health and the Department of Education on who had primary responsibility for childcare, and that is why the strategy now sits with OFMDFM.”
“We want to be able to make sure when it come to the final issue of the childcare strategy, namely regulation, that the Department of Health and OFMDFM are on the same page — I know that that phrase has been used often recently — so that it is fit for purpose.”
“As the Member will be aware, regulating and indeed registering and inspecting childcare facilities is the responsibility of the Department of Health, which is represented on the childcare strategy programme board. However, he is right to point out that some complaints have come forward in respect of the relatively new minimum standards and associated regulation. Indeed, a number of private nurseries in my own constituency came to me around some of the ways in which those regulations had been put in place and were being implemented. There is more work to be done between OFMDFM and the Department of Health. I am glad to say that that work continues.”
“We need to look at how we are putting the intervention in place and make sure that we are getting the best value for money out of it.”
“I think that it is very important that that does happen. The costings in the consultation document are based, as I have said, on modelling that was used for the school-age childcare grant scheme. Of course, we should remember that the idea behind these childcare interventions is that they will be sustainable in the longer term. Whilst there may be an initial injection of money from the Executive, the idea is that, in future, those childcare providers will become sustainable, either through a social economy model or, indeed, through private models as well. The idea is that there will be an injection for a while, but we do not want to get to a situation where we are having to pay out a grant every year, year on year, as that would drag down the market for childcare, which would be the wrong way to move forward.”
“These costs will be offset by a range of social and economic benefits that will be considered more fully in the development of the individual business cases and economic appraisals for each separate intervention. Sustainability is a core objective of the draft childcare strategy.”
“<BR /> <BR />Of the 22 proposed actions, the current school-age childcare grant scheme, expanded to include preschool childcare, is the most ambitious. It aims to create nearly half of the 44,000 places. The grant scheme will also be the most costly of the 22 actions. A key aspect of the evaluation of the current school-age childcare grant scheme will be to estimate the cost of any future interventions and thereby their feasibility in the current economic climate. <BR /> <BR />Other actions that will carry a cost are community-based childcare, cross-border childcare, assistance for private sector providers, childcare for private firms, capital fund for childcare, flexible childcare and childcare for low-income families.”
“The Executive's draft 10-year strategy for affordable and integrated childcare is open for public consultation until 13 November. The draft strategy proposes 22 interventions or areas of development, including the creation of up to 44,000 new childcare places to meet need to give effect to the Executive's vision for childcare that every child, parent and family will have access to affordable, integrated and quality childcare. Preliminary work has been carried out on costing the proposed interventions in the draft childcare strategy. Indicative costs are based on estimates for revenue and capital grants to support new childcare places and the projected costs of grant administration and registration and inspection of new childcare places.”
“Further to that point of order, Mr Speaker, I ask you to review not only this debate but the Budget (No. 2) Bill debate, in which a Member referred to Ministers in Westminster as "donkeys". That needs to be looked at as well. If we are to start down this road, that is what we are going to have to engage in, Mr Speaker.”
“As I outlined in my opening speech, the decisions that we take as an Administration will have wide-ranging and long-term consequences for the future of Northern Ireland. <BR /> <BR />I hope that all Members — all Members — will keep that in mind and do what is right for the people we are sent here to serve. On that note, I commend the Budget (No. 2) Bill to the House.”
“<BR /> <BR />Mr McCrea was uncharacteristically brief, and we were all very grateful for that. His quote was that, if you look at Greece, having a mandate was different than having money. He made that point about the Greek situation. <BR /> <BR />John McCallister made a number of points in relation to where we find ourselves but his key point, from my perspective, was that we either do Stormont House or we do not. He said that it was a very clear decision that we had to make and that there was a need to get on with it. <BR /> <BR />I hope that I managed to respond to most if not all Members who raised an issue. The Budget Bill is essential to provide Departments with legislative cover to deliver public services here. We cannot forget that, regardless of the budgetary uncertainties facing the Executive and the Assembly.”
“No, I am not taking an intervention. He has never suggested that he is in favour of small businesses or supporting businesses in Northern Ireland. He did not agree to the Stormont House Agreement, therefore there was no need to come forward with solutions. He can just sit on the Back Bench and say no, and he is in very good company in doing so. <BR /> <BR />He can vote against the Budget and not worry about what that means for Northern Ireland because he is a one-man band, so he does not really have to worry. That is fair enough. If that is the way he wants to be remembered in Northern Ireland politics, he can vote against whatever he likes because it does not really matter; it is going to go through anyway. That is not really something that I would be proud of as a representative of a local constituency.”
“It shows how little he knows of the process of foreign direct investment when one of the key elements of an assessment is in relation to displacement: you assess whether there is going to be any displacement. The nonsense that we have displaced local jobs is just rubbish. <BR /> <BR />Of course, he again failed to mention the global recession. He said that we needed to redistribute wealth, and gave us the Chairman Mao remarks again. He gave us his great leap forward in relation to rates again. He did not talk about growing the private sector or supporting private businesses to grow, and again showed that he had absolutely no aspiration for the economy here in Northern Ireland. That does not surprise me because, to be fair —”
“Well, this is the new phrase that has come out of today. I am glad something new is coming out of today because there has been precious little. The SDLP's position in relation to the Stormont House Agreement is that they will implement the good and build on the bad. That is the new phrase for today, and undoubtedly we will hear a lot of that over the coming weeks. I am putting down a marker to journalists everywhere that that is the new phrase from the SDLP. <BR /> <BR />Mr Agnew said that he was not going to repeat what he said previously; he was going to reiterate it, which is, of course, a synonym for repeating it, and that is exactly what he did. He criticised the role of Invest Northern Ireland. He criticised my record as Enterprise, Trade and Investment Minister. He said that we had displaced jobs.”
“I am not getting into the game of who blinked first, but there certainly have been very mixed messages coming from the SDLP, which is why I called them the Vicky Pollard of Northern Ireland politics. They say at meetings that they support the Stormont House Agreement, but they do not. The reality is that they do not support the Stormont House Agreement, so there is no point in saying, "Oh, x has broken the Stormont House Agreement", when they have not supported the Stormont House Agreement for some considerable time. I wish they were honest with people and came forward and said that they do not support the Stormont House Agreement because this farce of pretending to support it is a nonsense. <BR /> <BR />Mr Agnew said —”
“Unlike the Member, I do not see conspiracies round every corner. Yes, there is a need to be vigilant, and we will be. For me, sustainability means that you have a balanced Budget. The only way to get a balanced Budget in this context is the implementation in full of the Stormont House Agreement. That is what I have been talking about, as I have said, ad nauseam throughout this Budget debate.”
“I have to say that if you talk about a paradigm shift and use all these great words, and then vote against the Budget, you would have a paradigm shift by not having a Budget in Northern Ireland. It is the most ridiculous situation that I have ever heard in all my life, and I can assure you, Mr Deputy Speaker, that I have heard some ridiculous things in this House over this past period of time.”
“Again, I refer him to dealing with that through the economic inactivity strategy and the fact that we will not be able to take that on in the fashion that we would have done or indeed that my successor in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment would do. I regret that because it is important that we move ahead on those very important issues. <BR /> <BR />Mr Attwood had a go at the Northern Ireland Executive, despite the fact that he sat in the Executive for a time; despite the fact that his party colleague sits in the Northern Ireland Executive now. There is almost this detached view that his party is not really in the Executive at all. But they are in the Executive, and they need to recognise that, step up to the plate and play responsible government like everybody else. He wanted a paradigm shift.”
“That is what the Secretary of State had to say on that. I want to be completely clear as well on this issue: if there is no welfare reform, there is no voluntary exit scheme; no money for the past; no sustainable Budget; no Stormont House Agreement; no paragraph 10; no corporation tax; no Assembly; and no Executive. That is how serious this issue is. If we do not implement welfare reform, all the other things that we talk about here today are by the way. We need to get real, put this behind us and implement welfare reform. <BR /> <BR />Mr Attwood went on to talk about the low-wage economy. I absolutely recognise the statistics that came out today.”
“I will quote them because they are important to reflect back on. She said:”
“Just to be very clear, there is no private understanding about HS2 Barnett consequentials. It did come up in my meeting with Jane Hutt. It will come up again in my meeting with John Swinney, because it is not just about HS2. I have to say, looking at some of the comments made by some of the English MPs, that I doubt if it will go ahead. However, there are other infrastructure projects happening. We need to keep an eye on what is happening so that we can argue the case for Barnett consequentials here. <BR /> <BR />There was a lot of conspiracy talk about what "sustainability" means in terms of the Budget and whether it means x or y. The Member was trying to reimagine the Stormont House Agreement. He does not actually need to do that. I refer him to the Secretary of State's comments made in Washington on 16 March.”
“I am making a very strong argument that we should receive Barnett consequentials in relation to HS2. If there was some ambiguity in my language on the last occasion, I apologise. I am, with colleagues in Wales and Scotland, making a very strong argument in relation to Barnett consequentials on HS2.”
“<BR /> <BR />He went on to make a number of points in relation to the Budget. He talked about the fact that money was taken away in-year. I hope that I have addressed that. He talked about private meetings, which I am not going to get into, first, because I was not there, and, secondly, because I do not think it is appropriate to talk about those meetings in this open forum. A lot of what Mr Attwood had to tell us was a complete distraction from the real issue. The real issue is around the implementation of welfare reform. He did not want to talk about that particular elephant in the room, but that is what we have to deal with in moving forward. <BR /> <BR />I am not quite sure what his argument was in relation to HS2. Maybe he wants to clarify that.”
“If we want to move forward, then we need to resolve the issues. Of course, if we want to move forward, we have to have a workable Budget, and the only way to have a workable budget is to have welfare reform implemented in Northern Ireland. <BR /> <BR />Mr Attwood did not recognise my description of the SDLP as the Vicky Pollard of Northern Ireland politics. I was not referring to him as the Vicky Pollard of Northern Ireland politics. I think a little bit more of him than that, and I hope that he will accept that. I do stand over my description, as they are all over the place. I advise him to go to Sky or other cable channels and watch some of the episodes for his own enjoyment, entertainment and information. He will know exactly what I am talking about when he watches it.”
“We did have that system in place, but, of course, once the Welfare Reform Bill was voted down, we lost the opportunity to bring those mitigating actions into reality for the citizens of Northern Ireland, and I entirely regret that. <BR /> <BR />There was a lot of mixing up of what is to come and what is in this Budget here and now. That has been the mark of the debate. Mr Attwood and others always want to talk about what is coming down the line instead of dealing with the reality of what we have in front of us today. I think that is wrong. We should deal with and be responsible about the public services that are to be delivered in Northern Ireland in the year 2015-16. <BR /> <BR />Mr Murphy made reference to the fact that the whole area that we found ourselves in was a serious challenge to the institutions.”
“Mr Dickson raised the issue with Mr Murphy about sitting in Westminster, and the answer that he got was that there was no point in going to "shrug your shoulders in person". That is a very poor view of parliamentary democracy, I have to say. Why get elected to a place if you are not going to go and your simple view of the place is that you go along to "shrug your shoulders in person"? I hope that others do not agree with that view of parliamentary democracy. You go, make your point and argue your case on the Floor of the House, just as everybody does in this place today. <BR /> <BR />I have dealt with in-year cuts. Mr Murphy said that the Stormont House Agreement brought about our own welfare system to deal with the worst ravages of the Tory Administration. That is right.”
“<BR /> <BR />It is important that we recognise that this is a devolved Administration, which sits under the national Parliament of the United Kingdom, and, therefore, we have to deal with the consequences of that.”