Michelle O'Neill
Mid Ulster · Sinn Féin · Northern Ireland
“We are shocked and deeply saddened for both the victim of the horrific incident in north Belfast and the people who have been impacted on by the disorder that we have witnessed since. There is absolutely no justification for racism, violence or intimidation.”
“It is the latest chapter in a political psychodrama. It has been playing out in Westminster for forever and a day but particularly over the past 10 years. Tomorrow is the 10th anniversary of Brexit, which inflicted so much damage to the wider economy. We are now on the verge of having a seventh British Prime Minister in 10 years.”
“We cannot look at things in isolation. Whether it is the refugee integration strategy, the framework or the legislation, all those things need to move together and at pace.”
“I agree with the Member about the ugly language that was used to describe some people in our community. Like the Member, I have met many people from the black and ethnic minority community in recent times. I do that on an ongoing basis, but I did so recently given what happened over the last number of weeks.”
“There is not just one answer to it, as the Member knows. We need to come at it from every angle. That could be a policing response initially, for which additional funding was secured. I agree that this is the third year in a row in which we have had that type of racist behaviour on our streets. Likewise, I would describe it as a pogrom.”
“Building on that progress, the Executive Office is contributing £3·3 million towards the Derry on the North Atlantic Museum, which is due to open in 2027 and will further enhance Ebrington’s role as a heritage and tourism destination. <BR /> <BR />Ebrington is also continuing to develop as a vibrant events space.”
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“<BR /> <BR />The delivery plan is designed to connect and support many parts of government and other strategies and investment. That includes the Department of Justice and the Department of Health and their work to deliver the domestic and sexual abuse strategy and the recommendations of the Gillen review. Collaboration and innovation will improve front-line services, protection and provision for victims and survivors, and will therefore improve experiences and better outcomes for women and girls. <BR /> <BR />That work will support efforts across all parts of society. That includes building on the vital work of the grassroots groups and organisations across the voluntary and community sector. We have spoken to those people on the front line who help women and girls who are suffering and are in the most dire need of support and guidance.”
“They are part of the solution if we are to bring about a change to attitudes and behaviour and challenge a misogynistic culture that can lead to harm, abuse and violence against women and girls. <BR /> <BR />The framework sets out and tells us clearly what needs to be done. It is shaped by real people and real-life experiences. From that, we have created an initial delivery plan, which will deliver real-life change to people in need. That is just the beginning. We will continue to work together, right across the Chamber, to build a changed society where women and girls are free from all forms of violence, abuse and harm. Collaboration is essential for us to start to build the transformative change that is required.”
“We will support delivery of quality front-line services for victims and survivors whilst investing in the grassroots communities that carry out amazing work in tackling that issue to build capacity and extend those services. Our strategic priorities also include strengthening the justice system to build the confidence of victims and survivors and the public and create a safe space for them to tell their stories and see justice done. <BR /> <BR />All that requires us to work better together across all parts of government and society to end violence against women and girls. We must work together to equip and empower our young people to enjoy healthy, respectful relationships. Men and boys have an important role to play in ending violence against women and girls.”
“We want everyone to understand what violence against women and girls is and how to take action to prevent it. We want everyone, especially our young people, to be equipped to enjoy healthy, respectful relationships. We want to ensure that women and girls feel safe, and are safe, everywhere. That means educating ourselves, our society and our young people in every aspect of their lives to ensure that we are clear that violence and abuse in relationships are never acceptable. Ultimately, we want to change society so that women and girls no longer live under that underlying threat and very real risk of harm and abuse, and it is a place where everyone can thrive and be safe. <BR /> <BR />Protection and provision of services is key to the success of the strategic framework.”
“<BR /> <BR />The public consultation responses were overwhelming in their support for realising the framework's vision: a changed society, where women and girls are free from all forms of gender-based violence, abuse and harm, including the attitudes, systems and structural inequalities that cause them. The framework sets out a seven-year road map and describes the changes that are needed and the work that needs to be done to bring about an end to violence against women and girls. It will help to mobilise all parts of society to improve outcomes across four key themes. <BR /> <BR />The first is prevention, which is about addressing the underlying causes of violence against women and girls to stop it before it even starts. It is the main focus of the strategic framework.”
“All of that points to how shocking our statistics are. Behind those statistics are all those individuals. The stories of all those women who were killed must make us even more determined to act to tackle the scourge of violence, harm and abuse, which seriously impacts on the lives of too many women and girls right across our community. <BR /> <BR />Today, we bring forward a strategic framework and first delivery plan to help mobilise a whole-of-society and whole-of-government response. The strategic framework was co-designed by different voices, many with years of experience in the area, and all of whom, like us, are committed to ending violence against women and girls. We are very grateful to them for that. I acknowledge that some of them are here, in the Public Gallery, this afternoon.”
“The depth of the loss, which is always felt, is so hard to express here in words.”
“Today, I am delighted that we are announcing Executive approval for the strategic framework to end violence against women and girls and its first delivery plan. Before I continue, I would like to remember all those women who have been tragically murdered in our community recently. I extend our sincere condolences to the family and friends of Patsy Aust, Kathryn Parton, Sophie Watson and Montserrat Martorell, all of whom died in horrific circumstances over the past few months. At the weekend, we heard of another tragic loss — that of Rachel Simpson. Five women dead in a matter of weeks. Five women whose names we now know for the most tragic of reasons. There have been many others. In the past four years, over 20 women have been killed here, and their untimely deaths have had a lasting and traumatic impact on their family and friends.”
“We need to understand that, we need to have public services that can respond to that and we need to have the right supports in place. I am happy to engage with the Member on that issue.”
“Thanks to the Member. I know that the Member is passionate about that issue. That is why we are asking you to engage with the draft Programme for Government: help to shape the final version. Everything that is littered across the nine priorities will affect older people; everything that we are trying to do will affect older people. However, it will also affect younger people, so a lot of the issues and priorities are very much cross-cutting. If we need to do something more with regard to referencing older people in particular, let us have that conversation; let us try to shape the end result. There is not a person, particularly in our older population, who will not be impacted on by the issues contained in the nine priorities. The Member is right: we have an ageing demographic.”
“The document refers to the fact that we need to reach for those opportunities and grab them on behalf of the people that we all collectively serve.”
“I can assure you that this is an Executive document, so it is owned by the four parties of the Executive. I know that you are relatively new to the Chamber, Mr Gaston, but you now have eight weeks to consider the document and you will be able to respond in much more detail than you have the opportunity to today. <BR /> <BR />The document talks about our economy, growing our economy, the fact that we have a unique selling point, reaching for that opportunity, creating more and better-paid jobs, and regional balance. These are all really positive things that we must reach for. If we are going to lift up everybody in society and create opportunity for everybody, it is important that we grow our economy and do not just focus on the challenges that we have. Of course there are many of those, but there are many more opportunities.”
“We want to have an integrated approach to water quality, we want to review the energy strategy in 2025 and we need a just transition committee. The raft of things that are there for the climate and energy area is quite strong. I am very conscious of the fact that the Minister himself is looking at the issue of Mobuoy, and we reflected on that last week. I am quite sure that he will have more to say about that in coming days, but I will not steal his thunder.”
“However, alongside that, there are a number of other actions in the document around climate action. Publishing our first climate action plan will obviously be a welcome development. The environmental improvement plan, which someone mentioned earlier, needs to be published and got out, because that will complement what we are trying to do with the Lough Neagh strategy.”
“Thanks for that. Lough Neagh has been given a particular focus, given the scale of the challenge that we face there and rightly so.”
“I am confident about the regional balance commitment.”
“I am confident about the references to the Magee task force, which are about regional balance and ensuring that there is university provision in the north-west. Across the document, you will see a strong and healthy commitment across all Departments to regional balance because the plan is about everybody. It is about lifting everybody up, and it needs to be fair, equitable and shared, and everyone needs to enjoy the growth. <BR /> <BR />When the Member has a chance to properly reflect on it, she will see that throughout the document. No doubt, as part of our roadshows and going out and about, we will make sure that we are out in all arts and parts engaging with people and making sure that we get the views of people in urban versus rural areas. We need to hear everybody's view and how they feel about the plan.”
“Thank you for the question. I will build on the previous answer. You can see that regional balance is peppered through the document because the prosperity agenda is for everybody, regardless of where they live. It is really important that we get it right. When we reflect on the economic vision that the Economy Minister set out, in which he talks about four priorities, we see that one of them is regional balance, making sure that we share the prosperity and attract investment into areas outside the greater Belfast area as well as the Belfast area. <BR /> <BR />It is really important to know, when reflecting on the increased productivity in the economic strategy, that that is about attracting more well-paid jobs that will lift people up.”
“That is a win-win for everybody — it is a circular economy investment — and we are determined to keep building on it.”
“We need to move beyond the initial cohort and the younger children into school-aged children cohort, because there is also a burden there. The biggest burden for families right now in childcare is at that preschool age. That is why we have started there, but we absolutely have to walk to the end of the road. <BR /> <BR />As a granny, I understand the problem acutely from my family. I want us to be able to say to families, "We will try to support you through the childcare journey". We know how expensive it is, and we are trying to make sure that we get to a point where we support the childcare provider to stay in place and they in turn pass on a more affordable childcare cost to the family, which allows more people to stay in work.”
“I know that that is all for preschool-age children, so we have work to do on building that up, but we have also been able to put £7 million towards supporting children who face disadvantage, £2 million towards childcare providers, because we need our childcare providers to stay in place, regardless of the age of the child, and we have made moves towards the expansion of the universal preschool education programme to provide up to 22·5 hours of care for children aged three to four. That is just the start of our getting going. There is a raft of work underneath all that that is about gathering evidence and working with the sector. Having identified it as one of our priorities, we will keep building on that.”
“I thank the Member. Welcome to the Assembly: I look forward to working with you. We share with many in the House the passion for trying to get this one right. Childcare, as the deputy First Minister said, has been our priority from day 1. I am really pleased with the advances that we have been able to make. They are making a tangible difference out there across a range of things. In what we have been able to achieve in the first seven months, we have only got going. <BR /> <BR />In that first period — I have just been reflecting on this — we have been able to secure £9 million for the 15% childcare subsidy.”
“We are determined to fight for a fair funding model. We are determined to fight for investment in our health service, because, on one hand, people are languishing on waiting lists, and, at the same time, the health service that they depend on has been starved because of deliberate policy set in London. That is not acceptable. We will continue to make the case for proper funding so that we can invest in our health service. <BR /> <BR />I am sure that, if you are sitting at home and have been waiting on a waiting list for a considerable period, what you want to know is this: "What is the solution?", "When will I get my appointment?", "How will it be fixed?", and "When will the health service be able to respond to individuals' needs?". That is what we will try to deliver.”
“I just do not agree. It is as simple as that. I say to the people who are on waiting lists and have been waiting a long time to get treatment that we will do absolutely everything that we can to help them get their treatment. We will work night and day to fix the health service, which has been put on its knees by a Tory austerity agenda for over 14 years. The Member knows that rightly. That is why his party signed up to the cross-party memo that we sent when we first re-formed the Executive. <BR /> <BR />This place has been underfunded, and we need to turn that picture. We are determined, as the four-party Executive, to make that happen. I am glad that we will go to the Treasury again this week and continue our engagement. We have been able to make some progress. We are determined to fight the fight for good finances here.”
“A whole raft of things need to happen, including transformation, investment in the health service and programmes to bring down waiting times for people. Improving people's life and health outcomes is crucial, and I welcome the fact that the Health Minister has brought forward some initial plans on how he will develop more work on tackling health inequalities. There is a lot to do there, but it is a priority for us, and I assure you that, when we get to the end of the Programme for Government, we will need to look at what that looks like in waiting lists over year 1, year 2 and year 3.”
“Outside of that, we need to see real systems change and complete restructuring of the health service so that we can start to tackle health inequalities.”
“The Department of Health has published an elective care framework, and there have been some marginal improvements, albeit we are still in such a dire situation that it is hard to talk that up. In the aftermath of the Programme for Government being consulted on, we will see even more concrete plans coming forward from Health, and we will work with it on those. That is vital, because we need to get waiting lists down and we need to stop the wastage in our health service. <BR /> <BR />We know that we have first-class health and social care workers working in our system day and night under huge pressure. We have invested in them through public-sector pay, which was one of the first things that the Executive were able to do.”
“I can guarantee that it is a priority. It is one of the nine priorities that we have identified. As you said, collectively, we all have constituents who are in dire straits waiting to get into the health service. They are being forced to beg, borrow and steal sometimes to get private healthcare, and that is not acceptable. We also know many constituents who, day and daily, cannot get access to their GP. That is not acceptable, and it is not good enough. <BR /> <BR />We all need to focus on transformation and ask how we can support primary care and invest upfront in it, how we can bring care closer to families and how we can take the pressure from the acute end into that front-line investment. We need to see very concrete plans. We need to see something develop from the work that has been done to date.”
“It also allows us to build for the future, which is important. Therefore, we are setting very firm foundations for how we move forward. <BR /> <BR />Obviously, making a lot of this work will depend on the whole financial situation and getting that right. We are determined and are at one, as a four-party Executive, in fighting the good fight for properly funded public services here. That is not special treatment; it is fair and is what people are entitled to. We will engage with the Labour Government continuously in trying to get to that right juncture.”
“I apologise to the deputy First Minister; I did not realise that I had answered two questions in a row. We are supposed to alternate, but anyway. I will take Mr Butler's question. <BR /> <BR />We are launching a draft Programme for Government, and it does not get more real than that. That is what we are here to do. We are here to be in government together; the four parties of the Executive. We have set out very real and meaningful plans that we think will make a difference to people's lives. We are focused on prosperity and lifting everybody up, which is what the public want to see. They want political leaders to work together. They want us to find solutions to the big problems of today, and that is what we think we have cracked in the Programme for Government insofar as it sets out our focus on those immediate priorities.”
“The new approach reflects the reality of the challenging situation that we face with the finances, but, equally, alongside that, the document, I hope, points to hope. There are opportunities to grow our economy, attract trade, create more and better-paid jobs, address regional imbalance and lift everybody in society up. Those are the things that we are very much going to focus on, and that is why I say that everybody has a stake in what is being set out here today.”
“As the deputy First Minister set out, we have focused on nine priorities. That is really important, because this is a different, shortened mandate, and one that has been marred by financial challenges, not least because of austerity over the past 14 years. With those two main challenges in mind, it was important that we tried to reimagine the Programme for Government or look at it in a different way. That is why we focused very clearly on those nine key objectives. It is not an exhaustive list; it is a list that the Executive collectively committed to work together on and ensure that we have delivery on. Outside of that, all other Departments also have their own areas of responsibility and work.”
“I appreciate the ongoing emphasis that the Member, alongside other colleagues, puts on that area. I am very pleased to say that, hopefully, next week, we will be able to announce our strategy to end violence against women and girls. The Executive signed off on that piece of work last week. As the Member rightly points out, that is a whole-of-society problem that we have. We must do everything that we can to end violence against women and girls, particularly after the summer that has just gone, during which, tragically, three more women lost their lives. I will be delighted to, hopefully, say a lot more about that next week, when we present our strategy for ending violence against women and girls.”
“I say to everybody that this is our plan. This is what is going to make a difference to us, our families and wider society. We need to drive home the message that everybody has a stake in it, that everybody has an opportunity to shape it, and that we very much want to engage and listen. As I said, we want the end result to be that we have made a difference to people's lives and that we can be judged on that. We are confident that we can improve some of the areas that we know are in huge difficulties, not least our public services after 10-plus years of austerity. The challenges that we, as a public sector, face will be fixed only if we transform how we do things. That is why you can see the whole way through the consultation document that it talks about transformation being key.”
“We want to hear from the labour movement, civic society, the business community, academia and, of course, our young people. We have done particular work on looking at the impact on young people as part of the Programme for Government consultation.”
“Yes. We ask that engagement with the process be as wide as possible. Again, Committees and the Member, in his role as the Chair of a Committee, will have the opportunity to engage with people from across all sectors.”
“We will go out very much to listen to people and to hear what they have to say. Through our political briefs, we will all have a role to play in engaging with different sectoral interests. As the Member said, perhaps everybody will be picking over the document today, wanting to see their part. That is OK, because that is the area that they are interested in. <BR /> <BR />Encouraging people to engage with the process through a combination of in-person and online engagement will lead to a fulsome Programme for Government. The Committee's role will also be vital to make sure that we have the best possible Programme for Government that is fit for purpose. That is the Executive's collective will.”
“I look forward to working with the Committee Chair, the Deputy Chair and the entire Committee as we gather responses to the consultation. We need to send a strong message to wider society that this is a draft document and that we are listening. We are in listening mode. The document is the basis on which, we think, we can go out to consultation, but there is no doubt that there will be constructive comments and things that we may be able to include. Where we cannot include things, perhaps we can talk it out with those who advocate a different approach. <BR /> <BR />We have a huge body of work to do to build confidence through how we engage. We will come at this with an eight-week consultation period and 12 weeks for the equality impact screening. We will also go out to engage in person, and we will encourage all Ministers to do likewise.”
“I know that the Member had a chance to look through the document only briefly before the session, but he will see from it that we will publish annual reports, we will be able to be measured against what we have set out to achieve, we will mark our progress under each mission — whether it is "People", "Planet" or "Prosperity" — in terms of "Peace", and, once we have the final Programme for Government, there will be a set of outcomes and indicators alongside it. All of society will be able to judge how successful the Executive have been.”
“It is not just the Department of Health's responsibility; all Executive colleagues are now committed to working together to ensure that we bring down hospital waiting lists. <BR /> <BR />At the end of the day, the Programme for Government has to be about making a difference in people's lives. I am confident that we have the plan to turn things around. I am confident that the whole Executive are committed to transformation. I am also confident that we can be judged along the way, when we have the final Programme for Government and our well-being framework.”
“I hope that the leader of the Opposition will continue in his constructive approach and engage with the draft Programme for Government that was published today. I am pleased that we have reached this point, that it is an ambitious and focused programme, that everyone in society will now get a chance to shape it into the final document and that, alongside the final document, we will be able to judge our success by how we measure the outcome. I am delighted that we are absolutely committed to being open and transparent about the progress that we will make. <BR /> <BR />Nobody in the Chamber underestimates the scale of the challenge in our health service, but the best way to fix it is to work together.”
“Working with every person who has been elected to the House, I am determined to do everything that I can to build that better society, to choose hope over fear and to ensure that every child here has the best opportunity to flourish. We say no to this malevolent, violent activity, and we say no to racism. Let that be the only message that flows from the Chamber today.”
“<BR /> <BR />I started by speaking to those who are involved in criminal activity and in violence and intimidation, so let me finish by speaking to those people from an ethnic minority background who have been impacted on by the events of recent days, and not just recent days, as it is an underbelly in our society that we need to tackle. We say to you that your political leaders say no to racism. We say to you that your political leaders say no to intolerance and hate. We say yes to an inclusive society and yes to diversity. We say to you that you are our brothers and our sisters. We say to you that you are our community. We say to you that we are one community.”
“People are looking to all of us in the Chamber for political leadership, and I know that Members want to provide that leadership, but we have to speak out and confront hate. We must challenge the lies that fuel this type of activity. We have to challenge them and make it abundantly clear that there is no tolerance of racism, hate, discrimination, intimidation, violence or criminality. <BR /> <BR />This afternoon, I have covered some of the policy issues to which the motion refers. I could go into a lot more detail, but, for me, today is about sending a strong message. It is about a clarity of message coming from this elected body. It is about our sending that very strong message today, in an unequivocal way, that we reject racism.”
“<BR /> <BR />All that work is best delivered through effective and properly resourced public services. As I said, we are acutely aware of the underfunding situation when it comes to our public services, and we are committed to doing all that we can. Our Finance Minister, Caoimhe Archibald, is making the case for that fair funding model to the Treasury and will continue to do so. <BR /> <BR />We will, of course, continue all our efforts across government and in wider society to tackle racism and inequality in all their forms, which have been brought into sharp focus over the course of recent days.”
“We will continue to work with the PSNI to achieve a better funding model for the Police Service, as we will for our health and education systems and all our public services. <BR /> <BR />People who have been displaced represent some of the most vulnerable in our society. We all have a responsibility to challenge prejudice and intimidation wherever we see it. People who are seeking protection make significant contributions to our society. We should value that. I certainly value that. We value that. Those people bring with them a rich diversity of culture, along with new ideas and approaches. Diversity will always have that strength. The publication of a refugee integration strategy therefore remains a priority for us in order to establish a clear framework through which we can collectively and successfully support two-way integration.”
“<BR /> <BR />I acknowledge the work of the PSNI and other bodies during the unrest, and I reaffirm our commitment to work together to deliver a shared, peaceful and inclusive society. We are acutely aware of the resources issue that the Justice Minister mentioned. All our public services have been decimated by 14 years of Tory austerity. We are fighting back against that, and we want the new Labour Government to turn the tide on the austerity agenda of the past 14 years. We need properly funded public services. The Chief Constable was at the Executive meeting this morning. We talked about the situation that is unfolding. We also talked about the shared priority to tackle and push back against racism and to take a zero tolerance approach to intimidation and violence and push that back.”
“In addition to our racial equality strategy, the Together: Building a United Community (T:BUC) strategy represents our commitment to building a truly shared and united society, regardless of people's political, religious or ethnic backgrounds. As recent events have highlighted, much more work needs to be done. <BR /> <BR />We are also very conscious of the fact that the fabric of society has changed since the launch of the T:BUC strategy way back when. On that basis, we have asked our officials to conduct a review of the strategy, including how to ensure that it meets the needs of our society, given its current make-up, and that it is a truly inclusive strategy for everybody who calls this place home, because in that will be the success of it.”
“It moves us a step forward, closer to a more equal and safe society. While it will remain a key priority to deliver fully the current racial equality strategy, it is so important that we get the post-2025 strategy right and — this is why I concur with the motion — bring it forward as quickly as we can. <BR /> <BR />The Executive also recognise the need to work collaboratively, including with the racial equality subgroup, thematic groups and the wider minority ethnic community and sector to ensure that we have inclusive processes, that we have the conversations and that we develop how we move forward together. Officials are already engaging on that in anticipation of the expiration of the current strategy.”
“<BR /> <BR />Under the racial equality strategy, a subgroup was established to function as a strong voice within government on issues specifically affecting minority ethnic people, migrants and race relations. The subgroup has a significant role to play in supporting the delivery of the current priorities and, crucially, steering where we go and developing future priorities. <BR /> <BR />We need to provide — I think that the Chair of the Committee for the Executive Office mentioned this — the best possible legal protection that we can to stand against racism and highlight that that was one of the key actions of the strategy itself. We have completed the public consultation, and the report on that, which was published this week, will inform how we move forward and what the next legislative change will look like.”