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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“Dig deeper, dig deeper again, and, when you feel that you cannot dig any deeper into your pockets, dig deeper again. That is the message from the Executive: pay those extortionate rents, put up with the rate hikes and, essentially, shut up about it. That is the message, overwhelmingly, that is coming out loud and clear today for those who are struggling to make ends meet. That is what the new Executive are saying to those who can barely keep a roof over their heads and struggle to pay their bills. <BR /> <BR />When the institutions collapsed, Government parties were lining up at every opportunity to talk about those who could not heat their homes, small businesses and households that could not keep the lights on or people who could not feed their families or themselves and still struggle to do so.”
“There have been many 7 Octobers every year for the Palestinian people. This Paddy's day, people should refuse to go to the White House and should refuse to shake the hand of Joe Biden; instead, they should say, "Free Palestine" this Paddy's day.”
“That man does not deserve a bowl of shamrock; he deserves to be in The Hague and on trial for his support for war crimes and genocide on the Palestinian people. <BR /> <BR />Across the island, people have spoken against Joe Biden and his actions. At least 20,000 people have signed a petition demanding that parties refuse to go to Washington to shake his hand and get a selfie, and I repeat that call today. Tens of thousands have marched across the island to call out "Genocide Joe" and the States' actions. Thousands are likely to be out in Belfast again this weekend. <BR /> <BR />It is worth repeating that the violence did not start on 7 October 2023. Violence has been ongoing since 1948 and even the 1920s under the British mandate. There has been theft of land, ethnic cleansing and daily slaughter.”
“but, this year, there is a really sinister edge that needs to be challenged and called out. The man with the biggest arsenal of weapons in human history behind him is trying to use his lineage and family history to give himself a by-ball for the carnage and slaughter that he has supported for the last six months. That man's name is Joe Biden. It is crystal clear that, without the cheques, the tanks and the fighter jets sent by the US, 30,000 Palestinians would still be alive today. I make a final call to all party leaders here but especially to Mary Lou McDonald and Michelle O'Neill: do not help to facilitate and rehabilitate "Genocide Joe". Give him the cold shoulder that he deserves this Paddy's day.”
“In a few days' time, people will celebrate St Paddy's day with craic and ceol,”
“Not only do they owe Stakeknife's victims an apology but they owe them the truth and justice for the loss of their loved ones. Families must be afforded proper investigations without interference from the British Government and the shadowy forces in the PSNI and MI5. The heads of the British state, including those at the top of its military and intelligence services who sanctioned and covered up state murder, should be in the dock.”
“It is deeply unfortunate that the Kenova report repeats that lie. The people of the North who suffered the brutal impact of those policies have always been viewed as collateral damage. As the years go on and investigations take place, the hidden hand of the state has been increasingly exposed in countless atrocities here. The absurdity of British democracy is this: you can be prosecuted or jailed for organising or attending a peaceful protest, but if you are an agent up to your neck in sanctioning and committing murder, you will be protected and supported, and you will get off scot-free. What a shame; what a disgrace. <BR /> <BR />The refusal to prosecute Stakeknife and other state proxies shows that the British Government are determined to cover up their crimes here in Ireland.”
“<BR /> <BR />The Kenova report is welcome in some parts but falls far short of what should really happen to those who were up to their necks in committing state terrorism. Importantly, it dispels the myth that Stakeknife protected more lives than he took, which is the cornerstone myth that is put out by those who lavishly and unapologetically repeat the lies of the British establishment. However, the report disgracefully maintains that state agents saved lives in the North. They did not, and that narrative needs to be challenged and done away with. The British state must own up to the fact that it sanctioned murder for its own nefarious ends. It was not just agents; it was those who paid them and those who gave them political cover. <BR /> <BR />The state's rotten apple theory is a deliberate lie, intended to justify state murder.”
“At the outset, I pay tribute to all the victims, the campaigners and all those who relentlessly never gave up the fight to get justice and truth for their families and loved ones. The families of the victims of state violence, who never gave up the fight to expose the British state's crimes in its dirty war, also deserve mention today. That is what Stakeknife was about. That is who he was — an agent who was invaluable to the British establishment, and it was more concerned about infiltration than protecting lives. Collusion with paramilitary death squads and state-sponsored murderers, like Stakeknife, was never about saving lives. It was always about defending the political, economic and military aims of the British establishment.”
“I thank the Minister for giving way. Minister, you mentioned issuing guidance. It is concerning that your Department, from what I have understood, is not issuing legislation to compel and put in law that schools be mandated to decrease costs and look at a cheaper uniform. Why is your Department not considering that measure?”
“<BR /> <BR />Finally, we also need to have a conversation, which is connected to the debate, about abolishing the grammar-school system if we are to truly have a fair and equitable education system. The grammar-school system reinforces the class division in our society and leads to young people feeling that they are inadequate and that they are failures, when they absolutely are not. Let us tackle uniform costs, but let us also tackle that unfair categorisation of our young people.”
“Are we to say that pupils' education is less important than that scheme? I hope not. <BR /> <BR />We would pay for it by taxing the rich and by taxing companies and corporations that are making and boasting of record profits. Pre-tax profits among the North's biggest firms rose by 46% to £1·367 billion last year. Corporate sales are up to £31 billion, and UK wealth is up at £15 trillion, an overwhelming majority of which is in the hands of the ultra-rich 1%. There is a lot of wealth around these islands, but it is in the hands of the wrong people. We need to have that conversation about taking from the wealthy and putting it into the hands of ordinary people, including those who struggle to pay uniform costs.”
“have uniforms with branded school jumpers that cost around £20 or so. It can be done. The state can and should intervene to curtail uniform costs. Schools should be mandated to source more affordable uniforms. People mentioned the Tories bringing in legislation in England a number of years ago. <BR /> <BR />It is our view that families should not have to pay any core costs for education. Uniforms, like books and other necessities, should be free in all schools. There are just over 300,000 pupils in the North: if we were to give every one of them £100 for a generic uniform, that would cost over £33 million. I know that the Minister and others may say that that is unrealistic and that the money is not there, but by comparison, during COVID, £145 million was spent on the high street voucher scheme.”
“We need legislation, of course, but they should take action to implement a more generic uniform. There is no need for expensive blazers or branded PE kits. It is a choice that serves nothing and nobody except the companies involved and the outdated sense of prestige that comes with a fancy uniform. A basic school uniform — two pairs of trousers and some shirts and jumpers — can be bought for in and around £20. Some bunscoileanna”
“That was many years ago; you can only imagine the pressure faced by families now, with costs going up and wages, in real terms, going down. <BR /> <BR />It is also important to note that most education workers, including teachers, realise the pressures that parents face. Many of them, of course, face those pressures themselves as parents and as underpaid workers. Recently, I was at a community event in west Belfast, and I was told by somebody that the people who used to donate presents and food parcels at Christmas are now the people who are going into those centres and seeking food parcels, because their wages are not keeping up with inflation. It is a really unacceptable state of play. <BR /> <BR />School leaders and boards of governors need to change and to take action. Schools can and should take action.”
“Working-class households, which have been hammered by years of Tory and Stormont austerity, including the two-child benefit cap, cannot keep forking out extortionate sums for school uniforms, particularly during a cost-of-living or cost-of-profiteering crisis. We have heard reports of kids missing school due to uniform issues, and Members mentioned that today. In my view, the costs absolutely infringe on children's right to an education. The stress that every family goes through at the start of a new school year is almost unimaginable. I come from a big family, and I remember that, every August, my parents were stressed out. They did not say anything, but you could tell by the looks on their faces that having to pay the extra uniform costs put a massive pressure on them.”
“Members have spoken about the importance of the motion and the issue, and one Member mentioned last year's LucidTalk polling, commissioned by Save the Children, which found that parents are cutting back to afford uniforms. A clear majority of parents — six in 10 — struggle to meet school uniform costs. That is an unacceptable situation. It is appalling that families have to choose between feeding and clothing their children. That really sums up the state of our society. <BR /> <BR />It is an obvious point, but no parent should have to worry about how they will afford to send their children to school.”
“I totally agree with the Member's point. Does she agree that, for people who are gender-fluid or transitioning, schools and boards of governors should reflect in their policies their choice of uniform and whatever it is that they feel most comfortable in as regards their gender or transition process?”
“It is time to pay them properly and to invest properly in our public services as people were promised.”
“The motion seems more concerned about the timing of a deal than with delivering a deal that gives workers a real pay rise of what they need above that 5%. <BR /> <BR />I urge any public-sector worker to be wary of demands and promises from parties that have been in an Executive for the past two decades and played a part in pay erosion. I also have a reminder for parties here that think that they can quickly ram through a deal or pass off a pay cut as a pay rise. They may hold the purse strings for now, but the 170,000 public-sector workers who took strike action in January have the real power here and across our society. If they choose to reject this pay cut, Executive parties will have to cough up the money. It is time to pay those workers.”
“<BR /> <BR />When public-sector workers took strike action and demanded a pay rise, they did so with an eye to skyrocketing prices and rising inflation, which peaked at around 11%. I am sure that many public-sector workers found it galling when Stormont Ministers paraded their 5% deal in the media. Five per cent not only is a cut in real terms but does not even come close to restoring overall public-sector pay levels, which have declined by at least 20% on Stormont's watch. People Before Profit was alone in opposing the Stormont Budget Bill on that basis: it copper-fastened a real terms pay cut for public-sector workers. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the motion makes no mention of that real terms pay cut and puts no concurrent demand on the Executive to give them a pay rise and to invest properly in our public services.”
“I must say that this motion is absolutely typical of the Assembly. Across the Chamber, we have parties of all shades that have cut public-sector pay whilst in government yet have no qualms talking about the burdens faced by public-sector workers, real burdens though they are. Public-sector workers, who have had their living standards attacked, do not want more crocodile tears, not least when Stormont, at this minute, is offering them another real terms pay cut. Words of concern from the establishment parties here, both those in the Executive and in the official Opposition, are as useful to those workers as a chocolate fireguard, because nothing less than a pay rise will even begin to address the pay erosion and enforced poverty that they have suffered at the hands of these very institutions.”
“That is a disappointing answer, Minister. Your previous international relations strategy was supposedly committed to peace-building. You cannot be committed to peace-building if you are engaging with a nuclear-armed state that is slaughtering people in Gaza on a mass scale. You have missed an opportunity to say that the House will not endorse the actions of the Israeli state. I call upon you and the First Minister to refuse to engage with that apartheid state.”
“<BR /> <BR />Even if the motion passes, it will not begin to cure the sectarian rot at the heart of the Northern state. The cure lies in working-class unity. It is that unity, seen amongst striking public-sector workers, that forced the Assembly back to business. It is that unity that will uplift our communities. It is that unity that will overcome communal division as people — Catholic, Protestant, none, migrant — finally stand up to Stormont together. The contrived unity on offer in the motion will not cut it, because it is an attempt at unity imposed from above. Real unity and real change will either come from outside these institutions or not at all. Working-class communities must start by opposing the pay cut offered to public-sector workers and the punishing revenue-raising measures that the Executive want to impose.”
“<BR /> <BR />A system that mandates parties to designate as unionist, nationalist or other assumes that there are and always will be separate communities here and that those communities should elect the leaders to represent their supposedly separate interests. I am not an other. I am a socialist, and I was elected on that ticket. It is a disgrace to the House that me and others are designated offensively as "other". Not only does that approach copper-fasten sectarianism outside these institutions but it is based on an illusion. While the unionist and nationalist establishment parties here seem opposed in principle, they are always united when it comes to cutting workers' pay, impoverishing our communities and stoking communal segregation.”
“<BR /> <BR />People Before Profit attempted to amend today's motion by calling for the doing away with of communal designations and the removal of the sectarian mechanisms that allow for day-to-day vetoes of Stormont's business. As we see it, the communal veto is not just about collapsing the Assembly but is a sectarian mechanism that has been used to deny democratic rights time and time again. We have seen it used under the guise of the petition of concern to thwart things like same-sex marriage, reproductive rights and Irish-language legislation. It is to the eternal shame of the Assembly that the Tories, under pressure from popular mass movements, were forced to legislate for those demands where Stormont had failed.”
“People Before Profit was one of the strongest and most vocal critics of the DUP's boycott of the Assembly, which was self-serving and wrought untold misery on people across the North. However, today's motion about reform of the Assembly fails to address the real elephant in the room: that these institutions, built and run on the basis of communal designation and division, will always be prone to instability. When the Good Friday Agreement was signed, a critical minority warned that it would effectively institutionalise sectarianism, and that is exactly what has happened. The DUP, when it collapsed the Assembly, was simply exercising its veto on power-sharing as enshrined in Stormont's sectarian institutions.”
“<BR /> <BR />If parties were truly sorry for cutting public-sector pay, the first thing that they would do would be to give public-sector workers a real pay rise. Instead, the Assembly ran through a Budget Bill that guarantees those workers only a 5% rise, which is a cut in real terms, considering the rate of inflation. That is not to mention the spate of budget cuts and attacks on public services that will come down the line. Whatever today's outcome, we need to be clear that, if Executive parties do not begin to address those issues, they are not sorry at all for the harm that is being done to our communities and services. Like many previous motions in the Assembly, this one will simply be for the optics. They are ruling by fooling once more.”
“It is fitting that the Executive parties and the former Executive parties start by offering public-sector workers an apology for cutting their pay for over two decades. All those who have been in government at some point — that is, Sinn Féin, the DUP, Alliance, the UUP and the SDLP — should be sorry for the destruction of our public services, which have been underfunded, understaffed and under-resourced by successive Administrations. <BR /> <BR />When I was younger, my ma told me that if you are sorry for something, you do not do it again. It means that you have learned a lesson from the past and are ready to do better in the future. Four weeks into the new Assembly, the Administration are set to do the same disastrous deeds all over again and again.”
“I thank the Minister for giving way and appreciate those figures. Can the Minister commit to ruling out any changes in the concessionary fares scheme that would restrict, limit or stop free travel for people aged over 60?”
“Maybe that is a tactic by Executive parties, or maybe it is a mistake: I do not know. From our end, it is problematic for that reason, and we cannot support it. We are happy to support the motion unamended.”
“<BR /> <BR />We will support the motion today, obviously. The need for an all-Ireland railway system could not be more stark, but such expansion cannot be coupled with austerity measures, where we take with one hand and cut with the other, that will simultaneously discourage the use of public transport and impact on people's health and on our environment. We need to address all those issues if we are to move towards a public transport network that is free at the point of service and paid for through progressive taxation. <BR /> <BR />On the amendment, I generally support putting more demands on the British Government. They have underfunded this place for decades, and any pressure on them is good. However, the amendment takes the pressure and the focus off the Department for Infrastructure.”
“I call on the Minister today to bin that proposal. People have made clear their opposition to it through protests and thousands of submissions to the permanent secretary before the Minister came into office, so he should bin that proposal. <BR /> <BR />All the science tells us that we should encourage more people to use public transport to cut emissions, as Members have said, and avert a climate catastrophe, yet Stormont seems to be heading in the completely opposite direction. Where other countries are moving to totally free public transport — heavily, in some cases — we are hurtling towards disaster in the opposite direction. Analysis shows that Belfast is the most car-dependent city in the UK, with more than 70% of all journeys in Belfast taken by car. We need to urgently turn the tide if we are to meet our climate emission targets.”
“Therefore, when Governments across these islands, including the Executive, cut public transport spending, they cost the public purse more money in the long run, not to mention the cost to people's health. <BR /> <BR />The Tories have spent around £4 billion a year on fuel duty cuts, incentivising the use of private cars whilst privatising the public transport network. However, it is not just the Tories. Time and again, we have seen Translink fares hiked and services reduced in real terms. Last year, in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis — one of the worst ever — Translink fares were disgracefully hiked. The decline of public transport is happening on Stormont's watch, and, as we speak, the Department for Infrastructure is considering ending, limiting or restricting free travel for the over-60s.”
“If you look at the experience of the north-west and of rural communities, which have been virtually cut off from the rail network, you can see the effects of those nonsensical policies. <BR /> <BR />First, it must be said that public spending cuts, including cuts to public transport, have been absolutely devastating for deprived areas across the island. Secondly, the impact of a broken public transport network wreaks havoc on people's health and on our environment on a daily basis. Members will know that air pollution is one of the biggest killers worldwide and is responsible for over seven million deaths every year. Not only is it slashing years off people's lives but it is costing the NHS billions of pounds every year to treat people — often poor people — who have been impacted by respiratory diseases and cancer.”
“I hope that that trend continues. Thank you. <BR /> <BR />The state of Ireland's rail network is the perfect representation of the ruling-class delusion that spending cuts and the managed decline of public services is not only financially prudent but necessary to inspire confidence in business elites and stimulate economic growth. People will no doubt be familiar with, as was referred to earlier, the British civil servant Richard Beeching, who led the charge in cutting railway services in Britain. The same cuts were then imposed on people in the North. Like much else emanating from London's political elite, that has been an unmitigated disaster for working-class communities.”
“The Executive parties, which include the Members who tabled the motion and those who will endorse it, are, at this moment, refusing to invest properly in those workers and the SEND sector. It is utter hypocrisy, and it should tell those outside where the Government's priorities lie. <BR /> <BR />Finally, I will read out some demands that have been sent to me by constituents. They are calling for equity in education; timely, early intervention; accountability for the Education Authority; and proper reform that involves the voices of parents and workers. The time for lip service is over. Children with special educational needs and disabilities demand investment in their education. They demand action, and that is the very least that they deserve.”
“It asked the Assembly to recognise that education support staff have not had their right to a 52-week contract honoured and further commended the education workers who took strike action in pursuit of investment in our children's education. Finally, it asked the Assembly to commit to meeting the pay and grading demands of those workers, which brings us to the nub of the matter. <BR /> <BR />The refusal of the new Executive to undertake the pay and grading review demanded by workers and families reminds us that the failures that we speak of are not just historical; they are current. Three weeks in, families and trade unions are knocking at the door of the new Executive, because they have immediately continued down the path of their blundering predecessors. The pay and grading review has been outstanding since 2019.”
“<BR /> <BR />I also want to mention all the education workers who have taken to picket lines to strike for a pay and grading review and for investment in reform — proper reform — of the SEND sector. I submitted an amendment to today's motion in support of those workers. It was not selected for debate, unfortunately, but I will summarise it here. It commended the efforts of the education workers in the SEND sector who go above and beyond for the vulnerable children they care for and educate. It asked the Assembly to recognise the incredibly difficult circumstances that they work in daily and noted that declining real-terms pay has compounded the recruitment and retention crisis facing the sector.”
“It is as simple as this: the state is failing to meet its legal and statutory obligations to children with special educational needs and disabilities. It is denying them their right to a full and fruitful education and stymieing their potential. If that is not discrimination, I do not know what is. <BR /> <BR />Families should not have to persevere, but persevere they have. I pay tribute to all those who have campaigned and taken the fight to those in power to demand investment in the SEND sector. Not only have they helped to pick up the pieces when the state has failed but they have been absolutely determined to ensure that the farce does not continue.”
“<BR /> <BR />Almost every day, I speak to parents who have to go through the torture of navigating the pitfalls in the SEND sector: being unable to have their child assessed; being unable to get a statement of need; or even being unable to get a school place. Last year, we had the appalling situation where hundreds of children with special educational needs and disabilities and their families were left in limbo, not knowing where they would go when September came around. Unfortunately, officials have warned me and my party that there will likely be a repeat of that unforgivable situation this year. <BR /> <BR />That is not to mention, of course, the impact on and constant disruption of the education of vulnerable children in schools that are under-resourced, understaffed and, seemingly, uncared for by the Stormont Executive.”
“Just three weeks: that is how long it took for the families of children with special educational needs and disabilities to protest outside the newly restored Assembly. Along with other Members, I was with Colin autism group today. I also stood alongside and in support of Unite the union members. I commend them both for taking a stand for all those affected by our broken education system. Politicians and sections of the media have tried to pit those people against one another in the past, and they are not falling for it. The Executive parties here should be ashamed for failing our most vulnerable children, putting countless families through the wringer and treating education workers with absolute contempt.”
“I look forward to scrutinising that Bill and looking at its detail. As part of bringing forward that legislation, will the Minister commit to looking at removing the ban on secondary, solidarity strike action, which he will know was a cornerstone of Margaret Thatcher's anti-union laws?”
“We are here to offer real opposition to the Executive as a socialist opposition. I will oppose the Bill today, and we will do all in our power to build opposition to this Administration on the streets and communities in the period ahead.”
“The full scope and impact of the Budget is yet to be seen, but, to my mind, there is no question that people will lose out as a result of it, and the only question is this: by how much? <BR /> <BR />I should also mention that the Bill comes without any guarantee that the Tories will stump up the £3·3 billion as promised. Not only did the Executive not nail that down but they opened the door to the threat of things such as raised rates, higher tuition fees and prescription charges. The Tories played them like a fiddle. They now expect the Executive to do their bidding once more, but I have hope, not necessarily in the Executive or their Tory bedfellows but in the power of working-class communities to organise and push back against attempts to impoverish them further once again.”
“Which is it? Is the money there for public-sector pay, or is it not? I fear and workers will certainly fear that the Minister is following that age-old Stormont tradition of speaking out of both sides of her mouth. <BR /> <BR />The lack of scrutiny of the Bill may well suit the Executive's short-term agendas, but it is our public services and communities that are likely to suffer in the long run. We will keep the receipts. When the proposed cuts come — it is likely that they will — we will point the finger at everybody who endorsed the Budget Bill. Alongside the trade union movement, we will call on all those 170,000 public-sector workers who took strike action to take on those who did the bidding of the Tories once again.”
“In waving through the Bill today, the Minister and her colleagues have talked up the money set aside for public-sector pay. I am here to state on the record that they are pulling the wool over people's eyes. Trade unions have already expressed concern that the money on offer is probably not enough to address their demands. Unfortunately for Ministers, it is for those public-sector workers to decide whether the funding will cut it at all. Anything less than a pay offer in line with inflation will be a real-terms pay cut. Given the fact that parties here have effectively cut people's wages for the better part of a decade, the Executive have some way to go to make up for the money that has been lost. Just days ago, the Minister expressed regrets to the Finance Committee that the money is not enough to meet the full estimated pay costs.”
“Nurses, teachers, doctors, classroom assistants, bus drivers and all those who were forced to strike recently will be affected by what is in the Bill. It is the Executive who will have to answer for the Budget to come and its impact on those whom I have mentioned and others.”
“Last night, I conveyed the absolute absurdity and recklessness involved in ramming through a Budget Bill without a modicum of scrutiny. The Executive are hiding behind a false sense of propriety while denying people inside and outside the Chamber the opportunity to assess the Bill properly. They claim to follow the letter of the law while disregarding the concerns and views of those affected by the Bill.”
“Minister, only a matter of weeks ago, your party colleagues stood at picket lines to support fair pay for striking health workers. Will we have the absurdity of your party colleagues joining junior doctors on the picket lines on 6 and 7 March while your Department implements the real-term pay cut, or has your party abandoned fair pay for health workers now that it is in the Government?”