Gerry Carroll
West Belfast · People Before Profit Alliance · Northern Ireland
“Yesterday morning, as others did, I stood alongside our resident doctors as they commenced a 24-hour period of industrial action. We often praise our healthcare workers in the House and more generally, saying things such as that they are invaluable and that we wish them well.”
“If we have learnt anything from the political events of the past week, it is that powerful people — powerful men, in particular — and institutions should always be held to maximum account when it comes to abuse, neglect and victims, and that victims and survivors should be believed and supported on every occasion.”
“Agency spend has, again, gone through the roof and is sky-high; locum spend has gone up and continues to go up — it has gone up by in the region of £0·5 billion over the past few years; and, almost every single year out of the past five to 10 years, hundreds of millions of pounds of public money have been pumped into the for-profit privat…”
“With bills increasing month-on-month and year-on-year, that is true, and those workers need a proper settlement that meets their needs and the ever-increasing cost of living. One striking doctor put it to me starkly yesterday. They said that they left Scotland and took a more senior position in the health sector in Belfast.”
“I commend Stephen and his colleagues in the Bill Office and the Executive Office officials, who worked closely with me to try to support, amend or help along my amendments — whatever way you want to look at it. I also want to commend the Member for Fermanagh and South Tyrone who spoke out during the last few stages.”
“I commend people for speaking out on the issue, especially Sharon Burke. I think that she might be in the Gallery. She has been emailing Members on that issue.”
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“No, but I believe that your party's motives are sectarian. I remind Members that, across 536 streets in Belfast where there is approved street signage, only 3% of residents opposed the use of Irish. I think that you are trying to make an exception for a small minority that you, as a party, have tried to elevate. <BR /> <BR />When unionism has spent months and years whipping up hysteria about the language, which it has done quite well, it is no surprise to see armed threats on the front pages. The deputy First Minister tried to downplay those threats and say that they do not exist, but the evidence is there for every single one of us to see. A sectarian agenda gives confidence to and legitimises loyalist paramilitaries”
“Agus cén t-iontas ann sin nuair a bhíonn bagairt lofa ar chéad leathanach na nuachtán? Dílseoirí le gunnaí, ag rá go ndéanfaidh siad ionsaí ar an chomhairle, ar oibrithe, mar gheall ar an Ghaeilge.”
“Is cuid lárnach dár gcathair iad pobal na Gaeilge. Tá na mílte daoine óga ag freastal ar scoileanna lán-Ghaeilge. Tá tuismitheoirí ar fud na cathrach cosúil liomsa, ag tógáil a gcuid páistí trí mheán na Gaeilge. Is ceart agus is cóir go raibh an Ghaeilge le feiceáil i mBéal Feirste. Is ceart agus is cóir go raibh sí in úsáid ag an chomhairle, ag an stát. <BR /> <BR />Agus tá focal coitianta ann a dhéanann cur síos ar ionsaí an DUP: seicteachas. Mar a dúirt mé, nuair a bhíonn an DUP faoi bhrú, déanann siad an druma seicteach a bhualadh.”
“It is pathetic but not surprising that we are dealing with a DUP attack on the Irish language once again. When unionism is in crisis, it seeks to sectarianise things. It is like clockwork, or, as we say in Irish, iontas na n-iontas.”
“Although the Bill lays the groundwork for that intervention, I have no confidence that it will result in any meaningful change for families. I would be happy to be proved wrong.”
“I pay tribute to everybody in my constituency who challenges that, in fighting poverty and advocating for people ripped off by expensive uniforms and for those in poverty. The Executive should be ashamed that so many are in poverty and that that has become normalised. <BR /> <BR />There are significant equality issues with uniform policies that the Bill fails to address. Members have mentioned that too many children with special educational needs and female, transgender and non-binary pupils are forced to wear uniforms that are not comfortable or suited to their specific needs, which is cruel. No child or young person should face barriers to education, whether they are related to cost or to accessibility. <BR /> <BR />The state can and should intervene to curtail uniform costs.”
“Last year's Parentkind survey found that 66% of families were worried about the cost of uniforms. Uniform costs were by far the source of most anxiety for parents, many of whom were forced to make unacceptable sacrifices just to send their kids to school. If you look at poverty levels, you will see that 41% of parents ration heating, 19% skip meals, and more than one in 10 takes out loans and credit cards to pay for school costs. Families are being put through unacceptable levels of stress and anxiety, and the worst part of it is this: it is entirely unnecessary. There is no need for expensive blazers or branded PE kits, which serve nobody and nothing except the bosses of the companies involved and the outdated sense of prestige that comes with a fancy uniform.”
“Last year, a UK-wide report found that families spend upwards of £400 on secondary-school uniforms and nearly £300 on primary-school uniforms. When you take into account PE kits and the unnecessarily high number of branded items for many grammar schools, you see the true price is much higher. The current school uniform grant, at roughly £42 for a primary-school pupil and £67 for a post-primary-school pupil over the age of 15, covers only a fraction of that cost, leaving families having to fork out hundreds of pounds every year.”
“The Bill will impose reporting duties, compelling schools to explain why uniforms cost the amount that they do, and it gives the Education Minister the power to cap prices at some future date, if he ever chooses to do so. <BR /> <BR />In short, the Bill does very little to help the hundreds of thousands of families who are struggling here and now. Each year, families fork out hundreds of pounds before their child even starts the new school term. For families with multiple children, that goes into the thousands. Between blazers, jumpers, ties, PE kits and deals with specific suppliers, the cost of sending a child to school is eye-watering. That is before adding in the cost of school trips, meals, travel, technology and all the rest.”
“Like many others, I feel that the Bill is a waste of an opportunity to take quick and meaningful action to make school uniforms more affordable. The fact that the Education Committee is considering its own Bill to strengthen the legislation is clear evidence of this Bill's weakness. I do not know whether that is unprecedented, but it is certainly unusual. <BR /> <BR />Some modest proposals in the Bill may — I emphasise the word "may" — have positive impacts. Collecting and analysing data on the cost of school uniforms is worthwhile, but having information on just how extortionate school uniforms are and how quickly prices are rising will mean very little unless something is done to cut costs.”
“I extend my best wishes to the Minister and her husband, Michael, after what happened last week, which was disgusting. <BR /> <BR />In a general sense, Minister, what is your assessment of how closely the far right and paramilitary groups are working in unison to harass and intimidate people? You said that sectarianism and racism are two sides of the same coin. That is right, and those who perpetrate one are doing the other.”
“They are awakened to the fight to end apartheid and for a free, sustainable Palestinian state. <BR /> <BR />The Member to my right used the term "idiots". I would not be as ungracious to call anyone an idiot in the House, but I remind him that it is not "infitada". He should maybe go and learn some Arabic, as the word that he is looking for is "intifada", and it is Arabic for uprising, despite his propagation of mistruths.”
“We saw Palestinian journalist Saleh Aljafarawi slaughtered by Israel after the ceasefire was announced, bringing the total number of journalists killed to at least 223, which is higher than all journalists killed in all the wars combined in the 20th century. Journalists are killed because Israel does not want the truth to get out. On top of that, we saw 10 Palestinians killed in Gaza after the ceasefire was announced. <BR /> <BR />There are huge questions about what happens now in the West Bank. Will settlers be allowed to continue their violence and the stealing of land or will that stop? I hope that the ceasefire remains, and despite the genocidal denial going on in the House, hundreds of millions of people across the world will not go back into their boxes and will not go back into their homes.”
“No doubt, the Palestinians hope and pray that there will be a lasting ceasefire and justice. However, early indications show already that the imperial meddling that has caused so much devastation and destruction for decades looks set to continue. <BR /> <BR />The fingerprints of Tony Blair are all over the deal. He is a warmonger and should have no role in determining the future for people anywhere in the world, least of all the Middle East. In the hours after the deal was finalised, we saw Israel's intentions. Palestinians in Gaza who were relieved and celebrating the ceasefire were still being killed.”
“Despite the self-congratulatory scenes and the back patting in the Knesset, it is awful to see warmongers gloat and celebrate. It remains unclear, at this stage, whether it is a sustainable and long-term plan for peace and justice for Palestinians and everyone in the Middle East, but I hope that it is. <BR /> <BR />Despite saying it a thousand times, it is worth repeating that the violence in the Middle East and the problems in and around Palestine did not begin on 7 October. They began in 1948 with al-Nakba, or the catastrophe, and the decades that preceded it, with the colonial expansion, settlement and theft of land, which was not owned by people who came to Palestine. It was all backed by colonial regimes in Britain, France, America and elsewhere.”
“That, again, is harassment and intimidation, and it needs to be condemned and called out. <BR /> <BR />Those who engage in racist, far right dog-whistling instil fear in those whom they claim to protect with their vigilante patrols and protests outside family homes in east Belfast and elsewhere. I fully condemn those anti-democratic, cowardly acts of intimidation. I also condemn those who lead people to the top of the hill with their hate-filled, aggressive rhetoric and then, when the full consequences of their actions become apparent, walk away and say that it was nothing to do with them, whether that be in Belfast, Ballymena or elsewhere.”
“It is worth commenting on the fact that some parties think that it is OK for the Alliance Party to be upset as long as they do not dare to mention anything political that is obviously connected to the attack. It is political — of course it is. Shame on those who try to limit the conversation. <BR /> <BR />We cannot ignore the role that far right agitators have played, in recent weeks and months, in whipping up fear and spreading misinformation in Belfast and beyond. A few ringleaders have repeatedly violated the right to peaceful protest in Belfast and beyond, going up to people's faces, filming them, jeering at them and harassing them in an attempt to provoke those peaceful protesters. They dox those protesters online and, quite often, publish personal information such as names and workplaces.”
“There is no doubt that the right to protest should be respected and protected for everyone. Protest is a human right and a vital mechanism for holding those who are in power to account. What happened outside the Justice Minister's house on Wednesday evening was no protest, however, and it was not legitimate protest. Individuals showing up in masks outside a family home is a blatant act of intimidation and harassment and should be condemned, as should the attack on the Infrastructure Minister's office last week. <BR /> <BR />Everyone has the fundamental right to privacy. That right should extend even to those with whom we have significant political disagreements. It should extend to Ministers, MLAs, councillors and, most importantly, to citizens. Acts of personal intimidation are completely unacceptable and clearly cross a line.”
“The point that I was going to make is that the Minister said earlier, basically, how can we build homes and build homes that are energy efficient? Does the Member agree that we could, maybe, do that if we reduced rents over time? Obviously, there is a lot of money going to landlords through universal credit and support systems through housing benefit.”
“That was very Deputy Speaker-esque of you — no offence — in general.”
“I thank the Minister for giving way. How does he propose that we build social housing if half the city and half the country is under water?”
“That is clearly a matter for the British Government, but the Executive need to recognise the clear link between fuel poverty and corporate profiteering and to push Starmer's Government to do something about it and give more power to the Utility Regulator. Given our high reliance on fossil fuels and the fact that Coolkeeragh — I hope that I have said that correctly — is down for maintenance at the moment, I am concerned that Kilroot and Ballylumford, which are owned by EP UK Investments, are demanding £2 million per hour for the use of their equipment. The question is this: will the Department for the Economy pay that extortionate fee?”
“<BR /> <BR />With regard to price caps, in the absence of the Executive launching a mass social housebuilding programme, retrofitting homes across all tenures and cracking down on neglectful, exploitative, private landlords and temporary accommodation providers, which seems exceptionally unlikely at the minute, we need to tackle the problem at its source. It is profiteering private companies that are behind high energy costs. Our energy system has been privatised at nearly every stage from generation to supply. It is time that the energy sector was publicly owned. There should be a windfall tax on big oil and gas companies that pollute our planet, such as Shell and BP. Energy price caps should be implemented to cut out-of-control energy bills.”
“No, sorry. <BR /> <BR />They are told to keep the windows open, including in the middle of winter, or keep the heating on longer, without a thought for how a homeless family can afford to keep the gas running all day. That amounts to nothing more than victim blaming. Asylum-seeking people and migrant families are often met with institutional racism. They are told that they just do not understand the climate here. I have also been told directly by housing providers that people from the Middle East, in particular, have a cultural habit of just throwing water all over the place in their homes, when, in fact, it is that their homes are inefficiently protected and energy inefficient. That is just the definition of victim blaming and racism and is totally unacceptable.”
“When those tenants report to the Housing Executive or other temporary accommodation providers, they are told —”
“<BR /> <BR />Families are expected just to be grateful to have a roof over their heads and to stay silent about a house that is falling apart around them. Again, that is totally unacceptable. I have been contacted by a family with mould growing in their oven due to structural damp in the kitchen. Another constituent could not keep a wooden wardrobe in one of her children's bedrooms because the wood kept rotting. I have been contacted by multiple residents who are dealing with insect infestations due to persistently damp conditions. All those families are living in single-let temporary accommodation and spending a fortune on heating homes that are incredibly energy inefficient and probably need to be razed to the ground and rebuilt.”
“For example, 75% of housing association stock here is at an energy performance certificate (EPC) rating of C or above. By contrast, in 2023, Ulster University found that just 25% of private rented properties have a rating of C or above. Not only are landlords ripping tenants off with extortionate rents, but they are content to let their tenants live in leaky, energy-inefficient homes. When those tenants report inevitable issues with damp and mould, they are often threatened with eviction or rent hikes. It is not just private tenants who are paying the price for energy-inefficient homes. Damp and mouldy single lets are bought or rented out from private landlords by the Housing Executive, Mears and other temporary accommodation providers.”
“Some 27% of households went without heating or electricity in the past two years as they simply could not afford the bills. That is an increase of 8% from the previous year. Every day, people are wearing coats indoors, staying in bed to keep warm, showering in work, skipping meals, taking out loans and getting into debt just to manage their energy bills. That is totally unacceptable. Everyone has the right to secure, warm, energy efficient and affordable housing. Unfortunately, that seems more like a distant pipe dream than a reality. <BR /> <BR />On the private rented sector and temporary accommodation, it should be noted that energy efficient standards in private rented properties are often exceptionally poor, and it can be argued that they do not exist at all.”
“I support the motion and its call for social housing redesign and renewable energy integration. Not only do we need a mass expansion of social housebuilding, but those homes should be built to modern, energy-efficient standards with the lowest carbon footprint possible. <BR /> <BR />It has been referred to that Britain has a £2 billion green homes grant, while, in the South, there was a €90 million fund for retrofitting, but, once again, in the North, there is nothing. There is no plan or funding to make the massive improvements that are needed to provide energy-efficient homes and affordable energy bills. <BR /> <BR />It has also been stated that over 40% of people here are fuel poor, spending over 10% of their total household expenditure on energy costs.”
“Unfortunately, this points again to the need for the reinstatement of intimidation points, which I have requested be in place umpteen times. Will the Minister clarify to the House — this is, obviously, connected — why, when loyalist paramilitaries have stated publicly to journalists that they will torch buildings and vehicles because there is Irish language on them, his party goes into overdrive to say —”
“Thank you, Minister. I echo everybody's comments. I am concerned that things are not matching up and that data is hard for MLAs and reps to get hold of. My understanding is that it is your Department's policy not to provide mirrors for people to see their way out of very busy junctions. Is the Minister interested in looking at that policy again so that people are not in a dangerous situation at junctions where traffic is heavy and there are a lot of collisions?”
“I appreciate the Minister's giving way. I am not on the Health Committee, but I was previously. Has that evidence been publicly provided to the Health Committee? If not, can it be provided to the Health Committee and the Assembly?”
“<BR /> <BR />Those who support families and newborn baby organisations, such as the Maternal Mental Health Alliance, the Maternal Advocacy and Support (MAs) project, the Royal College of Psychiatrists, Action on Postpartum Psychosis and TinyLife, have been campaigning on the issue for decades. Women and families tell us that we urgently need a life-saving mother-and-baby unit. It is time for the Health Minister to deliver on it, and it is time for the Executive to fund it.”
“Like the Member for North Belfast, I question the logic of the clinical advice that the Minister states for why they cannot be used. The business case for a mother-and-baby unit is almost a year overdue. I suspect that the Minister will tell us today that the case is finalised or close to being finalised but that any future funding depends on funding being identified. That is a line that is continuously rolled out by his Department. Strategies without funding are nothing more than abstract reports, and business cases without funding are absolutely meaningless. We do not need another review, however short.”
“However, the Maternal Mental Health Alliance reports issues with it, including a lack of variation of services and a lack of implementation and funding of the mental health strategy. Each health trust receives more than 250 referrals for community perinatal services each year, but, because of staffing pressures, only 70 patients are accepted — women being failed again. <BR /> <BR />The interim temporary units are far from a perfect solution and are no substitute for a permanent mother-and-baby facility designed according to the needs of families, but an interim unit where mothers could receive the care that they need without being cruelly separated from their newborn child would provide some hope for mothers.”
“<BR /> <BR />The debacle of our absent mother-and-baby unit is yet another symptom of our mental health crisis. Our legacy of conflict, inequality and poverty means that people with poor mental health in the North suffer from more severe and debilitating conditions than in Britain and Ireland. Despite that well-known fact, we continue to spend less on mental health services than other regions, with £157 per capita spent in the North compared with £252 in England. Our mental health strategy needs £42 million of funding, but, last year, actual funding was just £5·9 million, a paltry sum. Part of that money delivered perinatal mental health teams across all five trusts, as has been stated, and the strengthening of those services is to be broadly welcomed.”
“Shelley was separated from her newborn baby and admitted to a general psychiatric hospital for five weeks. She reported feeling like a prisoner after giving birth. That is totally unacceptable. Other mothers refuse the hospital treatment that they need and instead rely on specialist community teams in order to stay with their newborn children. As has been mentioned, Orlaith Quinn died by suicide at the Royal Jubilee Maternity Hospital less than 48 hours after giving birth to her daughter. I believe that she had no previous mental health issues. Four years later, an inquest found that her death had been "foreseeable and preventable"; really cruel and shameful stuff. The same inquest also recommended that a mother-and-baby unit be established, yet, four years on, there is nothing.”
“Successive Health Ministers have agreed that we need a mother-and-baby unit. Families have been waiting at least 20 years for that life-saving service, but, as with many things here, it is like waiting for Godot. It is an embarrassment and a source of shame that we have made no material progress. A mother-and-baby unit is a space where mothers can foster and build the mother-infant bond that would otherwise be harmed by separation. Separating women who need hospital admission for mental health from their young babies is inhumane. It is inhumane, yet that is what happens to dozens of women every year. Women have described that experience as "disorientating" and "traumatising". <BR /> <BR />As Members have said, the story of Shelley Browne, which was covered by 'Spotlight', speaks to that.”
“I thank the Member for West Belfast for tabling this important motion, and I thank everybody who has spoken in the debate. As we have heard, as many as one in five women experience mental health problems in pregnancy or after birth, and around 100 women are admitted to general psychiatric wards, with 35 being admitted for postpartum psychosis. In large part, that is because we do not have a mother-and-baby unit where women can receive the care that they need while pregnant or in the first 12 months of their baby's life. That is shameful. It speaks a lot to how we view and treat mental health generally and how women, in particular, are viewed and treated in the healthcare system and in society. <BR /> <BR />As has been stated, there are 22 mother-and-baby units in Britain, but Ireland has zilch.”
“Minister, I am bit disappointed but not surprised by that answer. Were you or your officials made aware of the PSNI's decision to deploy officers to London? How many were deployed? Do you think that it speaks volumes about whom the PSNI views as threats in society when we have paramilitaries threatening to burn city council vans, a violence against women epidemic and racist violence on the rise, yet the people who are targeted and arrested by the PSNI are peaceful protesters in London?”
“Minister, it is concerning to hear that you are not optimistic about resolving the pay demands. Can you detail why that happens, seemingly, every year and why parity is not automatically accounted for in each year's budget?”
“On a point of order, Madam Principal Deputy Speaker. I do not think that I have ever challenged your ruling or been disrespectful — passionate, probably, but disrespectful, I do not think so — but may I have some clarity? I was trying to connect the issue of the attack on the Jewish synagogue in Manchester to the issue of antisemitism. Like other Members, I believe that the two are connected, so I tried to give some explanation for that. Can you advise me, now or later, in order to keep me right, on how they are not connected?”
“I am not being smart at all. I am talking about the issue —.”
“I am talking about antisemitism, Principal Deputy Speaker.”
“I will, Principal Deputy Speaker. I am not challenging you at all, but I am talking about antisemitism and where it comes from. We see modern elements of the right and far right —.”
“It is inaccurate, but it is also disgusting, frankly. I should also point out that is the far right and billionaire owners of the media —.”
“That is historically inaccurate, because not all Jewish people have always supported the creation of Israel, but, today, we see large contingents of Jewish people on demonstrations in America, Britain and Ireland who are against Israel and support the freedom of Palestinians, so it is important that people do not conflate the two, which would be, by definition, antisemitic in and of itself. <BR /> <BR />We should also recognise where antisemitism comes from. Despite some of what we have heard today, antisemitism is a disgusting, poisonous, racist ideology that was created in Europe and was backed and funded by European believers in warped ideas about racism and racial hierarchies and stereotypes. People should not blame Muslims, people on the left or people standing against genocide for antisemitism.”
“I want to say unequivocally that I totally and utterly condemn the disgraceful attack and the killing of two members of the Jewish community outside a synagogue in Manchester last week. Nobody should be killed in that manner but especially not as they are leaving a place of prayer and worship. People obviously feel frightened and under pressure, and I extend my solidarity to them. <BR /> <BR />I also strongly suggest — this comes not from me but from Jewish groups in Britain and elsewhere — that people should refrain from suggesting or trying to tie all Jewish people to Israel.”
“— police brutality. We need to cut all ties with Israel and isolate that brutal regime.”
“In response to the siege, we saw walkouts in Italy and two million workers participating in other places across the world. In Dublin, at the weekend, I joined tens of thousands of people protesting to mark two years of genocide and calling on the state to sanction Israel. After that march, activists rallied to shut down Dublin port, where they were pepper sprayed and subjected to disgraceful —”