Dolores Kelly
Upper Bann · Social Democratic and Labour Party · Northern Ireland
“The legislation is only as good as its enforcement. It will be enabled by the sentences that judges and others may hand down, by cultural shifts and by changes in behaviour because of the penalties in place as a consequence. <BR /> <BR />We need to do much more with cybercrime units. We need proper resources for them.”
“It also covers the background to the Good Friday Agreement and the creation of this Assembly, as well as subsequent political negotiations over the years. The major figures and events over the past 100 years have been reflected in a way that ensures that all political perspectives of the Assembly are reflected.”
“I thank the Member for his question. An update on the current COVID-19 health and safety measures was issued to all users of Parliament Buildings on 1 March 2022. The update set out the current arrangements for ensuring the continuing safety of everyone in the Building.”
“I thank the Member for his question. I am pleased to inform him that the review of the display of artefacts is at a very advanced stage. The Member may have seen the letter that the Speaker issued on behalf of the Assembly Commission earlier today.”
“<BR /> <BR />As a member of the Policing Board, I receive updates on a regular basis from the National Crime Agency (NCA), which has determined that between 16,000 and 23,000 children and young people are at risk from sexual offences and grooming online. Those are horrendous figures, and that must be a nightmare scenario for any family.”
“Thank you for your answer, Minister. You rightly outlined a lot of medical and therapeutic interventions, but many children are suffering post-traumatic stress-type symptoms or, indeed, social isolation as a consequence of COVID.”
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“Not once did she say that the principles that her colleague the deputy First Minister, Martin McGuinness, applied to the then leader of the Catholic Church, Seán Brady, on the cover-up of clerical sexual abuse should apply to the president of Sinn Féin. Jennifer McCann has let herself down, as has Carál Ní Chuilín and all the women in Sinn Féin who have, throughout the island of Ireland, ridiculed Maíria Cahill and, instead of trying to support her, tried to bring her good name into disrepute.”
“I am pleased to speak in this debate on behalf of the SDLP. I am pleased that today, once again, our party has shown that there is clear blue water between its principles and values and those of Sinn Féin. I make no apology for that, and it not the SDLP or any other party, bar Sinn Féin, that is politicising the debate. It has sought over the past number of weeks to trash the good name of Maíria Cahill. She is the victim in all of this, not Martin McGuinness, not Carál Ní Chuilín and not Jennifer McCann. <BR /> <BR />I listened with interest to what Jennifer McCann said in the last five minutes, because she said it with a degree of passion and emotion. Not once did she mention the name of her party president.”
“Does the Minister share the view of many in the House that it was simply filibustering because they do not want to face up to the shame that awaits them in relation to how they have dealt with the Maíria Cahill case?”
“The Minister has already referred to two key points, one being the budgetary complications, but there are proposals for closure of some rural schools, as well as the proposed closure of Drumcree College in his constituency, which will inevitably lead to increased transport costs. How does the Minister propose to deal with that in the management of his budget? Will he take into consideration a cost-benefit analysis with CCMS and others as part of the business case for retaining some of our local schools?”
“I welcome the Minister's comments. She will be aware that many other major cities across these islands have been able to retain their orchestras. Have you explored how those orchestras are supported by their town authorities or central government? What time frame are you working to in relation to a rescue plan?”
“I hope that the announcement is given a fair wind in relation to the consultation, and that we see an enhanced service provision and clarity given to families, because they have enough worry and anxiety dealing with a child who is sick, without having to worry about all the ancillary problems around transport, accommodation and accessibility.”
“<BR /> <BR />At the end of the day, communication will be key. When you are ill, you do not really care where the service is, so long as you can get it — and get it when you need it, it is a good service and it has a good outcome for you or your loved one. I believe that that is the ambition of the provision of children's cardiac services and one that I hope will be at the centre of deliberations on the provision of services. <BR /> <BR />Mr Deputy Speaker, it is very difficult at the end of such a debate to add anything new, so I will finish by recognising that this has been doing the rounds for quite a long time. Members are quite right to point out that it is the fourth such report that has come to the same conclusion.”
“<BR /> <BR />Today's report advances 14 recommendations, addressing key issues that would facilitate the transition of the service, including issues of transport, enhancing clinical services, taking on board families' concerns and implementing measures to deal with urgent emergency care. Some issues remain. Earlier today, the Minister pointed out the interdependency of the 14 recommendations, where full agreement across the board is required. I understand very clearly that we are very much in the early stages and there has yet to be full agreement and commitment on the resource timelines and service integration requirements by both Health Ministers and their respective Departments. I trust that Mr Wells has a good relationship with the Health Minister in the South and that they can very quickly come to a conclusion to inform parents.”
“We see it as a step in the right direction to providing clarity and certainty for parents and families. For too long, we were left in a state of limbo, not knowing whether or not children would have to continue to travel to England. It is much more satisfactory that they have much easier access, and hopefully less costly access, to services in Dublin. <BR /> <BR />I think I am right in saying that the consultation period is 12 weeks but the service level agreement with Dublin ends in 10 weeks. Perhaps the Minister will address the gap, of two weeks or whatever number of weeks, that might emerge as a consequence of the consultation and whether or not the current service level agreement will be extended. I see reference to that as one of the issues raised in today's media.”
“<BR /> <BR />I know from experience that it is not just the parents of children who are currently ill but parents who have had the experience of having their children treated in Belfast who feel so passionately about the retention of services. I want to commend them for keeping with it and assisting those who have come after them. It is also right that we place on record, as the report does, that the strength and quality of the cardiology services that are provided in Belfast are second to none. The change being made is nothing to do with them in relation to the service. I think that it was Mr O'Dowd who said that it is about the safety and viability of the service. <BR /> <BR />We in the SDLP welcome today's announcement that child cardiac services will become part of an all-island initiative.”
“I join others in commending Mrs Dobson for securing the Adjournment debate. I think that she is right to note the coincidence of the statement and the Adjournment debate — nonetheless, whatever it takes to get the job done. <BR /> <BR />I think that we are all agreed that we want to work in the best interests of all our constituents. As Mr Anderson said, it is not just about children in Upper Bann; it is about children right across the North and their parents in particular. I join others in commending the parents and families and those who have lobbied so hard for so long. It is necessary that we have certainty and clarity on the issues and recommendations that are contained in the reports.”
“Minister, I note your acknowledgement that the figure of £750 million is over the four-year period and is not actually wrong, but will the terms of reference for this work include the proposals going through Westminster for changes in childcare and the cap on the cost of welfare coming to devolved Administrations? In other words, will it reference not just current but future cuts?”
“I assure the Minister that I did not pluck this out of the air, and there was an acknowledgement in the articles that I read that there has been recent growth. However, this is against the backdrop of public sector cuts and the redundancy schemes that are being discussed and the fact that we are still, by and large, a low-wage economy. My question is this: how is the Minister re-profiling the programme of work for the next six months and the next financial year in the light of the cuts that are threatening her Department and others?”
“Minister, will you join me in welcoming the establishment of a new consul for the Republic of China in Belfast and also in welcoming the fact that the availability and accessibility for visas for travel will be much enhanced for visitors going both ways and, indeed, for the students at our universities?”
“<BR /> <BR />This is another historic day for Northern Ireland, in the context that so many define it, as a day when we see that the real fault at the heart of the Executive is fractured relationships and back-room and back-door deals. I hope, as we in the SDLP attempt to move society forward to do what is right and best for all the people of the North, that we see an end to the back-room and back-door deals. Let us have some honest engagement and inclusive politics as set out in the spirit and letter of the Good Friday Agreement.”
“Thank you, Mr Acting Speaker. I had not intended to speak, but, as this afternoon starts to disintegrate, I am left with little choice but to express my dismay and that of my party at what we see as those cobbled-together back-room deals between Sinn Féin and the DUP fall apart so publicly. As we go into talks, there is a warning for anyone in any party who thinks that the two main parties will honour whatever agreements they have made behind doors at the exclusion of all of the parties. However, we can stand, support and hope for a better future. Today, we know that health workers, nurses, midwives and others are on the streets looking to have fulfilled the promises that were made to them in relation to their 1% pay rise, and here we are in the Assembly failing to agree on the appointment of a Speaker.”
“Would the Member agree that, over the last couple of days, thedetail.tv website had an excellent report where victims' voices had a platform? Surely this debate has helped with that process and given victims' voices an airing, which many people would perhaps prefer that they did not have.”
“<BR /> <BR />I know that my time is limited, but I did not want to let the debate go without paying tribute to the many men and women who, over the past 30 to 40 years, as workers in the emergency services had to see horrendous sights and attend the murder and maiming of fellow human beings. Often, they are the unsung heroes of the conflict. I pay tribute to them. I am sure that many of them, without being direct victims of the Troubles, suffer from post-traumatic stress. I hope that, if they have needs, they will be included in any assessment of need.”
“However, I know from my constituency work, having spoken to victims, that quite often their concerns centre around the security of provision of social housing and of having the adaptations that they require as they age as well as access to health services. <BR /> <BR />Other Members spoke about the number of victims increasing. Not only are more people coming forward with mental health issues, but there is also the transgenerational impact of the Troubles. We can all see that. Dealing with the past is something that we, as politicians, have to grapple with, and the British Government have a central role in particular, not only in addressing the past but in helping to resource the needs of victims and survivors.”
“I want to say a few words in support of the motion and of victims and survivors, who ought to be central in all our thinking, particularly in this debate. As a society we owe a great debt of gratitude to victims and survivors, who, since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, had remained largely in the background and quite silent on a wide range of matters but were prepared to support the new institutions and the Good Friday Agreement in the hope that their needs would be met. <BR /> <BR />Over the past couple of days I have read comments from victims who have had some of their services cut, and my heart goes out to them. I see it as a function of OFMDFM, which has a particular responsibility.”
“Will he agree with me that we had a very dirty war? I wonder whether all those engaged — all the participants — in that dirty war are really prepared to tell the truth about what they did.”
“I look forward to the cutting of the sod next year. That is really what we are hearing. <BR /> <BR />Minister, you said that there would be a loss of car parking places. There was hope that there would be an extension of the number of places throughout the North for park-and-ride. Therefore, are any additional facilities planned to offset the spaces that will be lost to Banbridge bus station?”
“In relation to the support given to victims groups such as WAVE, there were issues around the number of pages in application forms that individuals had to complete. Has any flexibility or consideration been given to the concerns raised by those organisations?”
“Thank you, Minister. What is totally spurious, of course, was Mr Poots's allegation. As the Minister will know, it was Mr Attwood and the NIEA that highlighted that waste dump, and the NIEA brought to bear its full powers on that.”
“I hope that those will not be lost; I am sure that his sons will try to realise their father's ambitions. <BR /> <BR />I saw a great tribute at the funeral; people from right across the community turned out in their hundreds to pay tribute to George. His loss will be felt, as others have said, right across the community, but it will be felt most around the family hearth. My sincere condolences to the Ulster Unionist Party, which has lost a true friend, and to his family and the wider community.”
“He is one who, in 1998, remained true and resolute in his support of his then party leader, David Trimble, as he made a great compromise to make a better future for everyone in our society. He never wavered in his support nor in his conviction that what he was doing was the right thing. <BR /> <BR />George, as others have said, was not afraid of building cross-border links; he had a great relationship, as Mr Moutray said, with the communities in Ballina. I know that they, too, will miss him greatly, especially the energy and commitment that he brought. It is only a few months ago that I facilitated a meeting between George and our Environment Minister. George was an employer in the local area, and he had ambitious plans for future development.”
“On behalf of the SDLP's Assembly and parliamentary group and our local councillors in Craigavon, we place on record our sincere sympathy to Joy and to George's sons, daughters-in-law and grandchildren. I had the privilege of serving for many years on Craigavon Borough Council with George when he played a role as mayor and another as deputy mayor, and I served on numerous committees with him. George was, foremost, as others have said, a family man. He had a long and enduring good relationship not only with his wife and family but with his mother; he often talked about his mother, who lived to a great age. <BR /> <BR />I was deeply vexed when I heard the nature of George's illness only a few weeks ago, and I was deeply saddened at his sudden passing. George was a decent, hard-working family man.”
“Minister, I note that permission has been given to go ahead with the development proposal, and I think that the work is to conclude some time in the new year. How much of a guarantee can you give us that there will be the money to deliver the project within the next three to four years?”
“I assure the Minister that I follow the health brief closely. Minister, you will know that my question was about reviewing the decision to close A&E services. I understand that it was always the case that the closure was to be temporary. Mr Deputy Speaker, I am sure that you and others will forgive me for doubting Ministers when they use words and phrases like "shortly" and "in due course", because what they are referring to seldom happens. Is it now the case, Minister, that there is no money for Transforming Your Care and that you are relying on monitoring rounds to plug the gaps?”
“— across the North rather than penalising people who are not fortunate enough to work or are unable to do so.”
“I am sorry, but I am very short of time. <BR /> <BR />We have heard Members rehearse the Tory rhetoric that we are now so accustomed to, which accompanies these cuts: "Make work pay" and "The trap of benefits dependency". The way in which to do that is by creating sustainable employment —”
“Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. <BR /> <BR />The former Finance Minister is well acquainted with the dearth of social housing right across the North. As he knows well, the sectarian geography here lends itself to a different establishment of need. The bedroom tax would impact even more adversely on people living in social housing here than on people anywhere else in these islands. We have heard Members —”
“We have a higher proportion of disability living allowance (DLA) recipients than England, Scotland and Wales, and they will be adversely affected by the personal independent payment. <BR /> <BR />The infamous bedroom tax will adversely affect 33,000 people. Indeed, the social housing Minister said that 32,000 social housing tenants would potentially be affected by underoccupation restrictions. That was in an answer recently conveyed by Minister McCausland to my colleague Colum Eastwood. We should embark on a housing reform programme and build more houses.”
“<BR /> <BR />Nearly 800,000 people live in poverty in the North. I am sure that every Member can agree that that is a disturbing and totally unacceptable statistic. The cuts would only exacerbate the situation and hit households that are already struggling. Of the 400 government districts, three of Northern Ireland's 26 are in the top four positions, and 11 are in the top 50. That is largely due to the prevalence of mental ill health and social deprivation that the conflict left in our society. <BR /> <BR />In my constituency, there is an estimated loss of £670 per working-age adult in Craigavon. In Banbridge, it is £560. In total, as the excellent report by NICVA and others suggests, £750 million would be lost to the Northern Ireland economy. There is no aspect of life that the cuts would not touch: housing, health, income or childcare.”
“Dignity and respect must be an important part of our social security system. <BR /> <BR />Others would like to introduce the reforms and dismiss the wealth of evidence that they have failed spectacularly in Britain. Only on Sunday, we learned from the 'Sunday Mirror' that there have been botched changes in benefits for people with disabilities. New figures now show that 329,000 of the 529,000 applicants waiting for personal independent payment claims are still waiting to be assessed and that waiting time has increased substantially. This is all the more shocking when we remember that Northern Ireland will be hit much harder than the rest of the UK if the welfare reforms are allowed to pass. The administrative changes agreed to date do not go far enough to tailor reform to the particular challenges that we face in Northern Ireland.”
“These are cuts masquerading as reform and are punishing the most vulnerable people in society for an economic crash that they did not cause. The Executive must do their utmost to agree on legislation, practice and funding to ensure that the most vulnerable in our society are not attacked by these cuts. <BR /> <BR />We have witnessed the demonisation of the disabled and unemployed in Britain as a means to justify the cuts. Like my party and me, the Assembly must reject the Tories' crass dichotomy between strivers and skivers and commit itself to protecting the most vulnerable. In Scotland, in the Expert Working Group on Welfare's excellent report, Professor Adrian Sinfield states:”
“The SDLP supports the motion and opposes the amendment. <BR /> <BR />The SDLP has a long record of defending the rights of the most vulnerable in society and is totally opposed to the introduction of these punitive cuts. On that note, I commend my colleagues who supported a Bill in Westminster to mitigate the most detrimental effects of the iniquitous bedroom tax. It would be wrong not to ask Sinn Féin why, if it is so committed to opposing Tory cuts, its members do not go to Westminster to vote against them. <BR /> <BR />The SDLP is not opposed to welfare reform in itself. A change that would create a fair and more transparent system ought to be welcomed. Indeed, the Bill introduced by my colleague Margaret Ritchie was about protecting disabled people and supporting them if and when they were fit to return to work.”
“Mr Principal Deputy Speaker, you will appreciate the scepticism many of us on this side of the House have about a financially illiterate Minister who stood a few months ago and accused four contractors of an £18 million overpayment. There is some concern around his waving about of financial figures at the moment. Perhaps the Minister could give us a profile across each constituency of the impact of welfare cuts. It is unfortunate that he and his party have thrown in the towel to the Conservatives in relation to the impact of the cuts.”
“I just wanted to ask the Member whether he has given any consideration to the claims from those on the Bench opposite about the £15 million in savings and whether or not that is an accurate and evidenced point.”
“I was wondering, Mr Principal Deputy Speaker, whether the Member opposite was referring to Gregory Campbell, when he was the Minister for Social Development.”
“Will the Member give way and I will deal with it?”
“<BR /> <BR />Turkington's and others who presented to the Committee were clear that in no way could anyone have misinterpreted who they were or whom they represented at the meetings. The Chair, in his opening remarks, drew Members' attention to the initial letter from Turkington's requesting a meeting. That stands as a public record and a public indictment of the Minister. How on earth he ever got to where he ended up is beyond me and beyond many in the House. The DUP has done further damage to the integrity of democracy here in the North of Ireland.”
“Nowhere else on these islands would a Minister get away with so much failure and still be in position — not only that but have the robust support he currently enjoys from his party colleagues. There are questions around all that. <BR /> <BR />It is unfortunate that we have come to this conclusion today. I have to say that there are two further strands to the report and the whole inquiry that the Committee will be engaging in over the next number of weeks. I, for one, am quite confident of the impartiality of the Chairperson and, indeed, of my other colleagues — the majority of them — and their integrity and objective examination of the facts that stand before them.”
“It is also worthy of note that the Minister threatened legal action against the BBC, and it is my understanding that, until this day, that action has not been tabled. <BR /> <BR />There are other conclusions, and one is that the Minister is doing the bidding of his party. There were concerns raised that Turkington's was a funder of the party. Let us be quite honest and explicit: in no other jurisdiction in a western democracy would a Minister found by the majority of his Committee to be guilty of misleading that Committee be in position today. Further, the use today of a petition of concern by the DUP further sullies the Assembly and the principles of the Executive in the eyes of the public and all other jurisdictions.”
“I will not at this stage because there are a couple of things that I want to put on record and my time is short. <BR /> <BR />There is, of course, the circling of the wagons. We have seen the robust, outrageous and, one might say, unprincipled defence of the Minister by his colleague Mr Sammy Wilson. Other conclusions are being drawn, given the weight of the evidence against the Minister and the lengths to which the Minister and, indeed, his special adviser went in order to change minutes and letters. If it was a simple error from the outset, why did they not put their hands up at that stage? Even when the BBC was asking, why not just say, "Oh my goodness. Yes, you are quite right: we have made a mistake"? But no, that is not the case. We have gone through this charade and have had to come to the conclusion.”
“I begin by placing on record my thanks to the Clerk and the Committee staff for their diligence and hard work in helping the Committee through this report. I also put on record my thanks to the Committee Chairperson for the way in which he applied the principles of procedural fairness and the impartial manner in which he conducted himself as Chairperson. That is something that the Members opposite have already tried to dispute, but any impartial observer and anyone who attempts to read and digest over 500 pages of evidence that was presented to the Committee and the Committee's deliberations could only come to one conclusion. The simple question posed was this: "Did we believe the Minister or not?". The answer is that I did not, and neither did the majority of members of the Committee.”
“I am pleased to hear that the junior Minister with responsibility for children and young people is very concerned at the findings of the reports, but is that concern not a withering indictment of your childcare anti-poverty strategy? Minister, what exactly are you and OFMDFM going to do about it?”