Philip McGuigan
North Antrim · Sinn Féin · Northern Ireland
“I concur with the Minister that patient safety is ultimately the top priority, but patient safety is also important, as the Member said, in terms of assessments. If you cannot get assessments, your safety is compromised.”
“On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Further to my party colleague's point of order about the DUP's internal investigation, what is the point of doing an investigation if you are telling us that you have nothing to answer for? You were the leader of the DUP at a time when accusations were levelled against Jeffrey Donaldson.”
“Minister, in your previous answers you talked about the pressures and the difficulties. You said that you were looking for a fair funding model, and you spoke of the need for taxpayers here to be treated equitably.”
“Minister, the inquiry found systematic abuse, neglect and serious governance failure at Muckamore Abbey Hospital over many years — failures that were not isolated incidents but reflected systematic issues across leadership, staffing, safeguarding and oversight that resulted in decades of physical and psychological abuse.”
“When I engage with health service sectors as my party's health spokesperson, there is not one that does not talk about workforce pressures and problems with staff recruitment and retention. That is clearly the case with doctors.”
“First Minister, you have spoken previously about the opportunities created as a result of our unique economic and trading position and about the increased potential that comes with all-island cooperation.”
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“I thank the Minister for that response. Obviously, charging points are crucial in determining more uptake of zero-emission vehicles. Is the Minister confident that the zero-emission vehicles trading scheme will result in more charging points being installed?”
“I thank the First Minister for highlighting the North as a place for investment. Will the First Minister indicate the future benefit for the North as a result of the investment summit?”
“Like GAA clubs the length and breadth of Ireland, Portglenone's club strives for excellence on and off the pitch, and it provides the heartbeat for the local community. I have no doubt that its day for senior football glory on the pitch will come in the time ahead.”
“Erin's Own GAC, Cargin, is a club outside my constituency of North Antrim, but it is worthy of congratulations in the Chamber for its magnificent achievement yesterday of lifting its third senior county football title in a row. In competitive sport, winning is very important, but, thankfully, the GAA is about much more than just winning, so a special word to all involved with Roger Casement's GAC, Portglenone, a club that does sit within my constituency. I know that the Gaels of Portglenone will have been deeply disappointed this morning, but they should be proud of their efforts this season. I was lucky to participate in the club's recent PG100 community fundraising effort that raised a lot of money to support not just the club's activities but five worthwhile local charities.”
“The team has some of the most individually gifted camógs playing the game, and it is undoubtedly one of the best teams in Ireland. I congratulate the Loughgiel team and management on their victory yesterday and their phenomenal record in County Antrim, and I wish them good luck as they focus on capturing further glory and bigger prizes in the time ahead. <BR /> <BR />I also congratulate all those involved in St Mary's Ahoghill intermediate camogie team, who lifted the title, and wish the players and management success in their Ulster campaign.”
“There was a lot of Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) activity in County Antrim over the weekend. It was impossible to be everywhere, but I was lucky enough to be in Cushendall yesterday for the senior camogie final between Loughgiel and Dunloy. Both teams served up an exhibition of tough, competitive, skilful and entertaining camogie. Nobody likes losing a county final, and I expect that the team and management of my club, Dunloy, will be disappointed today, but they should also be proud of their performance yesterday. The team is young, and I have no doubt that the girls and women who represent Dunloy will represent the club in many future county finals. <BR /> <BR />Yesterday, Loughgiel won its eleventh consecutive county senior camogie championship, which is an unbelievable record and achievement.”
“Tourism and hospitality is obviously a key sector for the Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council area, which receives numerous visitors from overseas every year. What is the Minister doing to address the threat to tourism in the Causeway coast and glens area and across the North that is posed by the introduction of the British Government's electronic travel authorisation (ETA) scheme?”
“I note that, in her response to the substantive question, the junior Minister said that 14 recommendations would be sent to Ministers. Do Ministers support all the recommendations in the high street task force report?”
“I thank the Minister for his response. Given that 10% of herds here have TB when the rate in the South is half that, I completely agree that it is unacceptable. Will the Minister provide an update on the status of the TB eradication partnership's (TBEP) report? Will the tweaking that he is talking about be based on expert and scientific advice?”
“I welcome the new direction and the locally-led, working-together collaborative approach to tackling regional imbalance. Will the Department provide oversight to ensure that the local economic partnerships operate effectively?”
“Following on from answers that the Minister has already given, I ask whether the recent HMRC trade data suggests that manufacturing exports are benefiting from dual market access?”
“I thank the First Minister for that response and for the movement on the appointment process for a new Commissioner for Victims and Survivors. In recognising the key role that commissioners play here in our model of government, can the First Minister say what stage the recruitment competitions to appoint commissioners under the Identity and Language Act 2022 are at?”
“That is being investigated, and we await the outcome, but there is fundamentally an issue about whether dynamic pricing, even with consumer knowledge, is a fair practice for distributing tickets for concerts and events. Given the debate, it is clear that the view of the Assembly is that it is not fair and needs to be dealt with. <BR /> <BR />In closing, I reiterate what most people pointed out. There is an investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority into the Ticketmaster scenario, and I urge people to contribute to that.”
“Absolutely. That is a very good point and adds to the point about fairness and transparency. Others have pointed out that dynamic pricing for concerts did not start with the Oasis example, but what happened there brought it to everybody's front and centre view. Most people were shocked by what they saw: all of you in here who tried to get tickets, everybody else who tried to get tickets and people who got to the point where they could buy tickets but found that the ticket price had been grossly inflated. People felt ripped off. When most people began that process, they were unaware of the situation, so there is an issue of transparency in that case.”
“<BR /> <BR />I can only speak from my own experience. Up until two months ago, I — I assume like most people — had not heard the phrase "dynamic pricing" in such terms and much less understood its impact on concertgoers. While I accept —.”
“<BR /> <BR />Sinéad McLaughlin, quite rightly, pointed out that there are other serious and important issues that people will expect the Assembly and MLAs to be talking about. Thank God that we can do two things at once, but this is also a very important issue. She talked about the resale of tickets, which is another thing that needs to be addressed. She felt that there was a role for the Executive there. She talked, rightly, about the importance of concerts, music, culture and arts in what we do here and said that everybody must have access to that. <BR /> <BR />Gerry Carroll spoke very passionately and was scathing of Ticketmaster and its profiteering from fans. He outlined his criticism of the music industry at the top corporate level and pointed out the impact that that is having on working people.”
“He said that we need to learn from some of the things that are happening in the US so that we do not see them happening here. He said that, because Ticketmaster has a monopoly, eventually only people with deep pockets will be able to buy tickets. Gerry Carroll laboured that point as well. We need to see action from the Government to address that. <BR /> <BR />Kate Nicholl welcomed the wording and tenet of the motion. Thank you very much for that. She pointed to what Declan said about the difference between dynamic pricing for concerts and other examples: it is not the same because when it comes to people who are looking to go to concerts, there is no free choice and no ability to shop around.”
“He rightly touched on the fact that it is ordinary working people who are being faced with extraordinary costs to see their favourite bands and their heroes. He pointed out, as did Sian and others, the impact that that will have on the grassroots music scene if it is not dealt with. <BR /> <BR />Declan McAleer outlined his case and explained the difference between the example of people going to concerts and other examples where dynamic pricing may be of benefit to consumers through lower prices as a result of supply and demand. He also outlined that some of our colleagues in the Dáil have highlighted the issue and that the Oasis example has left a bad feeling among everybody. <BR /> <BR />David Brooks went into a lot of detail on dynamic pricing and, essentially, price gouging.”
“<BR /> <BR />Colin Crawford said that, as well as people feeling ripped off on tickets, as most big concerts require travel to Dublin — given that we do not have a Casement Park in the North — they face the added cost of transport and hotels. He rightly pointed out that it is not only tickets that people feel ripped off on. Many concertgoers already face huge hikes on accommodation, and they feel ripped off on that. He quoted an example of people who, before a concert was announced, had booked hotels for a particular weekend being thrown out of those hotels once the concert was announced, and their hotel rooms then being rebooked at extortionate prices. <BR /> <BR />Matthew O'Toole outlined his experience of trying to get tickets.”
“Colm Gildernew made a very good point about the contribution of artists and bands to society and the fact that, whatever system is in place, we need to fairly protect them as well as fans. Paul Frew talked, as everybody did, about not being against dynamic pricing per se, but said that, in this instance, there are clearly issues that need to be addressed. As he said, people should feed into the CMA's investigation by Thursday. Sian Mulholland talked about the pricing out of everyday fans, which is a contribution that, by and large, everybody made. She suggested that we need to see a cap on prices and that there is a need for regulation of the secondary market, in particular. I wrote down that she and David Brooks were vying for the worst pun, but then everybody piled in on that.”
“transparency. Is it fair to ask people who hope to go to a concert to see their favourite singer or band to queue online for several hours with no idea what price they may end up being asked to pay for tickets, should they be lucky enough to reach the end of the queue before the tickets sell out? As we found out recently with the Oasis ticket sale, they may be asked to pay a price four times what they initially expected it to be. We all used our own examples in the debate. Two people, sitting beside each other in the same home but using different laptops, could be asked to pay a difference of £300 for the exact same ticket. Is that fair? Given the contributions of all the Members today, clearly, we, in this Chamber, recognise that it is not fair. <BR /> <BR />Everybody touched on the same points, with degrees of variation.”
“It was an enjoyable debate on a very serious issue, leaving aside all the Members who tried to insert pretty cringey puns. It is, as I said, a serious matter. I scored out aspects of my contribution as they were covered by everybody else. Everybody who spoke got to the heart of the issue in recent weeks: fairness agus”
“I thank the Minister for her statement and for the work that she did over the weekend that brought a result for Derry City and Strabane District Council. There can and should be no differentiation in the growth deals and the positive benefits that they bring to citizens and ratepayers across the North. <BR /> <BR />I concur with the Minister's comments in her statement that the British Government must immediately change their decision to pause the remaining growth deals, including that of Causeway Coast and Glens, which covers my constituency and that of the Minister. Is the Minister aware of any formal communication from the British Government to the city and growth deal partners?”
“Thank you for the promotion, a Cheann Comhairle. <BR /> <BR />I thank the Minister for her answer. What difference will the sale of those properties make to public finances?”
“I thank the First Minister for her statement, and I note that she spoke about the women who have lost their lives in horrific circumstances in recent weeks. Does the First Minister agree that the launch of the framework and delivery plan is essential and timely?”
“What criteria will Departments need to meet? How will the proposals be assessed?”
“<BR /> <BR />I also thank Advice NI for the briefing that it provided to the Committee on the issue and for the work that, with others, it does in offering advice and support to people navigating their way out of debt. It is a welcome change, and I am content to support it.”
“As we have just heard, the purpose of the change is to increase the prescribed amounts of overall indebtedness to £50,000, the monthly surplus income to £75 and the total value of property that a debtor can own to £2,000. It is also the intention to remove the application fee, which is currently set at £90. <BR /> <BR />I thank the Minister and the Committee Chair for outlining the detail of the amendment order, along with the rationale for it. It is not my intention to elaborate, but I acknowledge the importance of providing support for people who experience problem debt. I recognise the contribution that the changes will make to people on low income with low levels of debt and limited assets by widening access to debt relief orders and ensuring that more people can make a fresh start, free from debt.”
“I welcome the statement and the Minister's commitment to solving the issue. In the section of his statement about the small business research initiative, the Minister indicated that, so far, 44 individuals or companies had come forward to offer solutions. I would be interested to hear from the Minister or the Department about how any of those solutions are being taken forward or whether any of them will make a significant impact on the problem.”
“I welcome the statement. As the Chair of the Committee said, it is a substantial statement with a lot of positive actions in it. The Minister touched on the work to improve all-Ireland study, including engagement with his counterpart in the South. What are the main barriers currently to cross-border mobility for higher education study?”
“I thank the Minister for the update on the meeting. Will he provide an update on the Shared Island Fund proposals for the Wild Atlantic Way and the Causeway coastal route?”
“I thank the deputy First Minister for the statement. Will she outline the various work sectors of the British-Irish Council?”
“I note the commitment of the Minister and, indeed, that of the other Executive Ministers on this. The Minister has alluded to the question that I was going to ask, which is whether he and the First Minister and deputy First Minister will be in contact with an incoming British Government after the election results to ensure that Spirit is high up the agenda and there is a meeting to discuss this as soon as possible.”
“I thank the Minister for his statement and for bringing forward the consultation on what will be significant proposals on important issues for workers and families. Will he provide an update on the Parental Bereavement (Leave and Pay) Act 2022?”
“Will the First Minister confirm that that is still her position?”
“When the recommendations in the truth recovery design panel's report were agreed nearly three years ago, First Minister, you talked about:”
“In particular, I pay tribute to and congratulate Darren Rafferty for his success in winning the men's elite road race championship at the weekend. Darren is now a professional cyclist, plying his trade across the Continent and doing great things. As Irish national road race champion, he is following in the footsteps of some of the greats of our sport here in Ireland. I have no doubt that he will do Irish cycling proud in the rest of this season, next season and in his racing career across Europe, wearing the illustrious Irish national cycling jersey. I wish him well in that.”
“OK. I was about to congratulate and pay tribute to another club from the North that will be delighted with the results over the weekend, namely Island Wheelers from Coalisland, which has shown that dedication to promoting youth cycling can certainly produce amazing results. Amazing results for that club, but particularly for the Rafferty family, who are leading the way in cycling. I pay tribute to and congratulate Aliyah Rafferty, who came second in the junior women's time trial, and I also congratulate her brother Adam, who won the men's under-23 time trial championship at the weekend.”
“<BR /> <BR />In particular, I congratulate the winners from the North on their success over the weekend. Dean Harvey, who won the under-23 men's road race, cycles with Trinity Racing but began cycling with VC Glendale in west Belfast. I know that that club will be particularly satisfied with Dean's success. Another local club that helped to produce —.”
“I want to put on record the successful Cycling Ireland road national championships, with men's and women's time trials (TT) across all categories, including juniors, under-23s, elite and paracycling, that took place in Limerick last weekend. I begin by congratulating Newcastle West Cycling Club and Cycling Ireland for organising safe and challenging races across all the categories, leading to worthy winners in all the races. I pay tribute to the winners and to their success. To be successful in cycling requires discipline in all aspects of your life and dedication to put in the necessary hours and hours of training in hail, rain and sun. Obviously, as we live in Ireland, that training is done mostly in hail and rain, sometimes complemented by wind.”
“Tourist experiences and how they are marketed are fundamental to the attractiveness of any destination. As others have said, we can do two things at once: the Causeway coastal route where I live can benefit while maintaining its unique identity from being on the Wild Atlantic Way. <BR /> <BR />I had a lot more to say, but my time is up —”
“Tourism, despite its challenges, is bouncing back after the pandemic, and we need to build on that. The Minister mentioned the fact that 70% of jobs in the tourism and hospitality sector are outside Belfast. It is a sector that brings regional balance, and we need to ensure that that is built on by maximising our tourism potential, thereby benefiting the many tourism and hospitality businesses, those who are employed in the sector and the communities that tourists visit. Full potential will be reached only by working on an all-island basis. <BR /> <BR />As Sinn Féin's tourism spokesperson, I, like others, have raised the compelling case for expanding into the North Fáilte Ireland's successful tourism and marketing strategies, such as the Wild Atlantic Way, Ireland's Ancient East and, as called for by our amendment, the Hidden Heartlands.”
“As the Minister and others have said, there is, perhaps, a difference in emphasis, but I accept what the Minister said about amendment No 1 and finding a working way forward whereby he hopes to get the Executive to reach an agreed position. <BR /> <BR />As I said, there is broad agreement among all the parties, with slightly different emphasis on some of this stuff, such as how closely we should work together. Everybody who spoke clearly identified and pointed out the many places, attractions and offerings that we have in the North that bring tourists here. Members pointed out some other complexities that we need to work on. <BR /> <BR />Sinn Féin wants to build a more inclusive and sustainable economy for all. We want to work with others to make that happen.”
“The first thing to say from a Sinn Féin MLA's point of view is that there is a rational, common-sense argument that policy integration across all areas of government on this island will improve outcomes for the citizens of Ireland whom we are elected to represent. <BR /> <BR />Now that I know that I have only three minutes to speak on the motion, to recap what everybody said, there is, by and large, broad support for the motion. Different people have different emphases. There is agreement on support for our tourism sector and on the need to work together on the island to do that. There is certainly agreement among all Members who spoke that we need to work to remove any barriers that would hinder that, the ETA being a clear example.”
“Go raibh maith agat, a Phríomh-Leas-Cheann Comhairle.”
“The Minister will be aware that a massive EU study years ago eventually led to the introduction of what became known as the "single-use plastics directive". That legislation was supposed to be transposed here a couple of years ago. When will we get a ban on single-use plastics here so that beaches on the north coast and the environment as a whole will be protected from littering?”
“I welcome the Minister's recognition that the tourism and hospitality sectors require investment support when he announced his intention to put together a tourism implementation group and create a tourism partnership board. <BR /> <BR />I commend all who contribute to our fantastic tourism and hospitality offering, particularly as we head into the peak holiday months of July and August. I hope that we see many tourists and our businesses see many benefits, and would it not be great if we got the weather to match?”
“We know, from a recent report on tourism on the island of Ireland, that there has been a significant increase in day trippers and short-stay visitors from the South to the North. Growing numbers of international visitors flying into Dublin are adding destinations across the North to their holiday itineraries. As others have said, we should be ensuring that all parts of the North can benefit from that. The potential for growth is clearly there. The natural, historical and unique attractions that we have need to be shown. They are innovative and resilient. <BR /> <BR />As others have indicated, there are challenges. The electronic travel authorisation policy from the British Government increased the cost of overheads in the recruitment and retention of staff.”
“A recent report by Fáilte Ireland on the economic impact of the Wild Atlantic Way found that it is worth more than €3 billion per year in tourism revenue to communities along the west coast of Ireland, leading to an additional 35,000 jobs and supporting 80,000 jobs in total. The success of that brand is something that we can benefit from and build upon to enhance our visitor numbers. Why should we in the North, in areas such as North Antrim and East Antrim, miss out on the opportunity to extend the Wild Atlantic Way from Donegal through Derry and the north coast and along the glens of Antrim through East Antrim towards Belfast? The case for expanding the Wild Atlantic Way to incorporate the Causeway coastal route is compelling.”
“It can also be an enabler for community wealth-building, giving communities ownership of their economic development and ensuring that tourism is sustainable and in harmony with the local community and environment. It is therefore important that we continue to keep a focus on tourism and explore all possible opportunities to ensure that it realises its full potential in East Antrim, North Antrim and across the North. <BR /> <BR />One such opportunity that I have spoken about before in the Chamber is the compelling case for the extension of the Wild Atlantic Way to the north coast, including East Antrim.”