Colum Eastwood
Foyle · Social Democratic and Labour Party · Northern Ireland
“Thank you, Mr Speaker. Given the fact that the Good Friday Agreement envisages an Assembly, a power-sharing Executive, North/South Ministerial Council and other bodies, is it the case, today, that, if we do not have the nominating officer here from Sinn Féin, no Executive will be formed?”
“Mr Allister has made my point for me. The Good Friday Agreement is absolutely 100% clear. The power-sharing Executive, the Northern Ireland Assembly, the North-South Ministerial Council: at any point over the last 1,000-plus days, those institutions could have been restored. People on these Benches have tried hard.”
“That is why we are here today. We will gladly take part in those institutions but we will not be party to a stunt that is using and abusing people's emotions and sensitivities over a very difficult issue, which could have been dealt with at any point over the last 1,000 days.”
“<BR /> <BR />Is it the case, Mr Speaker, that without Members here present to my right or who should be to my right that there will not be an Executive formed today? If that is the case, we will be in no position to support a Speaker and allow for the undermining of the Good Friday Agreement through a unionist-dominated shadow Assembly.”
“<BR /> <BR />It is, of course, true that because of the DUP's despicable and disgraceful behaviour, not just around RHI, we have got to this point. It is also true that they were let do all those things. They were allowed to do all those things.”
“We put the papers in on all manner of subjects, topics and areas, but nobody wanted to negotiate back. Nobody wanted to talk to us about how we can invest in the Irish language, protect equality for LGBT people and tackle poverty and discrimination right across our society.”
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“The Committee considered these regulations and took oral evidence from the Department, and it was content to recommend that the Assembly affirm them. <BR /> <BR />The second statutory rule is the Welfare Supplementary Payment (Loss of Disability-Related Premiums) Regulations 2016. Many people who receive DLA also receive income-related premiums for that disability. So if, as a result of reassessment to PIP, someone loses entitlement to one or more of those premiums, they will be eligible for a welfare supplementary payment. The disability premiums that are subject to mitigation are disability premium, enhanced disability premium, severe disability premium or the severe disability element under working tax credit and an additional amount under state pension credit.”
“That arises from concerns that the working group had that the PIP assessment method might not fully capture the consequences for claimants in Northern Ireland who have conflict-related injury. Under those circumstances, people will be awarded a further four points, bringing them up to at least eight points, which qualifies them for PIP. Again, this payment is for up to one year but not beyond 31 March 2020, when funding for the scheme ends. <BR /> <BR />The Committee was informed that the Department fully expects most existing DLA claimants who have a conflict-related injury to migrate successfully from DLA to PIP. It is also important to note that payments made under this scheme will not be taxable.”
“The second category is when claimants qualify for PIP but at a rate lower than their DLA payment. The statutory rule simply implements the recommendation of the working group so that, when a person qualifies for PIP but their payment is reduced by £10 or more, they will get 75% of the loss paid to them but not beyond 31 March 2020. If the reduction in payment, for example, is £20 a week, they will receive 75% of that, which is £15. It should be noted that this payment is for up to one year; it is not guaranteed for one year in all circumstances. <BR /> <BR />The third category is when claimants score between four and seven points but their disability or illness is due to a conflict-related injury.”
“This is the date to which mitigation funding is currently available. It is worth noting that the scheme will not be available to new claimants from 20 June.”
“The regulations that we are being asked to affirm today are the second tranche of regulations that provide the legislative basis for the schemes that underpin the recommendations of the welfare reform mitigations group. <BR /> <BR />For clarity, I will take each regulation in turn. The Welfare Supplementary Payment (Loss of Disability Living Allowance) Regulations 2016 will provide welfare supplementary payments for three categories of claimant. The first is where a claimant does not qualify for PIP. In this case, a claimant continues to be paid a sum equal to their weekly DLA payment while the outcome of any appeal is heard or, indeed, beyond this should a further appeal of a tribunal decision be granted — to the Social Security Commissioners — but not beyond 31 March 2020.”
“Maybe he can give me her number. I thank the Minister for his answer, I think, but he has not really addressed the fact that our railway station in Derry is in a dilapidated state. I am, along with many other people, disappointed today that he has rejected the idea of a halt at City of Derry Airport. Will he give some commitment that we will have, once and for all, a proper, fit-for-purpose railway station at the old Waterside site?”
“I thank the Minister for his answer. Given the fact that the Victims and Survivors Service has been named as a lead partner along with his Department in a Peace IV project for victims and survivors, the application is currently finishing and, I think, the business plan is in for £17·6 million over three years, what is the Minister's view on what Thursday's decision will mean for that £17·6 million and the impact on victims?”
“Thank you for giving way. I know that he addressed some of the things I said. I will maybe not go into that now, but, for the record, I do not believe that the vote of anybody, no matter what age they are or what background they are from, should be worth more than anybody else's. That has been our position since our foundation. Maybe a wee look into history would be useful for the Member. I ask him to tell me: how much of the money that you are telling us is going to be saved by not being members of the European Union is going to have to be ploughed into the banks, which are publicly owned and which have lost fortunes upon fortunes in the last couple of days?”
“In the little time he has left, will the Member take some time to address the concerns of people in my constituency, in border constituencies and in every other constituency across Northern Ireland today? All I am hearing is an internal unionist argument.”
“— together with our unionist neighbours to begin the process of working in the European context and delivering for our people here, not being dragged out against our will by Sunderland, Surrey or anywhere else.”
“Look at what is happening in Scotland and here; people are beginning to see that the next step is further integration across this island, working —”
“Do you not want to hear? No? Our duty today is to deal with the issues that face us right now. The Secretary of State has got it wrong: just because people on the nationalist side say that they agree with the principle of consent and the Good Friday Agreement, that does not mean that they give consent to our position within the United Kingdom. We will continue to democratically work towards changing that. <BR /> <BR />Right now, we are not about to be dragged out of the European Union against our will. I would love to hear the DUP explain to me today how it will enforce a border on this island and how it will control the freedom of movement of people into the British Isles. How will you do that? I do not think that you can, and I think that you have voted for something that you have not really thought through.”
“Let me tell you this, Mr Speaker: the people of the North of Ireland are not giving their consent to being dragged out of the European Union, and we stand by them on that. <BR /> <BR />Let me just deal with the point that the Secretary of State made about the principle of consent and the Good Friday Agreement. I do not think that this is the right time for a border poll, because I believe that we should have a border poll that we can actually win. Our duty today —”
“I know all about democracy, and some people in here need to learn about democracy. I remember a referendum that was held on this island not all that long ago, where people voted for the Good Friday Agreement. The Member who is shouting from his seat and some of the Members across the Chamber who were shouting from their seats earlier did not recognise that the people of this island voted for the Good Friday Agreement. What did the Good Friday Agreement mean? It meant that people from my persuasion who wanted to see a united Ireland were able to democratically argue for and democratically work towards that goal. We all accepted that the principle of consent was key to that.”
“No, I have given way enough. <BR /> <BR />People in Northern Ireland told us that they wanted to remain in the European Union, and we will look for every device possible to make sure that that happens, and I hope that others join us in doing so.”
“You see? Gracious in victory as usual. I stand by people on this island and in this country who do not want to leave the European Union. One minute we are told that Northern Ireland is a nation, and then the UK is a nation: I am not sure what people are trying to tell us, but people in Northern Ireland —”
“"No" is the answer, because I stand by people —”
“As democrats, we are standing by the people here who decided that we are not being dragged out of the European Union by the right wing of the Tory party or anybody else who does not want to listen when told about the benefits of the European Union.”
“First, I do not know what you are talking about. I made a commitment to speak positively about the European Union throughout the campaign, and I think that we did. We know the benefits of it. The "Leave" campaign, however, is now rowing back on all its big claims. We told them the whole way through the campaign that that would happen. The notion that you will have access to the single market while controlling immigration is utter nonsense. It is nonsense, and it is proven to be nonsense in places such as Norway and Switzerland. There were a lot of lies told, but people in Northern Ireland saw through them.”
“You see posters all round Northern Ireland — I have to drive past a load of them coming here in the morning — telling you that there will be £350 million more for the health service and all that stuff, but, of course, the "Leave" side is now rowing back on those great commitments about the health service, immigration and all the other plans that it made to —”
“I hope that some of the comments we have heard from sedentary positions are not a sign of how this debate will develop, and I do not just mean the debate in here. Everybody in here who calls themselves a democrat should recognise that people here in the North of Ireland voted for our position within the European Union to remain the same. People in Scotland did that as well. Young people everywhere formed a coalition to have a positive relationship with the European Union. People here in particular, in Northern Ireland, understand the benefits that that has given us. <BR /> <BR />I spoke to a great number of people on Friday in my constituency, which is surrounded on three sides by a border, who were devastated, scared and extremely worried about what comes next.”
“Thanks, Mr Speaker. I thank the Minister for her answer. I think that she understands that so many families have been waiting for far too long and should not have to wait any longer, given the fact that we are at the point at which we are able to do something about some of those cases. She said that she will meet her Executive colleagues "in due course". Does she agree with me that it is a matter of utmost urgency and that the Executive need to make a decision urgently to make sure that we can request the funds to be drawn down to allow the Lord Chief Justice to do the job he began in advance of this mandate?”
“The Examiner has not identified any issues with the rule. <BR /> <BR />As the Minister indicated, the order is already in operation, and, today, we are simply being asked to approve it. The order is one of a series of statutory rules relating to the annual uprating package for rates of social security benefits, pensions and allowances. The Department has advised that it has no power to deviate from the rates and amounts specified in the order made by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. Therefore, on behalf of the Committee, I recommend that the order be approved by the Assembly.”
“The Social Security Benefits Up-rating Order 2016 and the subsequent statutory rule were considered by the former Committee for Social Development. As the order now falls under the remit of the Committee for Communities, the Committee, at its meeting on 16 June, agreed that it was content for me, as Chairperson, to speak on the motion. <BR /> <BR />As mentioned, the Committee for Social Development first considered the Department’s proposal to make the Social Security Benefits Up-rating Order 2016 at its meeting of 18 February 2016 and was content for the rule to be made. When the statutory rule was subsequently brought before the Committee on 10 March, the Committee was content, subject to the report of the Examiner of Statutory Rules, to recommend that it be confirmed by the Assembly.”
“I wish and hope that Jo Cox's family are able to find some comfort in the outpouring of support they have received in the last number of days.”
“<BR /> <BR />It was sad this morning to listen on RTÉ radio to Mairead McGuinness and Joan Burton talking about the online and sometimes physical abuse that many of our colleagues across this island and across these islands — many of them women — have had to suffer from online trolls. I think of Máiría Cahill and other people who, every morning, wake up to a tirade of abuse. If there is anything we should do as a result of the murder, we should put our face against that type of activity. Nobody in our society who puts their name and puts themselves forward to do public good and to represent their constituents should have to face that level of abuse. All of us in the House need to send out that message very clearly today.”
“I also thank you, Mr Speaker, for the action you took to send our condolences to the Westminster Parliament. I add my condolences and those of my party and send them to Jo Cox's family, friends, constituents and party. I think we have all been moved by the manner of her death but, I think, even more so by the way in which she lived her life. Jo Cox was an internationalist, a human rights defender and a loud and determined advocate and voice for the voiceless. I think the best legacy she could ever have hoped to leave would be a whole new generation of people inspired to care about and campaign for the rights of the downtrodden.”
“<BR /> <BR />It is also important that we not meet hate with hate: that we meet it with love and we do not give succour to the base instinct that has been so prevalent within US politics in recent times. All of us need to show minorities in our community that they play a full and equal part in our everyday lives. We here, and right cross the world, need to ensure that the gay community feel equal and full citizens. We have to do everything we can, and change whatever law we have to change, to make sure that happens.”
“I thank Mr Nesbitt for bringing this matter of the day to the House. It is extremely important that we stand with people all across the world in revulsion at what has happened in Orlando. It is shocking that so many people could be gunned down in such a way, and even more shocking that so much hatred can reside within one person. We have seen this type of hatred acted out against our gay community right across the world. I think of places like Uganda, and other parts of the world, where gay people are not treated the way they should be. It is not for me, or for us, to talk about the internal laws of the United States, but it is important that our friends in the US hear that we cannot understand how anybody can get their hands on automatic weapons and use them in this way. I think it is important to make this point.”
“I hope this Minister and this Executive recognise the failure of closing down courses and cutting university places whilst trying to invest in the economy.”
“I ask the Economy Minister — I welcome him to his position — to address this if he can at this early stage: what scoping work has been done to work out how we are going to fund the reduction in corporation tax without affecting front-line services? I hope the Minister is in a position to answer that question. <BR /> <BR />I welcome him to his position. I welcome that, once and for all, we have all the important parts of the economy under one roof. I think that was a good reform of our institutions. It also rings very loud and clear to me and everyone out there that this Assembly and Executive have now recognised that we cannot build an economy unless we invest in further and higher education.”
“They go to America as well, they talk to investors and they talk to higher and further education institutions. They know the benefits of remaining within the European Union. We know them as well. If we are serious about turning around our economy in Derry, Strabane, Fermanagh or Belfast, the idea that we can cut corporation tax on one hand, cut student places on the other and leave the European Union if we had a third hand, is bizarre and wrong. It would be absolutely stupid and reckless, and I hope that we do not do it. <BR /> <BR />We are getting very close to the point of reducing corporation tax.”
“If people in the Assembly believe that we can, on the one hand, leave the European Union and, on the other, turn around our economy, they are living in cloud cuckoo land. Investors who want to come here want to come because of the access to the market of 500 million people. It is not 1·8 million, not even 60 million: it is 500 million people. The connections with our partners in the South and the cross-border opportunities that we have will be all lost if we vote for a Brexit. <BR /> <BR />I know the DUP are against us remaining in the EU, but they are not really that against it, because they are not making that much of a big deal of it. They let Sammy out of the traps every now and again to talk about how dangerous it will be, but there is not a big Front Bench campaign coming from the DUP, because I think they know.”
“<BR /> <BR />I know that we have been starved of the opportunity to drag investors to my own city, because why would you go there when we do not have a university and about 10,000 people doing the right type of course? Why would you go if we are looking at 3,500 undergraduate places? We need to invest in our economy up front to allow cities like mine to get on with creating an economy, keeping our people here and attracting people to come and set up businesses and live here. That is what we want to see; that is what we think is important. That is the benchmark on which we will judge the economic strategy and the Programme for Government. <BR /> <BR />I cannot end before making the point that on 23 June we will be faced with a very real and difficult choice.”
“We support the harmonisation of tax powers across this island. Look at the speed of the recovery across the border. Why has that happened? It is because there is an open economy and because they have invested massively in higher and further education, as well as reducing corporation tax. We have promised a reduction of corporation tax whilst, at the same time, cutting our investment in student places. Yes, of course, as Mr Stalford pointed out, we froze tuition fees. In fact, they have gone up by more than the rate of inflation, and we now have an opportunity to reverse that. However, we have a bigger opportunity to invest in places, because the first thing on an investor's score card for an area is not tax, it is skills.”
“This is the beginning of a harmonious relationship that we can develop in the coming years. <BR /> <BR />What do we need to do to change the lot of people in my constituency to ensure that they are not being raised for export, to try and keep them here to contribute to the economy? We need to invest in the fundamentals. It is great that two great infrastructure projects have gone to east Antrim. We noticed that it had happened, but the areas west of the Bann, like my city, like Strabane, like all parts of the west that have been left behind, have not had big infrastructure projects. They now need to see tarmac on the road as early as possible — not for a few miles, but all of the miles. <BR /> <BR />We talk about corporation tax; we are big supporters of the devolution of corporation tax. It has been our party policy for about 30 years.”
“I did not shirk any opportunity. Throughout the election we said to people that if we could — by the way, nobody from your party or any other contradicted me when I said this — we would spend two weeks negotiating a draft Programme for Government; not a whole detailed Programme for Government, but a draft programme with some actions that we could sell to the people. If we could not achieve the change that we needed to see in that Programme for Government, then of course we would go into opposition and hold the Government to account in a constructive way. That is what we did; we are not shirking any responsibility. We are being very responsible, in fact, in giving up the opportunity to be in the Government so that we can hold it to account from outside, and we look forward to that developing.”
“Let us look at the election. Sinn Féin did not win in Foyle; they lost a seat in West Belfast and they lost a seat in Fermanagh. One of the many stories of the election was an enormous amount of frustration and anger in places like my own city, parts of Fermanagh and west Belfast, where people say they are fed up with government just existing. Government now needs to, once and for all, tackle the inequalities that have been fostered in the last few decades. I am fed up with looking at the faces of sad parents who have spent years educating and supporting their children and, basically, raising them for export. I do not know how many Christmases I have had to go to airports to pick people up and to leave them off because they cannot find, in my city, the quality of life and employment that they would like.”
“Let me be very clear: it will be a fundamental mistake for people in this House to think that that election was an election that said that everything is fine over here and, "Don't worry about us. You have our support".”
“Let us ensure that mistakes such as the act of discrimination from more than 50 years ago, denying the city of Derry a proper functioning university to ensure that we could attract that type of investment, are not compounded and compounded and compounded by us not doing something about it. <BR /> <BR />In coming at this, we are glad that we have found some common ground. This is a good way for us to begin this new era of opposition. What we want to see now is more than just motions; we want to see actions. I have to be honest and say that, yesterday evening, we were treated to an analysis of the election results. We know who won the election. We know how many seats we have, and we know how many seats Sinn Féin, the DUP and the Ulster Unionist Party have. We can all read, and we were all there for the counts.”
“I thank the party opposite for its support for our amendment. We could table lots of amendments and lots of motions, and we could write lots of draft frameworks and all sorts of things, but what we want to see from now on is change and action. I am not going to use the word "discrimination". I do not think that I have to, because we have had decades upon decades of a lack of investment west of the Bann, and I think that we now see the results of that. It is good that we should have more and better jobs; of course it is. We need more and better jobs. I am not talking here about directing investors by saying that they have to set up in Derry, Strabane or Enniskillen. What we are saying is this: let us ensure that those investors do have the things that they require in the areas that have been left behind.”
“If we do not see — I will make this point to finish — once and for all, after more than 50 years, investment in the university at Magee in Derry, we will not support the Programme for Government that, again, fails to do that.”
“Our manifesto talked about moving from around 12 hours to 20 hours, with a view of going to 30 hours later. We want to see targeted economic investment in the areas that have been left behind. We want to see fairness at the heart of everything that this Government do. We want to see support for victims. We want to see the opportunity that arises out of the potential of North/South development — economically, in the health service, in education, in tourism and right across the different sectors — being realised once and for all. We need to see, once and for all, infrastructure going to the west, not more warm words about it. If we do not see —”
“We are facing a crisis in child poverty. In Derry, north Belfast, west Belfast, parts of east Belfast — right across the North — far too many of our children are living in levels of poverty that are far too high. We face a crisis in hospital and health waiting lists. We still face a staggering level of economic inactivity in many areas. Bizarrely, we face further cuts in our university sector. <BR /> <BR />We accept that this is the process now, and we will positively and constructively engage in it. We will put in papers, respond to the consultation and do our best to put forward alternatives where required. We will, however, need to see the needs of the people and areas that have been left behind for far too long being addressed. We need to see a commitment to increased opportunity for childcare for hard-pressed families.”
“None of us could stand here and say that that was a mandate filled with delivery, opportunities taken and change delivered. That is not what happened. We should consult, but we should consult with something, not just a broad wish list. That is what our manifestos were supposed to be about: policies that we could deliver. We then had an election, and we all accept the result of that. <BR /> <BR />Society is crying out for action, not warm words. The framework does not understand or recognise the fact that we face crises on so many fronts. We face a crisis on emigration, with far too many of our young people leaving our shores to find work or a university place. We face a crisis in homelessness: in my city, thousands of people are on the housing waiting list.”
“Of course, this is not a draft Programme for Government; it is a framework for a Programme for Government or whatever the language is. From our consultation with the public, our view is that people are not interested in personality clashes up here, who is speaking to whom and who gets on well with whom: what they are interested in is when we will get down to the business of delivering. They will not be satisfied that we will not even have a Programme for Government for another five or six months. <BR /> <BR />People want us to rush urgently towards reform, change, action and delivery. That is what the last mandate was supposed to be about. We were in government, and we hold our hands up for the part that we played. We tried our best with one Ministry.”
“Mr McKay wants us to come up with specific ideas: we have done that, and they are all published. That was our approach to the process. Unfortunately, that is not where we ended up. <BR /> <BR />There was one meeting that we did not get: a meeting with the Finance Department on the overall financial picture. That was the only meeting that we could not get. We might not have been looking forward to it, but we are all interested in finding out why that was. What is the financial picture? How bad is it? It is important that the public are given an early understanding of the financial picture. We could not get that in the process. <BR /> <BR />We wanted a draft Programme for Government. The language of this is interesting. Many Members, many from government Benches, have talked about the "draft Programme for Government".”
“I consulted thousands of people about our manifesto, our ideas and about this place and how it works and does not work. We have been through that. It is called an election; it is called democracy. We then had to try to form a Government. <BR /> <BR />The SDLP went into the process to honestly get the best possible draft Programme for Government, even if it was a broad one. That is why we met the Civil Service, and we are thankful for the openness with which we were met. We met the head of the Civil Service and the heads and key figures in many of the Departments. We argued, interrogated and tried to come up with the best possible solutions to some of the problems on the basis of the work that we had done in our manifesto. We then put forward papers with specific policies and ideas.”
“I congratulate you on your first sitting as a Deputy Speaker. <BR /> <BR />There has been quite a bit of talk today about process: the process leading up to this, the process before the election and the process from here to December or whenever we will have a final draft of the Programme for Government. That is fine. It is all important, and we have to put it all on the record. However, I think that the public are more interested in what we will do. <BR /> <BR />We believe strongly in consultation and always have done. We always argue for good consultation processes. We have just been through the best consultation you could ever go through. All of us sat down and worked with experts, spoke to civic society and developed manifestos, argued over them, defended them and put them in front of the people. Then we went out.”
“Yes, we would like to be recognised as a member of the official Opposition. I congratulate all the Ministers who have been appointed. They will have our support when they deserve it, but we will hold them to account when we need to.”