Chris Hazzard
South Down · Sinn Féin · Northern Ireland
“The order I am bringing forward extends the power for my Department to pay a grant to NI Water in lieu of domestic water charges. The current powers to pay a grant will expire on 31 March 2017, and the Water and Sewerage Services Act 2016, which was passed by the Assembly in January last year, provided the power to extend that date by an…”
“I thank those Members who have commented on the motion this evening. Some general issues and several specific points have been raised. <BR /> <BR />I will turn first to Mr Farry's question: why, for the period of time?”
“I am delighted that the Alliance argument around water charges does not chime with more of the electorate and that the particular reason does not hold sway, because this Executive certainly are not for turning on this issue. There will be no water charges for domestic customers, and we have ensured that.”
“<BR /> <BR />The second point that Mr Farry raised was around governance issues and the way forward. They are all issues that I have given thought to and that, I have no doubt, would have featured in the mandate in the time ahead, but we are not at that point today. The Assembly is about to be dissolved.”
“However, the imminent dissolution of the Assembly means I have decided to bring the draft order here today. <BR /> <BR />The grant provides NI Water with the funding to enable it to maintain drinking water supplies and deliver sewerage services.”
“I believe that this order will reinforce the Executive's commitment not to bring in water charging for households, and I thank the Members for their support.”
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“Thanks to the Member for giving way. I am interested in the Member's definition of a "back-room service". I presume that he is not talking about services such as Sure Start, breakfast clubs and others that are vital to the running of a school. Go raibh maith agat.”
“That is what we seriously need to look at. <BR /> <BR />I want to finish by saying that the DUP's finance spokesperson, Paul Girvan, said yesterday that the education budget should be ring-fenced. I agree entirely.”
“People come to the Chamber and are very quick to point out all the different problems. It may be the same in other debates, but I have heard no solutions for where £162 million would be spent elsewhere.”
“I am not saying that that will not have an impact. That is why I am saying that we need more money in the system. What I am saying is that it is wrong to suggest that, if we simply protect the classroom, the child's education will be OK. It simply will not be, because all the other things, such as transport and early years provision, will be affected. That will affect vulnerable pupils especially and those who come from socially deprived backgrounds, because those things are the lifeblood of their education. We will be consigning a generation of vulnerable people to the dustbin if that is the case, and we simply should not be allowed to do it. <BR /> <BR />In the motion, in the SDLP amendment and from the contributions of various Members who spoke, we are still short on solutions.”
“Poverty does not exist in the classroom, but the effects of poverty permeate the classroom and the teacher and child relationship. Therefore, if we do not address the effects of poverty outside the school and as the child comes into school, forget about the classroom, because it is too late at that stage. We have looked at the need to devolve the budget to the lowest point of the school, but that does not give the schools any more money. Yes, there are pros and cons to giving schools the autonomy to spend money on what they want. We should remember also that some of the schools —”
“As the Minister outlined, if we were to go ahead with what the DUP and others are saying here today, we would see a massive attack on youth services, and that would have a hugely detrimental impact on children's experiences. CRED, the community relations policy, and the various sports initiatives would also be affected. That is just not possible. <BR /> <BR />On the SDLP amendment, we all agree that there is widespread concern. Sinn Féin shares that concern. We have said from the outset that there simply is not enough money in the education budget and that we need to see more money. The SDLP has argued that the classroom needs to be a priority, but the vast majority of the education budget is spent in and around the classroom, on teaching and everything else. <BR /> <BR />There was mention made again of poverty.”
“We will also be voting for a reduction in free school meal entitlement, which this year will see an additional 12,000 pupils receiving nutritional meals, benefiting their learning processes. We will also be reducing uniform grants for parents. Are we saying that we need to attack those things? Do we need to attack transport? Are parties in here today saying that it is no longer permissible for tens of thousands of kids to be bused into Belfast to the super-schools? Are parties saying that they do not want to see that happening? <BR /> <BR />Nurture units, breakfast clubs, extended schools, after-school clubs and youth services will also be affected. We know the great amount of work that youth services do in our community.”
“Therefore, it would be a false economy if we were to attack the education budget everywhere but the classroom. Of course the classroom must be cherished and protected to a certain extent, but we cannot ignore the other things. <BR /> <BR />My colleague Pat Sheehan referred to a letter in the paper today in which it was said that education is the greatest weapon against inequality. The other side of the coin, of course, is that inequality is the greatest weapon against education. We need to look at the areas in which poverty outside the school permeates the classroom. We have touched on that today, be it attendance or anything like that, and that is what we need to keep at the forefront of our mind. <BR /> <BR />If we vote for the motion today, we are voting for an attack on Sure Start and an attack on early years provision.”
“Indeed, I am equally surprised that the Ulster Unionists and Alliance are happy enough to go with that amendment, although that is probably more for political reasons than anything else. <BR /> <BR />The motion and, indeed, the SDLP amendment have a narrow focus on that teacher:pupil relationship just inside the classroom. Of course, that is important, absolutely, and we need to put that at the centre of our education system, but the system as a whole is far bigger than that. We must not reduce the education system and the entire learning process of individuals and the children who we teach to that very small classroom. I have said numerous times in the Chamber that, from the age of 4 to 18, a child spends as little as 9% of those years inside the school gates. A total of 91% of a child's learning experiences are outside school.”
“Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I welcome this opportunity to make a winding-up speech on amendment No 2. I apologise to the proposer of the motion for not being here earlier. <BR /> <BR />It has been a positive enough debate in that we certainly learned something, namely that, for some, the vision is still far too narrow. I am absolutely baffled that the SDLP amendment was even accepted because it is exactly the same as the motion. It calls for the prioritising of funds for the classroom and devolution of the maximum amount of the available budget to the school. That is the exact same language as the DUP motion originally. Also, it does not ask for more funds to go into the system, which the Minister talked to. So, I am quite surprised that it was even accepted.”
“I thank the Member for giving way. He outlined that he is happy to support the SDLP amendment, which does not call for any extra funds for the Department of Education. Are the Ulster Unionists saying that they are satisfied with the funds currently earmarked for Education?”
“Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I thank the Minister for his answers thus far. He has said that there have been tens of thousands of responses to the consultation. Perhaps he would outline what types of responses these were.”
“In light of this, I am content that the draft education budget ring-fences £10 million for targeting social deprivation and further extends the free school meal entitlement by 12,000 pupils — that is an additional 12,000 pupils who will receive free school meals and uniform grants — and will inject an additional £10 million for special educational needs. I think these are all very important and valuable. Go raibh míle maith agat.”
“<BR /> <BR />When we consider that only 9% of a child's educational life is spent in the classroom, we often get hoodwinked into thinking that the classroom is the be all and end all that will determine the outcome of a child's education. That simply is not the case. We need to ensure that there is proper investment in youth services and things like Sure Start and to tackle the wider societal effects of poverty. If opportunities do exist pursuant to the £30 million change fund and indeed the Barnett consequentials, we need to work together towards protecting education. I agree with Paul Girvan from the DUP, who said earlier that we need to ring-fence the education and health spend. I think that he is 100% right. I hope that we will work together in doing this going forward.”
“If left to those in London, economic growth will always be peripheral, ad hoc and inequitable. We must demand the maximum powers from Westminster to grow the economy ourselves. This is Sinn Féin's vision for a stronger, more equal economy in the North and indeed across the island. <BR /> <BR />I just want to finish by talking briefly about education. I know that it has been covered, perhaps at length, today by various speakers. Indeed, many have concentrated on the need to protect front-line educational services in the classroom, at the coalface in schools. I want to talk a little bit about how important the broader context of education is when we look at the draft Budget, especially the role of the community.”
“<BR /> <BR />Today, we have heard, for example, how we need to stop using monitoring rounds to fund necessary and vital services, such as is the case in health. For the record, Sinn Féin believes that all citizens are entitled to public services and employment. We believe, North and South, that growing the economy requires political power and progressive policies and investment. Sinn Féin wants to balance the books in the North and across the island through economic growth and employment, not by cutting services and taking money from the poor. <BR /> <BR />If we are to realise the economic potential, safeguard public services and create growth in jobs, we also need the power to do so. We must collectively place the economic needs of people front and centre.”
“Our budgets, economy, welfare and public pensions are all controlled by an austerity-driven Administration in Westminster. There is a better, fairer way. If we are to build a stable and peaceful society, we must maintain public services, particularly the core services of health, education and welfare; address the needs and pressures of a society emerging from conflict; deal with the realities of higher levels of deprivation and higher costs; overcome division and duplication, and build an equitable and sustainable economy. There is an alternative to Westminster-driven austerity and we must find it. The Westminster Government must end their policy of raiding the block grant for 2014-15. We also have a responsibility locally to balance our books and, to achieve this, we must be proactive, creative and responsible.”
“We have some of the highest levels of child poverty in the Western World. We have working families who are reliant on food banks, and, relative to earnings, our state pension is among the lowest in Europe. <BR /> <BR />Collectively, we must stand united to demand that we receive the necessary resources from the Westminster Government to ensure that we can meet and address the challenges facing our communities and our people. There is no greater risk to our local Budget than the continual cuts imposed on public spending by the Tory and Liberal coalition in London. For every £100 million that is cut by Westminster from spending on health and public services in Britain, £3·4 million is lost to our Budget for public spending on essential services in the North, including health and education.”
“Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I, too, welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate and thank the Finance Committee for bringing it forward. Although it is essential that we agree a Budget, we cannot ignore the devastating impact that Westminster-driven austerity has had on our local budgets, our public services and, indeed, our people. By removing more than £1 billion from the local Budget, Westminster's relentless attack on the block grant has ensured that collectively, as an Executive and an Assembly, we are unable to deliver the required level of public services that we desire. <BR /> <BR />Westminster promises nothing only more austerity. Our Budget has been stripped relentlessly, with no consideration given to our unique local challenges that are a direct result of our emerging from conflict.”
“Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I thank the Minister for his answer. Given that just more than 2,500 claimants were interviewed, at a cost of more than £100,000 per office involved, can the Minister outline his analysis of where the money could have been better spent in the whole process?”
“Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I thank the Minister for his answer, short as it was. No doubt the Minister will agree that scrutiny of these plans and papers is very important. In light of that, does the Minister agree that public engagement and, indeed, engagement by community groups and trades unions in the consultation process for the draft Budget are very important?”
“I thank the Member for his comments. It sounds as though we are trying to trade rights. We cannot do that. <BR /> <BR />I think that we all agree that a conflict-free environment is vital. The stocktake provides a road map to a better place. It is incumbent on us all to embrace the direction of travel, not just for the staff and the prisoners but for wider society. I support the amendment, but I oppose the original motion.”
“I will touch a little bit on Tom Elliott's comments about his problems with education, recreation, library and computer facilities. Sometimes, some in the House seem to forget that prisoners retain rights. They are still human beings with rights. They have every right to education and to recreation facilities. It is important that we look after those rights. Mr Frew said that we need to make sure that they are treated like prisoners, but prisoners have educational and recreational rights.”
“That is what we must not forget: having the best working conditions in the prison and the best conditions for prisoners are in the interests of wider society. We should remember that. A solution is in everybody's interest going forward. <BR /> <BR />I think that the difficulties around the prisoners' forum need to be addressed. Again, communication issues will be vital in moving forward. Even Mr Douglas talked about the importance of having a conflict-free environment. Improved communication will be central to that. Dealing with a lot of the difficulties around the forum can only be a good thing. If we are to continue to improve our prison system, we need to grasp the opportunities in the review, such as issues around family visits.”
“Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I rise as a new member of the Committee, so most of my knowledge on this subject is from second-hand reading of reports and the views of the assessors who have been to the Committee. I have not been to Maghaberry yet to look at the situation first-hand. I will be somewhat briefer, perhaps, than other Members have been today. <BR /> <BR />It is important that we welcome the review of progress since the 2010 report. It provides a good snapshot of where we are and perhaps a road map for the way forward on a lot of these issues. It is good that it identifies areas for further improvement while flagging up what progress has been made. It is incumbent upon us to grasp this opportunity to move forward in the best interests of staff, prisoners and, indeed, wider society.”
“Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I thank the Minister for his answers thus far. Will the Minister outline what he is doing to ensure early intervention in areas of low academic targets?”
“Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I thank the Minister for his answers thus far. Will he outline which recommendations of the independent assessment of the Victims and Survivors Service (VSS) have been implemented and which remain outstanding?”
“Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I thank the Member for his answer. Does he agree that the House not having a Speaker impacts negatively on the Commission's ability to carry out its work?”
“I just want to finish this. What flexibilities have been built in to the redeployment process to protect those in need? What protection is there for single mums, carers, those who do not drive and those with young families? Those are the sort of people who would be protected with the appropriate equality screening, but the trust and the Department always seem to dodge that responsibility.”
“Staff at the Downe now face three weeks' redeployment instead of the usual three months. The trust and the Department have not considered the impact on such staff. The communication was woeful once again. The chief executive was nowhere to be seen, and the director of nursing did not even bother to come to the Downe to talk to the staff. It is an absolute disgrace that staff in Lagan Valley knew about the situation in the Downe before staff there were alerted. Staff in Lagan Valley then told the Downe staff. <BR /> <BR />Yet again we are facing Christmas, and up to 50 staff are unsure about what lies ahead. We are in the disgraceful situation where staff have to reapply for redeployment —”
“We are told that the savings at the Downe Hospital are a minuscule £300,000, yet that represents a massive blow to our local community. The South Eastern Trust is a large organisation. Why target closures on the Downe? Why can we not look to make savings in the Ulster's service? <BR /> <BR />We should enhance the Downe to help to alleviate pressure on the Belfast hospitals. There is plenty of scope in urology to take the pressure off the Belfast hospitals. There is no reason why the MacDermott ward at the Ulster Hospital could not be relocated to the Downe and why CT scans, ultrasound and any radiography-led services could not be provided at the Downe. <BR /> <BR />Why can the Downe not be the leading site for mental health care in the North? The Downshire site has a historic reputation that should be built on, not dismantled.”
“I thank the Minister for his intervention. I am also saying that there is money available in the system; it is the maladministration of that money. The health service just received an extra £200 million. It is the maladministration of that budget that is creating a lot of the pressures that are underneath. <BR /> <BR />The Minister should lead the way in rejecting the defunct idea of the golden hospital strategy. We need good local hospitals with generalist doctors who can serve the community. Instead, each winter, we have attack after attack on such hospitals as the Downe. When the trust has savings to make, it always seems to choose the peripheral and supposedly soft targets, such as the Downe. Those decisions are economically unjustified.”
“That suggests that a large number of people are sitting at home over the weekend, enduring injury, before the doors open again on a Monday morning, rather than travelling to Belfast. That is surely an abuse of human rights, if not a form of torture. <BR /> <BR />The head of the NHS in Britain, Simon Stevens, recently said that we need to see an enhancement of general local hospitals and less focus on centralising services to large specialist hospitals that are, all too often, led by specialist consultants. Rural areas, such as south Down, would be far better served by that type of vision for the future health care.”
“<BR /> <BR />Minister, you must also look seriously at how we appoint and appraise non-executive directors on trusts. We need to see a serious increase in their ability to scrutinise and partake in constructive debate at board meetings. Too often, trust board meetings are reduced to little more than choreographed conversations: a mixture of non-executive nodding heads and bizarre drivel regarding patient-client care experience. It is all spin, with little substance. <BR /> <BR />There is no doubt that the current situation at the Downe, and elsewhere, and the proposed changes, have characteristics of permanent reductions — hugely damaging reductions, at that. We know that, on a Monday morning, the A&E at the Downe, for example, is very busy.”
“It is the millionaire club at the top of the pile that the public and the media are attacking: the health chiefs who spend so much money on jet-setting around the world that they cannot actually remember where they have been. <BR /> <BR />Our front-line staff are heroes. They work, daily, in impossible conditions while doing a world-class job. The public have the utmost respect and admiration for our front-line staff. Health chiefs need to get real; they need to find a new-found respect for the public and treat them as interested and capable participants in a social contract about our health service. It is totally unacceptable that they continue to drip-feed information behind the backs of public and staff representatives. The days of briefing media outlets hours before elected representatives are briefed must end.”
“I have not seen the figures, but I presume that such increases were not afforded to our front-line health staff. Moreover, is it morally just that a trust director can earn more than £200,000? That is substantially more than the US president or the British prime minister. How is it right that a trust director and 10 consultants are paid seven times the median figure? It is fair to suggest that health chiefs simply do not get it. There are cuts for the Downe and Dalriada, but the trust directors and the golden hospitals keep filling their pockets. <BR /> <BR />Just last week, the new HSC Board boss, Valerie Watts, announced that she would like to have a TV channel, as she thinks the media and politicians continually attack front-line staff. That is complete and utter nonsense.”
“However, when we see how lavish the trust is with its remuneration and pension entitlements, we should not be too surprised that financial prudence appears to be in short supply. <BR /> <BR />In 2013-14, seven directors received substantial increases on their previous 2012-13 pay. Those increases total approximately £160,000. One director receives approximately £215,000; four directors receive between £130,000 and £160,000; and 10 trust employees receive more than the highest-paid director. That is 10 people receiving more than £215,000 a year. The ratio between median pay, which is £26,000, and the highest-paid director, is more than 6·8. <BR /> <BR />So, Minister, at a time of such economic constraint, how is it right that 80% of the directors in the South Eastern Trust receive significant pay increases totalling more than £160,000?”
“It is quite staggering, and it shows absolutely no sign of slowing down in the face of such hard economic constraints. You would certainly have to question why difficult financial decisions always have to be made with reference to the Downe, yet investment continues to pour into Dundonald. <BR /> <BR />One project is the ongoing £7 million plans for an extension to the maternity service at the Ulster. Surely the Downe's excellent maternity facility could help meet some of that pressure. Another project is the phase B redevelopment of the Ulster, with its 290 new en-suite bedrooms at a cost of more than £230 million. I certainly do not begrudge any hospital fit-for-purpose accommodation for those in need of world-class health care, but surely that can be achieve without having to spend £1 million a bedroom.”
“Therefore, the collocation of the emergency department and the GP out-of-hours service is now actively promoted as best practice and celebrated. It is just as well for the trust that the shortage of emergency doctors occurred when it did. <BR /> <BR />Let us not continue to lie that the closure of the Downe Hospital A&E is merely to do with the shortage of emergency doctors. It is more to do with the shortage of support for the Downe Hospital from the South Eastern Trust and the shortage of scrutiny and control by successive Ministers to limit the destruction of that hospital so that Belfast's Ulster Hospital can be enhanced yet further. <BR /> <BR />In fact, reading through the 2014 annual report, I see the level of additional services and enhanced facilities at the Ulster.”
“Unless, of course, you live in Down district, where hospital services will be removed from your local community and relocated to Belfast. The individual is no longer at the centre of any health-care model in Downpatrick. <BR /> <BR />The report continues:”
“<BR /> <BR />Last year, Edwin Poots got on his soapbox and told us all in Down district that he was angry at the South Eastern Trust for cutting the A&E at Downe Hospital and that he would ensure that it developed a plan to restore services as soon as possible. Here we are, a year later, and there is no plan, and the A&E service is still cut. Temporary status is utilised simply to avoid legal obligations to consult with the public and to ensure that any changes are subject to the appropriate equality impact assessments. <BR /> <BR />In fact, the South Eastern Trust is beginning to celebrate the new status at Downe Hospital. Its 2014 annual report states:”
“No, I will not. You were not too forthcoming about giving way before, so I will not give way now. <BR /> <BR />What we have heard is an impassioned plea from all sides of the House for the Minister to find a backbone, to protect the rights of ordinary people and to have the courage to stand up for rural communities and vulnerable groups in the face of the disastrous decisions that have been taken by health trust directors across the North. I was at a protest in Downpatrick on Saturday morning, at which an elderly lady asked what the point of local Ministers is if they are not on our side fighting our corner. That is true. At a time when the NHS and front-line health services face huge challenges on all fronts, we have had to endure successive DUP Health Ministers who have hidden behind layers of bureaucracy and shirked their duties.”
“Go raibh maith agat, a Phríomh-LeasCheann Comhairle. At the outset, I want to pay tribute to front-line staff and patients who have worked so hard to bring these issues to the fore. When parties decide to play party politics with issues, that can very often be lost. <BR /> <BR />I want to deal with a number of fallacies that the SDLP put out today. For such an important issue for the SDLP, not once did its Minister, Mark Durkan, talk about health budget cuts during the Executive meeting — not once. If it is so important to the SDLP, why did he not do that? The Budget, of course, gives an additional £200 million to the Department of Health and ring-fences services. I would advise the SDLP to stop playing party politics with those vital community health issues and get behind community —”
“The board needs to be characterised in the years ahead as strategic and visionary, not bound by sectoral and dogmatic thoughts, and the community might have helped to drive that forward. I welcome the fact that we are now passing the Bill on through. It is welcome change, and, since we have all given a little, our system is the big winner.”
“<BR /> <BR />The new authority must set as an important, urgent issue the support and development of our teachers and school principals. We need to ensure that our teaching staff are valued and feel supported in their career development at all stages. <BR /> <BR />To summarise, I welcome the fact that the Irish-medium and integrated sectors now have a place granted by right on the board of the new authority. They are growing, developing sectors with very specific needs that must be encouraged and facilitated by the authority, so it is a good thing that they are there. It is disappointing and, indeed, a mistake that the Assembly has decided to remove the places for community, as the community needs to play a bigger role in our education system and in driving forward with education change. That is a disappointing turn.”
“They, too, deserve a world-class administrative body, so I hope that the new authority can set the direction of travel for the next number of years. As the wants and needs of our young people continue to shift and evolve in tandem with global developments, our education system must be flexible and visionary. I hope that the new authority can help to set all our children on a path to fulfilling their abilities and talent. All too often, in the past, our system suffered real variations across the board in efficiency and access to vital educational services such as special educational needs services. The authority must set itself the task of ensuring that a pupil in Downpatrick can access the same support services and potential that is available to any pupil in Belfast and in the same time frame, which is also very important.”
“Go raibh maith agat a LeasCheann Comhairle. Like other Members, I start by paying tribute to all those who, day and daily, devote their life to the education of our young people. All of us who work in the education portfolio know only too well the work and devotion that those in the education and library boards, as they currently sit, have contributed over the years, so it is only right that we pay tribute to those people. <BR /> <BR />We must bear it in mind, when discussing this, that our children and young people in education must be at the forefront of what we do in the administration of an education system. That is something that we often forget, and, sometimes, it was missing from the debate.”
“I thank the Member for his intervention, but I cannot get away from the fact that, to me anyway, this is a duplication of representation. The interests of the controlled grammars still would have been best served — certainly adequately served — through representation of the transferors. <BR /> <BR />I turn to our amendment Nos 9 and 10, which would simply redress the imbalance created by amendment No 11, as outlined by the Minister. That is what they have to do. The four places each for the transferors and trustees give balance and representation while recognising the established rights and the growth of the Catholic sector in recent years. I am happy to support the technical amendments outlined by the Minister.”
“The controlled grammars could have been represented by a place from the transferors, and the interests of the controlled grammars could have been secured that way. I believe that amendment No 11 —”
“If we wanted to ensure that the community voice was on the board, the Sinn Féin idea for the inclusive amendment, which gave a seat to the Irish-medium, the integrated and the voluntary grammars while protecting the four community places, would have been a preferable option. It is also significant, as the Minister outlined, that only the chairperson is now appointed through a fair and open appointment process of merit, and that is something to be looked at. <BR /> <BR />With regard to controlled grammars — again it is getting back to the point of balance — I think that that is where amendment No 11 tips the balance and why it is necessary that amendment Nos 9 and 10 come into place.”