Declan Kearney
South Antrim · Sinn Féin · Northern Ireland
“The 'good jobs' Bill is designed to benefit every single worker across this society, regardless of background. It is not anti-business. It is about growing economic productivity and enhancing employment and workers' rights.”
“The rhetoric around proper scrutiny is a complete red herring; it is an attempt by the DUP to run down the clock in relation to the mandate. Why is that? What is the DUP afraid of? Why is it vetoing the 'good jobs' Bill?”
“The fallout from Brexit is a reality that is being felt hard by workers and families across the North daily, and that is illustrated in evidence sessions that we have received in the Economy Committee. In one, we learned that our electricity bills here are now higher as a result of Brexit.”
“Catastrophic, kamikaze economics, politically toxic — there is no other way to describe the Brexit debacle. Yet, 10 years on, those in the Chamber who continue to cheerlead are burying their heads in the sand.”
“The fact is that Brexit has brought a positive focus to the democratic logic of self-determination and constitutional change in Ireland. There is a way to remove the negative and enduring legacy of Brexit. Irish unity provides that option. Therefore, it is time to widen participation in the debate.”
“Minister, do you agree that the discrimination in employment and the political vetting that have been practised in this state for so long, and actively supported by some Members, have no place in today's society, and that appointment to government boards should be open to all sections of society, including such citizens as Peter Lynch?”
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Every one of 988 lines we hold for Declan Kearney, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 11 of 20.
“Mo bhuíochas leis an Chomalta as ucht a cheiste. I absolutely agree. As the Member appreciates, much of the narrative around the protocol flies in the face of reality, and it is directly contradicted by the fact that many businesses see and utilise the advantages that the protocol provides them with, such as dual market access. There is a lot of dishonesty and fake news about the place. As the Member states, such inaccuracy becomes irresponsible when it is accompanied by inflammatory rhetoric and not-so-thinly veiled warnings. That creates more economic uncertainty and political apprehensions. <BR /> <BR />I urge all representatives to be responsible. Where there are issues that need to be addressed, let us do that in a pragmatic way that finds durable solutions.”
“Our officials are also in regular contact with their counterparts in Whitehall and Brussels, and they regularly meet Irish Government officials to discuss matters of mutual interest. <BR /> <BR />The primary driver for investment here remains our skilled workforce, competitive cost base and the fact that government, academia and business collaborate to provide a platform for growth. As an Executive, we will never stop promoting the message that our region is a great place in which to work and do business through the Department for the Economy and Invest NI but also through our international offices in Brussels, Washington DC and Beijing.”
“The Member will be aware that discussions on the protocol are continuing between the British Government and the EU. We continue to engage with the British Government and the EU on issues relating to the end of the transition period, including through the Joint Committee and the Partnership Council and in meetings with David Frost and Maroš Šefcovic. <BR /> <BR />We will continue to take such opportunities to highlight the impact of the end of the transition period on our traders and to reiterate the need for permanent solutions to the issues that they are facing. That is often the necessary first step to ensuring that they have the capacity to grow their businesses in a range of markets, including the British market, the EU and further afield.”
“It is a mockery of victims' families to suggest that delivering legal impunity for serious human rights abuses, including murder, by British state forces should trump those rights to justice. <BR /> <BR />We owe it to all victims to ensure that they are treated with equality, dignity and respect. Ní osclófar an bealach i dtreo na fírinne ná an athmhuintearais leis na moltaí seo. There is no pathway to reconciliation in the British amnesty proposals. They have no credibility in this country and will be roundly denounced in the court of international opinion. On that basis, I urge support for the motion. Tacaím leis an rún.”
“They fear public exposure and public accountability. <BR /> <BR />We should be deeply alarmed that the proposals represent a full-frontal assault on the Good Friday Agreement and the administration of justice. They propose to halt inquests, judicial reviews, civil cases and cases that are before the courts. It is a subversion of current due process on an industrial scale. Fundamentally, it is about trying to finally silence the voice of victims, many of whom have been campaigning for truth, justice and acknowledgement on behalf of their loved ones for up to 50 years. It is a travesty that the pain of victims across our entire community — I make no exception in saying that — should be disregarded so that a Tory manifesto commitment that was demanded by the British military establishment can be delivered.”
“Not at the moment — or the role of the Military Reconnaissance Force (MRF), the Force Research Unit (FRU) and the 14 Intelligence Company. That is the clear intent of the proposals. The policy objective of the amnesty proposals is, in effect, to pour concrete over Britain's role in the conflict. It is an attempt to formalise legal cover for the de facto impunity and immunity that have protected British forces' actions throughout the conflict. No one in British military intelligence and other state agencies or from within Thatcher's war Cabinet who supplied unionist paramilitary organisations such as Ulster Resistance with arms shipments from South Africa and elsewhere and then inserted key agents into controlling positions among the death squads wants any public scrutiny of their role or actions in the conflict.”
“They are about blocking any investigation of the internment and torture policy, the recruitment of counter-gangs to carry out assassinations in nationalist areas, the use of intelligence and psychological operations, the political approval for shoot-to-kill operations by clandestine military operations —”
“The strategic purpose of the amnesty proposals is to protect the policy and decision makers at the heart of the British political, military and intelligence establishment, the shadowy and not so shadowy figures and those whose Cabinet decisions and public interventions institutionalised and gave cover to the violence of state forces and their agents, those who presided over state-sponsored massacres and the summary executions of Irish citizens and authorised the reorganisation and arming of unionist paramilitary death squads. <BR /> <BR />That approach is the culmination of a pushback from powerful sections of the British state system that have never embraced our peace settlement and have remained politically and psychologically at war. Be in no doubt: that is what the proposals are about.”
“.Seasaím chun tacú leis an rún atá romhainn. I speak in favour of the motion. My colleague Michelle O'Neill said that the British Government amnesty proposals are about more than providing legal protection for those who wore uniforms; they are about protecting those who wore suits. Tá an ceart aici go huile is go hiomlán.”
“There is no restriction in the regulations that prevents vocal coaches from undertaking face-to-face teaching provided that they do so in line with the necessary requirements and mitigations, and anyone providing vocal coaching should refer to all the relevant guidance for the sector.”
“We have identified where challenges remain. Where challenges remain, there may be issues that present further difficulties through their intractability. However, I am confident that the way forward is to bring the report to the Executive, deal with the issues that we can handle now, separate out the issues where challenges remain and then, absolutely, get that strategic fit with the requirements of NDNA. If we get the right kind of cohesion between FICT and NDNA, that will provide us with an appropriate pathway towards a more pluralist, inclusive and progressive society.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Chomhalta as ucht a ceist a chur. I agree with you. You made a wise observation about trying to get complementarity in how we move forward. The FICT report has been in the making since 2016. Finally, we have a draft report. Good work has been done by the junior Ministers, advisers and officials, certainly at the outset of taking receipt of the report. Officials have focused carefully on where we could, in fact, arrive at a point of consensus and unanimity. <BR /> <BR />The report contains many recommendations that deal with a huge volume of issues. You will be aware of what they are. We have identified an approach that would allow us to advance the implementation of a large number of those recommendations subject to being able to bring the report back to the Executive and getting their approval.”
“The report provides us with the assistance and resource for doing that. Let us stop the prevarication, the blockages and all that hinders our moving forward with the work and ensure that, in a short period of months, we get back on track with the timeline that the Member referred to. All Executive parties need to buy into that. There should be no further hindrance or blockage to progress.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Chomhalta as ucht an cheist a chur. To go back to the question that Mr Weir posed, we require consensus. You will, through your experience, understand well the joint basis of the Executive Office. It means that issues that fall within the ambit and remit of the Executive Office must command agreement and consensus on both sides. I assure you and reiterate that the blockage to moving forward with the timeline and pathway that have been set out for the FICT report does not rest with me. <BR /> <BR />Let us ensure that we get to a point where there is unanimity and agreement on how the report is brought forward and tabled. I said that we needed to ensure that it does not become a free-for-all. Tackling sectarianism, hatred and exclusion must be done in a strategic, thought-out way.”
“Everybody in society, regardless of who they are and where they live, has a right to live free from sectarian harassment, threat and intimidation, not just at this time of the year but all year round. Let us stand together against all forms of sectarian intimidation. That should be the clear message that leaves the Chamber today.”
“There are other statutory agencies, such as the Housing Executive, that have a shared responsibility in tackling this cancer. Where there is such provocation, it needs to be challenged by everyone in political leadership. It does not matter where the provocation comes from or what position you have in political leadership: we have to stand together against any attempt to intimidate or raise tensions. <BR /> <BR />On a secondary and linked issue, I am deeply alarmed at the emerging potential for illegal bonfires at interfaces in Belfast, especially around Adam Street and at Lanark Way. Left unchallenged, that type of intimidation will serve only to strengthen the barriers to building a safe, shared and better future for us all. The politics and principles of NDNA and the Good Friday Agreement must have primacy.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Chomhalta as an cheist sin a chur. I wholeheartedly agree with you: erecting flags to mark out territory instils fear, raises tensions, damages community relations and causes intimidation. Caithfear an fód a sheasamh sa Tionól seo in éadan an tseicteachais, is cuma cá as a dtig an seicteachas, caithfear an fód a sheasamh ina éadan. It is not acceptable, and we need to get to the point where we recognise that flags erected in mixed communal areas cause sectarian intimidation and that that is the driving motivation. That is characteristic of a number of traditionally mixed communal areas in my South Antrim constituency, including Antrim town, Mallusk and Hightown, where we see an increased proliferation of flags. <BR /> <BR />The police have a job to do on the matter. The police need to step up to the plate.”
“I thank the Member for his observation and his question. He will recall the Executive meeting to which I referred, when I cautioned that we need to ensure that the issue does not become a free-for-all in the Executive or, indeed, in wider society. Yes, there is an absolute imperative to find consensus and agreement, and it needs to be inclusive of all parties. It is my aspiration and ambition that, on the basis of what we agree in the Executive and bring forward to the Chamber — this is the leadership that wider society expects of us — we go forward collectively, not just as five parties but as all Members, giving coherent leadership on the issues and setting out a progressive vision of change for the future where we can put these issues of rancour and contention behind us once and for all.”
“<BR /> <BR />We have a pathway in the report. It does not provide us with all the answers, but it provides us with some of the answers. For that reason, we need to get to that point. We need to ensure that the full report is brought into the public domain in a timely way. Let us do that in an orderly, agreed and systematic way and ensure that it does not become an issue that leads to further division and rancour in our society.”
“Sectarianism is not a silo issue; it needs to be met and faced down head-on by our entire Executive and, indeed, the entire Chamber. <BR /> <BR />The report was brought to the Executive, and I offer that information to be helpful to the Member. The intention was to have a special Executive meeting to discuss the report, recommendations and next steps. That has not happened. I have asked that it should be progressed. The blockage in bringing the issue to a comprehensive resolution does not rest with me. I encourage the Member to continue to be vocal on the issue in order to emphasise the necessity of bringing the work to a conclusion. I offer this caveat: the importance of ensuring that we do this as a collective Executive and a collective Chamber rests on the fact that the issue is deeply contentious.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Chomhalta as an cheist a chur. Go raibh maith agatsa. I share the apprehension that the Member has expressed. I assure the Member of my full determination that the process will be fully and properly implemented and that the FICT report will be published. It is essential to how we move forward as an inclusive, united and pluralist society where there is respect and regard shown to all traditions. However, it is now almost a year since we took possession of the report. I have sought repeatedly with officials and through special advisers to see the matter expedited over recent months. The implementation programme needs to be owned by the entire Executive. All Ministers must buy into that approach, because they are cross-departmental issues.”
“An Executive paper on progressing the FICT report was approved by the Executive on 25 March 2021. A FICT working group, involving junior Ministers, special advisers and officials, is taking forward the steps set out in the Executive paper, including cross-departmental engagement. Decisions on the publication of the FICT report will be a matter for all Executive Ministers working together.”
“That legislative provision is outmoded and outdated. I believe that it runs counter to the progressive direction that society needs to take, which must be towards equality for everyone in the workforce and, in particular, full equality for and integration of our teachers. That becomes a firm foundation for advancing, promoting and mainstreaming a desire, which every Member needs to take forward, to achieve greater integration of education right across society, where our children are brought together to be taught jointly.”
“As I indicated in my answer to Mr Lyttle, the blockage is not with me. There is common ground on the matter. Whatever about 2016, this is 2021.”
“My answer to the Member's second question is that my commitment to equality and to standing up for people's rights is unwavering. I am hopeful that we can see progress on the issue at hand in the time ahead. All barriers to equality in the workplace should be lifted. I want to see integration right across this society. That should extend to the integration of teachers in employment as well as to the increased promotion of integrated education itself.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Chomhalta as ucht an cheist a chur, agus tá nasc idir an cheist seo agus an cheist a chuir an tUasal Lyttle. I agree that the teachers' exception from the fair employment legislation is entirely out of sync with modern equality legislation. Ní aontaímse léi mar éisceacht agus i mo thuairim ba cheart deireadh a chur léi láithreach bonn. I have noted the Equality Commission's previous interventions on the issue. The commission previously made a recommendation that the exception from the Fair Employment and Treatment Order 1998 should be removed. I share the commission's assessment of the issue:”
“I thank the Member for his supplementary. I share his frustration on this matter, which has taken much too long to progress. I am aware of the Bill that the Member has out for consultation. The blockage that has prevented the matter from going forward and ensuring an appropriate resolution — the withdrawal of the exception — is not with me. However, I will be very pleased to work directly with the Member to move the issue forward. I will be very happy to have a follow-up conversation with him on his consultation. I will approach that matter very positively indeed. We are on the same ground.”
“There appears to be general agreement that this provision needs to be reviewed. TEO officials have had some preliminary engagement with the Department of Education, as any such review must be taken forward collaboratively with the education sector. That review will, of course, include consideration of the removal of the exception.”
“It is most important that they do so under the ambit of T:BUC so that we see many more young T:BUC ambassadors stepping forward to give good leadership in good relations.”
“I thank the Member for his question. The planned intervention programme provides funding for community activity to divert young people from antisocial and potentially criminal behaviour during the summer period. That falls under the Department of Education's remit. In 2020-21, £290,000 was allocated to the successful delivery of 91 projects involving over 1,100 young people. Going forward, that work will be very important. It is essential that we reach out to our young people, that we provide the facilities and resources to ensure that they are diverted from the grip of criminal, antisocial and potentially paramilitary activity and that, during the summer months in particular, they are given the space to enjoy sport and their relations and to engage with one another.”
“Our good relations priorities, our commitment to anti-sectarianism and anti-racism and our promotion of equality and social inclusion need to deliver. That is the acid test of our united community work.”
“I set that out as evidence of the Executive's overall commitment to promoting good relations and embedding anti-sectarianism across all of our constituencies. <BR /> <BR />Briefly reverting to the Member's comment about the crucial work of T:BUC, I believe that we have to demonstrate and celebrate the value and diversity of equality. There is a saying:”
“<BR /> <BR />In the Member's constituency of West Tyrone, that represents investment in four shared neighbourhoods, providing 48 homes, with total funding of around £642,000; delivery of good relations programming through the United Communities programme in the Derg district electoral area (DEA) since 2019; delivery in the Derg, Sperrin and Strabane Town DEAs of £74,889 in 2020-21 through the District Council Good Relations Programme; and funding of £413,000 in 2020-21 to local organisations through the CRC's core funding scheme and small grants scheme.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Chomhalta as a cheist. I confirm that over £18 million has been allocated to the delivery of good relations work in 2021-22. That Executive investment represents our commitment to building a future defined by tolerance and respect for all identities and aspirations. It includes £12 million of Executive funding to replace Shared Future funding and £6 million of long-standing TEO baseline funding that contributes to the funding of the District Council Good Relations Programme (DCGRP) and fully funds the Community Relations Council (CRC) and the minority ethnic development fund.”
“There has been significant progress in delivering the Together: Building a United Community strategy, with a number of headline actions having been fully achieved. Over 24,000 young people have taken part in T:BUC camps, and five Urban Villages areas have been established. Four shared education campuses have been approved and are progressing. Ten shared neighbourhoods have been completed, providing 483 new homes. Over 6,000 young people have participated in the Peace4Youth programme, and over 26,000 young people have engaged with the Uniting Communities Through Sport and Creativity programme. The number of interface barriers has been reduced by 14. We remain fully committed to building a united community, as demonstrated by the provision of £12 million of Executive funding in 2021-22.”
“I record my thanks to all the Members who contributed to the debate and to the relevant Ministers — they are the Minister of Justice, the Minister for Infrastructure, the Minister of Education, the Minister for Communities and the Minister of Agriculture — who all contributed to the process in a very collegiate and positive manner. I also thank the officials who assisted in getting us to this point in the process, enabling us to introduce corrections to the anomalies that have existed and allowing for the order to be brought to the Chamber and passed today. It will ensure that the statutory responsibility is corrected and transferred to the appropriate Departments in order to allow the functions to be fully implemented.”
“It also underlines the imperative of the role of our scrutiny Committees and the democratic role that they perform, and a number of the contributions reflected the role that members of those Committees have played. It also demonstrates that legislative powers and the legislative basis of government do, in fact, have a material effect on the lives of our citizens and on the discharge and implementation of public policy across all the relevant areas. <BR /> <BR />Gabhaim buíochas leis na hAirí éagsúla, le hoifigigh na Ranna agus le Coistí an Tionóil as ucht a gcuid iarrachtaí.”
“It follows that departmental functions must be tightly aligned with the correct policy context within which Departments and the collective of government must operate.”
“I welcome the, mainly, affirmative contributions from most of the Members who have spoken in the debate. The order, the motion and the discussion are an absolute reminder that government in this place or, indeed, anywhere, needs to be established on robust and firm legislative foundations.”
“Unfortunately, however, this legislative power to make regulations about the procedure of the special educational needs and disability tribunal, which is contained in article 23 of the Special Educational Needs and Disability (NI) Order 2005, was omitted from the 2011 order and, therefore, remained with the Department of Education. This order provides an opportunity to rectify that mistake and to allow the Department of Justice to have all the legislative powers that it needs to make procedural regulations for the special educational needs and disability tribunal. <BR /> <BR />In conclusion, the order will bring about a necessary realignment of functions with their proper policy context and enable the appropriate Departments to commence work on implementing the relevant duties and requirements. I therefore commend the order to the House.”
“The Reservoirs Act (NI) 2015, when fully commenced, will introduce a framework for the regulation of reservoir safety in the North. Once transferred, the framework will allow for the consideration of commencement of the relevant sections of the Act and the introduction of subordinate legislation to implement the required maintenance and management regime. <BR /> <BR />The third and final function in this order concerns article 23 of the Special Educational Needs and Disability (NI) Order 2005. The function relates to a legislative power to make regulations about the procedure of the special educational needs and disability tribunal (SENDIST), responsibility for which passed from the Department of Education to the Department of Justice in 2011 by means of the Departments (Transfer of Functions) Order (NI) 2011.”
“<BR /> <BR />I turn now to the Reservoirs Act (NI) 2015. The restructuring of Departments in 2016 included the transfer of all functions carried out by the Rivers Agency on behalf of the former Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to the Department for Infrastructure. The statutory functions under the Reservoirs Act (NI) 2015 were inadvertently not included in the Departments (Transfer of Functions) Order (NI) 2016, however; consequently, responsibility for the legislation remained with the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs. Transfer of those functions is, therefore, required, as that position does not align with the agreement reached on the respective responsibilities of each of the new Departments.”
“The order was to be signed by the First Minister and deputy First Minister and laid before the Assembly for an affirmative resolution debate, but the dissolution of the Assembly in January 2017 prevented that from happening, and the draft legislation therefore fell. <BR /> <BR />Given the absence of the Assembly and the acknowledgement that the lead for this policy matter properly lies with the Department for Communities, section 19 has not yet been commenced. The regulations and strategy required by the section have also not been taken forward. The order will therefore allow for the transfer of responsibility for section 19 to the Department for Communities, the Department with the lead policy role for gender equality, and will enable that Department to take forward the actions required by that legislation.”
“The timing of the respective legislative processes for the Employment Bill, which became the Employment Act, and the 2016 legislation that provided for the restructuring of Departments prevented the statutory responsibility for section 19 of the Employment Act (NI) 2016 from transferring to the Department for Communities at that time with OFMDFM's lead policy responsibility for sex discrimination legislation, through the Sex Discrimination (NI) Order 1976 and the Equal Pay Act (NI) 1970, which had already been transferred by order to the Department for Communities. That was recognised by the previous Executive, which agreed to the making of a Departments (Transfer of Functions) Order in December 2016.”
“Members will be aware that, in 2016, there was a major restructuring of Departments and that, as part of that, policy and statutory responsibility for gender equality matters transferred from OFMDFM to the new Department for Communities. As part of that reorganisation, OFMDFM also became the Executive Office.”
“The section also required the Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister to publish a strategy, including an action plan, on eliminating gender pay differences within 18 months of Royal Assent.”
“Section 19, as enacted, provides that employers must, in accordance with regulations made by the then Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister (OFMDFM), publish information showing whether gender pay disparities exist between employees. Where gender pay disparities are identified, an employer must publish an action plan to eliminate them and provide a copy of that plan to employees and any recognised trade union. The section required the first set of those regulations to be made by 30 June 2017.”
“The order will be made in exercise of the powers conferred by article 8 of the Departments (NI) Order 1999, which enables the First Minister and deputy First Minister to assign and transfer functions to and between Departments. I can also confirm that all the relevant Assembly Committees were consulted about the proposed transfers. I acknowledge their cooperation in consideration of the matter and thank them for their support and practical approach in doing so. <BR /> <BR />A Cheann Comhairle, with your permission, I will take a few moments to outline the background and rationale for the proposed transfers. The first function relates to the transfer of responsibility for section 19 of the Employment Act (NI) 2016 from my Department, TEO, to the Department for Communities.”
“Secondly, those under the Reservoirs Act (NI) 2015 relating to the regulation of certain reservoirs will transfer from the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs to the Department for Infrastructure. Thirdly, those under article 23 of the Special Educational Needs and Disability Order 2005 relating to the proceedings of the special educational needs and disability tribunal on a claim of unlawful discrimination under chapter I of Part III of the order and to the making of a claim will transfer from the Department of Education to the Department of Justice. <BR /> <BR />Each Minister who is ceding or receiving the functions has signalled their agreement and agreed that the First Minister and deputy First Minister should bring the order forward.”
“I welcome the opportunity to bring the order before the Assembly for its approval. It is intended to remedy a number of anomalies that have arisen whereby certain statutory functions have been retained by one Department while the appropriate policy context has, in fact, transferred to another. Aistreofar dualgais reachtúla de réir a chéile idir na Ranna ábhartha seo leanas. The order will therefore transfer statutory responsibility between the relevant Departments for the following functions. First, functions under section 19 of the Employment Act (NI) 2016 relating to gender pay disparity information will transfer from the Executive Office to the Department for Communities.”