Naomi Long
East Belfast · Alliance Party · Northern Ireland
“Underneath the Facebook posts to say that he had passed away, people speculated with such comments as, "Probably high on drugs", "Probably drunk", and, "Typical boy racer". There was all of that speculation. It was hurtful to the family, and it was inaccurate.”
“There are circumstances that we need to consider and be careful of. I was told, for example, that, when the issue of good character references at trial was being looked at in New South Wales — Committee members may wish to look at this for themselves — one of the groups that opposed their removal was representative of domestic abuse victi…”
“It sets out the strategic direction adopted by the Department and key partners to tackle those appalling crimes and protect vulnerable victims of exploitation.”
“The provision seeks to provide protection, via legal advice and representation for complainants, against the use of non-relevant personal material and evidence of previous sexual history being used in the court process.”
“<BR /> <BR />On the wider issue of ensuring that a withdrawal of services never happens again, I think that most of us agree that, although everyone has the right to take industrial action, no one has the right to derail and hold to ransom the entire justice system in that way.”
“Those measures will go some way towards helping to support complainants and enable them to have input into the decision-making process about what records containing their personal and sensitive information are required to be shared with the defence.”
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“That would be aided greatly by its own strategic plan and by the PSNI's strategic plan. <BR /> <BR />The current operations work pretty well. It was important that we did a health check after recent events, because we have a duty to ensure that the public have confidence in those arrangements, and not just those of us who are using and working through those arrangements on a day-to-day basis.”
“There was no suggestion in the report that the current tripartite arrangements were not appropriate. However, what I think was suggested in the report, and something that I considered at length with the Policing Board in the previous mandate, was whether we needed, in light of there now being devolved institutions, which were not here at the time of the Policing Board being instituted and the PSNI reforms, to clarify the lines of accountability so that we can refresh people's minds about where the responsibility for different things lies. Any clarity that we can bring to the robustness and effectiveness of those arrangements would be helpful. Crucially, the strategic element that is highlighted in the report came from conversations with the board, which itself was saying that it wished to be strategic in its oversight of policing.”
“<BR /> <BR />When it comes to the Department of Justice, I am very clear that it is important that I respect the tripartite arrangements, that I allow the Chief Constable to be operationally responsible to the Policing Board and that I allow the Policing Board to hold the Chief Constable to account, rather than to do that through me in the Chamber, which some Members, I think, would prefer. Historically, our policing and our oversight arrangements are delicate and are informed by our experience. The results of the review show that, in the main, those arrangements are working, albeit they may need to be tweaked here and there in order to make them more effective, the review certainly does not say that we should rub them out and start again.”
“There is always a danger that policing will become politicised — by which I mean party politicised — because, of course, policing is inherently a political issue. It requires the support of the public and of politicians, and it requires us to engender confidence in policing. Policing is an inherent part of the transformation of our society, so it is inherently political in that sense. However, it should not become a party-political football, nor should its operational development be politicised.”
“The report was received by my Department on 22 January 2025 and was published on 30 January 2025. I will now take time to consider the report’s findings and afford the Policing Board and the Chief Constable time to reflect on the recommendations that are relevant to them. I will outline my response to the recommendations in due course.”
“It is in all our interests as a community that we have a representative police force so that when people see the PSNI, they see themselves reflected in it and they know that its officers are members of our community, serving our community.”
“First, it was really important that we were able to have a recruitment campaign. It is very important that the PSNI is right-sized to be able to provide the critical service that it does. I encourage any young person, irrespective of their background, to consider a career in the police, because it is important for public service that the brightest and best of our young people are engaged with the PSNI. I have made that case repeatedly when I have been interviewed and asked questions about the issue. <BR /> <BR />Clearly, there has been some negative commentary around the adverts that the PSNI launched, and some others have tried to intimidate and threaten those who would wish to join the PSNI, neither of which I view to be helpful.”
“It is difficult to speak specifically about how much it will cost the PSNI. I know that stabilisation pressures have increased by about £60 million due to changes in employers' National Insurance contributions, and that includes things such as the Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS) pay award assumptions and legal aid fees as recommended in the Burgess report. There has been a considerable increase in stabilisation pressures in the Department. Looking to the PSNI specifically, excluding employers' National Insurance contributions and NICS pay award pressures, the pressures that it needs to meet stand at around £17·98 million in the current year.”
“My officials have been working closely with the PSNI to develop a robust business case for the funding that will be required to recover workforce numbers over the course of the current mandate. I am pleased to confirm that that business case has been submitted to the Department of Finance for its consideration. I should stress that affordability remains a key issue for business case approval. Subject to Department of Finance approval, however, I will continue to work collaboratively with my Executive colleagues to seek the additional funding that is required.”
“The Member will know that the genesis of the term "collusive behaviours" was in response to a previous court judgement where the allegation of collusion, which is a criminal offence, was made. It was not, in the end, accepted that the court would allow the ombudsman to reach that conclusion without a full trial. In this case, they have simply said that the ombudsman does not have the power to adjudicate on that. They have not struck down the rest of the report, and I caution Members about exceeding the vires of the judgement in their commentary around it.”
“It did not strike down the wider parts of the report; it acknowledged that each of the reports was the product of detailed investigation and significant hard work by the ombudsman and her team of officers; and it clearly stated that it was not intended to undermine or cast doubt on the professionalism of the staff in relation to their investigatory work.”
“Again, I draw the Member's attention to what the judgement did and did not do.”
“If that is interfered with in any way by any action, the courts will, of course, be concerned about that, because, ultimately, it is for the courts to decide whether an individual is guilty. Whether that means that people can rule in general terms is a matter that is beyond me and will probably end up being determined by those courts.”
“It is very clear that the court has indicated that, at this stage, it does not believe that the appropriate authority is the ombudsman's office. It is also clear that alternative structures are being created to investigate and, to a degree, adjudicate in matters that relate to legacy issues, of which the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR) is one significant part. Whether it will have the lawful authority to do so remains to be seen, because its judgements may also be subject to judicial review in due course. <BR /> <BR />The key is that, if an individual is accused of committing a crime, they have the right to a fair trial. That remains the case, whether they are a member of the Police Service or an ordinary member of the public, whatever role they may hold.”
“I have been entirely clear, without any caveats, about condemning the attack on police officers at the weekend. People who put themselves in danger in order to protect the rest of the community deserve our cooperation and respect. They should not face attack. <BR /> <BR />I remind the Member who asked the question that our job, as Members, is to uphold respect not just for individual police officers but for the structures of oversight around policing, including the ombudsman and the board, and the Police Service itself. If we want there to be trust and confidence in policing in Northern Ireland, we have a duty to ensure that the public has confidence in all three.”
“The issue of whether someone owes somebody else an apology is not one that I am going to get into. The issue is about the robustness of the court judgement. The response of the ombudsman to that will be known in due course, when, like me, she has had adequate time to reflect on it. She will reach her own conclusions as to what response is required.”
“We always know that we are being lined up for one of those gotchas when somebody says that it is a simple yes or no answer. Of course, it is not, because, first, it would be entirely inappropriate for me to make any comment on an ongoing police investigation, so I will not be drawn into doing so, either in a single word or in multiple words. It would also be inappropriate for me to reach conclusions about the most recent case before the courts until we have had the time to reflect on the implications of that for the ombudsman's office and her responsibilities. We will reflect on all those issues in due course.”
“With respect, the Member's question, whilst it is valid, is way outside the scope of this particular issue. This is about the vires of the ombudsman's office and its legal responsibilities. It is not about wider concerns about the operation of the office in modern-day cases. It is important that we keep focus on the narrow point of Trevor Clarke's question rather than going on a further fishing expedition to undermine anybody's office.”
“First, I do not agree with the Member, because the judgement does not say that it was by political motivation. It does reflect the reality, however, that, in the view of the courts, the determinations reached exceeded the scope of the ombudsman's powers. Therefore, we will have to reflect on that. As I have already said, the ombudsman is a corporation sole. She is appointed by the Executive Office acting jointly, and, to the best of my knowledge, the Department of Justice has no powers to remove or dislodge the ombudsman from office once appointed by TEO.”
“When reflecting on all these issues, I am conscious that the most controversial interventions that the ombudsman's office makes tend to involve issues that are about historical legacy cases. That was not the purpose of the ombudsman's office when it was designed, but it became the purpose of the ombudsman in lieu of anything else that would actually give people the answers that they were seeking. I have said many times on the record that I would much prefer that the legacy structures are separate, fully comprehensive and look at all these cases properly and with due process rather than infecting the policing and oversight structures of today with problems of legacy from the past. That remains my position.”
“With any court judgement, that is always an option that is available to the person about whom the judgement has been made. It would not be appropriate for me to seek to influence the ombudsman or her office in that regard. She does, of course, reserve the right, if she wishes to do so, to appeal the judgement. However, I have no reason to believe, either way, that her decision has been taken at this stage, and I imagine that she will want to take time to reflect on the totality of the judgement.”
“I have had the opportunity to very briefly read through the judgement, although I want to do that a few more times before I comment on its detail. It is clear that it was not striking down the entire report, but it said that, in making determinations, the power of the ombudsman's office had been exceeded. <BR /> <BR />The ombudsman will now require time to consider and reflect on that finding by the courts, as will the Department of Justice, in order that we are able to reach the right conclusions. However, to be clear, the judgement has not struck down the statements in question, and how the ombudsman chooses to respond to the court judgement is a matter for her and her alone to consider.”
“There is no intent on my part to hide behind anything or anyone, nor would the ombudsman seek to hide behind me. The ombudsman is an appointee of the Executive Office. She is a corporation sole, and that is a different structure to pretty much any other public appointment that we deal with. <BR /> <BR />As I noted, I want to take time to consider that lengthy and complex judgement and give the issues that it raised some thought. The Member is, of course, right that it comes on the back of a prior judgement of a previous ombudsman in relation to language that was used in their reports and to which the current ombudsman then responded. <BR /> <BR />The ombudsman, however, is independent of the Minister of Justice. Those are the facts, however uncomfortable they may be for Members.”
“I am aware of the High Court judgement and will consider it and any implications that it might have in due course. However, I remind the Assembly that the Police Ombudsman operates independently of the Minister of Justice and of the Department. The ombudsman's office carries out a vital role in investigating complaints in regard to the conduct of police officers. <BR /> <BR />I note that the judgement acknowledged that each of the reports was the product of detailed investigation and significant hard work by the ombudsman and her team of officers. The judgement also clearly states that it is not intended to undermine or cast doubt upon the professionalism of the staff in relation to their investigatory work.”
“The enabling access to justice reform programme seeks to ensure that processes and procedures aid efficiency and incentivise early resolution. The programme looks at supporting ongoing work by the Criminal Justice Board to reduce delay and enable structured early engagement by ensuring that remuneration structures support those objectives. The procedures add value, expedite and encourage resolution and aid transparency.”
“Initially, the focus is specifically aimed at encouraging men and boys to consider their attitudes and behaviours towards women and girls and to challenge attitudes and behaviours that women and girls find unacceptable. It is about giving them mechanisms and a safe way in which to do so. The campaign will then evolve to cover the steps that wider society should take to end all gender-based violence. There are real opportunities through using the online toolkit for us to open up a wider conversation about how we treat women and girls in society. It is not enough that women and girls have to raise the issues. They are not "women's issues"; they are societal issues. Until women and girls feel safe in our community, we still have much work to do.”
“<BR /> <BR />It is important that we not only work with women and girls but listen carefully to the voices of young men and men in general about the contribution that they have the power to make in order to change society and ensure that women and girls are better protected. Many young men are being radicalised online by a form of extremism linked with misogyny or incel culture. Call it what you wish, but it is an incredibly dark place on the internet. It is really important that the PSNI, the Executive Office and my Department have come together with that programme, which hands the power back to people in real life to challenge the sorts of attitudes, behaviours and microaggressions that can make young women and girls feel unsafe.”
“I completely agree with my colleague, as no one will be surprised to hear. I have prioritised violence against women and girls and domestic and sexual abuse and violence throughout my time as Justice Minister. When I took the proposal to the Executive about wanting to have a strategy to tackle violence against women and girls, it was important that I said that it was not for the Justice Department to take that forward but that the matter should be taken forward by the Executive Office on behalf of the whole Executive. If we know anything about violence against women and girls, we know that it is about challenging not only actions but the microaggressions and attitudes that are the foundation on which those actions and violent attacks are built. Those insidious attitudes and behaviours underpin gender-based violence.”
“We can always do better. I never want to stand here and say, "Yes, I think it is sufficient". However, good support is in place, whether that is through work in prisons on resilience, the training of new officers or access to the PRRT. If we look at the uptake for that service from serving and former officers, we see that people value the ability to get psychological support, physiotherapy and other physical interventions that may help them to return to work more quickly, or, where that is not possible, to be rehabilitated and able to find other opportunities to work in the community.”
“One of the things that I hope to do in the sentencing Bill, which I hope to introduce at the end of the year, is to introduce an aggravator for those who attack someone who works in the public service or delivers a service to the public. I hope that the aggravator will act as an added deterrent. <BR /> <BR />Prison officers are trained in de-escalation techniques, restraint and the use of protective measures so that they are able to keep themselves, their colleagues and other prisoners safe. We intend no significant changes in that regime, because, to date, it has been reasonably successful and without serious incident.”
“Our prisons are incredibly safe places, compared with other similar prisons. If you look at recent reviews of the prisons estate by CJINI, for example, you will see that levels of violence are lower than in comparable establishments elsewhere. However, as the Member, rightly, says, any attack on a prison officer is unacceptable, so the first thing is to make clear to every prisoner that when their behaviour is unacceptable, or when they resort to violence or abuse, it will, first, be dealt with through prison rules and have an impact on their regime and privileges. Potentially, it will also be escalated to a police investigation, where that is possible, because it is important that we hold people to account if they abuse a prison officer or, for that matter, a police officer doing their job.”
“Again, that falls outside my purview. The PSNI's decision to purchase the Kinnegar barracks is now a matter of public record. My understanding is that it has been taken to the board. I suggest that the Member speaks to his colleagues who sit on the board about progress in that regard, and to the Chief Constable directly, as they will be the people who direct this. It will have to come from within the PSNI's existing resource base, as has already been made clear. I cannot give any other update on that.”
“No, because it is not my decision whether PSNI stations remain open or closed, are refurbished or anything else. The estate strategy is entirely a matter for the Chief Constable, and he is answerable to the board. I cannot provide the reassurance that the Member seeks, because it is not within my purview. I encourage him to engage directly with the PSNI about the matter.”
“The impact that this is having on service providers across justice — in, for example, victim and witness care, the PPS and victim services — is not insignificant. We need to get back to a point at which we are looking at what can be achieved, what is realistic and what is possible. I am willing to lean in and try to get a resolution to this situation that is as pain-free as possible, but there are some things that simply cannot be done. Taking direction on what I can and cannot consider as a Minister is, I am afraid, one of those non-negotiables.”
“Where I can meet demands, or at least offer compromises, I have already sought to do so. I am willing to continue to try to do so. However, some of the demands, such as the immediate change to legal aid, are simply impossible. I will be making it clear to the criminal Bar representatives when I meet them tomorrow, as I have in the House, that I am willing to meet them halfway. I want this to be resolved. I want people to be back at work. I want cases to proceed. <BR /> <BR />Whilst I focused in my previous answer on the impact on victims, be under no illusions: when victims withdraw cooperation from the PPS and cases fail, the guilty and the innocent walk free. That is not good for society. It places us all at risk. We are talking about serious criminal cases.”
“Having listened to the professions, I have amended that plan to reflect that I will consider some issues in slower time to allow that engagement to come to fruition.”
“I delayed the publication of the delivery plan to respond to them, and I reiterated my commitment to implementing the 16% uplift at the nearest opportunity. Consultation to enable that to be implemented in May launched last week. That uplift cannot be applied any sooner, and I cannot and will not circumvent due process. It would not be appropriate for me to do so. I also cannot abandon the exploration of policy issues that, evidence suggests, might produce better outcomes and a better use of resources for the public. Policy development cannot be subject to a veto of one stakeholder group, but I have sought to reassure that, as always, exploration will be in conjunction with stakeholders. Each of the proposals in the delivery plan will be subject to detailed consultation in its own right.”
“As I noted previously, the demands appear to have evolved over recent days. I believe that I met the demands that were set out in November: publication of the Burgess review report, implementation of an uplift in fees without delay and a timetable for reform. Further requests were received in December, including that I abandon the legislative and governance processes to uplift the fees immediately; that the Burgess review recommendations be implemented in full, including the appointment of independent chairs to working groups and legal aid advisory boards; and that I abandon my proposal to review the approach to cases left on the books. <BR /> <BR />I have addressed those issues insofar as is possible.”
“That is something that the Prison Service has been leading on, in addition to all the work that goes on while people are in prison, to ensure that, rather than recycling people through the system, we can successfully rehabilitate people outside the prison system by finding them accommodation before they leave prison and by assisting them with access to, for example, key services such as the health service, the Housing Executive and others whilst they are still in prison, to set up a path for success rather than a cliff edge for failure.”
“As the Member demonstrates in his question, many of the issues that will prevent offending are not the responsibility of the Department of Justice. They fall to other Departments, whether that is the Department for the Economy, the Department for Communities or, indeed, other Departments beyond that. It is important, however, that we take a trauma-informed approach. We recognise that our women's prisons and those people in our women's prisons are a different category of offender, often driven by different motivations and behaviours. Therefore, it is important that we factor that in to the rehabilitation of the women who come into our care.”
“The Criminal Justice Board is doing a bespoke piece of work to look at the reasons for remand, because the numbers seem to be incredibly high. They are incredibly high throughout the UK, but they are higher in Northern Ireland. We need to look at the reasons why people are committed to prison rather than given community-based sentences, and, as a Department, we are also looking at how we can build more confidence in community-based sentences that will allow judges not to send people to prison where a potentially better alternative rehabilitation measure may exist in the community.”
“There are a number of reasons why there are more women in prison today as opposed to during the pandemic. First of all, there was a concerted effort to remove people from the prison system during the pandemic, and many people have brought cases forward post pandemic that might otherwise have happened during that period. That is one reason: delay. The second reason is the economic crisis. Many of the women who are committed to our care will be guilty of acquisitive crime. It may be drugs-related or it may be out of desperation, but it will often lead people to be in the criminal justice system. Therefore, the increase in numbers, I suppose, tallies with that. <BR /> <BR />However, there is a wider issue that the Member hints at, and that is the number of people in the prison system more generally who are on remand.”
“It is for that very reason that all those who come into contact with the justice system are treated with respect and as individuals, with their own needs and complexities, irrespective of how they identify.”
“My Department is not in the business of putting people into boxes, nor is it a responsibility of the Department to define the number of gender categories that exist. Our responsibility is to support everyone who comes into contact with the justice system, regardless of their gender, ethnicity, socio-economic status, health, disability, age, sexual orientation and many other considerations. Many of those who come into contact with the justice system are among the most vulnerable in society and have a range of very complex needs, including addictions and poor mental and physical health. Indeed, many have suffered trauma or have been victims themselves.”
“Further to that work, I intend to raise this with the Lady Chief Justice shortly in the context of the wider discussion about what we can both do to enhance the openness and transparency of the justice system.”
“That issue has been raised with me by many people who have been victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse and then find themselves in the family courts after the breakdown of their relationship. I am of the view that permitting media reporting of proceedings concerning children in the family courts would be a helpful initiative to increase openness in the family courts, provided that sufficient safeguards are in place to protect the privacy of the children and families involved. That is incredibly important, given the sensitivity of the issues that family courts deal with. <BR /> <BR />The issue has been raised with me, and my officials are undertaking scoping work, including looking at the judiciary-led reporting pilot in England and Wales.”
“I am keen that there should be greater openness, transparency and accountability in the conduct of court business, as I believe that increasing the public's understanding of what the judiciary does and how judicial decisions are made will enhance confidence and trust in the justice system. One initiative that, I believe, would assist in delivering that would be to permit the recording and broadcasting of certain court proceedings. Work on that proposal is well advanced. I hope to launch a public consultation in the next couple of months, but, in the meantime, I will be discussing that and other potential transparency measures with the Lady Chief Justice.”
“I am not aware of the Department of Finance having changed its position with respect to the employment of prison officers under the normal Civil Service code. However, the governance of prisons, as the Member knows, is through the application of normal prison rules. Where someone assaults a prison officer, we expect that to be prosecuted where possible. That pertains in the prison system. We have additional measures in place that would not be available to the wider Civil Service, when it comes to support for officers who have been subject to psychological or physical trauma. We find more and more that people are taking those up and are welcoming of the support that they get.”
“We have recruited additional numbers of prison officers. We continue to do so, and there is no indication that the level of violence in our prisons has been an issue that has in any way deterred people from applying. In fact, when we seek prison officers during a recruitment process, we are normally well oversubscribed.”
“To be clear, in 2020, when we had our lowest prisoner numbers during COVID, there were 32 assaults on staff. To compare what happened this year, when we are at our largest ever prison population, with that year is an unjust comparison. For example, if you look back, you see that, last year, the number of assaults was 59 and, the year before, it was 66. It goes up and down each year. However, we know that the size of the prison population will directly impact on the level of volatility in the prisons. <BR /> <BR />Every prison officer is trained to deal with conflict, de-escalation and restraint and in ensuring that violence in the prison is contained as quickly as possible. It is important that that is the case because prison can be a volatile place and, therefore, violence can happen.”