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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“<BR /> <BR />The consultation response summary contained an additional reappointment criterion that would have required an individual seeking reappointment to be prepared to offer a reasonable period of service before they reached the age of 75 and to retire under the provisions of the 2022 Act. However, given the effect of the two-year absence of the Assembly, I have decided that that criterion should not be adopted. <BR /> <BR />In addition to the criteria contained in the draft order, practical steps will be taken to ensure that the individuals who are reappointed will be subject to appropriate disclosure and barring checks if those have lapsed.”
“The criteria are as follows: individuals who are reappointed must still meet the criteria provided for by the Lay Magistrates (Eligibility) (Northern Ireland) Order 2004; any person seeking reappointment must not have been removed from their role as a result of disciplinary proceedings or have been subject to any pending disciplinary proceedings at the date of their retirement; the individual must have been aged between 70 and 75 on the date that the 2022 Act received Royal Assent, which is 10 March 2022, in order to be eligible to apply for reappointment; and any people seeking reappointment must be prepared to undergo any training or continuing professional development that may be identified as being necessary or desirable for their continued role as a lay magistrate.”
“However, their responses were supportive of the approach proposed by the Department. An analysis of the responses with proposed next steps was published on the Department's website on 20 September 2022. <BR /> <BR />The consultation responses indicated that a number of eligibility criteria for the reappointment of lay magistrates should be adopted, and they are reflected in the draft order.”
“Given that it was not possible to progress that secondary legislation during the absence of the Assembly, I am pleased to be able to bring the draft order before the Assembly today. <BR /> <BR />The criteria for the eligibility for appointment of lay magistrates are determined by the provisions of the Lay Magistrates (Eligibility) (Northern Ireland) Order 2004. The 2004 order contains a list of roles that will render an individual ineligible to carry out the role of a lay magistrate in Northern Ireland. In setting the eligibility for the reappointment of retired lay magistrates under the 2022 Act, the Department carried out a consultation with interested stakeholders, including lay magistrates, from 6 June to 1 August 2022. The consultation response was small, with three individuals responding.”
“Some lay magistrates, however, had recently been obliged to retire at the age of 70 with no facility to extend their appointment, whilst their colleagues benefited from the change in the retirement age that was effected by the 2022 Act. There seemed to be an inherent unfairness in the fact that some individuals would be prevented from continuing in their important roles on the mere basis of the date on which their birthday fell. To address that unfairness, the 2022 Act contains provision to reappoint retired lay magistrates who were required to retire at the age of 70 but had not yet reached the age of 75. The criteria for reappointment were to be set in secondary legislation that would be subject to the draft affirmative Assembly procedure.”
“However, that provision did not extend to lay magistrates, and, therefore, unlike for other members of the judiciary, there was no facility to extend their appointment beyond the age of 70. <BR /> <BR />The Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Act 2022, which was subject to a legislative consent motion on 1 November 2021, changed the retirement age for all members of the judiciary in Northern Ireland, England and Wales from 70 to 75 and, in doing so, removed the facility under the 1993 Act to extend appointments, as it was no longer required. The change in retirement age applied to lay magistrates too.”
“<BR /> <BR />Lay magistrates are appointed by the Northern Ireland Judicial Appointments Commission, whilst the Department of Justice has responsibility for the terms and conditions of appointment of these judicial officeholders and makes decisions in relation to their remuneration. Until recently, the age of retirement for lay magistrates was 70, which was provided for in section 4(11) of the Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2015. Section 26(1) of the Judicial Pensions and Retirement Act 1993 set the retirement age for other members of the judiciary at 70, but there was a facility under section 26(5) of the 1993 Act for the Minister of Justice to extend any individual's appointment for a year at a time up to a maximum age of 75, if it was deemed to be in the public interest to do so.”
“Lay magistrates are members of the devolved judiciary whose role was introduced into the justice system in Northern Ireland in April 2005 following the recommendations of the criminal justice review, which published its report in 2000. Lay magistrates carry out important roles in the justice system. In the Youth Court, they sit as panel members tasked with determining the outcome of criminal proceedings brought against a child aged up to 17. They also sit as panel members in the family proceedings courts, determining matters relating to residence and contact arrangements for children, as well as considering applications from public authorities in relation to care proceedings. Lay magistrates are also empowered by various pieces of legislation to sign documents such as summonses and warrants.”
“I thank the Member for being so generous as to give way again. I may have misspoken when I talked about careless driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs. I think that it came across that I meant that the maximum sentence was four years. It is 14 years, and the intention is to raise it to 20. I wanted to clarify that. It is important to recognise that, where somebody is seriously injured, if there is deliberate intent, that can move a charge to a murder charge.”
“I thank the Member for giving way. I am aware of the concerns on that as I recently received a letter from the Policing Board on it. I am more than happy to meet the Member to discuss it directly, because I am aware of the concerns. Not all of them lie with the Department, but I am certainly open to having a conversation about them.”
“I have no doubt that members of the local PCSPs would join us today in calling on the local community to assist the police with their enquiries when such incidents occur and to remove that scourge, which affects not just the police but communities in their area and has the potential to put lives at risk. <BR /> <BR />In summing up, I reiterate my condemnation of the ramming of police vehicles and attacks of any nature on police officers. I place on record my appreciation of police officers for the critical role that they play in keeping everyone in society safe and protected. They deserve our respect for doing so, but, more than that, they deserve the protection of the public.”
“My Department supports a collaborative approach at a local and strategic level to help prevent crime occurring in the first place, resolve issues at the earliest possible stage through interventions and support the communities and individuals most impacted by criminal behaviour. <BR /> <BR />As is the case across Northern Ireland, the PCSP in the area works to improve community safety, tackle antisocial behaviour and increase confidence in policing, which is crucial. Each PCSP is a partnership of local elected reps, members of the public who serve as independent members and staff from local agencies.”
“When Members make demands for spending in one area, such as additional police officers, that is, essentially, a decision for all Ministers, not just for me as Justice Minister, because it will draw resources from other places. My Department, together with the Northern Ireland Policing Board, also provides about £4·5 million in funding annually to policing and community safety partnerships, which have an important role to play on this issue. They liaise with local communities, statutory bodies and agencies, stakeholders and key partners, including the voluntary and community sector, to develop appropriate actions to deal with and reduce the impact of crime on local communities.”
“Even with digitisation and new operating models, the most recent assessments suggest that a service of approximately 7,200 officers is needed. As of 31 March 2024, the PSNI had 6,394 full-time equivalent officers — the lowest number since its formation. The recruitment of police officers is an operational matter for the Chief Constable, who is accountable to the board. It is important that I respect the operational independence of both the Chief Constable and the board. <BR /> <BR />Fiscally, however, we are in territory that we have never experienced before. Unfortunately, the circumstances will not improve quickly.”
“That figure of 7,500 officers is not new; it was noted as far back as the Patten review of policing in 1999, which said:”
“Not doing so will further degrade the ability of the system to protect life, prevent crime and keep people safe. <BR /> <BR />I understand the current resourcing pressures faced by the Chief Constable in relation to police numbers in the context of an extremely challenging financial climate. One of the priorities in the 'New Decade, New Approach' document was to increase police officer numbers to 7,500. Members will be aware that the funding package accompanying the New Decade, New Approach deal fell well short of the amount needed to deliver on its priorities, and funding for increasing police officer numbers is not currently within my departmental budget. Therefore, it will be for the Executive to decide which priorities are funded and to what extent.”
“We worked proactively to address those pressures and reduce spend where possible, but we still faced a potential pressure, including pay awards and other pressures, of £75·3 million at the year's end. The majority of that sat with the PSNI. That has now been met with an additional allocation of £75·3 million, as I outlined in my written ministerial statement on 15 February 2024. Budgets have not been set for next year yet, and, therefore, no decisions have been taken regarding funding levels for the next financial year. I will continue to work with the Chief Constable, the Minister of Finance and my Executive colleagues to ensure that we have a service and a justice system that is properly resourced for all the challenges they face.”
“The role of the Department in distributing its budget is to allocate to the PSNI, having regard to the PSNI's request for resources and the overall financial envelope allocated by the Department of Finance. Outside routine budget-setting, monitoring and allocation processes, my Department will commission and support the PSNI in the development and submission of bids in response to opportunities for additional funding as and when they arise, as we have in previous years. In-year funding, however, is non-recurrent, so the replacement is no replacement for an adequate baseline. <BR /> <BR />The budget provided in 2023-24 meant that the Department faced opening pressures of £149 million.”
“There is absolutely no scope for my Department to absorb £444 million in pressures, given the demand-led nature of Justice expenditure, in addition to the recurring costs of the 2023-24 pay awards. I will, therefore, look to the Minister of Finance to provide a fair and equitable budget settlement for the Department of Justice and to other Executive parties to support her in doing so. <BR /> <BR />In Northern Ireland, the Department of Finance has ultimate responsibility for coordinating and collating departmental bids for funding and for publishing the Northern Ireland central government Budget. Decisions on funding allocations are ultimately made by the Northern Ireland Executive.”
“That makes no allowance for the increased demands on the justice system. <BR /> <BR />The majority of my Department's costs are demand-led and inescapable, so there is limited scope to further reduce the levels of service provided. Indeed, if there is no increase in the baseline for 2024-25, my Department anticipates potential resource pressures of approximately £444 million. Within that £444 million of pressures, the PSNI has reported pressures of £307·5 million, including £131·5 million for pay and other operational pressures and further pressures of £176 million for compensation claims and legal costs in respect of the data leak, holiday pay and other issues.”
“<BR /> <BR />Members will also appreciate that all Departments face significant challenges next year. While the £3·3 billion package goes some way to addressing some immediate issues, long-term sustainability remains a significant concern. Mr Clarke asked about this at Question Time, and I can give him more accurate figures in this debate. While the total block grant has increased by 43% in the past 12 years, the DOJ has seen only a 3% growth in budget allocation. Health and Education have seen their budget allocations grow by just over 70% and 45% respectively in the same period. One cannot expect Justice to be in a healthier state than Health or Education when we are being starved of resource. In real terms, the Department of Justice budget is around £423 million below where it should have been if it had kept pace with inflation.”
“I entirely agree that it is vital to have effective, responsive and visible policing in Northern Ireland. I am acutely aware of the challenging budgetary situation faced by the PSNI. Those issues are discussed in my regular engagement with the Chief Constable and are not unique to the PSNI; they affect the entirety of the justice system. <BR /> <BR />Members will appreciate that how policing resources are deployed within the PSNI is a matter for the Chief Constable, who is accountable to the Policing Board, and not for me or my officials. I assure Members, however, that I will continue to give my full support to ensuring that the needs of the PSNI are represented at the Executive table and beyond to ensure that it has sufficient resources to deliver policing in the context of a properly resourced and funded justice system.”
“Similarly, a charge of causing death or serious injury by dangerous driving or causing death or serious injury by careless driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs can result in a maximum four-year sentence. Under the sentencing Bill, I intend to increase that maximum to 20 years. If there is evidence to prove that a vehicle was used as a weapon with the intent to kill, the charge could move from one of dangerous driving causing death to murder. The only sentence for a person convicted of murder is a life sentence. In addition, in certain cases, a vehicle used to commit an offence may be confiscated. Since 2008, provision has existed allowing the court to disqualify someone from driving for any offence. <BR /> <BR />The motion also refers to PSNI funding.”
“Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. When we left the debate, we were discussing whether anything could be done about people using vehicles as weapons, which is what I was about to move on to. <BR /> <BR />Currently, as I said, there are a number of sentences that can be applied in the case of attacks on police. However, for offences involving vehicles, there is a maximum penalty of five years, where a vehicle is taken without the owner's consent and, due to the driving of the vehicle, a collision occurs in which injury is caused to any person. That rises to a 14-year maximum sentence in cases where death or grievous bodily injury results.”
“With respect, they are not my victims, but it is certainly a failing of victims, and there is no question that delays compound their hurt, stress and anxiety. That is why we have made how we get through those cases our top priority in the justice system, and we are looking at both administrative and court-based procedures that will allow us to speed up cases. Many of those procedures are starting to take effect. It is a complex and dynamic system, however, and we do not control all aspects of it. We therefore have to work in partnership with others.”
“I spoke earlier about the £114 million spent on legal aid this year, and that is a direct indication of how many cases are going through the courts because of their increased capacity. That is why, this year, we have had the highest spend on record.”
“Any further reduction in the finance available to the Department of Justice will have an impact on the time that it will take us to progress cases through court.”
“We have a number of workstreams in the criminal justice system. I can look only at the criminal justice system; we have no levers over the speed with which things progress through the civil justice system, because of the complexities of that system and the fact that it is driven largely by complainants and their solicitors. In the criminal justice system, a number of workstreams in the Criminal Justice Board are looking at how we can speed up justice. We are, of course, keen to do that. We have great partnership working between the PSNI, the PPS, the Court Service and the judiciary; however, all of that has been done, in terms of being able to catch up after COVID and so on, by people working well beyond their capacity.”
“The Public Prosecution Service (PPS) estimates it at about 26 individuals; however, it is possible that, as the measure comes forward, more individuals will emerge. One of my fears was that, given people's experience of the justice system and the false information that Horizon produced, they might not wish to reopen that can of worms by going through an administrative process. This means that the convictions will be expunged by a process that will be underpinned by UK legislation, meaning, hopefully, that the process will be swifter and that perhaps more people will come forward. To the best of our knowledge, the number is 26.”
“It will not undo all the harm that has been caused by the original Horizon scandal, but it will, at least, hopefully, ensure equitable treatment for our constituents.”
“I am delighted to announce in the Chamber today that Northern Ireland will be included in the Westminster legislation on the Horizon scandal. The First Minister, the deputy First Minister and I have worked hard to achieve that. We were keen to ensure that people in Northern Ireland who were affected by the scandal were given equitable and timely treatment in the same way as people in England and Wales. The uniqueness of Northern Ireland's situation — the length of time that legislation here traditionally takes and the small number of people affected — means that, as an exceptional case, Northern Ireland was able to be included in their legislation. The UK Government have announced that and will table amendments to that effect later today. I am pleased to see that happen.”
“Let us be clear: whether something is criminal or just plain wrong, it damages communities and causes real harm to individuals. It is important that, as a society, including, I hope, all in the Chamber, we condemn behaviours that alienate, harass and frighten members of our community who may feel vulnerable.”
“I have no intention of reducing confidence in the police; to the contrary, in fact, the purpose of the hate crime Bill is to increase the confidence in the justice system of those who might otherwise feel that they cannot have the reasons for the crime against them properly addressed in court. As I said, an incident has to be a crime in order for it to be a hate crime. We then have to make out a separate motivation to establish that there is indeed a hate motive. That is the basis on which we are progressing our hate crime Bill. <BR /> <BR />Yes, people report hate incidents that do not currently meet the threshold. Those are recorded by the police for information purposes so that they can see, for example, clusters of hate incidents and try to engage with communities to reduce those.”
“I can certainly reassure the Member that, first, the content of the hate crime Bill in Northern Ireland is not complete. If the Member is interested in the first-stage consultation on the Marrinan review, it has been completed and is now published online, so he can read that. A second-stage consultation will be issued in the coming weeks. That will deal with a separate set of issues that need to be addressed before we decide how to go forward. Ultimately, I give you the reassurance that this will all have to be approved by the Executive in order to be brought forward.”
“It is in the region of £320 million, but I will have to check the exact figures. Some of that is for the recruitment of, I think, around 140-odd officers in the next year. That is the intention. The maximum number whom we can realistically put through the police college, as you will know from your role on the Policing Board, is more limited. Therefore, we are in a situation where, by the time you take in attrition — people retiring or leaving the service — and the limitation on the number who can go through in a single year, we can probably add only around 150 officers per annum to the police numbers.”
“First, it is a one-year Budget, and there is no practical opportunity for us to increase policing numbers from their current state to 8,000 in one year, so it would not be sufficient to sustain 8,000 officers. However, it is in line with the unmet pressures that the PSNI has delivered to me. I have made those bids. In total, about £440 million of bids from across the justice system have been submitted to the Department of Finance and are being considered against the approximately £1 billion of available funding for all Departments. The bids reflect what the PSNI has asked for.”
“My responsibility lies in setting prison policy, the supervision of the director general and oversight of the budget. It does not, as a result of decisions that were taken prior to my time, lie with individual HR decisions, which are the responsibility of the Department of Health. I thought that the Member, as a former Chair of the Department of Finance's scrutiny Committee, would know that.”
“The Member will know that the director general has operational responsibility for the Prison Service and that the Minister of Justice is responsible as Minister.”
“Mr Speaker, if I may. If you want to ask me questions as the leader of the Alliance Party, there are other forums in which we can have that exchange. <BR /> <BR />With regard to the tweet that was made, it is not for me to say whether the PSNI will or will not investigate any individual in our community. Furthermore, I would be rather surprised if it were to do so on the basis of prospective rather than existing legislation.”
“First of all, I refer the Member to the answer that I gave to Mr O'Toole. If you want to ask me questions as Minister of Justice, I am happy to take them. If you want to ask me —”
“As part of my role in the Department of Justice, we engage with all minority communities throughout Northern Ireland. I will continue to do that and to provide them with reassurance in the political sense. However, how the police interact with members of any community is a matter of operational responsibility for the Chief Constable, not for me as Justice Minister. It really would be more appropriate for members of the Policing Board to take that up with the Chief Constable at their next meeting.”
“As I said, it is not for me to answer for the processes that other Departments undertake. I gently remind the Member that this is Question Time for the Department of Justice, not the leader of the Alliance Party. If he wishes to ask me party political questions, there are other mechanisms through which he can do so.”
“The appointment of people to bodies in the Department of Education is not a matter for the Justice Minister. It was discussed. It was brought to my attention that there would be a reshuffle following the ending of recruitment for new permanent secretaries. My permission was not required. It is not for me to discuss whether somebody should or should not have been appointed to a job. However, I send my former permanent secretary every best wish in his new role and every success in delivering for education.”
“That is dependent on the Executive allocating an appropriate budget for the Department, including legal aid, and I will continue to work with colleagues to seek to secure that in 2024-25.”
“As the Department cannot spend in excess of its allocated budget and in recognition of the demand for payments and the impact on the suppliers of legal aid and those seeking legal aid, the Department secured an additional £20 million for legal aid in 2022-23 and a further £14 million of additional budget in 2023-24. <BR /> <BR />The total legal aid spend in 2023-24 was around £114 million. That is the highest level of expenditure in the history of the legal aid scheme. The additional funding assisted in improving payment timelines. At the end of March 2024, properly presented Crown Court criminal bills were being paid within nine weeks and Magistrates' Court bills within 11 weeks. <BR /> <BR />While the additional funding is welcome, the historical approach of late allocations is not sustainable and needs to be remedied.”
“If I may, Mr Speaker, I will answer questions 9 and 15 together. <BR /> <BR />Fundamentally, timelines for the payment of legal aid are influenced by the available budget. For many years, the Department has been significantly underfunded compared with other Executive Departments and objective need. The previous Finance Minister recognised that in October 2022 and specifically referenced the pressure on the legal aid budget. The Fiscal Council also recognised the sustained underfunding of the Department. We must live within our budget, so all business areas have to ensure that there is financial discipline. For legal aid, that means that payment timelines become extended. <BR /> <BR />In previous years, my Department and I have consistently pushed for additional funding to meet the demand for legal aid.”
“When it has reviewed its product, that will allow us to join a more modernised solution that better meets customer and business needs and to work with it to deliver a similar solution here.”
“One key issue is that disclosure certificates are accurate only on the day that they are issued. Employers who choose to accept an aged certificate do so at their own risk and in the knowledge that the information may have changed in the period since the certificate was issued. It remains, however, my key objective to deliver a portable disclosure solution. The technical aspects of that are complex, and work to date indicates that a stand-alone solution for Northern Ireland is prohibitively expensive, and, therefore, we are not able to take that forward; it would pass the costs on to applicants and increase fees. The long-standing aim has been for AccessNI to join the update service provided by the disclosure and barring service for England and Wales.”
“<BR /> <BR />In recognising that the key asks from employers and voluntary groups are for fast, accurate and cost-effective disclosures, I consider that the AccessNI service performs well and delivers in that regard. The long-standing key functional change for AccessNI is the introduction of portable disclosures. Officials continue to work closely with the disclosure and barring service to progress that as soon as practically possible.”
“There are no immediate plans to undertake a fundamental review of the workings of AccessNI, but system and process enhancements are routinely considered and implemented to improve aspects of the criminal history disclosure scheme. In 2023-24, AccessNI processed over 176,000 disclosure applications across all three levels of checks. The average turnaround times for issuing disclosure certificates for basic and standard checks was one day, and the average for the more complex enhanced checks was four days, with over 80% of those being completed within two days of receipt by AccessNI. <BR /> <BR />The digitisation of the AccessNI process has been a notable success in improving the efficiency and cost effectiveness of the service, Indeed, it resulted in a further fee decrease from1 April, making AccessNI disclosure fees the lowest in the UK.”