Phillip Logan
North Antrim · Democratic Unionist Party · Northern Ireland
“Was the Member in when Simon Hamilton outlined the plan? I see this as a way forward. This is positive. There was a problem, and we have addressed it. That is what the people of Northern Ireland want. Elections will not fix this or make it right, but we have put in place steps to do that.”
“Thank you. I thank the Member for his contribution. He is absolutely right. It really should not be an expectation to ask for those things. It should just be part and parcel of life and human decency. <BR /> <BR />I think that we were making progress. It was slow and laboured; nonetheless, I think that we are making progress.”
“We were making real progress, but no more. <BR /> <BR />To be honest, I have no idea what lies ahead after an election. I have no doubt that there will be talks, as the motion indicates, whether it is about building on what we have already attempted to achieve or maybe on a new way forward.”
“To be fair, in the Chamber, as we have discussed this, there is consensus that we all want the best for Northern Ireland. We make that claim. As an optimist, I assume that most of us mean it.”
“I was nine years of age when the Good Friday Agreement was signed and, to me, it feels like a long time ago. I remember reading the Good Friday Agreement and its outworkings at Cullybackey High School and googling a lot of its attributes. Some of it was quite amazing, and I can understand why people struggle to understand a lot of it.”
“Some of the issues that are cited under equality are being used as pawns. Let us talk about them and not polarise people with different opinions. I want to focus on all the people of Northern Ireland.”
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“Where does the First Minister see the future of the Delivering Social Change programme?”
“My question was on whether any mention was made of how the British-Irish Council would respond to the outcome of the referendum on the European Union, and I thank the First Minister for her conclusive answers. She answered Members' questions on that topic very well.”
“Thanks to the Minister for that encouraging news. How many visitors do you envisage cruise ships bringing into Northern Ireland and what are they expected to generate for the local economy?”
“Will the Minister also provide an update on the subregional programme for soccer?”
“Apart from the money side, has any consideration been given to the facilities that house these places? Some small facilities run morning and afternoon classes to facilitate as many children as possible. Without investment, those facilities would have to drop their numbers.”
“Childcare should not be an obstacle for those parents. In the Programme for Government framework, outcome 14 clearly gives a commitment to providing high-quality preschool education, and that is welcome. We also need to look at better ways of supporting single parents with childcare. <BR /> <BR />I am speaking as a member of the Education Committee, and it should be our desire and end goal to provide the best possible opportunities for our young people. Those opportunities need to be sustainable and affordable, and we need to look at these things through a long-term lens. I am aware that this is an SDLP motion, and we are well aware that it had a well-costed manifesto. Claire has pointed out some of the costs involved with implementing what the motion calls for. I am interested in where she envisages that money coming from.”
“I also congratulate the Minister on his appointment. He will, no doubt, do a fantastic job. <BR /> <BR />I support the motion; it is a good motion. I recognise and do not need to be told that the experience of children in early years plays a key role in their development and their health and educational achievement. The early years provision is beneficial to both the child and the parent. The child is at a crucial time for learning, language development, social skills development and learning through play. <BR /> <BR />It is also right that parents have the opportunity and the option to go to work and be economically active. Going to the workplace has many benefits other than financial ones; it helps in many different aspects for parents. It helps parents to build confidence and skills, and it has social advantages for them.”
“I want to make sure that there are opportunities for every person in education so that they can do as well as they can. I want people to be able to leave school and go on to further education, if that is what is right for them, or to go into the workplace. It is about ensuring that opportunities exist for people to leave school and go out to get skills or to go into the workplace and learn good skills that will equip them for life. <BR /> <BR />I am delighted that my colleague Simon Hamilton has been announced as the Economy Minister. That is a welcome change. The people of North Antrim will be delighted, because for us in North Antrim the issue is jobs and delivery.”
“Ballymena and North Antrim have suffered some devastating blows over the last number of years, and I will continue to be a voice for those people and the job losses that we have suffered. The framework talks about jobs — it talks a lot about jobs — and one of the examples here is that we want to see more people working in better jobs. It is about ensuring that opportunities exist for people at all levels in our communities. <BR /> <BR />There is a mixture of people in the Chamber today. There are people who went through school and on to further education, and there are people who chose not to do that. I chose to leave school and go into the workplace. I did well and worked hard, which suited my course. My wife is slightly different: she went on to university and is a schoolteacher, so there is that difference.”
“It is forward-thinking, and it is something that we need to deliver on. We, in the DUP, stood on a five-point plan, and we need to deliver on that. People were very responsive to that; they trusted us on it and bought into that plan. I am delighted about that. I have a lot of confidence about the next five years that we have in government, and this Programme for Government sets it out very well. As Christopher rightly said, there are 42 key indicators in there as to where we need to be. Those can be measured very successfully, and the programme is laid out very well. <BR /> <BR />I would like to pick up on a few things from that. While I was on the campaign trail in North Antrim, I am sure you can imagine that, as I am from Ballymena, jobs were on people's lips.”
“I rise in the Chamber for my first time as, rightly said, a representative for the people of North Antrim. I am privileged to have been given this opportunity by them, and I fully intend to do my best in this place to be an effective voice and an effective representative of our people. I thank the people of North Antrim for electing me and giving me this opportunity, and I will work hard to repay that. I also thank my predecessor, David McIlveen, for the work that was done in the North Antrim constituency, and I will work hard and continue to build on the foundation that he laid down over the past five years. <BR /> <BR />I am a member of the Executive Office Committee, so I stand on that basis as well, and I welcome this Programme for Government framework. We have something here that is good.”