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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“That shows the level of challenge that the Executive will face in trying to fund the scheme, which is why we need the British Government to fund a scheme that they brought forward policy for and took policy decisions on.”
“The victims' payment scheme was designed in Westminster, and policy decisions on the scheme were taken there. The British Government have significantly increased the costs, so, consistent with their statement of funding policy, they also ought to have made provision for the finances that are required. The cost of the scheme when it was initially pitched and the costs today are vastly different. We have now received a report from the Government Actuary's Department, which has used assumptions about numbers provided by TEO for a range of cost estimates, ranging from £600 million at one end of the spectrum to £1·2 billion at the other end, with a central estimate of about £848 million.”
“As I said in a previous answer, we have been asking for this meeting with Brandon Lewis since, I think, last October, and we will have that meeting tomorrow, but it is really important that there is an outcome and that we have a chance to have a real conversation about the funding of the scheme.”
“I am always conscious, when I speak about this matter, that victims who need the pension are listening to the debate. Let me speak directly to them: the Executive are absolutely committed to delivering on the scheme. However, how the scheme is resourced is a political question, and it is one that needs urgent focus from the British Government and, in particular, Brandon Lewis. It requires an immediate political solution because, as I said, victims have had to wait for far too long. I appreciate that the needs of victims who are waiting for the pension are immediate and need to be addressed without further delay.”
“I assure the Member that our focus and attention are on getting the scheme up and running, the applications in and the payments made. That is why we need to have the engagement with the Secretary of State tomorrow. It will involve a group of Ministers including us from the Executive Office and the Finance and Justice Ministers. It is important that we have that meeting, because we have been waiting for it for five months. It is really important that we have that discussion. Alongside that, the Finance Minister will, of course, on behalf of the Executive, continue to engage with the Treasury on the funding of the scheme.”
“I thank the Member for her question. It is our intention to get the scheme up and running and the payments out the door as quickly as possible. Those people have waited far too long to get to this point. As the Member will know, the court ruling made it clear that we had to fund the scheme, but we believe that the scheme is so different from what was agreed in the Stormont House Agreement. Under the British Government's own funding policy, they must fund what they have legislated for. We hope that we will make some progress in the meeting with the Secretary of State tomorrow.”
“Progress to date includes the ongoing development of an online system to receive applications, the appointment of an interim Victims' Payments Board, the appointment by the DOJ of an assessment service provider and the securing of accommodation for staff who will deliver the scheme. Mr Justice McAlinden has been appointed as interim president of the Victims' Payments Board. The proposed allocation of funding in the draft Budget would provide £6·7 million in 2021-22 for the administrative costs of the scheme, which demonstrates the Executive's commitment to delivery. Part of that funding will enable the victims and survivors sector to recruit additional staff to support applicants.”
“Following our request for an urgent meeting with him to address the matter, the Secretary of State has now agreed to that meeting, which will take place tomorrow, 23 February. It remains our firm view that the scheme should be funded by the Westminster Government as an addition to the block grant. Without that additional funding, the Executive will face significant funding pressures. We will continue to make that case directly. <BR /> <BR />Such discussions will not prevent TEO, in the meantime, from making the necessary requests for funding from the Department of Finance as it falls due. The £2·5 million advance from the Executive has enabled the establishment of a dedicated project team in the Department of Justice to progress the development of delivery structures for the scheme. A substantial programme of work is under way.”
“With your permission again, a Cheann Comhairle, I will answers questions 5, 6 and 10 together. <BR /> <BR />On 9 February 2021,the Court of Appeal ruled that the Executive Office is under a legal duty to fund victims' payments and lump sums under the Victims' Payments Regulations 2020. The ruling gave the Executive and the NIO four weeks to find an agreed solution. The First Minister and I remain entirely committed to delivering the scheme, and the Executive Office acknowledges that it needs to be funded to operate properly. Along with the Justice and Finance Ministers, the First Minister and I are engaged in correspondence with the Secretary of State in relation to funding.”
“With your permission, a Cheann Comhairle, junior Minister Kearney will respond to that question.”
“First, I disassociate myself completely from your language. Secondly, what happened on the EU side, when they indicated that they were going to trigger article 16, was wrong. I have said that publicly. It was wrong, but you do not fight fire with fire. You do not fight back and say, "Well, you know, they threw their dummy out of the pram, so let's do it too". Let us find solutions. Let us find solutions to the Brexit that has been foisted upon us by the Tories and that your party supported.”
“We continually raise a whole list of issues to try to get clarity on them. I welcome the fact that there has been progress, but there is definitely more to be done. Our job should be to continue to find the solutions.”
“We are dealing with a post-Brexit world. The Executive have no option other than to work together. Everybody needs to be focused in the same direction, and that is to iron out the issues that need to be resolved. There are issues that are a direct result of the new trading reality. There are issues that are a direct result of the fact that, as I said, the deal was not struck until it came right down to the wire, so people have not had time to adjust. Of course, there will be issues, and they are genuine issues, particularly from a business point of view, so let us get a resolution to those. I look forward to the Joint Committee on Wednesday. That will give us an opportunity to try to, hopefully, get some outcomes. A number of issues have been resolved. Some clarity was given on the issue of steel, for example.”
“Let us look towards the opportunities for the future, and let us ensure that we grab all those opportunities and that we help to create jobs and employment here and help our local industry. There are new trading realities and patterns, so there are opportunities now for smaller businesses here that traditionally could not supply, for example, some of the big supermarkets. How can we support them to make sure that they can do that? That is where our efforts need to be focused. It is around stability and certainty. It is not around playing games with the protocol that was agreed over the course of four years.”
“My personal view is this: thank goodness for the protocol. What we are experiencing right now is a result of the fact that the British Government did not prepare. They did not work with businesses to ensure that they were ready for a post-Brexit world. They ran the clock down to 31 December, so there was no opportunity to transition into a new trading arrangement. We are dealing with a new trading reality as a direct result of Brexit. What the Executive and the Assembly need to focus on is ironing out the difficulties that have arisen as a direct result of Brexit and working with the British Government and the EU side to make sure that we get solutions to those things.”
“What we are experiencing is a direct consequence of the Brexit that the Member championed and helped to bring about. What we need to do now is find solutions to the outstanding issues. I want to see free trade right across: North/South and east-west. I do not want to see any disruption to trade. It is to our economic benefit that trade flows freely. Instead of playing silly games, our focus needs to be on what provides certainty to businesses, traders and retailers and what gives stability and simplification. Let us use the avenues open to us in the withdrawal agreement, namely through the Joint Committee. I welcome the fact that it will meet, I believe, before Wednesday. I hope that the joint First Minister and I will be in that meeting so that we have an opportunity to put across the need for stability, certainty and simplification.”
“I thank the Member for her question. It is an opportunity for us to work to develop an overarching economic strategy. That will take all of the Executive working together across every Department. It will come as no surprise to the Member to hear me say that the disruption and difficulties that we are experiencing are a direct consequence of Brexit — a Brexit that was rejected by the majority of people across this community and the majority of Members of the House. That is my view. Our collective focus, as an Executive and across the Assembly, must now be to protect jobs and livelihoods. We need to have the Joint Committee providing solutions on issues. Let us all work together to provide solutions. Those are the opportunities before us.”
“It is important that we maximise the benefits that we have and that we work with the business community, traders, retailers and everybody else. We must try to get certainty on the issues that require certainty and then look for the opportunities.”
“I agree with the Member about the opportunity that we have. We have access to both markets, which is a strength in our ability to trade that is the envy of many others. We need to work on our access to 450 million people in the EU market. I said in my original answer that work is under way with the Department for the Economy, Invest NI and InterTradeIreland. It is important that they work together, and with all sectors, to identify the markets and work on the opportunities. We need to see more of that. We need to use our unique position to attract jobs and investment. There is a huge opportunity for us. We need to see the dedicated economic strategy from the Department for the Economy. I know that the House will discuss economic strategy today and tomorrow, and I look forward to that.”
“Thankfully, we have a protocol that offers a solution to what is a huge problem.”
“I can confirm to the Member that the vice president of the Commission listened intently to what was said in the meeting. Further to that, as you will know, he held a series of meetings towards the end of last week with business leaders and civic society leaders here to listen to people's concerns. I welcome the fact that the EU side and the British Government have recognised the need to implement the protocol, iron out all the issues that have been identified and find solutions. Everybody's efforts right now should be on trying to find solutions to give businesses the clarity, stability and certainty that they crave for the months ahead about what future trading patterns will look like for them. What we are dealing with now is the outworking of Brexit. There were always going to be major ramifications from Brexit.”
“<BR /> <BR />The Department for the Economy, alongside Invest NI (INI) and InterTradeIreland (ITI), is continuing to engage with many sectors to clarify the terms of access to the different markets and to encourage and enable export growth that could help drive our economic recovery.”
“That commitment to finding solutions is very welcome. I am pleased that it was reiterated in the joint statement from the European Commission and the British Government following a further meeting on 11 February. The First Minister and I continue to attend meetings of the Joint Committee. We will use its structures to ensure that our position is understood and to seek the best outcome for our citizens and businesses. Concurrent with those ongoing discussions, we continue to work to identify, assess and seek to resolve immediate operational issues associated with the end of the transition period.”
“With your permission, a Cheann Comhairle, I will take questions 1, 2 and 3 together. <BR /> <BR />Following the EU's triggering of article 16 on 29 January, the First Minister and I requested a meeting with the European Commission vice president Maroš Šefcovic. The meeting took place on 3 February, and we apprised him of the current situation regarding the implementation of the protocol and its impact here. The meeting was constructive and led to an agreement to work together to address the remaining protocol issues. Following the meeting, the European Commission and the British Government released a joint statement confirming their commitment to the Good Friday Agreement and their agreement to use the Joint Committee structures to work intensively to find solutions to outstanding issues.”
“Yes. I agree with the comments about how amazing healthcare staff have been throughout. In general, they are always amazing, but what they have done throughout the pandemic has been immense. The pressure that they are under must be immense. None of us can imagine being in that situation, day and daily, in the circumstances in which they are having to work. If the Executive could make a one-off thank you payment, that is absolutely what we should do. I am glad to say that that is something that the Executive will discuss. The Finance Minister is urging the Department of Health to come forward to bid for that, and I hope that we can get a positive resolution to it.”
“My only priority throughout the pandemic has been to save lives, keep people safe and protect the health service. We are in a hugely difficult position right now. Therefore it is important that we support the healthcare staff who are there, day and daily, stretched to the limit and doing a great job on behalf of all of us who may at some stage need the health service. Therefore, I commend all the health service staff for the work that they are doing.”
“All trade unions have a legitimate right to ask questions on behalf of their members; they would not be doing their job if they did not. Their job is to question the working conditions and practices of their members in any scenario. As has been well rehearsed, the Health Minister made a request for staffing support from the British Ministry of Defence, and our priority the whole way through this has been to keep people safe, save lives and to protect the health service, so no measure was ruled out. The health service made the request, and it has now been met. That is a matter of fact.”
“The best approach would be on a North/South and east-west basis. Travel into here from Britain is an issue that the Executive have grappled with on many occasions. That is not to be political about the issue. I think that the best way for us all to deal with it is to work together across the two islands, and I made that clear to the Taoiseach today. It needs to be a political solution at a Taoiseach to Prime Minister level, and if we can get a political solution, we can all walk through that space.”
“I do not know the exact length of time, but it has been some time. It is really important that we share that information. I made that point again to the Taoiseach. I have made it at every engagement that we have had at Taoiseach to joint First Minister level and at the meetings between the Health Ministers. I am glad to say that we will have a meeting — I believe that it is a rescheduled meeting from last week that will happen this week — involving the Health Ministers across this island, the First Ministers, Minister Simon Coveney and Brandon Lewis. The issue of travel will be discussed. The Taoiseach indicated today that he believes that there will be a resolution to the issue. I hope that that is the case.”
“Again, it is my personal view, but I think that we would be in a far better situation today if there had been more cooperation across these two islands from the very onset of the pandemic. It would have served all the people much better. We have called continually for more cooperation across this island and across the two islands. In fact, TEO has called for a meeting of the British-Irish Council. That will be important. Now is the time to have that conversation. It is time to act collectively if we are to get the R rate down again. I would much prefer that we did that across the two islands, particularly when it comes to the issue of travel.”
“I hope that tomorrow, at the Executive meeting, the Health Minister will be able to bring us up to date with where we are on this, because it is really important, again, that we communicate that to the public and that people understand the current situation and exactly what Health is doing to respond to it.”
“He made it very clear that his comments were not about taking a swipe at anybody but were in recognition of the fact that there is an anomaly, which is that the new variant has been identified as spreading far more rapidly in the Twenty-six Counties — the South of Ireland — and it does not seem to be the case here. That anomaly needs to be resolved. We live on an island. The virus has spread with the same pattern the whole way through the pandemic. I cannot see how the new variant is behaving any differently. <BR /> <BR />Needless to say, what we need is proper identification of the variant. We need to know where it is and how to deal with it. We need to know that it will respond to the vaccine.”
“First, let me say that, yes, it is recognised that genome testing in Britain is somewhat advanced compared with what happens in other parts of the world. That is a good thing. However, it is also clear that we have more to do here with regard to our own testing. Clearly, some of the commentary that we have seen this morning from the various experts who are involved in testing here has identified the need to expand that testing. <BR /> <BR />You were not in the Chamber earlier when I mentioned that I had spoken to the Taoiseach before we came here for Question Time today.”
“Again, because of the sensitivity of the issue, I want to say that all our hearts break for Fiona Donohoe on the loss of her wee baby boy. His loss has certainly touched everybody. We all need to work together. I absolutely encourage anybody who has information to please bring it forward to help the PSNI in its inquiry. Not that Fiona will ever find peace with the loss of her baby, but she certainly needs to have all the answers, and we certainly need to do whatever we can to support both the family and the PSNI in its investigation to ensure that everything is uncovered. I hope that we get to a point in the near future where Fiona gets the answers that she rightly seeks.”
“I have met the Donohoe family and continue to engage with them. They have my full support in getting truth and justice around what happened to Noah. Any mummy in the position that Fiona is in today, not having answers about what happened to her wee boy, could not fail to be heartbroken. We will all do everything that we can, as we should, to ensure that every piece of information is uncovered and that Fiona gets the answers that she needs.”
“Unfortunately, the outworkings of Brexit are being laid bare for all to see. As part of my answer to a previous question, I said that there are a number of issues that need to be resolved at both EU and British Government level. We will certainly play our part in raising the issues that need to need to be ironed out. I am glad to see that there have been solutions to some of them. Other issues are still outstanding, but hopefully we will see a resolution of those also.”
“I support the protocol in its entirety being implemented, and that is also the role and responsibility of the Executive. The withdrawal agreement is an international agreement, and the protocol provides protections for us. There were some teething issues with food in the early weeks of January, but, in the main, that situation has been resolved, and I very much welcome that. We are also very clear that the reason for that was that the businesses at the British end were not ready to trade because of the lateness of the deal, which meant, unfortunately, that they were not in the place that they should have been. I am glad to say that there has been a lot of resolution of the food supply issue.”
“The Member might be aware that I am on the public record as saying that the Health Department should pay student nurses. I also believe that there are opportunities to pay nurses in their final year of clinical placement. I therefore very much urge the Health Minister to take that on board. There are again huge financial conversations for the Executive to have over the next number of days, particularly as we come towards the end of the financial year, but I am certainly on record as having said that student nurses should be paid. I hope that there is a good, positive outcome for those student nurses who have been on the front line during the pandemic and have been supporting the health service at a very trying time.”
“I thank the Member for his question. He will remember from that Ad Hoc Committee meeting that I responded to him and said that I fully supported the need for us to support our students, who find themselves in a very difficult situation this year, not least because they paid tuition fees and are not there in person. They have committed themselves to rent agreements but are not able to be in their accommodation either. <BR /> <BR />I have listened very carefully to students and engage with them on an ongoing basis. One of the things that the Executive have discussed is what else we can do to support students, particularly before the end of the financial year when we have some extra resource. We look forward to that conversation continuing, but I do not think that anybody is dismissing the fact that we need to support our students right now.”
“<BR /> <BR />In the meantime, we recognise that continuity is important for victims and survivors, so we have ensured that interim arrangements are in place in the commission to allow the provision of continued support for victims and survivors. The Victims and Survivors Service will continue to deliver its services to victims and survivors, which are tailored to individual needs.”
“The First Minister and I have asked for a review of the Commission for Victims and Survivors to be undertaken and are considering its terms of reference. The review will consider areas such as how the commission's services should be delivered and what structure is best suited to delivering responsive, focused, efficient and quality services. In tandem, our officials are preparing the comprehensive documentation required to begin the recruitment process for a new Commissioner for Victims and Survivors. That will be submitted to us for consideration by the end of January to allow us to progress to the next stage of the recruitment exercise.”
“A Cheann Comhairle, with your permission, I will ask junior Minister Kearney to respond to the question.”
“The Executive and I think that that is the way to go to try to communicate a bit better with the public.”
“My point was that it was a useful tool to allow people to chart the progress that would take us out of the current restrictions. We will need to ease our way out. It is clear that there will be no big bang and we will not wake up one day and decide that the Executive can relax all the restrictions. <BR /> <BR />The reference to last year's document was merely to say, "Here is what it will look like". That will also be a communication tool for the public, because they need to be able to understand exactly what that will look like. It will be difficult. As we know from previous waves, reversing restrictions is always more difficult than bringing them in. Each sector will fight its case, and that is natural. We absolutely understand that, and our communication with the sectors will be really important.”
“Work on each of those areas is being led by the permanent secretaries of the Health, Economy, Communities and Justice Departments and the head of the Executive Information Service (EIS), each of whom sits on the strategic oversight board. <BR /> <BR />Over the next four to eight weeks, the task force's priorities will include the ongoing focus on the vaccination programme and developing the pathway to recovery that I spoke about, which will provide a road out of the current restrictions. It is about looking at ways of increasing adherence to the public health guidance and regulations and enhancing the Executive's strategic communications capacity. It is vital that we reach people to advise them of what happens next.”
“I thank the Member for his question. I touched on it briefly. Given the extent and surge of the current phase, we recognised the need for a broader plan. The task force has been established, and it is a necessary step change in the Executive's response to the evolving nature of the pandemic. It will lead and coordinate the integrated programme of work and the response to and recovery from the pandemic. It is led by the interim head of the Civil Service (HOCS), who has convened a strategic oversight board that meets regularly. As I said, there are four work streams: protect, recovery, adherence and strategic communications.”
“First, I remind the Member that his party has a Minister in the Executive and that it is a collective Executive effort. The Executive, as a whole, have discussed the issue of recovery and how we will move forward. We now have a task force that will focus on the four different elements, whether it is strategic communications or recovery as a whole. That will need all our efforts and not just the efforts of one or, indeed, two Departments. <BR /> <BR />I assure you that the Finance Minister has written to all Ministers, including your Minister, to ask them to bid for some of the money that is left and that should hopefully be spent before the end of the year. It is certainly our collective will that all the money will be spent to invest in people in what are the most challenging of times.”
“I have actually called for a two-island approach; that is what we should be doing here. Any issue in the North on which the two Governments diverge becomes an orange and green issue. Travel is not an issue of that nature. It is an issue of dealing with a public health pandemic, which we need to respond to collectively across these islands.”
“I will say a number of things on that. The approach to travel here could be much better. That is my personal view on the issue of travel. You referred to travel locator forms. I spoke with the Taoiseach just an hour ago, and we discussed his commentary at the weekend. I am hopeful that there will be a resolution to the issue of the travel locator forms and that that data will be shared. I also see that there is a conversation under way in the South and in Britain around the mandatory quarantining of people arriving. That absolutely needs to be looked at. <BR /> <BR />I look forward to the conversation at the Executive tomorrow, when we can, I hope, discuss the issue of travel again. It is very clear that we need to have an all-island approach to travel.”
“We hope to get to that point again in the coming weeks to allow us to communicate to the public, "This is what recovery could look like". However, in tandem, we still need to have the restrictions in place. Last week, the Executive discussed the current restrictions and deemed them to be necessary for a further period. The Health Minister also pointed out that they may be necessary beyond the period that we outlined, perhaps even as far as Easter. We say that to forewarn people, however we will not keep restrictions in place for longer than is necessary. As of today, we are still in a desperate situation. As of today, we need the public to work with us. We hope that, over a number of weeks, we will be able to publish a pathway to recovery.”