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.”
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“When an ambulance crew is parked outside an emergency department for hours, the system has failed them and has failed the patient waiting at home who cannot get an ambulance because the crew are stuck outside a hospital. We all know the result of that and the tragic stories of people waiting for hours upon hours for an ambulance, some even losing their lives while waiting. <BR /> <BR />Throughput is the issue. Patient flow is the issue. Until we fix what happens after someone arrives at the hospital, no amount of public messaging about alternatives will solve it. Delayed discharges, lack of social care capacity and workforce shortages create a logjam that backs right up to the front door of hospitals and outside in the driveways and houses of the people who are waiting. <BR /> <BR />I get it.”
“<BR /> <BR />The pressures were foreseeable and were predicted, and we have repeatedly warned about the difficulties that exist in the system to deal with them. It is important to outline — I am sure that most would agree — that the debate is not about blaming the front-line staff; in fact, it is the opposite. The ambulance crews, nurses, doctors, porters and support staff are the ones who are holding the system together with patience, goodwill and hope, which frankly, should not be taken for granted. Patience is not a safe staffing strategy, goodwill does not put food on the tables and hope is, sadly, diminishing amongst staff.”
“I have one of those speeches that starts by acknowledging the tone and intent of the motion and contributions to the debate, but, after the previous speech, I will skip to my second paragraph. <BR /> <BR />People are waiting on trolleys and waiting in corridors. Ambulance crews are waiting outside emergency departments, unable to respond to the next 999 call because the system cannot absorb the patients whom they are already caring for. No one in the Chamber is blind to the pressures that our emergency departments and hospital systems are under, and no one should pretend that winter has caught us by surprise. As has been referenced before, it comes roughly at the same time every year.”
“On a point of order, Mr Deputy Speaker. If offence was caused by my remark, I apologise for that but also clarify that it was the content that I referred to as being stupid, not the individual who was delivering it. I think that that was patently clear, but, if offence was taken, I withdraw the remark and offer an apology.”
“<BR /> <BR />We want to see joined-up government and more delivery. That is something on which everyone in the House can agree. We want to see better delivery for people and to have public services that work. For the debate to have become one of ignorance of our remarks, and for there to have been an attitude of "How dare you raise issues", when we are simply trying to seek the best for our constituents, that will not wash. <BR /> <BR />I therefore hope that the motion passes and that we see better delivery from our Government in the future.”
“<BR /> <BR />We had a contribution from the TUV about something. It wants more rule from London. If the polls are right, and we are to have a Reform Government, do we really want Reform looking after our affairs and having the final say on them? Absolutely not. <BR /> <BR />I could go on about some of the remarks that individual representatives have made. From one, the words "useless", "out of touch" and "do-nothing" were used. They were said by the leader of the Sinn Féin Opposition in Dublin, when talking about the Government down there, but if we look at delivery from the Dublin Government, it far surpasses anything that is happening here. If that is "useless", "out of touch" and "do-nothing", the Sinn Féin leader might want to come up and have a look to see exactly what is happening in this place.”
“We understand that people are human and that there is only so much that Ministers can do with the budget that they have, but constantly painting a picture that everything is fine when anybody has the audacity to ask a question about what they are doing, to seek transparency or to say that things are not good enough is, as I said at the start, just disappointing. <BR /> <BR />Look at some of the remarks that were made during the debate. For example, there were attacks made on my colleague Mark about the fact that he was a Minister 13 years ago. What have we had in those 13 years from the party that threw out the accusations? We have had the renewable heat incentive, the collapse of the institutions and any amount of lack of Government and delivery. If you cannot remove the plank in your own eye, I do not know where we go in the future.”
“The public voted not for excuses but for delivery, for an agreed, ambitious multi-year Budget and for Departments that genuinely cooperate rather than operate in silos. Think about that for a moment. When I reflect on all the contributions, I note that each of the Executive parties' representatives stood up and said, to a tee, "Things are not too bad, because guess what our Ministers are doing at the Executive?". It is therefore all about what Ministers do individually, when, instead, what we are crying out for is collective work across the Executive. Clear reporting on the Programme for Government commitments so that progress can be measured and judged is critical. Is that really too much to ask for? <BR /> <BR />We know that the Government will not get it right all the time.”
“Reform is not something that is talked about only in manifestos but something that has to be driven from the Executive table. Alliance has instead chosen to prop up the existing two-party structure, offering stability to a system that continues to under-deliver. People see the consequences of that every day. For example, in Warrenpoint, residents have been living with persistent foul odours that affect their homes and quality of life. The Agriculture Minister has a responsibility there. He could reform waste management in the North and end the foul odours with the stroke of a pen, but there is no action from him. <BR /> <BR />There is a danger when reform becomes rhetoric and a catchy election slogan. The motion is not about tearing down devolution. Rather, it is about being honest about where devolution is falling short.”
“Waiting lists remain stubbornly high; ambulance delays continue to shock; staff are exhausted; and patients are losing confidence. <BR /> <BR />Of course the pressures are real, but leadership is about outcomes, not explanations, and the reality is that the health service feels no closer now to witnessing the transformation that was promised 10 years ago by our First Minister, who was then the Minister of Health. Health cannot be fixed by slogans or ownership alone. Rather, fixing it requires coordination across Departments, social care capacity, workforce planning and even things such as housing support. <BR /> <BR />That brings me on to the amendment from the Alliance Party. Alliance entered the mandate promising reform of the institutions. It promised to change how Stormont works, not simply to keep it ticking over.”
“Is it nonsense such as the Commission on Flags, Identity, Culture and Tradition report, which was published and then parked? Is it nonsense such as the housing crisis, which is deepening, with too few homes being built and too many families being left waiting? Those are not merely Opposition demands; they were Executive commitments, and we have not seen them. <BR /> <BR />When so many headlines made promises and those remain undelivered, people are entitled to ask what the Executive have been doing with their time. Nowhere is that question more pressing than in health. The Ulster Unionist Party sought the Health portfolio, arguing that it would bring leadership and reform to a system that was under enormous strain. Two years on, people are still waiting to see that change.”
“That is not the change that people were told to expect. The Assembly was promised momentum, but we have seen drift. We were promised transformation, but, instead, we have delay. <BR /> <BR />The evidence of that failure is visible in promise after promise that has gone unfulfilled. Indeed, the deputy First Minister just said that she is proud to have used her veto to stop "nonsense" from progressing. Is that nonsense such as the A5, which is still mired in delay? Is it nonsense such as Casement Park, which, years on, is still unresolved? Is it nonsense such as waste water infrastructure, the lack of action on which is holding back housing and economic growth across the North? Is it nonsense such as Lough Neagh, which still has not seen the decisive action that people were promised?”
“Thank you very much, Principal Deputy Speaker. As I close the debate, what I feel most strongly is not anger but disappointment. I am a democrat, and I believe in our democratic institutions. As a nationalist, I believe that, if we want to shape a new Ireland, the institutions must work and deliver. Two years ago, when our institutions, including the Executive, were restored, people were promised better than this. They were promised delivery, cooperation and a Government who would focus on what matters most. Measured against those promises, the Executive have failed to deliver. There is still no Executive-agreed multi-year Budget; the progress made on Executive legislation has been limited; and delivery against Programme for Government commitments is, at best, patchy and, at worst, absent.”
“Thank you, First Minister. We know that violence can take many forms, including online abuse. That was highlighted over the past week through the cesspool that is X. Legislation will be required to deal with those issues here. What specific meetings has the First Minister had with the Justice Minister to progress such legislation?”
“If the centre is to be built in Clonallon Park, as proposed, and if it is to deliver health, well-being and community benefits, as promised, the process must be transparent and decisive. People in Warrenpoint deserve certainty on how the funding will be used, whether the timelines are credible and when a final decision will be taken. The project has been talked about for years, but talk is no longer enough. It is time for clarity, accountability and delivery, because Warrenpoint deserves nothing less. Let us get the Warrenpoint community centre built.”
“There was no decision, no clarity and no explanation. Now, residents are being told by a local rep that he anticipates that a decision will be made by January or February, maybe. I wrote to the council, seeking clear timelines and straight answers on the delays and siting of the project. While I received an update, there is nothing new and no indication of when the centre will progress to that crucial planning committee meeting. However, I have been told that the cost of the centre is now £7·3 million, which the council has committed. <BR /> <BR />The people of Warrenpoint ask not for special treatment but honesty, consistency and respect. Residents must be kept informed and be properly listened to, not led up the garden path by changing narratives and political claims.”
“They were told by the largest party on the council, Sinn Féin, that £8 million had been secured and that the work would commence in the coming months. People believed that. They planned around it and took reassurance from it. I was told by the council that the project would be on the October planning committee agenda, but that did not happen.”
“In my constituency lies the town of Warrenpoint, where people, be they young families, older residents, sports club members or those in local community groups, enjoy their local community and have an excellent community spirit. That is why the long-promised Warrenpoint community centre matters so deeply to local people. However, residents are increasingly frustrated by the shifting story around it. <BR /> <BR />Two years ago, local people were told by the council that the facility would require an investment of £7·1 million and that the work would be completed by December 2025. That expectation was set clearly and publicly. Then, in February last year, residents were told something different.”
“Our planning sector make decisions that can contribute to flooding locally, rather than preventing it. All of that must be joined up and properly funded. What preventative work is being delivered now? I am not asking what is being studied or scoped; I am asking what is being delivered. What confidence can the public have that lessons have truly been learned and that there will be fixes for the problems? Right now, every time rain falls heavily, people in Downpatrick, Newcastle, Killowen and Warrenpoint — not to mention the other areas — brace themselves for the worst. The honest truth is that, while flooding may be driven by climate change, the damage that it causes in South Down is driven by political decisions by the Executive on whether or not to act.”
“The reality is that the repair work took only a few weeks to complete, but the local residents had to wait months and months for it to be done. The road was partially closed, causing disruption, isolation and real frustration among local people as the delay to the recovery became another form of neglect. In Warrenpoint and Rostrevor, storm Bram left entire towns impassable, with roads cut off, communities stranded and, once again, people asking the same question: "How did we allow ourselves to end up so unprepared?". What a dire picture. <BR /> <BR />We know that climate change is real and is driving more intense and unpredictable weather. That reality does not excuse inaction but demands urgency. Preventative work should be under way already: drainage, gully clearing, culvert clearing, river management and work on woodland and land use.”
“One Minister said that it was Northern Ireland Electricity's responsibility; another said that it was down to DFI Rivers; and somebody else said that it was a Forest Service issue. Meanwhile, residents were left watching the water rise again. That is not coordination of organisations; it is an abdication of responsibility by Departments wanting to pass it on to somebody else. The community is left to pick up the pieces and be the front line. We have seen that with the Newcastle regional community resilience groups, when, on many occasions, they have to do the heavy lifting because the Departments are too busy blaming each other. <BR /> <BR />Flooding in Killowen in 2023 triggered a landslide that closed a lane of the road for months on end.”
“The scheme is not confirmed or funded; it is just a maybe. How does that help our business community to plan? How does that help organisations such as Downpatrick and County Down Railway, which lost fortunes in money, investment and volunteer hours? It saw all of that wash away in front of it. An outline business case is "expected" by spring 2026: there is an awful lot of ambiguity in that. <BR /> <BR />The contrast with Newcastle could not be starker. Following flooding in 2020, it saw a flood alleviation scheme designed, funded and delivered in a short time. Fast-forward to October 2025, however, when flooding in Sunningdale Park forced water violently down roads, tearing up surfaces and cascading towards Tullybrannigan Road and Shan Slieve Drive. What followed was not action; in many cases, it was agencies arguing with each other.”
“As Andy mentioned, just before Christmas, we saw the water starting to rise. You can sense that levels of concern among the business community and local residents are starting to rise. That turns to anger, and people ask, "What is being done?". They ask what has been done that is materially different to stop that water from getting into their businesses and causing exactly the same problems. <BR /> <BR />A report without delivery is not progress; it is a holding exercise. The people of Downpatrick know that all too well. They also know all too well that, despite press releases about outline business cases, nothing has materially changed, and we do not know when it will change. That is the reality. In fact, in a response from the Department to a question for written answer, there is reference to an outline business case”
“I thank my constituency colleague for securing the Adjournment debate. It is really important that we give a voice to the numerous residents and businesses in locations across South Down who feel isolated and left behind and feel that they get no assistance in times of flooding, which is when they need it most. <BR /> <BR />People in Downpatrick were told that lessons would be learned following the devastating floods in November 2023. A report was commissioned, findings were published and assurances were given, yet here we are, more than two years on, and nothing has changed materially for people on the ground. There is no meaningful preventative action, no visible works and no reassurance that the next series of storms will not force water into homes, businesses and streets once again.”
“Above all, we owe them dignity at the very worst moment of their lives. It is good to know that we are all on the same page, and I hope that that means that we can move towards a solution for those families.”
“The Department commissioned the independent evaluation and accepted all 21 recommendations, and it is now exploring options including an all-Ireland collaboration. That is welcome. Given that we have been told that there are not sufficient numbers in the North to deal with the issue, there should be an opportunity to deliver the service on an all-Ireland basis. <BR /> <BR />The motion is simple and very reasonable as it aims to reach out and help people in that moment. It calls for the urgent publication of a clear, comprehensive implementation plan to restore the service, so that families know what will change, when it will change and that the issue is finally being treated with the seriousness that it deserves. We owe it to bereaved families to do better. We owe them care that is local, timely and compassionate.”
“They cannot go through that process locally, and that logistical issue must add to the pain. Trying to sort out the paperwork, the timings and the arrangements must surely add to the suffering and pain. <BR /> <BR />When we think about how we deliver all elements of our health service but specifically that part, we must all come together to try to find a way to overcome the issue, so that people do not have to face that should the unimaginable happen. Is there a way to provide an accessible service that can be carried out professionally and quickly to allow families to move on with their grieving process? The separation or travel at the start of a grief process does not help people with what they have to go through. It is not simply a neutral administrative issue; it is something that places a totally unfair burden on families.”
“I echo the final remarks from my colleague across the House that this is one of those issues that brings everybody together and allows us to respond in a sympathetic and caring way while acknowledging the pain and suffering that people go through. It does not matter which community you are from or where you are from, when this happens in your household, it is an absolute tragedy and causes immense pain and suffering. <BR /> <BR />We need to acknowledge that, when that moment comes, as if things are not bad enough, the fact that the remains need to be physically moved to England to have this procedure carried out adds to the pain and contributes to the suffering that parents are facing at a moment that is totally unimaginable to those who have not been through that process.”
“I am almost speechless at your saying that it will take five years or more to fix our Ambulance Service. That will be real comfort for the people who are experiencing long waits because the system is not working. The problems are not new, nor are the solutions. You gathered the senior managers from across the health service last year to help fill out a blank page for the winter preparedness plan. That has failed, has it not?”
“They need action, now — not in 2026 and not in due course; they need it today. <BR /> <BR />Solidarity is expressed through decisions that honour the suffering that we have heard about and from which we can build a service that is worthy of the people for whom it exists to serve. They are the families who are waiting for answers, the patients waiting for care and all those who cannot afford another year of delay. Hopefully, we will hear how the Minister and the Executive are going to act. I support the motion and the amendment.”
“The regional review showed us the path forward. It said that we should have a properly staffed workforce; a person-centred model of care; designated points of contact for every patient; community neurology teams in every trust; clear pathways; joined-up care; access to psychology and rehabilitation; and modern treatments delivered safely and consistently. However, seven years after that review was commissioned, we are still debating its implementation. There could be no more important moment than this, on the last sitting day of 2025, for the Assembly to act. As we close the doors on yet another year, thousands of families cannot close the door on their fear, deterioration and unanswered questions. They cannot wait for another year, another new plan or another new promise.”
“It is approved across the UK. It offers transformative, stabilising symptom control for those with severe motor fluctuations, but it is entirely unavailable here, not because clinicians doubt it or the evidence is lacking but because Northern Ireland does not have the workforce, the specialist teams or the infrastructure to deliver it. Patients here watch others in the UK begin to benefit while they remain stuck, with no options left. When the possibility of a better life exists but is out of reach simply because the system is not staffed to provide it, that is an absolute moral failure.”
“In the starkest of terms, we hear of individuals being driven to suicide attempts, because the system that was meant to support them could not respond. The system is in crisis, because we have not resourced or prioritised neurology as a core part of our health service. Nowhere is that clearer than in the case of Produodopa — I hope that I have pronounced that correctly — which is the first major new treatment for advanced Parkinson's in decades.”
“According to Parkinson's UK and the NI Neurological Charities Alliance, 76% of people with neurological conditions have faced delays in accessing healthcare; 77% report negative impacts on their mental health; and 74% say that delays have worsened their physical condition. Families have told us bluntly that, without timely care, treatable conditions become chronic, lives shrink and hope diminishes. One patient said:”
“<BR /> <BR />Even in recent weeks, I received a deeply moving message from a family whose loved one was among the deceased patients of Michael Watt. They reminded me that it has been seven years and seven months since the Department first announced the review of his deceased patients. Still the families have no clarity, and still they wait. They described the unprocessed grief, the daily torment and a profound sense of abandonment. The fact that people who have already suffered immeasurable loss are left searching for answers that they should not have to fight for tells us everything that we need to know about the need for urgency in turning this round and changing the service. <BR /> <BR />That urgency is echoed across the broader neurological community.”
“I am pleased to take part in the debate, not least because it impacts on and reflects the needs of thousands of people across the places that we represent and the many thousands in their families who support them every day. The crisis that we face is not new, and it is certainly not hidden. It was laid bare in the regional review of neurology services, which showed that we have a system that is underfunded, understaffed and sometimes unable to meet even the most basic of needs. With almost 20,000 people waiting for a first neurology appointment and more than 11,000 waiting for a review, waiting times in some trusts are now stretched, as has been explained, to nearly five years. That is not the case in my area, for some reason, but I am sure that we will get the detail on that later.”
“— has been allocated amounting to a fraction of a fraction of the backlog? Will it make any meaningful difference?”
“Last week, at the Health Committee, we were told that the maintenance bill for our health estate had blown past £1·6 billion, with £251 million of that judged to be high-risk, 40% of the estate failing to meet statutory standards and nearly a fifth of it in a physically unacceptable condition. Does the Minister seriously believe that it is acceptable for the Executive to leave patients in such conditions? Will he explain how a criminally low level of £5·5 million —”
“<BR /> <BR />I acknowledge the extraordinary work of the Lecale Lightkeepers community campaign group — some of them are here today — which stands in defence of the sweeping beam. We owe it to the Lecale Lightkeepers, to our fishing community, to our heritage and to the generations yet to come to ensure that St John's Point lighthouse remains what it has always been: a true beacon. Once the beam has gone, it will be gone forever. We will never get another chance to protect it.”
“As if that were not enough, the proposal includes replacing the current lamp with a static LED. That is not progress; it is the removal of the lighthouse's character, identity and purpose. LED systems are prone to faults. They alter the visual signature that mariners depend on, and they carry well-documented ecological impacts that have been disastrously overlooked by the historic environment division during the planning process. What we have at present works and works safely. The sweeping beam is one of the last of its kind and is a living link to our maritime history. To extinguish it now would be an act of professional cultural vandalism. Instead of recognising the enormous potential of St John's Point lighthouse as a world-class tourist attraction, we face plans that would diminish it.”
“The proposal is fundamentally flawed. It may be called modernisation, but it is a step backwards in engineering. It introduces friction, noise and wear into a mechanism that is currently smooth, silent and reliable. I will be clear: a noisy, mechanical system being introduced into a quiet coastal environment will be disruptive to local wildlife, particularly marine and nocturnal species.”
“Yet plans are now in place from the Commissioners of Irish Lights to remove that system and replace it with metal-on-metal roller bearings, despite the planners rejecting such a proposal in 2018.”
“I will speak about a treasure of the Lecale coastline; a sentinel that has watched over generations and guided countless fishermen and sailors safely home: St John's lighthouse. It is the tallest lighthouse on the island of Ireland and one of the last to maintain that beautiful and iconic sweeping beam. It is a piece of engineering heritage that still performs its duty every night and is seen for miles around. <BR /> <BR />At its heart is the Bourdelles rotation system, which rests on mercury-based bearings that are designed to allow the lens to glide with frictionless precision. That system has stood the test of time: it is remarkably efficient and remains in working order.”
“On that theme, given that a model that funds our hospices 100% would alleviate pressures in other parts of the healthcare system such as emergency departments, will you undertake to apply to the Department of Finance's transformation fund to get funding for that? If you were to do that for one year, the savings that would be available in other parts of the service would make it cost-neutral.”
“<BR /> <BR />Our job today is simple: it is to welcome the report, honour the lives of those who shaped it, and commit fully and urgently to building a palliative care system that is worthy of the people whom it serves.”
“The report gives us a framework that is built from lived experience, but it will become meaningful only if the Executive pick it up, prioritise it and resource it. I say "the Executive" because I believe wholeheartedly that the Minister has a desire to commence that work, but that will need financial buy-in from his colleagues around the Executive table. I implore the Minister and the Executive to implement the report's recommendations; to fund the shift to 24/7 care and support; to deliver proper advance care planning; to move to true-cost funding for hospices and plan the pathway to 100%; to appoint a clinical lead; and to build a strategy that finally meets the needs of our people.”
“Today, we commit through the report to changing that. Palliative care is not about death; it is about how we honour life to the very last moment. That is at the heart of palliative care. <BR /> <BR />As an MLA, I was profoundly moved to see the work that goes on in Life and Time in Rostrevor, which provides a life of care to people in South Down in their own homes. It does the work that we want the Department to do. We should have heard from it in the inquiry, but, sadly, we did not have time. <BR /> <BR />End-of-life care is about dignity, presence, relief from pain, a hand held, a voice heard and a family supported. The report published today is not the end of the journey; rather, it is a stepping stone that leads us towards the next step in delivering palliative care that works.”
“Our outdated funding model forces hospices to raise huge sums of money just to keep essential services open. There are stark inequalities; where someone lives often determines the support that they receive. That is not good enough. The people whom we met deserve better. <BR /> <BR />There is a human reality behind all of this. Many people across Northern Ireland were deeply moved by the recent BBC story of Anne Sheppard, a lady whose final days were marked not by comfort but by unnecessary suffering. Her family's courage in speaking out forces us to confront what happens when the system fails. Their experience is not isolated; it echoes too many others that we have heard about in our work. No family should ever have to face their loved one's being alone, unsupported or in fear in their final days.”
“In the course of our inquiry, families told us of communication failures, of support that disappeared at 5.00 pm, of their being unaware of services, and of their experiencing trauma that stayed with them long after their loved one had gone. Those conversations were not easy. I acknowledge the collegial spirit among Committee members throughout the inquiry. I appreciate that not everyone was able to attend every visit, and, naturally, we did not agree on every element, but the messages that we heard were consistent, and we were united in our determination to amplify the voice of patients and families. <BR /> <BR />The findings were clear. There is no clinical lead for palliative care in the North. We are the only region in these islands without one. There is no adult palliative care strategy.”
“We often say that how a society treats people at the end of life says everything about who we actually are. Today's motion asks us to confront that truth with honesty, compassion and unity of purpose. Across the Committee's work this year, through more than 350 written submissions, powerful evidence sessions and visits to hospices across the North, we heard again and again that palliative care in Northern Ireland is sustained by extraordinary people, but constrained by inconsistent structures. <BR /> <BR />At the outset, I pay tribute to the dedicated and effective Health Committee staff, who waded through reams of notes, reports, evidence sessions and members' contributions, which were not always brief, to produce the report that we have before us.”