Daniel McCrossan
West Tyrone · Social Democratic and Labour Party · Northern Ireland
“I thank the Member for giving way. She has raised some points of interest. Aside from the Bill at hand, the Department of Finance currently collects rates from property owners across Northern Ireland. I have found that there can be difficulties with that when properties have been lying vacant for a significant period.”
“That applies in particular to those who have been land-banking over a period of time — that happens everywhere, unfortunately — with the hope that the big cash cow will be coming and, ultimately, they will be relieved of their responsibility to maintain, look after and enhance the landscape in a town or village by spending the necessary f…”
“As is often the case when we speak in the House, it may be that some ratepayers or members of the public will take it as a given that the Bill will be the silver bullet that will resolve the dilapidation issues in towns. Depending on which area you are in, the scale is very different.”
“We need to be creative in how we can put the Bill to task. <BR /> <BR />Certainly, as I have said, it is good policy. I have no question that the Bill is well intended.”
“<BR /> <BR />Addressing dilapidation is not simply a matter for local government in isolation. The responsibility lies with the Executive as a whole. The Executive have had their eyes closed to this matter for too long, and many of our buildings have deteriorated significantly across council areas over a long period.”
“That encourages private investment, and there is natural enhancement from those investors. However, in areas that lag behind because of economic decline, underinvestment and general deprivation, many towns and cities can quickly become the poor cousin.”
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“Rather than doing the serious work of lawmaking, Ministers have filled the void with a constant stream of non-binding motions that change nothing, fix nothing and are designed for headlines not for hospitals, homes or hard-pressed families. <BR /> <BR />When we examine the record of the mandate, the picture becomes even starker. After two full years of restored government, the total time spent on legislation in the Assembly amounts to mere minutes of legislative business in two years of supposed delivery. How embarrassing. That is not just inadequate; it is an abdication of responsibility on the part of the Executive. Legislation is not optional government; it is the central mechanism by which Ministers deliver reform, protect citizens and shape the future. Without it, there is no meaningful progress or action, only rhetoric.”
“It is now more than two years since the restoration of the Assembly and the return of the Executive. It has been two years of promises, two years of announcements and two years of carefully staged press conferences about delivery, reform and transformation. Yet, in all that time, the Sinn Féin/DUP-led Executive have failed to bring forward a single meaningful piece of primary legislation to improve the lives of the people whom we represent. Let us reflect on that extraordinary situation: the parties that claim to be legislators have, in reality, chosen not to legislate. <BR /> <BR />The institutions were restored amid great public expectation with commitments to action and urgency. Instead, what we have witnessed is drift, delay and dysfunction at the very heart of government here.”
“Minister, under your leadership, your Department has been described as "the sticking plaster masters" when it comes to road maintenance. The state of the roads in West Tyrone is a disgrace. Will you tell the House how much your Department has paid out in compensation for vehicle damage caused by poor road conditions in each of the past two years?”
“Minister, how will you guarantee consistency and legal compliance in the delivery of RE across all schools prior to the new syllabus and inspection processes being in place, given the Supreme Court's finding that the existing framework on its own is insufficient?”
“Until that happens, the Executive deserve to be called out loudly, clearly and without apology.”
“When delivery fails, what do we get instead? This Executive, particularly the two senior parties, retreat into rows, rehearsed outrage and party point-scoring, picking fights with one another to distract from the fact that they are not fixing a single problem that ordinary people face. <BR /> <BR />Those are real consequences for real people, felt every day in hospital waiting rooms and overcrowded homes, in struggling classrooms and in household budgets stretched to breaking point. <BR /> <BR />Two years on, the Executive can no longer hide behind excuses, past collapses or institutional fragility: it is not good enough. People did not wait years for power-sharing to return just to get stagnation, distraction and division. They want delivery; they want leadership; and they want the Government here to work.”
“Principals are cutting essential services, special educational needs provision is failing children, and classroom assistants are undervalued and ignored. <BR /> <BR />Our infrastructure is crumbling. Roads, water systems and public transport are neglected because long-term planning has been replaced with short-term fixes. <BR /> <BR />Economic ambition is lacking. Small businesses are closing, regional investment is stalling, and there is no coherent plan to grow our economy or create good, well-paid jobs. <BR /> <BR />Public-sector workers remain underpaid and demoralised. Pay disputes are dragging on, morale has collapsed across our public services, and people are losing patience. <BR /> <BR />Trust in politics has been completely eroded. People see delay, dysfunction and drift, and they are losing all faith.”
“Lives are put on hold while the Executive dither. <BR /> <BR />Social care is stretched to breaking point. Carers are exhausted, families are left without support and skilled staff are walking away from a system in crisis. <BR /> <BR />Housing is a scandal. Families are trapped in temporary accommodation and young people cannot afford to pay rent. Homelessness levels continue to rise because the Executive have failed to act. <BR /> <BR />Childcare is still unaffordable and inaccessible, locking parents, especially women, out of work and opportunities. <BR /> <BR />The cost of living continues to hammer households. Energy bills, food prices and everyday costs rise while wages and support lag behind. <BR /> <BR />Schools are being pushed to the brink.”
“Today marks two years since the return of the Assembly and the Executive to power-sharing. It has been two years since the institutions were restored after being collapsed not because of crisis or necessity but because of political self-interest. People were told that stability would bring delivery, that restoring the Executive would mean progress and that ordinary families would finally see positive change. Two years on, that promise has not been kept. Across our communities, people are struggling, and the Executive have failed to deliver for them on their basic needs. <BR /> <BR />Let us be clear about what failure from the Executive looks like. <BR /> <BR />Waiting lists remain among the worst anywhere in these islands. People wait years for appointments for surgery and even basic assessments.”
“Thank you, Minister. Do you accept that delay is not neutral and that every stalled permit or planning application represents lost investment, lost emission reduction and lost confidence among farmers?”
“It represented an acceptance that the Government's initial refusal to compensate the women was flawed and included a commitment to carry out a full review of the findings. <BR /> <BR />At this point, it is important to be absolutely clear that women born in the 1950s did everything right. They worked, they paid in and they planned for their retirement on the basis of a pension age that, they were told, would apply, and then the rules were changed with little to no notice. Yes, the ombudsman has found fault, but the Government must now take action and put right the wrong and redress the harm caused by the state's failure. This is so important, and I thank all of those who have campaigned and spoken up for the women across Northern Ireland.”
“What they oppose is the way that those changes were implemented without adequate notice and without any meaningful transition protection. That distinction matters. <BR /> <BR />The scale of the injustice was confirmed by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman following a six-year investigation. That investigation found maladministration in the way that the Department for Work and Pensions failed to communicate changes to the state pension age, including a failure to act on its own research that showed that women were unaware of the changes being made. As a result, women were denied the opportunity to make alternative arrangements for their retirement, and many continue to suffer the consequences of that today. The out-of-court settlement reached between WASPI and the Government on 2 December 2025 marked an important turning point.”
“I rise on behalf of the SDLP in support of the women against state pension inequality (WASPI) and to record the full support of my party for the long-running, dignified and entirely justified campaign that has been led by tens of thousands of women across Northern Ireland. <BR /> <BR />Women born in the 1950s planned their lives around the state pension age that, they were told and believed, would apply. They made decisions about work, caring responsibilities, savings and retirement on that basis and then, with little to no notice, the rules were changed, with some women receiving just months' notice and some none at all. As you will agree, that is not equality but maladministration. WASPI women have never opposed the principle of equalising the state pension age; they support equality.”
“The motion does not demand miracles; it demands honesty, planning and accountability from this place. It calls for winter pressure planning to begin earlier with clear timelines and published plans, not excuses delivered after the damage is done. Most important, it demands that we stop normalising the failure. It is not normal; it is unacceptable. Patients deserve dignity, our staff deserve support and the public deserve an Executive who take collective responsibility instead of trying to pass the buck. It is time to stop the talking. It is time to take action. It is 10 years on from Bengoa, and we are still having the same conversation. People have suffered enough. Fix the mess now.”
“Too often, Sinn Féin and DUP Ministers can hardly mention the crisis because they are embarrassed about the situation, and they often want to put the blame on the Health Minister. The Executive are collectively responsible for the mess, and it is high time that they listened to people on the ground and put solutions in place that will take the pressure off the service. A system that strips people of dignity at their most vulnerable is not compassionate, and a system that plans for winter at the last minute is not being led.”
“<BR /> <BR />Most galling, perhaps, is the silence from those with the greatest responsibility. The Executive, collectively, are responsible for that failure.”
“Weeks before my mum, unfortunately, passed away, she cried because she was traumatised by what she had endured in the emergency department in Altnagelvin. I left her outside in the car with the heat on until such time as she could be seen in the hospital, because there was nowhere to sit in the emergency department. That is a system that is failing and is entirely inhumane. People should not have to endure that, yet we have been talking about this crisis for 10 years, and it is not improving. Years ago, the Northern Ireland Fiscal Council warned about hospital throughput, delayed discharges and the inevitable knock-on effect on emergency departments. Reports were written and warnings were issued, but winter came and, once again, the Executive were unprepared.”
“Demand has surged, yet planning has, clearly, lagged behind. Let us be clear and honest: the Executive have presided over hospital waiting lists that are not just the worst on these islands but among the worst in Europe. That is not something that any Executive should try to explain away. Behind those statistics are real people experiencing care without dignity. <BR /> <BR />Nowhere is the problem more stark than in Altnagelvin Area Hospital's emergency department. It is cramped, with one toilet for the entire area, hard seats and no dedicated safe or child-friendly areas. We see people sitting on the floor for hours, families trying to comfort distressed children in overcrowded waiting rooms and elderly patients left exposed, exhausted and humiliated. I find it a deeply personal issue.”
“That is not care being delivered with dignity; it is care being delivered out of desperation. People refuse to go to emergency departments because they are so sick and tired of the state of them and of having to sit in such conditions. <BR /> <BR />The figures expose just how bad the crisis has become, and I do not believe that they paint the full picture, because not everybody attends those departments, particularly those who, unfortunately, are quite ill. In 2024-25, 132,741 patients waited in emergency departments for over 12 hours. That was up from 121,043 in the previous year. That is not a blip; it signals a system that is going backwards. Over the past five years, emergency department attendance rose by 28·9%, from just under 594,000 attendances a year to over 764,000 attendances a year.”
“This is one of the most crucial human issues that could come before the House. The motion speaks to the reality that people from across our society live with every day. The truth is that we have a health service that fails them at their most vulnerable moments. Our emergency departments are not just under pressure but overwhelmed, undermanned and underplanned, and it is patients who pay the price. <BR /> <BR />I am inundated every day, as, I am sure, many Members are, with complaints about the state of emergency departments and our waiting lists, with elderly people being left on trolleys for hours, parents with sick children spending entire nights in emergency departments and ambulances sitting stacked outside hospitals because there is nowhere available in the hospital to offload the patients.”
“Minister, you are known in the House as a man who loves a good consultation, but where is the machinery for delivery? Will you confirm what new funding will be allocated to the strategy, what statutory duties will be enforced and what the consequences will be for public bodies that continue to damage biodiversity, including those that are linked to the pollution and land-use decisions that have already left places such as Lough Neagh in crisis?”
“Those are unifying problems that need to be resolved for the common good. Failure costs people their health and their dignity. In some cases, unfortunately, it has cost people their life. The public are not stupid. They know when politics is focused on point-scoring instead of problem-solving. They know when leadership is absent. They are losing faith in this place as a result. Stormont exists to serve our people, not to manage decline or defend underperformance. Doing nothing is a choice. Delay is a decision. Every day that passes without action is another day when our people pay the price. People deserve so much better than that. They deserve honesty, urgency and delivery. Above all else, they deserve an Executive who remember who they are meant to serve.”
“They are the lived reality of thousands of people whom we represent; people who live and work hard right across our communities and are suffering the consequences of complete and utter incompetence by the Executive. We were promised delivery and a Programme for Government that would make life better. Instead, we have drift, delay and excuses, and a constant sense that the urgent is always pushed aside for the politically convenient. Waiting lists are among the worst in Europe, housing stress is at crisis levels and mental health services are stretched beyond breaking point, yet there is no agreed multi-year Budget, urgency or sense that the Executive are putting the interests of our people first. <BR /> <BR />That failure is not abstract: its profound consequences are being felt acutely in all our communities.”
“The Stormont Executive are failing, not just in theory but in real life. The human cost is absolutely immense. I meet parents whose children have waited for years for assessments, watching their confidence in education slip away while they go through endless waiting lists and missed opportunities. I meet elderly people who are in pain, waiting for months just to see a consultant and years for treatment, while their quality of life quietly erodes. I meet families who are trapped in overcrowded and unsustainable housing. They are doing everything right and working hard but have nowhere to turn. <BR /> <BR />Those are not isolated cases.”
“Yesterday, the First Minister and the deputy First Minister stood in the House, praising what they described as the great record of delivery by the shambolic Executive. That is quite contrary to what I hear and see on the ground, and I am sure that that goes for others in the House as well. Every week in my constituency, I meet people who are looking not for miracles but for the basics: a hospital appointment that arrives on time, a home that is warm and affordable, a road that is safe and a system that works for them when life goes wrong. Increasingly, I have to look them in the eye and explain that the system run by the disastrous Executive is continually failing them with their distractions and sham fights over things that do not actually change people's lives.”
“You are always kind in giving way; I appreciate it. <BR /> <BR />Does the Member agree that it is not so much about the design of the structures per se but the abuse of the structures by the two lead partners in the Government? They are pretending that they cannot work together. They have realised that division is profitable for them and that it is a distraction from the fact that they have failed to deliver anything notable.”
“Behind every delay is a family living with fear, and behind every late diagnosis is a life put at risk. Accountability cannot be optional. Time is critical, and action must be swift in order to save lives. The people whom we represent deserve a health service that saves lives, not excuses from the Executive, who are clearly not delivering on the issue. They need to be honest with the people about whether they are up for the job or not. The Executive need to stop dithering and start delivering, with fewer fights over flags. Let us see this place actually fight for the health service and for the people who are affected each and every day.”
“Constituents now tell me that they are anxious about going to hospital, anxious about overcrowding, anxious about cancelled appointments, anxious about being left waiting without explanation, and anxious about a system that they no longer trust to be there when they need it most. That fear should shame those who are responsible for running our health service. That may be blunt but, unfortunately, it is very much the reality. Let us be clear: the system is in disarray. It is a shadow of its former self and all that the NHS was designed to achieve. Staff are exhausted and demoralised, holding together a broken system through sheer dedication, whilst political leadership has failed to deliver the reform and urgency required. It is not acceptable. The Executive have had years to act and have failed for years to do so.”
“As I speak, another good friend of mine, Martina Ward, aged 62, is being laid to rest. Martina fought that illness with courage and dignity, but she, too, has been taken far too soon. Her family is burying a loved one today, and, sadly, is far from alone. On behalf of the House, I offer my condolences to her son Adam and the Ward family.”
“When things go wrong, no one seems to be responsible; families cannot get answers; complaints go unanswered; and lessons are not learned. Communication is often poor or non-existent at the very moment when people are frightened, vulnerable and desperate for clarity. That is just poor administration and is totally unacceptable. <BR /> <BR />It is not abstract to me. Over the Christmas period — a difficult time for a lot of people — I lost a very good friend, Pat McLaughlin. He was diagnosed with cancer and survived for only a few short weeks. He passed away, surrounded by his family, on Boxing Day. His family were robbed of time that they should have had, and his story is a stark reminder of the brutal reality of late diagnosis.”
“The state of our health service is no longer just a crisis; it is an absolute failure — a failure of the shambolic Executive to get a handle on it. The cost of that failure is being felt every day by families across our communities. As MLAs, we hear about those challenges every day. Poor access to care has severe consequences: late diagnosis, delayed treatment and overstretched services are directly impacting on outcomes, particularly for cancer patients. When people are diagnosed late, treatment is more aggressive, more traumatic and far less likely to succeed. That is not just unavoidable; it is the result of systemic failure. <BR /> <BR />What makes the situation even worse is the lack of accountability in our health service.”
“<BR /> <BR />For Northern Ireland, endorsing the legislative consent motion is about recognising an environmental responsibility that does not stop at our borders and that our actions contribute to a wider global effort to protect shared resources. For those reasons, we are content to support the motion.”
“International cooperation is essential if we are to avoid repeating patterns of exploitation in shared global commons such as the oceans. <BR /> <BR />The SDLP also welcomes the emphasis on environmental impact assessments. Evidence-based decision-making is absolutely essential. Assessing impacts before damage occurs is always preferable to attempting to repair harm after the fact, particularly in fragile marine ecosystems. Environmental standards must be applied consistently and credibly and should never be used selectively or opportunistically. The SDLP supports environmental protection because it strengthens decision-making and public confidence, not because it provides a convenient veto.”
“The approach is entirely consistent with our approach here at home. Development should happen, but it must be done properly, with mitigation, oversight and accountability built in from the outset. <BR /> <BR />There is an important issue of fairness at the heart of the legislation, and marine genetic resources that may have significant scientific and medical value should not become the preserve of a small number of powerful interests. The Bill promotes fair and equitable sharing of benefits, ensuring that scientific progress serves the common good. <BR /> <BR />The environmental crisis is not only ecological; it is social and economic. Biodiversity loss disproportionately affects those least responsible for it.”
“<BR /> <BR />We also support the legislative consent motion because it reflects the importance of Northern Ireland playing its part in meeting international environmental obligations. Extending the provisions here ensures consistency across the UK and demonstrates our commitment to collective global action on environmental protection. <BR /> <BR />Crucially, the SDLP rejects the false choice between environmental protection and economic development. Strong environmental standards, when properly designed and applied, enable development to proceed responsibly. Weak or inconsistent standards undermine confidence, increase conflict and store up greater costs for the future. <BR /> <BR />The Bill establishes international frameworks that allow development to take place within defined limits.”
“The Bill gives effect to an international agreement that introduces practical and necessary measures, including maritime protected areas, environmental impact assessments for activities on the high seas and fair arrangements for accessing and sharing the benefits of marine genetic resources. The provisions are grounded in scientific evidence and respond to long-standing weaknesses in global marine governance. <BR /> <BR />The SDLP has always supported environmental protection that is based on cooperation, science and, of course, fairness. This legislation is not about stopping activity for the sake of it; it is about ensuring that activity takes place within clear, credible rules that are protect ecosystems while providing certainty for research and responsible development.”
“This is an important motion. The SDLP supports it because biodiversity loss is one of the most pressing global challenges that we face. Climate change, habitat degradation and ecosystem collapse already have serious consequences for food security, climate stability and livelihoods. The oceans play a vital role in regulating our climate and sustaining life, yet much of the high seas remains inadequately protected. <BR /> <BR />While Northern Ireland does not border the high seas, we are not insulated from what happens there. We are part of the maritime island economy and a shared global environmental system. Damage to marine ecosystems affects fish stocks, climate patterns and environmental resilience, all of which have real consequences for our communities.”
“<BR /> <BR />There is a great injustice in how we fund care. People who worked all their life, paid into the system and saved for the future find themselves facing the loss of their home and life savings when residential care becomes necessary and unavoidable, particularly given that they cannot get that care in their own home when and if they need it. We need to step up, stand up and speak up for our older population. The Assembly needs to recognise that none of us will get out of this: it affects our grandparents and our parents, and, unfortunately, it will eventually affect everyone in the House.”
“Community services that once allowed older people to live independently have been steadily stripped back. Preventative care has been hollowed out, leaving families to cope alone and forcing people into crisis before help appears. That is not a joined-up health and social care system but one that reacts too late and costs more in the long run to repair. <BR /> <BR />For many older people, the cost-of-living crisis has been relentless, because their fixed incomes simply do not stretch to cover soaring energy bills, the rising cost of food and increasing costs generally. People who planned carefully and lived responsibly now worry about whether they can heat their homes or make ends meet. The Executive have talked a great deal about protecting the vulnerable in our society, but, unfortunately, the numbers do not add up.”
“Today, 12% of our older population live in relative poverty, and 9% of pensioners live in absolute poverty. Those numbers, which are in the thousands, are entirely unacceptable. It is also reported that 18% to 23% of our older population suffer from loneliness and that 80,000 people in Northern Ireland over the age of 65 live alone. <BR /> <BR />Huge challenges face our older population, which, as I said, is growing while the services that older people rely on are shrinking. That is not an accident; it is the result of years of drift, delay and, unfortunately, political inaction. Access to health services is becoming harder, not easier, and getting a GP appointment often feels like winning the lottery. Hospital waiting lists are among the worst in western Europe, and older people pay the price first and have the longest waits.”
“Before I begin my Member's statement, I welcome Mr Wilson to the House. I congratulate him on his appointment to the Assembly and wish him well in the time ahead. On behalf of the SDLP, I also thank William Irwin for his many years of dedicated service. We wish him a long and happy retirement with his family. <BR /> <BR />This afternoon, I will focus on older people's care. We have an older population that is growing and is expected to continue to grow over the coming decade. Older people built the society that we live in. They worked, paid their taxes, raised families and held communities together through some of the most difficult and divided years this place has known. Yet, today, too many of our older people feel abandoned by a system that the Northern Ireland Executive have failed to properly plan for, fund or reform.”
“In difficult times, he was steady. In uncertain periods, he remained hopeful. He believed in peace not as an abstract idea but as a responsibility, something to be worked for, protected and handed on. <BR /> <BR />Today, we mourn the loss of a former colleague, mentor and dear friend, but we also celebrate a life rooted in service, loyalty and love. Joe stood for the very best of public life — the best of all of us — and his lesson will continue to guide us for many years to come. On behalf of the Assembly and the SDLP, our deepest sympathies go to Ursula, Aoife, Emer and Eoin and the wider Byrne family. Rest in peace, Joe.”
“Together, they raised three children, Aoife, Emer and Eoin, who were the centre of Joe's world and his greatest pride. His understanding of family, loyalty and strong relationships shaped the kind of public representative that he was. He knew that politics only mattered if it strengthened lives, not strained them. Joe was fiercely loyal to friendship. He valued long-standing relationships deeply and never let them drift. He stayed connected, interested and present. Those qualities defined him as a friend and public servant. Even as Parkinson's disease took hold, Joe's interest in people, politics and the world never faded. Those who spent time with him speak of conversations filled with thoughtfulness, humour and gratitude rather than complaint. Joe's faith guided his life. In divided times, he was measured.”
“Our paths crossed by accident, but I have no regrets, and I sincerely hope that he did not either. He offered advice freely, shared his experience generously and always made time. I am deeply grateful to him for the opportunity, for his friendship and for the confidence that he placed in me. It has been an honour to follow in the footsteps of such a great man and represent his beloved West Tyrone. <BR /> <BR />Above all else, Joe Byrne was a husband and a father. His wife, Ursula, was his anchor throughout their life together. A partner in every sense of the word, she shared the demands of public life, the joys of family life and, later, the challenges of Joe's illness. Her strength, love and constancy sustained Joe through his hardest days.”
“He understood the importance of education, having a strong local economy and investing in the future of rural communities. That is why he championed issues such as healthcare, education, infrastructure, agriculture and, in particular, the A5. He understood their transformational impact on the lives of ordinary people, those whom he represented. Joe was also a founding member of the Policing Board, helping to build confidence in new institutions at a time when trust was fragile and hard-won. Across politics and across communities, he commanded respect for his calm, informed and constructive approach. <BR /> <BR />I want to speak personally for a moment about my friend. Joe brought me into politics. He believed in me, encouraged me and supported me at every single stage.”
“He was a founding member of Strabane Sigersons GAA club. He was the club's first coach and, indeed, its first chairman. Beyond that, he was rooted in GAA games at Queen's University and in his local area of Omagh. He devoted countless hours to developing our young people, not just as players but as individuals. What mattered most to Joe Byrne was not simply winning but how the game was played. He believed that sport was a place where discipline, teamwork, fairness and respect were learned. He demanded standards but never at the cost of dignity. <BR /> <BR />That belief in people ran through every aspect of Joe's life. He was an educator, a lecturer and a businessman with a sharp and instinctive understanding of enterprise, and he was always willing to take a risk if it meant creating opportunity.”
“Whether in the council chamber, on the Floor of the Assembly or at a kitchen table at a constituent's home, he showed up, listened and cared. He worked patiently to find solutions that made a real difference to the lives of our people. Joe made a significant contribution to peace and public life here. He played a pivotal role in the slow, demanding work that helped to build a more stable and hopeful society, work that required patience rather than posturing, openness rather than entrenchment, listening rather than shouting and perseverance rather than triumphalism. <BR /> <BR />Those qualities defined Joe Byrne's approach to politics and public life, but Joe was never only a politician. Long before holding public office, he was deeply involved in youth work and sport, particularly through Gaelic games.”
“I rise to pay tribute to Joe Byrne, who was a former colleague in the Assembly; a mentor to many of us in the SDLP; and a man whose life was defined not by title or position but by service, integrity and humanity. Joe entered public life during some of the most difficult and formative years in our recent history. He believed deeply that politics mattered, that it should be done with integrity, and that it should always be rooted in respect for people. He lived by the belief, often expressed by our dear friend Seamus Mallon, that the first rule of politics is to be there for people. Joe lived by that rule every single day.”
“I thank the Minister for his answer. What is the real barrier to establishing an independent EPA? Is it an overly bureaucratic Department, obstructive and divided DUP Ministers or a Minister who simply cannot get the job done? Crucially, what steps are you taking to confront the obstacles and finally deliver the independent regulator that Northern Ireland needs?”
“— for far too long. I commend the motion to the House.”