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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“The institutions are not the property or plaything of any of us in the House. They belong to the people who elected us. I am determined to work to ensure that the Executive and Assembly are not just stable but effective and that they deliver positive change for those people. I believe that we do that best when we do it together, and I look forward to making real progress in this mandate.”
“It reminded me of the childcare pressures that many of those young parents face. It would be remiss of me not to mention that that must also be a priority for an incoming Executive. <BR /> <BR />We desire to see a united community, one in which we can embrace our diversity, not deny it. We want to embrace and celebrate it with confidence and in security. Although our focus today is, rightly, on the future, we must also reflect on the damage that has been caused by the instability of our institutions over the last number of years. Stop-start government has played a major role in deepening the crises in our public services' finances and across society. Alliance will continue to pursue sensible reform of our institutions in order to ensure that no single party can ever hold our institutions to ransom again.”
“<BR /> <BR />There are many pressing issues ahead for that Executive to tackle, none more fundamental than negotiating a proper funding formula with His Majesty's Treasury in order to place our public finances on a sustainable footing. Other pressing issues are addressing public-sector pay as a matter of urgency; delivering health transformation and stabilisation; tackling education funding and reform, with particular provision for those with additional needs; delivering justice and security and peace of mind to our constituents; and supporting a dynamic and thriving economy. Those are essential elements of building that more shared, equitable, prosperous and peaceful society to which Alliance has always been committed. <BR /> <BR />As I drove up the path this morning, I saw young families make their way to the playgrounds.”
“Thank you, Mr Speaker. It has taken two years, and, at times, it has seemed like a vain hope that we would reach this point, but it is a good day for Northern Ireland that we stand here today, with you in the Chair and with a First Minister and deputy First Minister confirmed in office. <BR /> <BR />First, I congratulate you on your election as Speaker. We supported you in the Lobby, and we will, no doubt on occasion, challenge you in the Chamber, but we look forward to working with you, and you have our respect and cooperation as we move forward. I also extend my congratulations to the First Minister and deputy First Minister — Michelle and Emma. It is a huge burden to lead the Executive, particularly in the challenging times in which we find ourselves, but I have no doubt whatsoever that they will be up to that task.”
“For our part, we will do all that we can to facilitate that restoration, and, today, as we have done on every other occasion, we will vote for every candidate for Speaker until one is successfully elected, if not today, then, I hope for the sake of my constituents, in the very near future.”
“Thank you. In fact, the only certain and by far the quickest way to have that money released is to get the institutions back up and running today, because, whether we agree or disagree, Treasury sees that £3·3 billion as part of a restoration package. Only the DUP can do that, so I call on it again not just to listen to the overwhelming majority of people in Northern Ireland but to act in those people's best interests. <BR /> <BR />Sir Jeffrey has said that the time for decisions is approaching: I say, with the greatest respect, that it arrived some time ago.”
“Realistically, however, the only certain and the quick —.”
“We would also, crucially, have a collective position from which to negotiate with Treasury a more sustainable framework for our finances when that £3·3 billion runs out in two years' time as an Executive, rather than as disparate political voices. That is why I have written to other party leaders to seek engagement now on plans for how we would prioritise those issues in any future Executive so that we can hit the ground running if and when restoration happens. <BR /> <BR />Alliance has raised with the Secretary of State and Prime Minister the need to resolve public-sector pay irrespective of whether the Assembly and Executive are formed. It is as wrong for the Conservative Government to use our public-sector workers as leverage in this political dispute as it is for any party to abuse the institutions in that manner.”
“<BR /> <BR />Tomorrow, public-sector workers, many of whom provided front-line services throughout the pandemic and have worked hard to support recovery and who are exhausted and demoralised, are yet again having to strike on the largest day of industrial action in a generation for their basic right to proper pay and conditions. I am not claiming that the restoration of an Executive would resolve all the public pay pressures or the wider financial and structural challenges facing our public services. However, we would be £3·3 billion closer to a resolution of some of those issues than we are now and than the Civil Service would be if restoration does not happen. We would have some additional resource to resolve pay. We would have some additional resource to tackle waiting lists.”
“<BR /> <BR />The fact that Northern Ireland is underfunded in relation to need when compared with England, Wales and Scotland is now a matter of public record. While I hold Treasury and the Northern Ireland Office fully accountable for their willingness not only to allow that situation to continue but to misrepresent the position actively in suggesting that Northern Ireland is overfunded and merely makes bad choices, the fact remains that, while the Welsh Government were negotiating a fiscal floor and framework with Treasury from a position of strength, our focus was deflected on to restoration efforts and political matters. For once, as an Executive, we could be arguing collectively on the same side of the table for the people who elected us, but, instead, we are locked out of those opportunities.”
“Our inability to sustain government has impeded public-sector reform. The now First Minister designate made a statement to the Assembly as Health Minister that she intended to implement Bengoa reforms back in October 2016. However, by January 2017, the institutions were collapsed. The problems in our health service have been allowed to fester and the crisis deepen to the position that we find ourselves in today, with a demoralised and underpaid health service workforce and some of the longest waiting lists in Europe. That is merely one example; in fact, there is barely a part of our public sector that is not currently straining under a combination of high demand, inadequate resources and the need for modernisation and reform.”
“<BR /> <BR />While the focus today is rightly on the DUP's boycott, I say this to other party leaders: there is no point coming to the Chamber bemoaning the bind in which we find ourselves time and time again while defending and refusing to address the structural weaknesses that enable it. The only conceivable reason that any party would want to retain the power to collapse the institutions is if it intends to use it or the threat of it to subvert normal democratic process. I want the institutions restored as soon as possible, but, more than that, I want them reformed so that no single party can ever again hold them to ransom and hold the best interests of the public and the future of our people to ransom with them, because it is those who live in our community who suffer as a result of the repeated collapses.”
“<BR /> <BR />After almost two years without an Executive, over 18 months without an Assembly and 13 months since we last had locally elected and democratically accountable Ministers in office, my party's frustration with the continued denial of basic democracy is profound. However, our frustration is nothing when compared with the frustration or, perhaps more accurately, anger and despair that so many of our constituents feel at this point. Despite the urgency of the crisis facing Northern Ireland, we stand here today in institutions that not only are frozen and suspended in animation but have, for five of the past seven years, been similarly unable to deliver anything whatsoever for the people who elected us.”
“At the outset, I formally extend my condolences to DUP colleagues and to David Hilditch's family on his tragic passing last year. <BR /> <BR />It is with a heavy heart that my colleagues and I signed the recall motion and have come to the Chamber for the sitting of the Assembly today. We had hoped that, even overnight, wise counsel might prevail and we would come here with a genuine prospect of electing a Speaker and conducting the other business on today's Order Paper to restore an Executive. Sadly, despite the increasingly acute pressures facing our public services and finances and the impact that those pressures are having on those whom we were elected to serve, that will not be the case.”
“Our preference is clear: today is the right time, the Chamber is the right place, and now we need to do the right thing.”
“That would open the door for the Assembly to pass the regulations and give people who are waiting for transplant surgery a better chance of survival. For them, this is a life-and-death issue. <BR /> <BR />I have heard in the Chamber and on the air waves that the DUP will not consent to the election of a Speaker. I appeal to it, even at this late stage, to reflect on what is at stake and on the message that it will send if we cannot elect a Speaker, even in these circumstances. For our part, whatever the outcome in the Chamber today, we remain absolutely committed to working with others here and in Westminster to deliver the regulations as soon as possible and to raise awareness and encourage people to have the conversation with their family about what should happen to their organs if they should pass away.”
“Those who are waiting for life-saving transplant surgery and their loved ones are looking to us today to finish the work that we started together in the previous mandate and to offer them hope that a suitable organ can be found for transplantation. <BR /> <BR />The Organ and Tissue Donation (Deemed Consent) Act or "Dáithí's law", as we call it, offered the hope of an increase in the number of donors, but, for it to take effect, the regulations need to be affirmed by the Assembly. That is stated in the Act, and it is the fastest and best route to delivering on the promises that we made in that legislation. To do that, however, we first need to elect a Speaker. Today, Alliance will support each of the candidates who have had their name put forward. The issue for us is not who will be Speaker but that we elect one.”
“Before I make my remarks on the election of a Speaker, I associate myself with the remarks of Michelle O'Neill and Paul Givan in extending our condolences to Alex Easton on the death of his parents. <BR /> <BR />I acknowledge at the outset that this is an emotional and difficult day for many people in our community. Young Dáithí and his family are, of course, at the forefront of our minds. They invested time, energy and passion in the campaign for the law, and all of us in the Chamber owe them a debt of gratitude. I am glad that they are here today. There are others, however, whom we do not know who face the same anxious wait and need change to be delivered now.”
“Does the Member agree that it is all the more serious given the pressures on public finances and the fact that many of those community and voluntary organisations are doing jobs that would otherwise have to be done by Departments that cannot afford to do them?”
“With due respect, I will take your advice, Mr Acting Speaker, not that of the Member sitting opposite, on points of order. I have two points of order, if I may. On the first point of order, is it in order for a Member to directly address another Member in the Chamber, as opposed to making their remarks through the Chair? On a second point of order, is it in order for a Member to stand in the Chamber and completely, deliberately and maliciously misrepresent, in an attempt to undermine their integrity, the position that has just been set out clearly by another Member?”
“I absolutely agree. To be clear: the DUP has argued for reform. We are arguing for reform that respects its mandate to be in government and gives it the right that we, the Ulster Unionists and the SDLP have — we confer those rights on the main parties in the Chamber — to walk away if it wishes to but confers the right on the public to have an Executive of their choosing. <BR /> <BR />I will also not take lectures on the cost-of-living crisis. Let me just remind the DUP that Sammy Wilson is probably the only human being alive who is still championing the Liz Truss mini fiscal event. Reflect on that when you try to pay your mortgages. That is what I would advise people.”
“<BR /> <BR />Neither will I take advice from the DUP on whether or not we should have reform. I simply caution its members, before they hold forth on the issues of majoritarianism, to look at the history of their party, their 2011 manifesto where they would quite happily have had a voluntary coalition and their 2016 manifesto where they would have had a voluntary coalition and where nobody else's mandate would have been respected. Our modest reforms respect not only the DUP's mandate —”
“They entirely disregard our right to define ourselves and, instead, through heckles from the Back Benches and the one-seat wonder behind me, we are told what we are through the lens of nothing more than prejudice rather than from the people who recognise what we stand for and our values and put their confidence in us in May. <BR /> <BR />I will take no lectures from the DUP on issues of respect. I will take no lectures from the DUP on issues of reform and the unpicking of these institutions. The DUP is being hoist by a petard of its making in St Andrews. Had it not changed the rules then as a demand to come back into government — there is always a demand before coming into government — it would hold the office of First Minister now. Think on that. Think on that.”
“It is whether we care about those issues and whether we care enough to prioritise them over party political interest. I think that the previous Member to speak gave us an insight into what that party's answer is going to be. <BR /> <BR />As in every other sitting, I am clear what our answer is. The people of Northern Ireland and their needs and interests come first, and what is in their interests is a functioning Assembly, a functioning Executive, sustainable institutions and power-sharing. Let us talk about power-sharing. Let us talk about respect for mandate. It is ironic that a Member would get up and hold forth on those issues whilst entirely disregarding those of us who sit in the Chamber with a mandate to be something other than unionist or nationalist.”
“The Question that we will vote on at the end of the debate, therefore, is not whether we know that the people of Northern Ireland are suffering. We all know that they are as a result of there being no institutions here. It is not whether we know that our public finances are in a parlous state. We all know that already, and it has been rehearsed many times. It is not about whether we know that our public services are on their knees. We all know that they are on their knees, and those that are not already on their knees are teetering on the brink. It is not whether we know, to quote Paul Givan in previous conversation:”
“I intend to keep my remarks short. Given what we have heard already, I think that there is little to be said in the debate. We will, no doubt, throughout the debate rehearse the impact of the failure to elect a Speaker today on our public services, our public finances, individual's lives, with the cost-of-living crisis, and these institutions and public confidence in them. <BR /> <BR />To be clear, Mr Acting Speaker, the vote that will take place at the end of the debate is not a vote on who will sit in the Chair that you currently occupy. No one outside the Chamber and few of us in the Chamber actually care one way or the other who that will be. We care only that someone will occupy that Chair in order that we can do business and the jobs that we were elected to do and that we can serve the public to the fullest of our ability.”
“On a point of order, Mr Speaker. An allegation has just been made that lockdown rules were breached by a trip that we took to Dublin to meet the Irish Government. Lockdown rules were not breached or I would not have travelled. I ask the Member to reflect and withdraw those remarks.”
“Will the Member accept that, if we are going to talk about truth and transparency, it is not just the balance between unionism and nationalism that has changed, but it is a fact that there are Ministers in office at this point who are desirous of scrutiny, who have jobs to do and who need a functioning Chamber in order to do it? Far from being a pointless talking shop, as in October 2019, what we would have in this context is a functioning Assembly with Ministers able to be held to account. Perhaps if we want to talk about truth, we could start off with the whole truth and nothing but.”
“I thank the Member for giving way. Would he agree that the real leverage is not these institutions? The real leverage that is being exercised here is the pain of the public of Northern Ireland. It is not that the institutions will be harmed — by the way, unionism should think long and hard about upsetting the institutions because of the damage that it could do to its cause — but the pain that is being inflicted on the public that should cause the Member concern.”
“We accept that there are issues with the protocol and that those issues should be resolved, but nothing that the protocol does to harm Northern Ireland will be helped at all by the lack of a functioning Government. In conclusion, to turn up here, sign in, take salaries and refuse to take seats is a slap in the face for every family that is struggling to make ends meet and every person who is sitting on a waiting list. I appeal to the DUP to think long and hard before it insults the electorate by doing that today.”
“It is worth remembering, when we talk about consent and equality, that many of us in the Chamber represent people who did not consent to Brexit in the first place, and yet we turned up for work. We turned up for work. <BR /> <BR />We also do not all have equality. Some in the Chamber are more equal than others. My 16 colleagues' and my votes will count for less in this next election than those of everyone else in the Chamber. If we are really committed to equality, we will also be committed to the reform of these institutions so that that anomaly is brought to an end. <BR /> <BR />If you believe in devolution, as Mr Givan claims that he does, you do not gamble with it at such an important juncture; you make it work for the people who elected you.”
“We are happy to support either and will probably end up supporting both, given the way that things are likely to break down in the Chamber later. In truth, either could do the job, but our priority is that someone does the job. We are here to elect a Speaker so that the Assembly can go about its business, so that those who have been elected can serve the people who elected them and so that those items that we can proceed with in the next few weeks can be moved forward. <BR /> <BR />We come here with a can-do attitude and a commitment to serve the people who elected us, and I hope that others do likewise. The DUP has said in the press that it will not support the election of a Speaker today. There is still time, however, to reflect on that position, notwithstanding what the former First Minister has just said.”
“<BR /> <BR />You also steered us through COVID and hybrid working and, in spite of that, through one of the most challenging legislative timetables that any Speaker has presided over, not least in terms of the number of pieces of legislation and private Members' Bills that came through at the end of the session. I want to pay particular tribute, if I may, to your handling of the Historical Institutional Abuse (HIA) apology, which was a hugely sensitive matter for all involved and with regard to which you discharged your duties with real dignity. Thanks, also, to your staff, and especially to Frances Leneghan, who has now retired. <BR /> <BR />With respect to the election of the future Speaker, I wish both Mike Nesbitt and Patsy McGlone well. I think that both are able and capable of taking up that role.”
“First of all, I thank you, Mr Speaker, for presiding over the operations of the Chamber for the last number of years. Your fairness and inclusivity as Speaker were reflected both in the changes that were made to our procedures in order to ensure that independent Members and smaller groupings had a full opportunity to participate and in the fact that, as you said yourself, you held parliaments for the youth, for pensioners, for disabled persons and for women. It is important that the Chamber reflects the entirety of our society and is inclusive, and you played an important role in that.”
“I can certainly confirm in writing to the Member whether the pay review body was invited to begin work on that. I am aware, however, that it is normally tasked with doing that work. Indeed, it has been invited to begin work on the next pay round. We have been asked specifically by the pay review body to consider issues around the grading review. That is what we have been focused on. Indeed, we engaged directly with the Prison Officers' Association. It was its recommendations, which we accepted, that were rejected.”
“<BR /> <BR />Work continues to progress. The grading review is ongoing and nearing completion. We will also pass the pay remit for 2022-23 on to the PRRB for next year's pay round. <BR /> <BR />As I said, in my view, there was a missed opportunity, and it is fair to say that it will be difficult to recover the time that we have lost over this year.”
“On Friday, the POA area chairman advised the director general that the membership had rejected the pay proposals. I am disappointed at that outcome, because I believe that it was a missed opportunity. In practice, that means that the director general has had to impose a pay settlement for 2021-22. Yesterday, they wrote to staff to outline what that would mean for different categories of officer. <BR /> <BR />The alternative was to do nothing but the absolute minimum and lose over £1 million secured for pay rises. That would be unthinkable, particularly when many of our officers are struggling financially. That said, there are things that cannot be done because of the settlement being imposed, including the proposal put forward by the POA. Regrettably, the funding set aside to do those things will now have to be surrendered.”
“I noticed that, Mr Deputy Speaker. <BR /> <BR />As I set out this morning, the pay award for prison grade staff has been negotiated with the Prison Service and the Prison Officers' Association (POA) over recent weeks and months. The intent was that we would be able to deal not only with pay but with the number of points on the pay scale. There are a lot of points on the pay scale, and we would like to contract it to a more reasonable and rational length. That would advantage those on the lowest salaries in the Prison Service. <BR /> <BR />The pay award that we offered, following negotiations with the Prison Governors Association (PGA) and POA, was followed by a counterproposal from the POA. In discussions and with my approval, prison management agreed to that counterproposal, which was put to the membership through a ballot.”
“With regard to the victims' commissioner designate specifically, it would not be possible to put that office on a statutory footing, as was intended. It was always the intention that we would do that, but it was likely that it would take a long time. <BR /> <BR />As with everything else, all of the legislation that I mentioned in response to a previous question would be held up because it has to go to the Executive for policy approval before it reaches the Floor of the House. It is fair to say that there is much that we could do by way of care and maintenance but not much that we could make by way of progress.”
“I thank the Member for raising the issue. I am, of course, delighted that someone who is so committed to and knowledgeable about victims issues is willing to take up the post of Victims of Crime Commissioner designate. Geraldine Hanna will be a real asset to that office. We have already put in place the mechanisms for her office to be established, so that, when she comes to us, which will, hopefully, be in the next month or so, we will be in a position to start and hit the ground running. Part of her job as commissioner designate will be to describe the extent of the office, the priorities that the office should have and how it should run, as well as to engage directly with victims. Given her experience with Victim Support NI, there is no person better placed to do so.”
“The issue of custody accommodation suites in police stations is not a matter over which I have any purview. It is a matter for the Chief Constable, his officers and the Policing Board. I suggest that the Member redirects her question to the Policing Board and the Chief Constable in the first instance.”
“Given the uncertainty in the Budget and, indeed, about the next mandate, it would be difficult to give a timeline. Needless to say, the Department is keen to continue to make progress where possible. Financial constraints are likely to impact heavily, particularly on problem-solving justice, because it is resource-intensive. However, I would argue that, in the overall picture and in the long line of cost, it is probably one of the best interventions that we could make.”
“I do not have the figures to hand on either of those issues, but I am happy to write to the Member before the Assembly rises to provide them to him. <BR /> <BR />It is hugely important. As you know, we are involved in pilots on problem-solving justice of which mental health and drug addiction are two key components. They are not cheap interventions; they are expensive. In Scotland, the health department often provides the therapeutic element to those courts and the justice department provides the justice element. Here, the Department of Justice has generally filled the gap by engaging third-sector partners to provide the therapeutic element. However, it would be better if the two Departments were to work more closely together. That might provide the resources required for us to deal adequately with those issues.”
“The Member has done well to remind me of yet another piece of work that is under way in the Department. She is, of course, correct that, having undertaken a sentencing review and consultation, we have been working on a sentencing Bill over the past six to nine months. It is our intention to take that forward in the first 18 months of the next mandate.”
“Last but by no means least, as you are aware, the consultation on Charlotte's law, which was undertaken earlier in the mandate, has been completed. Obviously, it is our intention to legislate in that regard as well.”
“There are a number of Bills being drafted. First, there will be a miscellaneous provisions Bill, which, Members will recall, had to be carved out of the Justice (Sexual Offences and Human Trafficking) Bill in order for that Bill to make its passage through the Executive. The remaining requirements of that Bill will be taken forward in the next mandate. We are working on a hate crime Bill and are undertaking public consultation in that regard. We are working through the potential for a children's Bill, which would also be welcome. <BR /> <BR />Other options are under consideration. Some of those could be picked up as part of the miscellaneous provisions Bill early in the mandate; others may require more time to be developed.”
“<BR /> <BR />We recognise and have raised with the Home Office the fact that not everyone who enters Northern Ireland will arrive through an official UK route. I understand that the PSNI is also liaising with the Home Office, which leads on immigration, to assess options to accommodate where that might occur. I would be extremely concerned were anyone to apply, if you like, the hostile environment policy in a negative way to people who have fled Ukraine, if they have found themselves on this island, travelled north, perhaps to be closer to family, and essentially been moved on because of our immigration policy falling short.”
“I assure the Member that I already have. We already have people in Northern Ireland who arrived through the Republic of Ireland and travelled north. It is important that those who do that are able to access the same resource and support as anyone who arrives through any other means. Through the refugee and asylum seeker strategic planning group, which is led by the Executive Office, discussions have been ongoing between the UK Government and the devolved Administrations to ensure that support is provided. I welcome the recent announcement of the schemes that will apply in the UK, but I have expressed my concern that the Government could go further in supporting families to find connections with those who have offered them accommodation.”
“In the interim, however, I continue to work with officials in the Executive Office and with the head of the Civil Service to do as much as we can to deliver the generosity that the people of Northern Ireland have offered.”
“There is a five-party agreement that we want to offer safe refuge to people from Ukraine. As I said in answer to an earlier question, I took the lead and wrote to the Home Office to make that clear on behalf of all five parties in the Executive. I hope that that has not fallen on deaf ears. However, it is true to say that, without an Executive, it is difficult for us to take action such as has been taken by Scotland and Wales. They were able to become super-sponsors and do the work of matching families with refugees. Many of the families who have registered their homes, mine included, may well find that they do not have the resource to connect with a family who might want that accommodation. It is a challenging situation. Of course, having an Executive would make things simpler.”