Jonathan Bell
Strangford · Democratic Unionist Party · Northern Ireland
“I did so because terminally ill children were being prevented from getting a hospital place in my area. While attempts were being made to prevent me from coming to the Public Accounts Committee, a terminally ill child was told, after being seen by doctors, that they could not have a hospital place and that, if they needed one, they would…”
“The permanent secretary replied "No" and said that everybody would recognise that every government worked by and on collective responsibility. <BR /> <BR />We are in a mess, and somebody has to shine a light on that mess. It fell to me, and I do not know why. I did not seek it, nor did I want it. I did not want to do it.”
“Let me conclude, Mr Principal Deputy Speaker. The regulations are necessary because of the extreme mess that we have found ourselves in. The points that I made when I had to shine a light on this devastating situation were not made in December. The points were made in writing to the then First Minister in March 2016.”
“The permanent secretary replied, "Well, that is right". <BR /> <BR />There were no regulations on the table when I spoke out. There was no suggestion that we could reduce to zero or even significantly reduce the costs, and we had no legal procedure, that I was aware of, that we could have followed.”
“But I cannot speak authoritatively because, even after the Public Accounts Committee meeting, when I asked the permanent secretary last week whether I could come and see the information that, I believe, legally should be made available to me, I got no reply. Nothing.”
“The second objective that I wanted to achieve was to stop the haemorrhage of public funds. Let us not pretend that the money is still to be spent: tens of millions of pounds of taxpayers' money has already been spent — £85,000 a day, day by day, as we go along.”
The complete record
Every one of 1,174 lines we hold for Jonathan Bell, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 10 of 24.
“Essentially, all complaints about estate agents under the 1979 Act were investigated and assessed by trading standards departments, who referred the most serious complaints to the OFT to consider, with a view to warning or banning an estate agent. In 2007 the OFT was given additional responsibilities following the amendment of the 1979 Act by the passing of the Consumer, Estate Agents and Redress Act 2007. These amendments gave the OFT powers to approve consumer redress schemes for complaints concerning estate agents, and the power to require estate agents to join such a redress scheme. <BR /> <BR />In 2011 the UK Government consulted on proposals to reform the consumer protection landscape in Great Britain.”
“The 1979 Act is largely limited to regulating the activities of estate agents in selling property on behalf of their clients. When it was enacted, the then Office of Fair Trading — the OFT, as it was commonly known — had certain responsibilities under the 1979 Act, most notably the power to ban unfit persons from carrying out estate agency work. <BR /> <BR />The 1979 Act also contained other enforcement responsibilities that were carried out by local authority trading standards departments within their respective areas in Great Britain and by my Department in Northern Ireland. The responsibilities falling to trading standards departments include requirements relating to the handling of clients’ moneys, and ensuring that requirements to provide vendors with certain information are complied with.”
“The Housing and Planning Bill was introduced in Parliament on 13 October 2015 by the Department for Communities and Local Government. The overall purpose of the Bill is to make changes to the law in England and Wales concerning housing, rent charges, planning and compulsory purchase. In addition, the Bill was considered to be a suitable legislative vehicle to introduce changes that the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills considered necessary to make to the UK-wide Estate Agents Act 1979, which I will refer to as the 1979 Act. These changes relate only to the 1979 Act’s enforcement responsibilities. <BR /> <BR />Before outlining these changes, I will give a brief history of these enforcement responsibilities and provide some information on the scope of the 1979 Act’s provisions.”
“On a point of order, Mr Speaker. The latest unemployment statistics given to me were 6% in Northern Ireland, 8·9% in the Republic of Ireland and a European Union average of 9·3%. I thought that the difference between six and nine was three.”
“Give the people of Northern Ireland the best information, let them examine it against the reforms that the Prime Minister brings back and let them decide how to vote on the basis of facts. That is the most sensible and intelligent way to proceed.”
“Earlier, I said to the Member, in words as strong as I can use in the House, that I do not believe, as my parliamentary leader and our Member of the European Parliament said, that the status quo is an option. <BR /> <BR />We have to see what the Prime Minister achieves in the negotiations. It would be foolish and would not serve the people of Northern Ireland well if we made decisions when we do not know what the UK Prime Minister has negotiated. At the end of the day, it will be the decision of the people of Northern Ireland. They will look at the economic advice and at all the different models — the Norwegian, Swiss, Turkish and other models that could be followed — to get the best information on staying in or coming out.”
“Equally, I have been advised that, were we to come out, there is the potential for new trade agreements. The volume of trade between the EU and the UK is so significant that new trade arrangements could be put in place, and there is the possibility that we could look towards other markets in Asia, and specifically at things that we could do there that we cannot do now. <BR /> <BR />I say to the Member that the best thing that anybody in Northern Ireland can do is to take the most informed decision that they possibly can. That is why we have commissioned work from Oxford Economics to look at what a Brexit could mean and what the status quo could mean.”
“We do not know. Through you, Mr Principal Deputy Speaker, we have not been given the terms of the referendum question. Will it simply ask whether we wish to leave the European Union? In that case, I imagine that the Member will say yes. However, if the question is whether we wish to remain in the European Union, I imagine that the answer from the Member will be no. In the absence of knowing the exact nature of the question, it is a very, very foolish person who answers it. <BR /> <BR />As I have said, there are concerns — some businesses, including international businesses, have reflected them to me — about how, were the UK to come out of the European Union, the potential loss of a market of some 500 million people would impact jobs and investment.”
“The business plan is set to be approved at the next meeting of the North/South Ministerial Council, and I am advised that no expenditure reflects what the Member says. There is no unlawful expenditure. <BR /> <BR />I say to the Member, too, that it is easy to make a point — he is a learned QC — about coming off the fence. As I stand here today, we do not know what the referendum question is.”
“Yes, I can assure the House that we have the maximum drawdown. All my information to date is that we are on course to meet all the targets that we have set ourselves, but I will continue to keep those targets under effective scrutiny, monitoring and evaluation to ensure further success.”
“<BR /> <BR />If the Member is asking me to ensure that we maximise every opportunity and look at maximising every opportunity to harness the economic power across the two jurisdictions to deliver jobs and success, my answer is: absolutely.”
“<BR /> <BR />I will certainly talk to Invest Northern Ireland about ensuring, with the IDA, that all opportunities are maximised. Invest Northern Ireland has done an absolutely spectacular job. When we sat as an Executive, we set it an initial target of some 20,000 jobs. At the Programme for Government meeting in 2011, that was increased to 25,000, and, to date, it has delivered some 44,000 jobs. Before the Assembly is dissolved, I hope to make additional job announcements on the back of a programme that Invest NI has done. In many cases, it has done that in very difficult conditions against a backdrop of a falling euro, the strength of the dollar and everything else.”
“<BR /> <BR />Allstate said that it came to Northern Ireland for the costs but stayed for the people. Companies such as Citi came in with 369 jobs and has now created some 2,000 jobs. Here is another interesting fact: 80% of all foreign direct investment to Northern Ireland has subsequently reinvested. At Invest NI, we try to get those businesses to tell their story about why, when they come here, they subsequently reinvest. That foreign direct investment comes from companies such as Baker and McKenzie, Citigroup, Allen and Overy, Allstate — a whole list that created thousands of jobs. So we have the best foreign direct investment proposition; more foreign direct investment per head than any other part of the UK; the lowest costs; and now we can add corporation tax.”
“The Member is right: we have an enormous opportunity in that, on 1 April 2018, our corporation tax will be at 12·5%. We will be able to compete for business across the world, as I was competing for several businesses in San Francisco and New York in the past week. I hope to see fruit flow in jobs and investment from those, given that Northern Ireland now has a unique opportunity because our business costs are estimated to be 85% of those for the rest of the United Kingdom and about 95% of those in the Republic of Ireland. You can add to that the talent of our people, a very young population and the excellent work that the Department for Employment and Learning has undertaken in bespoke training and tailor-made initiatives to support business.”
“The best thing we can do is look very carefully at the expert evidence and see what the British Prime Minister brings back from his negotiations with the European Union. I believe that there needs to be change and that the status quo is not an option. We will look very carefully at what the British Prime Minister brings back and we will examine it against the best evidence we have in order to make an informed decision when we know what the referendum question, which is due before the end of 2017, is going to be. When we know the question and the plan, we will examine them against the evidence and give more definitive news then.”
“There are very important matters to consider when we look at the issue of Europe. My Department has sought to provide people with the most informed choice they can make in relation to Europe. We asked for the best advice that we could get; we asked Oxford Economics to give us specific advice — which will be available in the coming period — in relation to a potential exit from the European Union, the potential of the status quo, and the third potential, which we do not know about at the moment, which is whatever reforms could be given by the European Union to the British Prime Minister. We will have to look at those very carefully. <BR /> <BR />We have also asked to look at other models. There is the Norway model, the Swiss model, and the Turkish relationship in terms of customs union.”
“I will discuss specific proposals that Mr Cochrane-Watson may have, to see how we can get the trajectory of additional jobs, fewer people claiming unemployment benefit, and real earnings increases, particularly in the retail sector which, I agree, has not only valiantly supported Northern Ireland through very difficult economic conditions but continues to support the lifeblood of our town centres.”
“There are vital points to be made about rates, and the Member has made some of them. I will certainly have further discussions with him and also Minister Storey about how we can continue to support rate relief. What we have tried to do to keep rates low, through specific initiatives, has been one of the success stories of devolved government. If the Member has additional specific proposals that he wishes to make, I am willing to hear them and take them to the Minister of Finance and Personnel. <BR /> <BR />Overall, when we look at our economic conditions, we can genuinely say that there are signs of improvement. Almost 40,000 additional jobs have been created since 2012 and, today, more than 26,000 fewer people are claiming unemployment benefits than did so in February 2013. In 2015, real earnings increased for the first time since 2009.”
“I maintained that against other competing needs, and I said that — both myself and Mr Richard Bruton — where possible, we can bid for additional resources and probably need to put additional energy into monitoring rounds. At our first go at it, we had another £206,000 into the budget. Of course, it would be better to always give people money up front, so that they can plan for the period. Given the fact that I have maintained the budget as it was from the previous year, and sought successfully to get additional money into the budget, demonstrates not only ministerial endorsement of the programme but my encouragement for them to go ahead. I will not waste any opportunity, in terms of monitoring rounds, to try to get additional finance to get more jobs into Northern Ireland.”
“It is difficult to manage with a limited amount of resources, and when you get a plan coming through, the psychologist in me believes in B F Skinner's theory of classical conditioning: you should always try to reward good behaviour so that it is increased. In reality, the behaviour, industry and energy of InterTradeIreland in bringing jobs to Northern Ireland, securing jobs for Northern Ireland, bringing additional jobs to Northern Ireland and giving our graduates an enhanced programme, as well as its success rates, is very clearly something that I want to reward. So, I did not make the cut, as some proposals were made, to its 2015 budget.”
“What comes through clearly from the reports is that not only have hundreds of jobs that were potentially at risk been secured but new jobs and the promotion of potential further new jobs have been gained through this programme. My strategy is that anything that brings jobs to Northern Ireland will have my full and unequivocal support, and I accept the point that for this amount of money there is quite a high performance level. This is evidenced in the fact that I can give you examples where some 80% were successful, in the number of programmes that are going through and in the demand for the service. <BR /> <BR />There was big pressure on me, as Minister, and the Department. There are competing demands in the Department. Tourism will make a demand, as stated earlier.”
“That is the key focus for my Department, and we continue to liaise with our colleagues in DFP, SEUPB and the Republic of Ireland to this effect. <BR /> <BR />Calls for applications are being publicly announced and managed by the SEUPB, in its role as the programme managing authority. Following a call for projects under the "business investment in research and innovation" (R&I) priority, which closed on 21 October, successful applications were approved by the programme's steering committee at the end of November to proceed to full development of the business case. A call for projects under the "enhancing research and innovation" priority is scheduled to open on 22 February this year.”
“I welcome the allocation of €71 million to research and innovation activities in the 2014 to 2020 INTERREG Va programme. That investment will support increased cross-border research and development competence-building in the life and health science and renewable energy sectors. A further key objective is to grow the number of small to medium-sized enterprises across the region that engage in research and innovation activity on a cross-border, collaborative basis. <BR /> <BR />We want to establish and are establishing robust and comprehensive governance arrangements to underpin an efficient programme implementation.”
“In connection with that I am pleased to report, as I said to Mr Ó Muilleoir in response to a question for oral answer in recent weeks, that we were able to bid for £206,000 of additional money for 2016 as part of the January monitoring round. I am pleased to report that all parties, including the InterTradeIreland board and officials and the two co-sponsor Departments, have agreed to that additional funding. That gives an idea that I have not only maintained the budget from 2015, but, where there are specific programmes that deliver jobs and opportunities in Northern Ireland and help to take our businesses to new levels of sales, exports and graduate employment, I will do my level best to get funding where I can.”
“There was a staggering result from that programme, with over 80% of FUSION graduates being offered jobs. The point that you initially made about the work that is going ahead was well made and is endorsed by me. <BR /> <BR />The business plan for 2016 remains subject to approval. For 2016, I decided to maintain InterTradeIreland's 2015 baseline. That is a reasonable outcome, given the current budgetary pressures across the Department. I have discussed the matter in some detail with Richard Bruton TD, and, as with Tourism Ireland and other arm's-length bodies, I have advised InterTradeIreland that it can make bids as part of the monitoring round process.”
“Let me take the first part. I welcome the very positive commitment given to the work undertaken by InterTradeIreland. I will pull out some of the highlights of 2015 that I have seen. The Acumen programme stimulates cross-border business for SMEs. In 2015, there were 134 applications, resulting in 103 approvals. The Elevate programme was put together to focus on helping microenterprises to take the first steps in exporting and to explore opportunities in a new cross-border market. During 2015, the programme received 514 enquiries from SMEs and 139 applications, which resulted in 80 of those companies being approved for support. The FUSION programme is the flagship technology transfer programme that provides support to companies with new product or process development needs.”
“That will utilise the contact point networks in each jurisdiction to drive delivery of the €175 million target. The work by InterTradeIreland with Horizon 2020 applicants to identify further resubmission opportunities was also noted. <BR /> <BR />The Council agreed that the next trade and business development meeting should be held in the spring of 2016. I commend the statement to the Assembly.”
“They have secured €29·67 million in funding, and, of that total, Northern Ireland partners have secured €14·24 million and partners from Ireland have secured €15·43 million. The average award per partner is €463,500. <BR /> <BR />Ministers welcomed the wide range of activities organised by InterTradeIreland to encourage engagement to date. They included a total attendance of 486 participants at 'Focus on' events; the hosting of a range of conferences; the organisation of advisory service workshops; and the provision of financial assistance for scoping out partnerships and proposal opportunities. <BR /> <BR />Ministers also noted that InterTradeIreland had identified and will undertake additional promotional and awareness-raising activities in conjunction with the Horizon 2020 all-island steering group.”
“The Council noted InterTradeIreland’s annual report and accounts for 2014, which had been certified by the Comptrollers and Auditors General and laid before the Northern Ireland Assembly and the Houses of the Oireachtas. <BR /> <BR />Ministers received a presentation by officials from the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment and the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, previewing the implementation of the research and innovation theme of the new INTERREG Va programme for the period 2015-2020. <BR /> <BR />Ministers noted a paper prepared by InterTradeIreland providing an update on the Horizon 2020 programme and the early results for the period January 2014 to May 2015. Twenty-two collaborative projects, involving 64 applicants, have been successful to date.”
“Ministers were advised that there was strong demand for InterTradeIreland programmes in 2015. Business and economic research activities carried out by InterTradeIreland included continued production of the InterTradeIreland quarterly business monitor; a report on ‘SMEs, Credit Constraints and Growth', which is a cross-border study relating to access to finance; and, most recently, ‘Mapping the Potential for All-Island Sectoral Ecosystems’, which examines the opportunities for developing the potential of clusters across both jurisdictions. Ministers noted the current position of the 2016 business plan and that officials continued to engage in discussions on the plan.”
“Ministers noted that, during the first 10 months of 2015, InterTradeIreland had delivered the following: assistance to 65 first-time innovators; assistance to 44 first-time exporters; 4% efficiency savings; a total jobs impact of 916; and the delivery of a total business value of £67 million or €84 million.”
“Ministers received a joint presentation by the Northern Ireland Independent Retail Trade Association (NIIRTA) and Retail Excellence Ireland (REI) on their joint study of the retail sector across both jurisdictions. The Council noted the summary findings of the NIIRTA/REI joint 2014 survey of the retail sector, including that the two retail agencies intend to establish a retail forum comprising representatives from both jurisdictions. <BR /> <BR />The Council received a presentation from Martin Cronin, the Chairperson, and Thomas Hunter McGowan, the CEO, on InterTradeIreland’s performance and business activity against 2015 business plan targets.”
“You are not giving me a break this afternoon, Mr Speaker. <BR /> <BR />I wish to make a statement in compliance with section 52 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 regarding a meeting of the North/South Ministerial Council NSMC) in trade and business development sectoral format. The meeting was held in the offices of the North/South Ministerial Council, Armagh, on Wednesday 2 December 2015. The Executive were represented by me, in my capacity as Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment, and by Carál Ní Chuilín, Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure. The Irish Government were represented by Richard Bruton TD, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation. This statement has been agreed with Minister Ní Chuilín, and I am making it on behalf of us both.”
“The Larne to Cairnryan service operates year round, with up to seven daily sailings each week, and additional passenger capacity will be added to the service in the coming months. Tourism Ireland will continue to work with P&O Ferries and Stena Line to promote holidays to Northern Ireland via the Irish Sea routes, including the Cairnryan to Larne service.”
“The Member raises a very important point. The decision by P&O Ferries to cease operating its Troon to Larne service was and is disappointing. However, the ferry companies operating Irish Sea services are private commercial entities and, as such, decisions regarding the viability of specific routes are commercial matters for those companies. I can tell the House and the Member specifically that no jobs will be lost due to withdrawal of the Larne to Troon service, because the staff will be redeployed to other routes. <BR /> <BR />The Member raises a key point. The sea links with Great Britain are essential for business, for tourism and for the growth of the Northern Ireland economy. I and my predecessor, the First Minister, have met ferry operators on a number of occasions.”
“First of all, I want to congratulate the Northern Ireland Commonwealth Games Council (NICGC) on its winning bid for the 2021 Commonwealth Youth Games. It has significant potential in Belfast. It is an opportunity for our young athletes from the Commonwealth family to take part in international competition. It also offers spectators the chance to see the sports stars of the future in action. DETI officials, Tourism NI and the Commonwealth Games, with responsibility specifically for Belfast for Tourism NI, are working together to ensure that the necessary business case is in place. I am working on that business case specifically to see how the event can be hosted. There is a lot of work involved with the business case. I hope to see both Tourism NI and Tourism Ireland maximising the potential of the project.”
“To a certain extent, you have to say, "Look, you can't buy it here, but if you go 300 yards or 2 miles down the road, you can buy the product". There is a difficulty there, and the Executive have agreed to look at it. I think that we want the change to maximise the economic potential of Northern Ireland commensurate with our responsibilities on alcohol.”
“I know that both of our tourism bodies are looking to maximise the marketing opportunities that Howard has challenged us to look at, specifically through the use of some digital marketing. Tourism Ireland has specific expertise in the digital marketing sector. <BR /> <BR />With £100 million having gone into infrastructure and £30 million having gone into both tourism bodies, our tourism figures are up. We will certainly want to keep being challenged by the industry on specific areas that it thinks that we should put more money into. <BR /> <BR />I understand the specific position on the licensing laws. I understand the difficulties, particularly for craft breweries and distilleries where, if people are visiting, you can give them a bottle, but you cannot sell them one.”
“I will answer those points in order. I thank Dr Hastings for the work that he does. He regularly gives up time and comes in, almost as an official adviser, to some bodies of mine, and he has put in a huge amount of intelligence and energy and used a wonderful network from an earned reputation for excellence in tourism that the Hastings group has to help us going forward. I am not sure that there is a single Minister who has not been challenged to spend more in any particular area. The House will be aware that my Department has invested significantly in tourism in the last number of years. We have put over £100 million into the tourism infrastructure, and tourism budgets are still healthy. We have allocated £30 million to our two tourism bodies, and we need to be smart with the resources that are available.”
“So we are looking at what we can do, which is the air route development fund. I congratulate the Member's constituency and Graham Keddie and his team, and I want them to continue to challenge us. I want to be challenged, as long as people understand that I have to take that money out of the public finances somewhere along the line to justify it. I also have to justify it against expert advice that is saying to me that this is a weak financial tool. I will continue to work with all of our airports to maximise the potential that is coming through there, and I do believe that, in Tourism NI and Tourism Ireland, there is the willingness to do so.”
“I want the UK Government to address that and to deal with it and, ideally, to abolish it. I have to say that we do not seem to be getting a lot of traction back from the UK Government on that, but we will continue to press that case. <BR /> <BR />There then becomes an issue locally as to whether we take the financial hit and do it ourselves. As the Member knows, we commissioned the Northern Ireland Centre for Economic Policy at Ulster University, which informed us that it was a weak financial tool. An additional report was brought to us to challenge that, and we asked the expert economists to look at that additional report. Again, they came back to us and said that the cost to the public finances in Northern Ireland would be so high that it would be a weak economic tool.”
“We will be throwing our work fully behind that, and we are well supported by the likes of Brian O'Driscoll and other key ambassadors who have key influence in the rugby community. If I can use a pun, with Brian O'Driscoll and others, we will stand shoulder to shoulder, and let us hope that the selectors select Ireland for 2023 and we answer the call. <BR /> <BR />On access, funding is already provided via Tourism Ireland. It is working with the Northern Ireland airports to provide the cooperative marketing that is aimed at inbound tourism performance on new and existing routes. We will continue to look, with both airports, at how we can maximise the potential. There is a debate on this. I am pressing the UK Government on air passenger duty, and I do think that, as we have said, it does unfairly impact on Northern Ireland.”
“The First Minister and the deputy First Minister were recently at Kingspan to try to make sure that that bid goes ahead. The potential that we have is for hundreds of thousands coming here onto the island for up to eight World Cup games and a quarter final. Moreover, the fact that we could get key rugby international nations to base themselves here would be tremendous for spend, hotel beds and everything else.”
“I appreciate both points that the Member makes. In support for the Rugby World Cup bid, there is considerable work going on to ensure that it goes ahead. A director has been put in place, work is ongoing in progressing the bid, and both Administrations and agencies are fully behind it. We are trying to guide the bid preparation with an overview group, and we have set up interdepartmental groups in both jurisdictions. They have agreed the terms of reference for the groups, and Deloitte consultants will meet key government representatives to discuss several issues over the coming weeks. <BR /> <BR />There is real potential for a number of Rugby World Cup games. I met former Tánaiste Dick Spring in my offices in Netherleigh. I have been down to the Aviva.”
“I am thinking of key destinations such as Germany and Scandinavia, and city destinations such as Munich, Madrid and Milan. <BR /> <BR />The Northern Ireland fund has to meet the requirements not only of Northern Ireland but also of European Union state-aid rules. It is also under the constraints of whatever the Executive can afford. I will do all that I can to ensure that I can announce the way forward in respect of air route funding before the end of the financial year.”
“There is an important point to be made about air access. I congratulate both of our airports, which I notice have seen an increase in numbers. I also met City of Derry Airport about proposals that it has. We met in its boardroom and looked at what we can do there. I notice that Belfast City Airport and Belfast International Airport are reporting increased numbers of visitors and travellers, which shows that we are on the right trajectory. <BR /> <BR />The answer to your question is yes, we hope to get an air route development fund out within the financial year so that people could be aware of that. The purpose is to develop the connectivity, as the Member says, between business destinations and look at those inbound routes that have tourism potential.”
“I was in a packed hall — I mean packed — in New York, and there was a tremendous amount of energy and goodwill among dozens of tourism providers, who were all taking a specific interest in Northern Ireland and telling me of their specific plans not only for the Year of Food and Drink but for the Gobbins cliff path; the Causeway coastal route; Titanic Belfast; the huge success that we can offer in golf; the expansion of the Waterfront Hall to bring business tourism in; HMS Caroline coming online; and city breaks to Belfast and Londonderry. All that has a specific Northern Ireland standout, and I compliment the work that Tourism Ireland is doing to ensure that that standout gets as wide a market as possible.”
“To help Northern Ireland achieve its tourism potential, I have highlighted the importance of the market or the event lending itself to the potential visitor being able to see positive specific messaging about Northern Ireland. A great programme has been put together by Tourism Ireland across the United States on the Northern Ireland Year of Food and Drink.”
“I am pleased to see the work that Tourism Ireland has taken forward. It has set itself very ambitious targets for growth in 2016 from Great Britain and from all the main overseas markets. They have been set together in the 2016 business plan. I can reassure the Member that the targets have been set in the business plan and that it has been agreed. <BR /> <BR />Mr Dunne is absolutely right. Northern Ireland has a unique distinctiveness, and it has a very important role to play in attracting overseas visitors. We have stressed to Tourism Ireland — it accepts and understands the point — that one of my key priorities is to see standout specifically for Northern Ireland.”
“I have asked the groups that are working directly with our partners in Europe to look specifically at all the funds to ensure that we sweat all the assets to make sure that the trajectory of upward tourism numbers is supported by every resource that is available to us from the European Union.”