Colin McGrath
South Down · Social Democratic and Labour Party · Northern Ireland
“Minister, regardless of where people stand on the exact figure, surely we can all agree that a health service cannot function without the doctors whom it trains.”
“Minister, climate change is happening, and extreme weather events are taking place. We saw that in Downpatrick a number of years ago when the town centre was ravaged by flooding, and it has taken the businesses affected many years to try to get over that flooding.”
“Minister, given that capital funding is, generally, being decimated, the extent of which may increase as a result of the Executive's not agreeing a Budget, what impact will that have on any final road maintenance strategy, and are any contingencies being put in place to manage that?”
“<BR /> <BR />Since March 2025, the parliamentary excellence programme has delivered dedicated sessions with the Executive Office on the strategic framework and its delivery plan, enhancing Members’ understanding of the cross-government approach and their role in scrutiny, legislation and constituency engagement.”
“<BR /> <BR />More broadly, the Assembly Commission supports Members and Committees in carrying out their scrutiny functions, including in relation to the Executive Office’s work on that framework.”
“As the Member mentioned, one example is the Assembly's Women's Caucus, which has a particular focus on supporting women in public life and highlighting the increasing challenges that women face in the digital sphere, including online abuse.”
The complete record
Every one of 2,662 lines we hold for Colin McGrath, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 11 of 54.
“<BR /> <BR />More broadly, that prompts a fundamental question about the definition of adulthood. Legally, we consider someone to be an adult at 18, yet we must be aware that, for individuals with a learning disability, questions of capacity, autonomy and consent are far more nuanced. That is not a theoretical issue, because the Bill will affect such individuals directly. Across children's services, there is always unease at how they transition into adult services, and a cliff-edge approach is unhelpful and, at times, damaging to the individual. I wonder whether the Minister would consider strengthening the Bill to permit the transition of services as opposed to having that cliff edge. There are inconsistencies that might be reflected there.”
“It offers us a chance to ensure that there is accountability and structure but, above all, that there is a rights-based approach to protecting those who are in need and at risk. It cannot undo the harm that has already been done, but it can and must ensure that what happened does not happen again. <BR /> <BR />The Bill defines those whom it seeks to protect: adults at risk. While that definition is clear, there is one significant exclusion: individuals who self-harm. They are a vulnerable group and are often isolated and in need of support and protection. I ask the Minister to clarify in his winding-up speech whether that exclusion is intentional, whether there is scope to review or expand the definition or whether there is a sense that the matter is covered elsewhere.”
“At the heart of the Bill lies this simple question: how do we protect the dignity and rights of those who are least able to protect themselves? The Adult Protection Bill comes to us as a response to the deeply disturbing failures that we saw at Dunmurry Manor and Muckamore Abbey Hospital. Those failures were not just operational or bureaucratic but moral. They were obscene. They reflected a system that was neither equipped nor empowered to protect those who were in need. The Bill rightly seeks to change that and to put adult protection on a clear statutory footing and bring Northern Ireland into line with the rest of these islands. As the Opposition, the SDLP welcomes the principles of the Bill.”
“While we await broader progress on the clean air strategy, the people of Warrenpoint are dealing with the very immediate, ongoing issue of nauseating odours. They have been doing so regularly, but the odours have been especially bad over the past seven days. Those people deserve to breathe clean air too. Following the raising of all those concerns by the community and me over the past year, what specific actions is the Minister's Department taking to put a stop to those smells, which have been horrendous over the past seven days?”
“First Minister, given the debacle with the A5, a project that your team is in charge of, and given that your colleague the Infrastructure Minister has said little other than that the judgement is being considered, was it wise to begin the process of handing back the vested land? There are legal opportunities to stop that process, but, because it has now begun, we will have to go through the whole process again of getting that land back. It is an absolute mess of a project that you and your team have been left to look after.”
“Mr Speaker, I am sure that it must be difficult for you to hear all the abuse of the Bill that you had to introduce and publicly welcome in the press. Of course, our thoughts must be with the families of those affected, but, given that the further delays may cause further deaths, if incompetence is found in your Department, Minister, should it be you or your predecessor, Minister O'Dowd, who resigns?”
“I thank the Member for her question. Two showers are available for use. One is located on the fourth floor, near room 435. The other is on the third floor, beside room 386. At the moment, there are no plans to provide any extra shower facilities, but, should the level of use require that we consider increasing the number, we will do so.”
“Given the weather that we have had recently, it is also worth noting how fortunate we in the Building are to have access to the parkland outside to take in some exercise and fresh air before or after work or over lunchtime, which I am sure that many of us do. <BR /> <BR />The Assembly Commission has established a health and well-being group for staff. It is staff-led and encourages staff to take part in a variety of activities. Although there are constraints on providing additional facilities, given the nature of the Building and the available budget, the Assembly Commission is always open to considering new ideas and suggestions.”
“I thank the Member for her question. The Assembly Commission is committed to promoting a healthy lifestyle and provides a number of schemes and initiatives in Parliament Buildings to do so.”
“As has been highlighted, the Commission has not taken a decision to change the policy. The Commission's transgender policy involves changes to its staff handbook, which were in keeping with the settled legislative and legal position at the time and were approved by the senior management team. Therefore, no political parties were consulted then. As per the Assembly Commission's equality scheme, the consultation on the draft policy sought the views of those directly affected by it, including representatives of the section 75 categories, Assembly Commission staff and NIPSA. <BR /> <BR />On the question of whether the Commission will undertake to include MLAs who are not represented on the Commission in future consultations, those directly affected by a draft policy are reviewed prior to each of the consultation processes that take place.”
“We still await the information from the Equality Commission. It is hoped that that will come in the next week — by the end of this month — and that will have to be assessed against the current legal guidance. Unfortunately, the Commission cannot disclose the advice that it has received. Once that information is received, however, it will be measured against that, and the Commission will make a determination at that stage.”
“The Commission was unable to reach agreement to make any interim changes to the Assembly Commission’s current transgender policy and associated guidance on assisting and supporting transgender visitors and other users of Parliament Buildings. However, the Commission agreed to undertake a review of the policy and guidance, and that will include consideration of any advice and guidance that is published by the Equality Commission. <BR /> <BR />As per the Supreme Court’s judgement, the policy review will focus on the policy implications of biological sex, which largely impacts on the provision of single-sex spaces. In general, that pertains to the use of bathrooms by staff and visitors. A paper on the current policy review will be discussed at a future meeting of the Assembly Commission.”
“I thank the Member for her question. On 16 April 2025, the Supreme Court issued its judgement on For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers, which held that the terms "man", "woman" and "sex" in the Equality Act 2010 refer to biological sex. Whilst the Supreme Court judgement was not considering Northern Ireland legislation, it is acknowledged as a significant legal development that will have implications locally. As a consequence, the Equality Commission has indicated that it intends to produce new non-statutory guidance in June 2025. <BR /> <BR />The Assembly Commission held discussions on the matter on 6 May and 12 May.”
“There is a better model in Scotland, and other models are available, but it seems that the current model for community pharmacies causes a lot of financial constraint on them. Whilst the regulations are welcome, there is a long distance to go to help the sector. I hope that the Minister will continue to do all that he can to help and support our community pharmacy sector, which is often at the heart of our high streets and all our local communities.”
“I welcome the impact that this will have on those in the community pharmacy sector when it comes to streamlining their work. We are all very aware of, and have been lobbied about, the impact of the community pharmacy budget. The sector is struggling with the amount of money that is being provided. There is a large amount of paperwork, and a lot of practices could be revised. Last week, the Minister mentioned e-prescriptions as another way to help, but these regulations are one element of help for the community pharmacy sector. We need to continue to help that sector to do all that it can. The best thing that we could do is to look at the model for paying for medication.”
“There was even an attempt, I think, to reference the fact that one community or other would not get the same benefit. We want to see that benefit in underrepresented communities. I do not think that closing a facility in Coleraine is doing anything to balance that. If we are talking about the economic benefits, which many Members mentioned, let us note that that theatre is in the Minister for the Economy's constituency. <BR /> <BR />I have run out of time. We could all talk about the arts for much longer. We will maybe have a much longer debate about it in future, but let us try to assist artists and give them the stability of income that helps them to do their work, which, ultimately, helps all of us.”
“<BR /> <BR />As referenced in the motion, it is a bit troubling that priority for the arts is absent from the current Programme for Government. The artists at the round-table event were concerned about hypocrisy. They see Ministers and MLAs turning up to opening events — some were referenced in other constituencies — but, when it comes to trying to get the funding to do their work, it is not there. They feel that that is a bit two-faced. For example, where is the Minister's support for the Riverside Theatre? We talked about wanting to move things and accepting that things need to move outside Belfast and Derry, yet the biggest theatre to be threatened with closure in Northern Ireland is based not in Belfast or Derry but in Coleraine.”
“<BR /> <BR />Reference was also made to the fact that a lot of artists noted that, when we had a Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure — the Principal Deputy Speaker will have great affinity with that — the Executive named the arts in the title of that Department. I do not want to take away from the work that the Communities Minister does, but I understand that he has a lot of work to do, whether that is in housing, the anti-poverty strategy or local councils. Given all the work that is done in his Department, it must be difficult to focus on the arts. The Department's budget has a lot of competing areas to cover. That may be something to consider for the future. We will not rearrange our Departments tomorrow, but maybe we could consider where we place the arts. That might help them to get the priority that they need.”
“Such projects take place through many Departments, because the arts cut across much of our lives, yet, in Northern Ireland, we invest less in the arts than anywhere else — anywhere — on these islands. We invest just over £5 per person per year, compared with nearly £26 in the South. I echo the remarks of the leader of the Opposition, my colleague Matthew O'Toole, that, even though there are strains on budgets everywhere else, and probably more profoundly so than here, others have still managed to invest more money in the arts. The question is why. The answer is that they identify the arts as a priority, understand their importance and follow that up with funding. That funding makes what takes place a reality.”
“Their value goes far beyond their economic output and reaches into something much deeper and ultimately more profound than statistics or budget bottom lines can measure. Properly investing in the arts will impact on every facet of our lives, whether that is in education, in health and well-being or through those who challenge injustice wherever it is found. That was certainly brought to the fore in our meeting with the cross-sectoral group this morning. <BR /> <BR />The arts impact on every element of life. They probably cut across every Department, even down to the funding of some projects by DAERA, which may not be recognised as a Department that traditionally supports the arts.”
“Thank you, Madam Principal Deputy Speaker. I thank everybody for their contributions to the debate. I hope that they go to show that not every Opposition debate has to turn into a slinging match and that, while Members have disagreements, there is an opportunity for us all to galvanise around a subject, have the conversations that are necessary and understand exactly what people in our communities want. <BR /> <BR />There is also a fault in the fact that we all agree. We need to come back and revisit that, because it is not just about our being in the Chamber and saying that we agree on the issues and understand the problems. We need to move on and address them, because the arts are not just a cultural embellishment; they are essential to our way of life.”
“I welcome hearing that, Minister, because many in the Health Committee who heard from the trust last week were less than assured that matters are being dealt with. When the chair of the trust refers to a complaint as potentially being just a "gripe", it makes me feel that what we are seeing is that, from the very top, the culture is not working in that organisation. If the level 5 intervention reveals a continued failing at trust board level, will you ask those responsible to stand aside?”
“Notwithstanding all the good work that is, you say, taking place in lieu of there being a mother-and-baby unit, Minister, has any consideration been given to providing a temporary unit? Most of the backbone of the work is provided by the staff. Whilst we wait to get the perfection of a brand new building and service, could we have something temporary? We are waiting for the Belfast Trust to deliver this, so it could be a long time before it arrives.”
“Will the Minister accept that there can be a problem where these hubs can be in towns where there is no banking provision? If there is one bank left, it means that, disproportionately, it is having a bigger slice of the pie of local people, and that is not good for competition. Might the Minister raise in discussions that there might be an opportunity for some hubs in bigger areas where there is only one bank remaining?”
“I am trying to get some concept of parity here. Did the Member's party leader, who sits in Westminster and was given a pay rise by a board that has a former Member of Parliament on it, take that pay rise without questioning it? What did he do in that situation? Did he disagree with that payment in the House of Commons Chamber or accept it?”
“An arms struggle — just what our world needs at this exact time. Maybe it is that mentality that we need to try to challenge. I hope that we can challenge that as part of Europe and not as part of the disunited United Kingdom.”
“I am on my last two words of "thank you", but, if you want, I will let you in.”
“That, to me, is what the EU is about. That is not something that any of us has to fear. We have lived through a century when we have seen our world become smaller. We now live in a global neighbourhood. People such as Trump, Farage and Putin — imperial isolationists — will struggle and ultimately fail. Our neighbourhood and our future could be more welcoming, inclusive and prosperous. I urge Members to think of the future — think of their children and grandchildren and their future. If the UK will not take us back into Europe, we must ask this: what or whom will that take us towards? The United Kingdom is no longer united, nor will it act in our best interests. Let us choose a future that will look after us.”
“The truth that gives me strength every day is that Northern Ireland has shown the world what peacebuilding looks like. We have shown that history does not have to define us. Rather, it is our choices that do so. Now, we have a new challenge and a new opportunity to set a new course as one nation: a new Ireland that would take us back into Europe. In that single market of over 440 million customers, there would be stability for businesses, free movement for our young people, the rights of all and the rule of law would be enshrined, and we would be rejoining a larger family of nations. <BR /> <BR />I believe in that future. I believe in it because I have seen it first-hand in our communities. I have seen people in Downpatrick, Newcastle, Warrenpoint and further afield working hard for their communities and looking out for their neighbours.”
“Our re-entry will not happen as part of the United Kingdom: that is the hard truth. If the Members who tabled the amendment were entirely honest with themselves, they would accept that the UK is not moving back towards Europe; it is drifting further away from Europe and doing so at disturbing speed. When far-right voices like Reform are gaining ground, when schools are used as political weapons and when the rich are given bigger breaks while people who are struggling are left to fend for themselves, we can no longer pretend that re-entry to the EU will come from that direction. The British state has made its choice, but we must be allowed to make ours. <BR /> <BR />I do not say that in anger or bitterness; rather, I say it with a sense of hope for the future.”
“In the surreal world of Stormont, I rise to speak after a speech that included references to Mystic Meg, thrush and dandruff. I will try my best to continue. <BR /> <BR />I do not have long to speak, so I will get straight to the point. Our place is in Europe. The motion from the Opposition is important, because it offers us a moment to consider not just where we are but who we want to be — who the majority want to be. If we truly want to be back in the European Union, with the many benefits that that would bring to us in trade, movement of people and developing communities, we need to be honest with ourselves that that road now runs through a new Ireland. To be direct, anyone who believes that we will re-enter the EU as part of the UK is either naive, fooling themselves or just wilfully blind to the reality of where we find ourselves.”
“Do you know that it was one of your colleagues rather than any of us who made a point of order about an Opposition day finishing early?”
“Does the Minister also agree that there must be an independent public inquiry into the murder of Sean Brown?”
“Will the Minister confirm whether she agrees with the evidence of the former Police Ombudsman, Nuala O'Loan, to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee legacy inquiry:”
“We need to have a justice response towards those who continue to break the rules and provide these things, often to our young adults and younger people in our community, that challenges them right where they are doing it so that it is removed from our community. I want to see continued work on that. I welcome the fact that two Ministers have said that they are up for doing something, but I would definitely love to see a cross-Executive response to this. I will continue to ask for that in memory of the face that I saw when I left the youth centre nine years ago and that I saw down the street at the beginning of January and who, unfortunately, is no longer with us.”
“It is tough to think that your loved one is sacrificed whilst a different aim is being pursued. That may prevent many more people from getting access to drugs, but it should still be better explained or better detailed to people, because seeing their loved one pass away and the police response being short of what they expect or hope is a bitter pill for those individuals to swallow. <BR /> <BR />We need to use every opportunity that we can, through the various Departments, to tackle poverty in our community and to use our education and youth services to raise young people's self-esteem and self-worth and give them the resilience to say no to the things that are being offered in the community.”
“Youth services have completely changed, and it may be that, in those services, we are missing opportunities to do some of the basics. <BR /> <BR />There is another conundrum, which I have heard about on a number of occasions, that is really difficult to balance. The "dogs in the street" were mentioned. Sometimes, the dogs in the street in our communities do know who is taking the drugs. It is reported to the police, but months and months or maybe even a year or more later, nothing has been done about it. I can understand that, potentially, the police are looking to go further up the line. They get that bit of information and pursue it to get the bigger dealers in the community. However, if you are a family member of somebody who has died, that is tough.”
“<BR /> <BR />The circumstances that lead people into those situations are one thing, but the fact that they can stay in those situations is another. I feel strongly about that and want to see action taken on it. I welcome the fact that Members have spoken about the cross-party, cross-Ministerial nature of responsibility for that, because I was concerned at the start that it would all be lumped on the Health Minister as the Minister who will respond to the debate. All the approaches that Members have referenced have to be taken because we must tackle this on all fronts. We cannot look at it from a one-dimensional perspective. <BR /> <BR />When I started as a youth worker, drug education was a big part of our work, but, when I look at youth services now, I see that that is barely part of it.”
“I will not detain Members too long. On behalf of the SDLP, I support our having the debate. My motivation for speaking this evening comes from reflecting on my time as a youth worker nine years ago. There was a group of about 20 or 25 young people who grew up through the centre. They had been there for about 15 years by the time that I left, so I knew them all well from watching them grow up and progress. They are now young adults, and I bump into them regularly around the town where I still live. I bumped into one of them in January. She told me about the work that she was doing in the community; she always had time to stop and talk. Several days later, she died in the very circumstances that we are talking about.”
“Another story about the Belfast Trust, and another shambles has been detailed to us. Given that the Department and the public purse pick up the cost of the investigations, can procedures not be put in place to escalate such a situation — four consultants at one of the only centres offering such treatment working from home — to the Department for a full investigation, rather than leaving it to the trust, which many of us have less and less faith in?”
“Does the First Minister agree with me, in my role as the chair of the all-party group on youth participation, that, regardless of the number of bodies that we have, there are not enough young people represented on them? When I say "young people", I include those, like the Speaker, up to the age of around 30. They could give their views and bring young people's perspectives to those boards to help them to be more responsive to the needs of young people.”
“I thank my colleague for that remark. It fits in that dental practitioners are medical practitioners in our community and part of our wider NHS medical fraternity. They can spot things. They can intervene. They can provide support. <BR /> <BR />We need a system that is supported back the way and funded so that it can undertake all the work that it needs to. One way to get on with fixing that system is to see the general dental services' cost-of-service review published. Dentists need clarity, patients need access and the Department of Health needs a strategy that is fit for purpose. <BR /> <BR />The SDLP will continue to speak up for those left behind by the current system. We will work with all the parties committed to improvement and support any genuine efforts to deliver the care that people deserve.”
“For that reason, the SDLP particularly welcomes the amendment, which focuses on addressing those inequalities. <BR /> <BR />I will make my usual and gentle remarks as a member of the Opposition. We have the situation in which there are four parties in this Chamber that are in government. Four parties sit around the same Executive table, yet today, one of those Executive parties brings a motion and another an amendment, both calling for urgent action from their own Health Minister. <BR /> <BR />People care about seeing a dentist when their child has toothache. They care about not having to choose between going private or going without. They care about action. That is why the Opposition can support the motion and the amendment, so let us get on with fixing the system.”
“Left untreated, tooth decay — I have personal experience of that — can lead to lots of pain; it can lead to infection; you can miss time from school or work; and, in some cases, there can be emergency hospital admissions as a result. It is estimated that dental issues account for thousands of hospital admissions across the UK each year. Having to deal with those cases in hospitals costs our NHS more in the long run than it would to make the small investment that is needed in our dental services. <BR /> <BR />As for equality, it cannot be right that where you live in Northern Ireland determines whether you can see a dentist and whether you will have to pay. We know that there are significant regional disparities, with rural areas disadvantaged and hit the hardest.”
“A recent survey by the BDA found that 90% of dentists in Northern Ireland are unable to take on new NHS adult patients. We know that that is much more than a statistic. It represents hundreds of thousands of people in our communities — the people whom we represent — who are no longer able to access NHS treatment. They are effectively locked out of the care that can be provided for them. It goes to the very basis of the value that we place on the NHS and the public's ability to access timely healthcare, free at the point of delivery, which is still something that we should be trying to get. <BR /> <BR />Early and preventative dental care is not a luxury; it is a necessity.”
“If you provide a public service to the public, you should be reimbursed the costs that you are out and not have to pay and contribute to that. The result has been that, now, only two dental practices in the North conduct solely NHS work.”
“I support the motion and the amendment, which highlight the growing crisis in our dental service that is affecting people across the North. We have heard it from patients and practitioners and through the Assembly: accessing NHS dental care is becoming a struggle for far too many people in our communities. <BR /> <BR />Let us look at the facts. According to the British Dental Association, NHS dental services in Northern Ireland now operate under a model that is simply not financially viable. Dentists are being reimbursed at rates that do not cover their costs. As a result, many have to make the painful decision to limit or stop seeing NHS patients altogether. There is a little reflection in that — let us just take that for a moment. Who would do something when it costs them to do it?”
“I thank the Minister for his reply. Minister, you referenced it: do you agree that the current urgent care service could be upgraded and enhanced too? That would enable some treatments to be made a little closer to home and would ease the pressure of the overcrowding that takes place at the Ulster Hospital in Dundonald.”
“The Minister will be aware that, generically, there is difficulty in accessing CAMHS for young people and that there is a bit of a regional imbalance. Is the Department undertaking any work to address that?”
“Thank you very much, Madam Principal Deputy Speaker. I thank the Minister for his statement and that detail. I note that there were 221 suicides here in 2023 and that, in 2022, there were 436 suicides in the South. The statement referenced ongoing work on suicide prevention between the two Administrations. Will the Minister give some detail on what that joint working will entail? Minister, have you ever heard of the preventable deaths tracker, which is used in other jurisdictions to help to track circumstances of deaths, identifying patterns and targeting resources accordingly?”