Paul Frew
North Antrim · Democratic Unionist Party · Northern Ireland
“I thank the Minister for that intervention. Nevertheless, there are concerns that I want to address. The Minister and the departmental officials will know that, even from the range of questions that I have asked. We need to make sure that we get the balance correct.”
“In the written and oral evidence received then, the Committee was advised of potential amendments that the Minister may table at Consideration Stage, including an amendment to remove the commissioner that is being considered in liaison with OLC.”
“That in itself causes some victims and witnesses bother, because they are in a system that they are not part of, which means that they do not get the support that they require. That can sometimes leave them feeling retraumatised, as though they have been put through the wringer again.”
“The Bill makes provision to offer those protections and provide clarity to victims that they do not have to face their perpetrator in court. <BR /> <BR />Members asked questions about a range of matters, including the independence of the office, the ability to review the performance of any future commissioner, the costs of establishing th…”
“I thank the Minister for her intervention. She was absolutely right to take that action, as it means that victims' voices are right at the heart of the matters under discussion. It is now obvious to us that that should have been done years ago, but it is good that it is being done now.”
“Officials explained that the Bill would legislate on the disclosure regime not to prevent an application for disclosure but to set out a process whereby the defence would have to show the relevance of the information that it was requesting. That is an important protection.”
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“Is the Member saying that it would be wrong to exclude from receiving a baby loss certificate a mother who has just lost her baby through abortion to protect her and save her own life?”
“I thank the Member for giving way. He has hit on a critical point. To be fair to the Member, it shows the intent of his amendment. Is it also the case that, in circumstances where, under the previous law, the mother's life was at risk and the baby was aborted to save the mother's life, parents can, if they wish, apply for and receive a baby loss certificate to mark and mourn the loss of that child?”
“I thank the Health Minister for that very honest answer, and I also applaud the fact that he has removed the public health Bill from the legislative programme. Minister, if it is wrong to have that Bill now, so soon after the atrocious decisions taken in the Department of Health during the COVID pandemic, why do you think that it will be right in 10 or 20 years' time?”
“— to a time in the Republic of Ireland that we do not want to see again.”
“It even harks back to the movement of a massive number of Protestant people who left what became the Republic of Ireland and ended up needing to go to England and gain support from the Government through schemes, because they were left homeless after being burned out of their homes. It was not only Protestants, mind you, but service people of all ilks who had served in the First World War. It echoes and harks back —”
“<BR /> <BR />The second thing that struck me was the negative campaigning. As a politician and a democrat, I am scared to think about the level of negative and untruthful campaigning that went on. The way in which that practice played out does not bode well for the future of democracy, especially Western democracies. You can always deny a fake news story or negative digital campaigning, but what you cannot deny about this election is the naked sectarianism that was on display against candidate Heather Humphreys. What that did for most unionists in Northern Ireland, I suggest, is reaffirm how the Irish Republic is no place to be comfortable in if you are a unionist or even a Protestant. It pains me to say that. It harks back to a time when the Republic of Ireland — look at its extradition policies — harboured terrorists.”
“First, I state categorically that the presidential election in the Republic of Ireland is for the people of the Republic of Ireland. As a democrat, I will always support using democratic means to support a head of state, no matter where that state may be in the world. We need to be champions of democracy in all its ilks and in all parts of the world. <BR /> <BR />Looking on during the election in the Republic of Ireland, I was struck by the fact that a number of things happened that had not happened in quite a while, one of which was the spoiled ballots, as has been mentioned. Thirteen per cent of ballots were spoiled. That must be a first in the history of the Republic of Ireland. That lends itself to a discontentment among the populace of the Irish Republic that politicians down there should look to and be mindful of.”
“Why do they not hand over the information that they know? Martin McGuinness had an opportunity to do so, but because of the IRA's code of silence, he refused to give innocent victims the truth about the tragedies and the murder of their loved ones. That is hypocritical nonsense from the parties opposite, and we should call it out when it happens.”
“We do not hear the facts about the innocent victims of the Teebane, Enniskillen, Omagh, Bloody Friday, Kingsmills and Regent's Park attacks and the Birmingham bombings. Why are the parties opposite not campaigning for justice for those families?”
“<BR /> <BR />On the streets of Northern Ireland at that time, fires were burning, and no one knew what the future held. The British Army served in that context in Northern Ireland, and we should not forget or shy away from that. The soldiers who served in Northern Ireland came from all over the British Isles and included those from the Royal Irish Rangers and the Ulster Defence Regiment, later the Royal Irish Regiment, who lived here and served their communities with distinction. Each one of them went out every day to protect all of us from terrorist fire, and all we hear is hypocrisy from the parties opposite, which have, no doubt, used the families of Bloody Sunday over the decades to suit their political goals and objectives and to try to rewrite history.”
“Thank you, Mr Speaker. I rise with a heart full of sensitivity and compassion for all the innocent victims of the Troubles, who never came home and left an empty chair in their households. It is with that compassion and sensitivity that I will speak today. <BR /> <BR />You could ask whether the soldiers were even supposed to be there on the day. That was a decision that was made by the Government of the day and the command of the army on the day. We are talking about putting an individual on trial, not a regiment or the British Army. We are talking about an individual, who, at a very young age and at the rank of lance corporal, was in charge of four soldiers who were part of a section of eight. He would have been trained for wartime conflict, not the restoration of civil peace.”
“Can the Minister provide any further detail on the right-to-rent scheme, and has he had any response from the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland or the Home Office since my question on that issue last week?”
“Groundwork NI, supported by the Public Health Agency, will continue to support the Men's Sheds in North Antrim, helping to build and grow the Men's Shed ethos and model to help others. Groundwork NI offers developmental training, funding and internal support to over 100 Men's Sheds in Northern Ireland.”
“They have established links with organisations and charities to bring further help and awareness on issues such as first aid courses and mental and emotional well-being sessions. <BR /> <BR />The Men's Sheds, supported by Groundwork NI, provide platforms to collaborate on activities that engage with nature, sports, festivals, heritage, arts and culture and, importantly, fun. It is also important to recognise that Men's Sheds have become vehicles for change in our society, promoting inclusivity and cross-community action that is often overlooked by us all. <BR /> <BR />Men's Sheds in North Antrim survive on the generosity of their members, community donations, small funding opportunities and charities to help them out.”
“<BR /> <BR />Some of the most successful Men's Sheds in the country are in the North Antrim constituency and include Harryville, Ballycastle, Cloughmills, Portglenone, Martinstown, Cullybackey and Ballymoney. They are all supported by Groundwork NI, which, whilst it is based in north Belfast, supports Men's Sheds across the country. Men's Sheds not only offer traditional, skills-based activities, such as woodwork, and now technically advanced processes, such as laser cutting, as demonstrated by Harryville Men's Shed, but the Men's Sheds in North Antrim have active community engagement programmes that reach directly into the community. They include promoting healthy living, organising health fairs, horticultural sessions and food-growing initiatives through the gardening projects and polytunnels.”
“Men's Sheds are community initiatives that positively impact on the health and well-being of their members, their families and the wider community in which they reside. Men's Sheds promote social connectivity among their members and give attention to physical and mental health. They are spaces in which to learn and share skills, and they provide environments to combat social isolation and loneliness. They are vital for the men who use them. <BR /> <BR />Men's Sheds are set up and run by volunteer members who support each other shoulder to shoulder and direct health information and personal development opportunities to the people who need them most. They provide significant social value and, by supporting one another, help to ease the burden and strain on the health service and other care systems and providers.”
“Will the First Minister then disown her party colleague for the words that she used?”
“I thank the Minister for that clarification. Is the Minister aware of any legislation that would allow the right-to-rent scheme to extend to Northern Ireland?”
“The consultation also focused on the current practices for whistle-blowing and current reporting mechanisms that exist across the health service. The online consultation sought to gain opinion on whether current whistle-blowing legislation protects the complainant adequately. Some 86 — 80% — of the 108 respondents believed that it did not and that further strengthening of the legislation was required. Furthermore, a follow-up question was asked to assess what people felt needed to change about the current legislation. Common themes to emerge in answers were accountability and protection for the complainant. That is what the Bill seeks to do.”
“Those were accompanied by a number of written responses that were received via post and email. The consultation process involved significant engagement with stakeholders, be it through in-person meetings, email or phone calls or in writing. Stakeholders have made a significant contribution to the development of the Bill. <BR /> <BR />The consultation responses were overwhelmingly supportive of the Bill proposal. Of the 111 online respondents, 104 — 94% — were in favour of an individual duty of candour. We also received positive responses from the Northern Ireland Public Services Ombudsman (NIPSO) and the New Script for Mental Health charity. The online consultation showed a vast amount of support for the Bill from victims and families of victims of malpractice or wrongdoing in the health service.”
“I place on record my appreciation for and gratitude to every individual and organisation who has spoken to and engaged with me on my private Member's Bill on individual duty of candour. I have met so many victims, so many healthcare staff members and so many organisational bodies that represent either healthcare staff or other people who have been victims of a lack of candour. <BR /> <BR />The e-consultation that I carried out, using Google Forms software, ran for 14 weeks. It was launched on 4 July and closed on at 5.00 pm on Friday 10 October. The e-consultation consisted of 25 questions: there was a mixture of multiple choice questions and various other questions that enabled people to respond freely with text. A total of 111 responses was recorded on the online consultation.”
“The Speaker is a champion of robust debate in the Chamber, as I am. No political party should seek to score political points in order to diminish our role as scrutinisers of this place, of Departments and of individual Ministers. That is what concerns me about what I have heard this morning from the two Members who have spoken. It is wrong to use that atrocious behaviour for a political point-scoring manoeuvre. I ask the Members who have spoken to consider their wording and remember that the Chamber that we sit in is the champion of democracy, and that there should be robust debate.”
“It is really important that the parties here do not use the atrocious behaviour of last week for political point-scoring. That is absolutely atrocious. Only last week, one of my colleagues had graffiti sprayed on his constituency office. That was not mentioned by this party. I was the victim of a libellous whispering campaign, also only last week. That was not mentioned in the Chamber. Why would I mention it? We all suffer the same activities. <BR /> <BR />Parties should be very careful not to exploit such atrocious actions for political point-scoring. Even today, when we have the opportunity to unite, we have had attack. That is horrific, and I will tell you why: it is the Chamber that should fill any void or vacuum. The Chamber is where we hold Ministers and politicians to account. The Chamber is where there must be robust debate.”
“I, too, condemn the intimidation that we all witnessed last week through not only the attack on Sinn Féin's constituency offices but the mob that turned up at a politician's private residence. Naomi and Michael Long have my sympathy, as do the Sinn Féin representatives. It is absolutely wrong to go to someone's sanctuary — their private family home. However, this is not the first time that it has happened. I recall when a mob surrounded the home of councillor Maurice Mills, a district policing partnership chairperson in Ballymena, way back in, I think, the late '90s. Sammy Brush is another person who comes to mind. No one has a monopoly on intimidation. Many unionist politicians from all ilks and parties have suffered intimidation.”
“Given the political nature of the events and the problems that we have with our public transport, does the Minister think that that is a wise spend of money?”
“I stand here today in solemn remembrance of all those who lost their lives in that atrocious terrorist attack and the war afterwards.”
“<BR /> <BR />I had the honour of visiting the Nova festival site six months after the atrocious attack. It was impactful for me, my experience and my world view to see all the young faces stand tall in remembrance and reflection, each one of them having lost their life. What struck me that day in that mournful scene was that, in each of the images of those who, I knew, had left the scene at that time, every face was smiling. Hamas took not only their lives but their dreams and hopes and not only their dreams and hopes but those of their families. Every day since then, there has been a missing person, an empty chair around a dining table and a member of the community lost who put in so much effort in their kibbutz. It was a surreal experience and one that will never leave me.”
“Like Steve Aiken, I stand in reflection on and remembrance of the day two years ago — 7 October 2023 — that changed the world of every Israeli citizen and every Palestinian in Gaza and sent shock waves through the world. My heart goes out today to all the people affected by that terrorist attack and the war that ensued. They have my sincere, mindful thoughts and prayers at this time. That Hamas attack on innocent civilians has absolutely no comparison to anything that it has done in its history, which is saying something. That terrorist organisation used barbarism on a new scale — an evil that had no limits and absolutely no control. It was barbarism all unbound, and it brought destruction on so many people, so many who were living peacefully in their kibbutz and so many young people who were attending the Nova music festival.”
“I thank the Member for giving way. Does it not alarm the Member that, when the Minister had the opportunity during her 15 minutes' speaking time, she did not even outline a deadline of when her vision, which is her operational responsibility, will be finished?”
“No, I will run out of time, Minister, but you will have plenty of time to address the House and the points that I make. <BR /> <BR />The report is damning. I hated reading it. I read it, and it is damning. I want the Minister to bring to the Assembly proposals that will improve things. It is on the Minister of Justice and the Department of Justice, and it is about time that the victims of crime saw results.”
“It is really unfair on victims when they finally get to court and realise that, even though a sentence has been handed down for a criminal act, that person can walk free because of the time that they have spent on remand. Even when people are on remand, they do not get the support from the Prison Service that they need for rehabilitation and justice for the crimes that they have committed.”
“It is unforgivable that parts of her Department do not work well together or do not come together to create efficiencies. The buck must stop with the Minister, however. She must be the one who is held accountable for the failures of her Department. That is what we want to hear from her today in the House. It is what the public and all the people who are caught up in the criminal justice system waiting for their day in court or all those who are on remand and need to get through the system want to hear.”
“If anything, there is a perverse realisation that technology is slowing down and thus hurting the criminal justice system. It is wrong that the technology that is in place to make things efficient is being used incorrectly, thereby creating inefficiencies. That is how perverse the situation is, and it should not be the case. Something is going badly wrong. We want to be assured that the Minister of Justice has things in hand, has both hands on the steering wheel and is delivering the transformation that everyone, including CJINI, wants to see, yet, we are seeing nothing happen. <BR /> <BR />It is therefore really important that the Minister of Justice spell out today to the Assembly what moves she has made and is going to make in response to the CJINI report on transforming the criminal justice system.”
“No, I will not give way, because I am going to run out of time. Where are the Minister's plans to do away with the silo approach? All those organisations play a fundamental role in the Department of Justice and in everyday life. They deal with victims of crime, yet the Department and the Minister are letting those people down. We know that criminal justice is not easy to address. We know that things are really difficult and challenging in the criminal justice field, but it seems that no work is being done to address the findings of CJINI's report. The report basically states that we are presiding over failure: a failure to transform the criminal justice system. <BR /> <BR />Technology has moved on, and it should be being used for the benefit of victims, witnesses and everyone else associated with the criminal justice world, but it is not.”
“I stand corrected by the Minister. Thank you very much for that education. I would, however, like to hear from you what actions you have taken as a result of the CJINI report. I see nothing being done. That is damning. That is why I stand here today asking the Minister to bring forward her plans to try to fix the justice system.”
“Where is the action on that target? Why have we not seen it? Why has it not been published? Why has the Assembly not seen any purposeful action from the Minister of Justice and the Department? That is failure. Not only is the report from CJINI damning but the inaction from the Minister is damning. It demonstrates nothing but failure. <BR /> <BR />A lot of people criticise the Executive, me being one of them, for having a silo mentality and for parties working in different ways, but here we have a Department that is working in silos. The PSNI, the Public Prosecution Service (PPS), the courts, Forensic Science Northern Ireland (FSNI), the Northern Ireland Prison Service (NIPS), the Probation Board for Northern Ireland (PBNI) and the Youth Justice Agency (YJA) all come under —.”
“Another target that relates to the Department of Justice is:”
“Where is that? Why has that not been done? It is now over nine months since that damning report was published. Where is the action? Where is the urgency from the Department and the Minister? We see none of it.”
“The purpose of the criminal justice system is to reduce crime, bring offenders to justice, protect the public, provide victims of crime with justice and ensure that justice is administered in a fair and just way. If that is going wrong, what is the point of a Department of Justice, or the Minister of Justice? She is presiding over failure. The Assembly must step up and take notice, which is why we have tabled this motion. <BR /> <BR />Change has been slow, and strong leadership is not there. The inspectors made three recommendations for improvement, including one at a strategic level, which is:”
“One of the priorities of any state should be to keep its people safe. That is why the criminal justice system is so important. That is why it will always be a priority in a Programme for Government. There are two Programme for Government priorities in that regard: ending violence against women and girls, and safer communities. All the indicators for the safer communities priority are going in the wrong direction. On personal safety, there is no change. On worrying about crime: no change. Crime prevalence rates are worsening. Processing times for criminal cases: worsening. Safe town and city centres: worsening. That is the Programme for Government. <BR /> <BR />Then there is the CJINI report.”
“Thank you very much, Mr Deputy Speaker. I propose the motion with genuine concern. The House should also be genuinely concerned, not from a party political stance but because of an absolutely damning report that was published in November 2024 by CJINI, an organisation that exists to inspect the criminal justice elements of the Department of Justice. The House should be concerned that, since that report was published nearly a year ago, very little, if anything at all, seems to have been done to try to improve the situation in our criminal justice system. That is damning in its own right. Not only do we have a report that is damning, but we have inaction from the Justice Minister on trying to improve things. <BR /> <BR />If a state cannot protect its people, it has a massive problem.”
“I thank the Minister for his answer. Does what he has said mean that a further extension of the COVID regulations will be needed from March?”
“I thank the Minister for his answer to my question. Where does he think the other finance for Casement Park will come from? Does he think that that departure from the usual arrangements for financial transactions capital, meaning that we will not have to pay it back, could be explored further for other projects funded by financial transactions capital?”
“— that young person then enters the criminal justice system. They may even die.”
“Every pill that is taken out of circulation could save one person's life, so it is worth it. <BR /> <BR />We support the motion and hope to see real progress made in future. It would be good to save a family from going through the pain that we have all witnessed families go through. It is awful for them to watch a family member experience addiction. Support is then needed. A criminal sanction may be required, so —”
“That absolutely needs to be addressed. We know that there are multitudes of young people at festivals at which drugs are in circulation. From time to time, there are really dangerous substances out there that are stronger than other drugs. Although we must get the message out that all drug taking is wrong, irresponsible and dangerous, there are occasions on which lethal batches of drugs are out there that will do massive damage to our young people and even kill them. More intelligence gathering has to be done. There therefore should be collaborative working undertaken between medical and education experts and the police enforcement agencies. At no time should anyone surrender drugs and then be given them back. Once we get drugs out of circulation, we should keep them out of circulation.”
“<BR /> <BR />Moreover, we need to see a prevention-first response from the Executive. The motion deals with the final stage of the journey. It assumes that illicit drugs are in circulation. We know that they are. That should not be the extent of our ambition, however. It is simply not good enough to say, "There are drugs out there, and people will always take drugs illegally, so what can we do about it?". The truth is that we can do a lot more. We can do a lot more to keep people safe through police enforcement, but we can also do more in a medical context.”
“Drugs that are seized must not be returned, and in no circumstances should advice be issued on the so-called safe use of drugs. That is where such approaches cross the line. <BR /> <BR />A strong police response, targeting the sources of supply, disrupting drug trafficking, prosecuting those responsible and ensuring that the courts have the tools and guidance to hand down appropriate custodial sentences, must also be a priority. Arrangements for testing must not fetter police investigations or, indeed, be viewed as cause for police visibility to be reduced in concert spaces. I raise that point following the intervention from my colleague Jonny Buckley earlier. The police should not leave the scene because there are medical experts on-site. Rather, the two must work hand in hand, complementing each other in order to keep people safe.”
“The harm caused by drugs is very real for individuals, families, communities and public services. There were 1,771 drug-related deaths in Northern Ireland between 2013 and 2023, including 169 in 2023 alone. Furthermore, in the 12 months ending on 30 June 2025, there were 6,769 drug seizures and 3,049 drug-related arrests. Behind each of those statistics is a personal story: the pain of the families left bereaved; the grief that never ends; and the endless lives ruined by addiction or by involvement in criminality. We accept that there is a role for taking a harm-reduction approach, but that must not cross a line or be perceived to be condoning or normalising illicit drug use in any setting, let alone settings in which children or young people are found.”
“They peddle that poison in our communities, destroying lives and people, because, inevitably, people die because they take drugs.”