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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“That was a meeting that will never leave me. What I witnessed that day was the complete numbness of not wanting to think the worst but not daring to hope for the best. Emily has, however, been reunited with her mother, Mandy, and we are grateful for answered prayers. <BR /> <BR />Emily's recovery has only started. She has had 471 days in captivity, held by Hamas terrorists. I pray for her recovery and for all the hostages who will have to recover. We know that she has lost fingers on her left hand, but that is only the damage that we can see. I pray that she will get the best treatment and care possible to recover from her ordeal. She spent 471 days in captivity. Can we remember our last 471 days and how we enjoyed the freedoms that we have and take for granted?”
“I rise also to applaud the efforts that have been made over the last weeks and months to create a ceasefire in Gaza and to talk about the release of hostages and the fact that there is absolutely no reason why Israeli hostages are still in captivity. There is no excuse for that. However, a deal has been brokered that some of the families have applauded the Trump Administration for, so credit where credit is due. The deal was on the table last year. A deal has been done, and we pray that people will get respite from the war and all the horrors that war brings on a people, especially the innocent civilians in any given area. <BR /> <BR />The three hostages who have been released are Doron Steinbrecher, Romi Gonen and Emily Damari. I had the privilege and honour of meeting Emily's mother, Mandy, six months into her daughter's captivity.”
“One of the biggest pieces of work that we have done since we returned is on the childcare strategy. I am glad to say that that strategy comes from my party. It enables women to go back to work and afford childcare. It is one of the greatest examples in this term of something that will lead to equalities. <BR /> <BR />I applaud Ministers for their endeavours and hope that the Assembly will be able to make real changes and a real difference in the term ahead.”
“It is OK to speak in fluffy terms, but what about outcomes? This place does not look at outcomes nearly enough, so it is about time that it did. That is why I am glad that the Minister for Communities is looking at a gender equality strategy. There will be opportunities in this term. Let us see all MLAs table amendments to the employment rights Bill to help create equalities.”
“At risk of there being consensus, I agree totally with the Member. It is easy to rhyme off phrases like "gender-responsive budgeting" — does it not sound so great? — but why are we not doing it already? We have something in this place that is unique, namely section 75. Surely, gender-responsive budgeting is covered in that, so why is it not being done in practice? That is the question, and it is a valid one. If we had a Budget that was aligned to a Programme for Government that had gender-responsive budgeting as one of its key objectives, the Budget would fund the Programme for Government and we would get outcomes.”
“Examples of that include the laws on upskirting and downblousing; the child aggravator clause in the domestic violence legislation, which the Department did not want to touch; the stalking laws that I pushed so hard for; and, of course, the child protection disclosure scheme that I got included in one of the Justice Acts a long time ago. That seems like an age ago. There are opportunities for us to make a difference in this place, and each MLA should value their place in the Assembly because they, individually, can make a change. Do not leave it to the Executive or individual Ministers: MLAs can make changes.”
“It is very clear that part of our role is to create a balance and end the inequalities that lie within our societies. It is incumbent on every one of us to work to that end and achieve something in our time here, no matter how short that might be for some. It is very important that there are Ministers who take that on board, individually and collectively, as an Executive, but so should the Assembly. <BR /> <BR />In my time here, since 2010, there have been opportunities, through the legislative process, to make changes, and there have been times when changes have been made, sometimes dragging a Department to a place.”
“Rich and poor will be affected to some degree, but for the most vulnerable, who need to see a GP or get dental care, because not doing so will lead to more complications for them down the line, who need home help or who need hospice care, the service will not be there. Those people — our loved ones — will be affected most by this Labour Government.”
“<BR /> <BR />Every single person who loses their job will impact on the service that charities provide, and, in turn, that will lead to job losses in the sector, because organisations cannot cost their way out of it. They cannot put a new price on the service that they provide. They do not produce a product that they can hike up the price of. They provide a service on behalf of government. A lot of that service is contracted already, and they will not be able to change the contract. We are therefore in dire straits, and the increase will affect every single person in Northern Ireland, as I said.”
“A figure does not really come into it whenever we know that the Government will not necessarily spend the money wisely. Even if the levy did raise £24 billion to £25 billion, can we be assured that it will be spent wisely? What we do know, however, is the impact that the increase will have on employers, employees, small businesses and places that provide a service outwith government, such as GP surgeries, dental surgeries, care homes, hospices and charitable groups. Charitable groups do the work that government cannot do, because government does not have the ability to do it. Charitable groups, however, do it at the coalface and at the tip of the spear. Those services will disappear.”
“It was OK then because the money was flowing in from Westminster Government. We were giving it out like Smarties, but it was not Smarties; it was taxpayers' money. In fact, it was not even that: it was debt. We have to pay that back somehow. We all need to have a look at the part that we have played in the past four or five years. <BR /> <BR />There is no doubt about the Budget move and this sneaky way of raising revenue. Other agencies and business groups have poured cold water on the Budget that Labour has produced. The Institute for Fiscal Studies has already poured cold water on the Labour Government's claim that the levy from increased employers' National Insurance contributions will lead to anything close to raising £24 billion to £25 billion. How much money will it raise?”
“<BR /> <BR />Many people have blamed many things for the place that the British economy is in, but not one Member has mentioned the price and the cost of lockdown philosophy and how mountains of money were pumped out as part of that philosophy that should not have been and would not have been required if we had tackled things in a different way. We have to pay for that somehow. In fact, the Labour Party has to pay for that somehow. This is the manifestation of what we experienced through lockdown philosophy, but not one of the parties here will admit to that. Why? Because they were zealots when it came to lockdown philosophy. We can all blame the big bad Tories and we can all blame the big bad Labour Party, but we also have to look at the measures that this place implemented.”
“I thank the Member for his intervention. Again, it is his sister party that has done this blatant damage. His politics are the same as the Labour Party's, yet they are going to do this to our people. The Member scares me every time he raises the spectre of fiscal powers for this place because I am not sure that we have enough maturity to be able to tackle some of the issues that Westminster and global factors have in play when it comes to the attack on our people. Therefore, I worry about incompetence, not only in Westminster but in other global markets and democracies around the world.”
“No matter what way you look at this, while we have all been told about trickle-down economics, this is trickle-down torture from a Labour Government whose first act as the Government has been to attack labour. It is to attack the workers. That is how stark and how blatant it is, and they must know what they are doing. You do not really go far into a degree in economics before you hit everything that I have just said.”
“Whilst it is true that the small businesses that produce something will be able to put the costs — no matter how much they loathe doing so — onto their product, there are so many people in Northern Ireland who produce a service. Many of those people will not be able to hike the cost of that service because they provide it to the public sector. Therefore, we will feel that when we lose GP surgeries, dental surgeries, care homes and hospices. It will affect the most vulnerable. Everyone will be affected, but the most vulnerable will be affected more. <BR /> <BR />The Minister raised the issue of councils, which was something that had not really struck me. I think that the Minister said that councils' costs will be a burden of around £12 million. Who pays for that? The ratepayers.”
“No matter whether you are an employer or an employee in the public sector or the private sector, you will be hurt. Most businesses that produce something will have no choice other than to put the burden of that cost on to their product. It does not matter what it is. Who pays for that product? The consumer, the housewife, the house husband — all of us; we pay. <BR /> <BR />It will raise inflation. That is one of the big no-nos that the Government should have been trying to avoid. It will also lead to low growth. When there is low growth, you are talking about recession, which will impact on jobs and wealth. No one — no one — is going to avoid that damage. It will affect every single one of us who lives in Northern Ireland.”
“Thank you very much, Mr Deputy Speaker. <BR /> <BR />First of all, I applaud and welcome the one voice that has been shown here today. Despite the leader of the Opposition's defeatist attitude, I think that we are all aware of the damage that the tax raid will do to every sector and every business in this country. Every one of them will be a victim of that atrocious play. We all lamented the fact that the previous Government were incompetent, did not do detail very well and did not understand the problems that they created. Labour promised so much more. In fact, Labour promised that there would be no tax hikes in certain elements. However, the way in which they have gone about trying to raise revenue is, in many ways, sneaky. They have tried to do it through the back door, but it will hurt every person.”
“Will the Member agree that maybe he is in a position to lobby his sister party at Westminster to change this?”
“It seems to me that the main outcome, or one of the main outcomes, of the Minister's ambitious plans is to penalise hard-working people who are trying to provide a living for their families, including business owners, farmers, electricity bill payers and ordinary employees. How can the Minister ensure that the transition is a just one?”
“I thank the Member for giving way again. He pointed to the position of Sinn Féin. He should recall that its position on the EU, in all of its past and for all of its history, was to be anti-EU, right up until the point of the referendum campaign.”
“I thank the Member for giving way. <BR /> <BR />Nationalism has given way to EU colonialism. At least Westminster is democratically accountable.”
“The Minister said today that she is starting to build a progressive rates system, but what she really said is that she is preparing to strip away reliefs. Surely it would be far better if that £4 million in savings went to our hard-working constituents, who would get much benefit from it, rather than it being in an inefficient government coffer.”
“I thank the Member for his answer. It seems strange that, if the average was £550 and they have given an uplift of £300, there is a gap. They may well be wanting Members to print less but, as we communicate with our constituents through letters, that is very hard and a printer becomes vital. With regard to going out on your own and getting a contract, given the fact that some of the equipment was substandard in the first place and there is a rationale for going out on your own, are there any protections for contractual agreements that may eclipse the term of an Assembly?”
“The procedure only takes up to 15 minutes, yet there are over 90 children in Northern Ireland who suffer this impact even though they have complicated medical needs and have to be fed through a tube that goes up their nose and down their throat. For the life of me, I do not know why those small vulnerable children cannot be served by our health service. Many of the children have to go to London to have the procedure done. All of them are on a waiting list; some have been waiting for years. It is not fair, it is not right, and the health service should sort it out.”
“I rise today to talk about the support group Parents 4 PEGs. The group came to Stormont yesterday, and it fights — families, parents and friends — for their children, who have complex medical requirements and needs and thus have to be fed through a tube. Many of the children are still in prams or wheelchairs, and, for most if not all of their short lives, they have had to be fed through a tube. The tube goes up their nose and down their throat. <BR /> <BR />Some of the children have to use the tube for 17 hours a day, every day of their short lives, but that can be fixed by a simple procedure that takes up to 15 minutes to replace the tube with one that goes directly into the child's stomach.”
“My colleague Alan Robinson said that "safety must always come first." We support further regulation in this sector. He talked about the cost to the NHS when something goes badly wrong. He also talked about social media pressure, especially on young people, a concern that was echoed in every contribution. <BR /> <BR />Danny Donnelly talked about the industry, the costs involved, the licensing scheme in England and unethical adverts on social media. Steve Aiken discussed how the rise in demand correlated with the rise of social media. He said that consumer safety should be the most important issue. Mark Durkan said that the unregulated industry —”
“That is a massive issue in the cosmetic industry: many people who rent premises are disadvantaged by the fact that there are people who work from home. There should be full transparency for consumers about who is licensed and the procedures that they are licensed to perform. There should also be access to a redress scheme. Predatory advertising can use doctored images, and it should be a requirement to make it clear when that is the case. <BR /> <BR />I will recap some of the contributions. Liz Kimmins related examples of when people lost their lives. She said that it "beggars belief" that there is no regulation. She talked about the situation in the Republic of Ireland and asked the Health Minister to bring forward options for regulation.”
“Save Face provides a UK Government-approved register for medical aesthetic procedures. Members of the public can also have a greater degree of assurance if individuals belong to organisations such as the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons or the Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners. Save Face received over 150 complaints about Brazilian butt lifts between February and April this year, more than half of which had reportedly resulted in sepsis. <BR /> <BR />Clear standards and requirements can be established for every type of procedure and could be applied uniformly across the UK. Training needs to be of a good standard and fully accredited. There should be periodic inspections of facilities, with clear standards for infection control. Those inspections should incorporate practitioners who work from home.”
“People currently have to register to carry out procedures such as tattooing, semi-permanent make-up, piercing and acupuncture. It would be unacceptable if that were not also the case for cosmetic procedures, which have the potential to cause real damage. It is essential that those who carry out such procedures are competent and safe. They need to be properly trained and qualified and should have indemnity cover. Hygiene, infection control and cleanliness must be strictly adhered to. The risks are much greater when the person who carries out a procedure is not sufficiently qualified, uses unregulated products or operates in unsuitable premises. Potential clients need to be certain that practitioners are adequately insured and of the extent of the aftercare that they offer.”
“There is a growing number of high-street providers, and the procedures are becoming more normalised. Examples include Botox, anti-wrinkle injections, dermal fillers, chemical peels and energy-based treatments. They are mostly carried out by private providers. Botox injections are not licensed for cosmetic use but can be used off licence. The review of the regulation of cosmetic interventions, which was carried out more than a decade ago, singled out dermal fillers as being "a crisis waiting to happen". The use of anabolic steroids for cosmetic purposes has increased, bringing with it long-term risks of cardiovascular disease and brain changes. Many dangerous procedures are undertaken abroad. <BR /> <BR />The British Beauty Council reported that the cosmetic and personal care sector contributed £24·5 billion to UK GDP in 2022.”
“Thank you very much, Mr Deputy Speaker. I thank the Members who tabled the motion and the Minister for being present to respond to the debate on this important issue. <BR /> <BR />It is essential that we seek to minimise the chance of vulnerable people being exploited. We need to be confident that treatments are safe and of a high standard. A balance needs to be struck between acknowledging personal consumer choice and protecting the public and building confidence in the safety of the industry. <BR /> <BR />An increasing number of people describe dissatisfaction with their body image. In some cases, that may be exacerbated by mental health difficulties. The timeline for that issue is not unrelated to the rise of social media and so-called influencers. The number of people who undergo non-surgical cosmetic procedures is increasing.”
“I thank the Minister for his answer. Given the significant history between the US and my constituency of North Antrim, how will my constituency benefit from that link?”
“UKCV Family has reached out to contact the First Minister and the deputy First Minister. Will the deputy First Minister give a commitment to the House that she and the First Minister will reach out to the UKCV Family charity?”
“I thank the deputy First Minister for her answer, for meeting Vaccine Injured and Bereaved Support and for the actions that came out of that meeting. She may not be aware that not only does VIBS-NI operate and do sterling work in Northern Ireland, but there is a new charity called UKCV Family, which represents all the vaccine injured and bereaved throughout the United Kingdom and is helping a growing number of people in Northern Ireland.”
“He loved some of the premises in and around the town, and everyone knew him, not only because they had seen him on TV but because he took the time to talk to people. Ken was also not one of those people who did not want to talk about trade on a Saturday. He would openly talk to anyone who cared to listen. That was the gift of Ken Reid. We think, in this place, that democracy needs politicians, but actually democracy needs Ken Reids.”
“I pay tribute to Ken and send my condolences to his family. Ken was a big personality, but he betrayed that in his own small way. For a journalist, that is quite a niche. He was a giant in his trade of journalism. Whilst we all speak to journalists, it is not often that you sit down and have a proper conversation with a journalist, but you did with Ken Reid. When I first met Ken Reid, he complimented me by saying that he had followed me in council. I was embarrassed by the fact that he called me "the Young Turk". He said, "Don't lose that. Democracy needs that in a place like this." So right he was. <BR /> <BR />Ken was a giant in journalism, but he was also a local man. He lived just outside Ballymena and loved Ballymena Rugby Club.”
“Principals and teachers are extremely concerned that they do not get support from the Education Authority when it comes to looking after those children. That alarms them, but it also alarms parents. We need to get a grip of the situation for the sake of the children.”
“I know that the Minister has also attended other schools in North Antrim at the invitation of other MLAs and, in some cases, due to the pressing needs of principals. <BR /> <BR />The Education Authority is letting down not only children and parents but principals. Principals are pulling their hair out because they also want answers as to how the Education Authority can come up with results and assessments of what child needs what general assistance, be that 15 hours or more. They cannot get answers to the same questions; in fact, pressure is applied on those principals when they try to fight for their children. <BR /> <BR />Some of the cases are severe. Some of the children face severe challenges daily. Some of the conditions are even life-limiting.”
“I want to know what policy it uses that is so robust that it can estimate an individual child's needs and requirements. I have yet to see the formal policy that it uses to make those decisions. <BR /> <BR />I thank the Minister of Education. I believe that he is listening and that he has a grasp of the scale of the problem. Since he has been in post, he has endeavoured to resolve the issues. This is not an issue that has come on his watch, but I can see that he is prepared to try to resolve it in his time. I thank the Minister for attending with me schools in North Antrim of late, namely William Pinkerton Memorial Primary School in Dervock and Ballymoney High School. The Minister will know that there are a couple more in the pipeline for him to attend.”
“It is really wrong for the Education Authority to take that avenue. Of course, people can go to the Northern Ireland Public Services Ombudsman, but, because the Education Authority has ticked all its boxes and gone through its processes correctly, that will have no prospect of success either. Quite simply, you are then complaining about the process rather than the failure to help a child. The tactic of using that formal complaints process is a complete deflection by the Education Authority, and it is absolutely wrong. <BR /> <BR />I want to know what policy the Education Authority uses to measure an individual child so that it arrives at an outcome of 15 hours of general assistance, 24 hours of general assistance or no general assistance.”
“I do not want to be in a formal complaints process, and nor do the family; they just want answers. They want to know when and why: "When will the general assistance be there? Why do I have only 15 hours? Why not 24 hours or full time?". Instead of answering those questions, the Education Authority puts them into a formal complaints process, and they have to wait for the Education Authority to come back and say, "We have looked at our procedures. Everything seems to be right. Your complaint is not upheld". We do not want to be in a complaints process; we just want communication and answers. <BR /> <BR />I believe that the Education Authority uses its complaints process as a tactic in order not to engage with elected representatives and the people whom we support. That is blatantly wrong.”
“We all deal with such families, who are pulling their hair out. They not only know their children's needs and requirements — they know them best — but are fraught with worry when they let them go out in the mornings, because they know that the provision and support that the school should be able to offer to look after their children is simply not met. That should give us all nightmares. It certainly gives those parents nightmares. <BR /> <BR />The parents then come to us, and we try to deal with the Education Authority. I am sure that I am not the only MLA who feels that he is being stonewalled by the Education Authority. That may be tactical on its part. Have other Members had the experience of writing to the Education Authority simply to ask for information, only to be placed in a formal complaints process that they did not require?”
“I thank the Member for North Antrim, Colin Crawford, for securing the Adjournment debate and bringing the issue to the Education Minister's attention. We all grapple with the issue of SEN provision not only in our constituency of North Antrim but across Northern Ireland, as the number of children needing special educational support grows. The first point that I want to make is that we will try to support those children as best we can. Society demands it of us. It is also demanded of society. <BR /> <BR />A number of factors really worry me about the number of children whose parents require and are trying to obtain statements and the demand that the Education Authority needs to meet that it has not been able to meet. It is clear that it is failing those young people and their families.”
“What would you suggest should be done about publicly owned land that lies vacant for years?”
“Even the small villages in North Antrim suffer from dereliction, and we should all consider that. It is multifaceted, and it will not be solved by slapping a further tax burden on our people. <BR /> <BR />I mentioned the Assembly Rooms. I hark back to that time in Belfast when you had all the innovation and entrepreneurs. Think of the Joy family and the McCrackens. What would they think of the SDLP's plan for further taxation? If they were alive today and heard the SDLP's plans, what would they think? I think that they would be horrified, especially considering the amount of work that they did for poor people through their involvement with Clifton House. It is an intriguing debate, but I hope that the idea of a vacant land tax will not see the light of day.”
“<BR /> <BR />I was glad to see mention in the motion of Belfast's Assembly Rooms as part of Belfast's rich history. The building is of historic significance not only to the Enlightenment but to the United Irishmen rebellion and the debate that was happening at that time in Belfast and throughout Ulster and Ireland. Not least, the building was known for its contribution to music and was the venue for the historic Belfast Harp Festival of 1792. Belfast is steeped in history. I always encourage people to learn their history, because it is multifaceted, detailed and complicated — exactly how this problem is today. I despair when I see dereliction and waste ground, not only in Belfast — our capital city — but in our other towns, such as Ballymena, Ballymoney, Ballycastle and Bushmills. I can rhyme them all off.”
“It has been an interesting debate. However, when I read the motion, I was horrified to see how eager the SDLP is to slap businesses, people and the community with a further tax. It seems that the SDLP thinks that the way to get out of all problems is by taxation. To impose such a tax would lead to massive consequences for economic drive, economic vision and every other issue that we have, be that cash flow, inflationary pressure or planning issues and the length of time that it takes planners to conduct their business. Slapping another tax on businesses and people who are trying to develop our cityscapes is a horrid suggestion. It would lead to more deprivation and dereliction. We should know and learn from history that taxation simply does not work when there are so many other issues involved.”
“You are giving me a bad name, Mr Deputy Speaker. On a serious note, I do not know that three minutes is anywhere near sufficient for anybody to frame an argument in any debate. I ask the Opposition to consider that for the next time. When it comes to their aims and objectives, maybe less is more.”
“In my speech, I failed to mention that I am prepared to work with the Minister of Health and the Department to introduce legislation. I wish that he would introduce it, but I feel that he will not. His utterances today suggest that he will not. I will do so, if need be, but I wish that the Department of Health would do it.”
“<BR /> <BR />Folks, in this House, we have an opportunity to introduce positive legislation that will do a world of good for people who mourn and for people who work hard in our health service. I take this debate as a sounding for my private Member's Bill, and I give this commitment today: I will work with every single one of you to try to produce a Bill that is suitable for Northern Ireland.”