Jonathan Buckley
Upper Bann · Democratic Unionist Party · Northern Ireland
“Sinn Féin's representatives in the European Parliament voted against proposals aimed at strengthening the management of illegal immigration and facilitating the return of failed asylum applicants — those who entered countries illegally — to designated return hubs outside the European Union.”
“Last year, Sinn Féin, alongside the open-border brigade of the Alliance Party and the SDLP, voted against my motion in the Assembly that called for action to address concerns about illegal and uncontrolled immigration.”
“People want an immigration system that is controlled, credible and properly enforced whilst ensuring that the genuine, heartfelt, lived experience and concerns of local citizens are at the heart of the debate. That is not an unreasonable position to take.”
“I highlight yet another example of a political party claiming to represent the views of people across the island of Ireland yet taking a position that is fundamentally out of step with the concerns being expressed by a vast number of people across Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and, indeed, the rest of the United Kingdom, and t…”
“The Minister is aware and is, in fact, on record as having suggested that organised drug crime is happening in prisons. I have previously raised that matter in the Assembly.”
“Minister, I am sure that you agree that we cannot continue to leave residents in limbo. There has to be some progress on the matter. A number of unfinished developments have been lying stagnant for a long time, but the number is so small that it would not require that great an amount of money to ensure adequate facilities for residents, e…”
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“— because everything that they put their hand to with their hard-left rhetoric —”
“We are certainly proud of their contribution and will continue to mark it every time that we can. <BR /> <BR />Perhaps, in some respects, it is best that Sinn Féin does not attend —”
“We have to look only at the recent contribution by the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, when he paid tribute to the frontier men of Scots-Irish descent and many proud Irish descendants who made America their home and made it great today. He talked about that:”
“How brass-necked can you get? Where is the accountability? Nothing is louder than the echo of a mask slipping, especially when the face beneath it contradicts every word that they continue to say in public. <BR /> <BR />By contrast, the DUP will be in Washington. We will stand up and speak out for the people of Northern Ireland, progressing and promoting business and progressing and strengthening the economic ties to and relationships with the largest economy in the world and one of our greatest allies: the United States. It is an opportunity that we will seize and not squander. The ties between Ulster and the United States are great.”
“It seems a bit elementary to point out to Sinn Féin Members that you cannot boycott an event that you have not been invited to. <BR /> <BR />Sinn Féin's duplicity continues to be called out. Let us remember why Mary Lou McDonald and Michelle O'Neill told us they would not attend St Patrick's Day in the White House: they were going to take a principled position against President Trump and his Administration. Well, it would appear that that so-called position of principle is easily traded on the back of a $100 note. This weekend's 'Sunday Times' says it best: it reveals that Sinn Féin has continued with record donations to President Trump's Republican Party during his time as president. It states:”
“There has been a certain irony in recent days that will not be lost on the people of Northern Ireland. We had Sinn Féin claiming that it is boycotting a visit to the White House on St Patrick's Day, only for it to be later clarified that it was not, in fact, invited in the first place.”
“I listened to the headlines today, and it was beyond ridiculous to hear that, in 2026, businesspeople still live in fear of getting a tap on the shoulder about a threat to their personal life, family life or business. I call on the PSNI to show clearly how it will stamp that out of our society, because, certainly, the Assembly will be unified and clear in saying that groups that extort businesses or communities have no place here.”
“It does not matter what hue or section of society such groups purport to come from: it is wrong and dangerous that we have paramilitaries that think that they have control over our business community and can extort them for money for so-called protection whilst the PSNI says that it can do nothing about it. I do not agree with that. I believe that, as an Assembly, we should state clearly that paramilitary influences have no place in our society, regardless of where they come from. <BR /> <BR />Our businesses should be left to thrive. Our business community should be propped up and should prosper. Businesses pay taxes. Quite often, in this place, we talk about the huge challenges that they continue to face. Many of them, including long-held family businesses, face the threat of extinction.”
“Often, in the Assembly, Members stand up to speak out for business. Quite often, they stand up to recognise the challenges that businesses face, and rightly so. That means that, when we look at today's headlines, we should all look upon them with disgust to see that there is still paramilitary involvement in Northern Ireland in holding businesses in fear and to ransom for protection money.”
“If it came to my office, I would know about it.”
“This is like an episode of 'Say Nothing'. We should not be surprised that the Minister is so well versed on the timeline, given that her party put it up; in fact, I would not be surprised if it were to come to light that there was a pre-planning meeting in the Sinn Féin office to determine when to do it. <BR /> <BR />Minister, the billboard had your party's logo on it. On that, everybody here is categoric. Was it a Sinn Féin billboard when that logo was on it, or did your party pay for somebody to lease it?”
“The Minister will be aware of my long-standing and deeply held concerns about the influence of gender ideology in Northern Ireland. That is more acute when it affects young people. Given the biological reality that sex is male and female, and that puberty is a natural process of development grounded in that reality, will the Minister accept that the enrolment of any child in a scheme, now or in the future, designed to tamper with that process is wrong, dangerous and lacking common sense?”
“There absolutely is a need for an adequate Budget, and every Member in the House supports that. Among the general public, however, there is a perception that there is huge system mismanagement, with our roads in absolute chaos, persistently high hospital waiting lists and huge underinvestment in our school estate. What can the First Minister do to reassure the public that every effort is being made to ensure that there is not system mismanagement? I look particularly at the Audit Office report that showed that £50 million a year was spent on sick leave payments in the Civil Service. What will the First Minister do to address that wastage and ensure that the money goes to front-line services?”
“That must be our central focus when discussing such matters.”
“The Terrorism Act 2000 — something that Sinn Féin knows about very well, given the number of former terrorists in its organisation — allows for proscription not only where there has been violence causing injury or loss of life but where there has been serious, politically motivated damage that is intended to influence government policy. That threshold exists precisely because we should not wait until such escalation results in violence. <BR /> <BR />With regard to Palestine Action, we are not discussing peaceful protest or the use of a tin of spray paint, as Mr Carroll said, but coordinated, repeated attacks, including industrial sabotage that targets defence-linked facilities, causing significant property damage and deliberately seeking to disrupt operations tied to national security.”
“The judgement was not simply a technical legal exercise; it touched directly on national security assessments made by Ministers who had access to classified intelligence, security briefings and operational advice that the courts do not fully see and cannot fully test in open court proceedings. <BR /> <BR />There is a constitutional balance to be struck in all of this. Parliament makes the law. The Government, who are accountable to Parliament, make national security judgements based on sensitive intelligence. The courts then review the process and its legality, but they are not — I repeat it clearly — an intelligence agency. They are not elected to weigh up security risks in the way in which Ministers are.”
“Tell that to the hundreds of innocent victims across Northern Ireland whose loved ones were killed by its barbaric Provo wing. Tell that to those who have empty places at the dinner table and still suffer the consequences of a long war of terror imposed on them by members of Sinn Féin's armed wing. <BR /> <BR />The courts are a pillar of our democracy. Their independence should be closely guarded. However, judicial independence does not place the courts above scrutiny, particularly when decisions affect national security. I believe that, in this instance, the High Court overstepped its remit when it ruled that the ban on Palestine Action was unlawful. There is now a pending judicial review (JR).”
“The irony will not be lost on many people in Northern Ireland when Sinn Féin lectures them and says that the British should:”
“The public expect the appropriate use of public money. With efficiency in mind, will the Minister confirm or deny that the Prison Service, which is under her remit, spends up to £3,000 a day to fly external psychiatrists in from England to assess prisoners? Does the Minister think that that is an appropriate use of public money? At a time when parents of children with special educational needs wait years for an assessment, should they not have priority over prisoners in accessing such services to the tune of that amount of money?”
“The public are well aware of the difficult Budget position in which the Northern Ireland Executive find themselves and of the key need for Ministers to prioritise that which, as the Minister has outlined, is in the national interest, but there is a fear that "efficiency" is just a buzzword for the Minister, rather than a tangible action.”
“It is a new dawn. <BR /> <BR />Minister, you commented earlier on young children who offend and the difficult circumstances that sometimes lead to that offending and, often, reoffending. You will know that our teachers often face the brunt of that when it comes to behaviour in classrooms that can affect them and, indeed, other children. Have you had any proactive conversations with your ministerial colleagues, particularly the Education Minister, about how teachers can share their experiences and hope for better outcomes?”
“It is not often that I agree with the Justice Minister, but I certainly do on that.”
“I thank the Minister for giving way. Is he aware of any time when the Alliance Party has written to the Secretary of State about Sinn Féin's conduct in public office?”
“Thank you, Madam Principal Deputy Speaker. <BR /> <BR />The hypocrisy is clear. Let me be clear: if you are intent on going down the road of trying to censor and indulge in cancel culture, be sure that the Members on these Benches will put your record up in lights for all to see. I welcome it that anybody can come into the Chamber and debate, but there should be no ability to cancel a Member who rightly acted as any MLA would do —”
“It is a reform of silencing, a reform of the very safeguards that nationalists put into the Belfast Agreement to ensure that there was no ganging-up on a political Member, only now to see them washed away because it is convenient to do so. <BR /> <BR />I am sick, sore and tired of the jumped-up theatrics of the Alliance deputy leader, who talks people engaging in culture wars, and him a chief architect of culture wars. Perhaps he should look in the mirror. When he talks about the actions and the discourse of members of my party, I need not go too far to remind him that there is a video of him circulating that does not show him —”
“Where is the commissioner's report and consistency on that level of empathy? I would argue that it does not exist. <BR /> <BR />It is the same when we look at the SDLP. There has been no answer to the charge levelled against Mr Eastwood, nor have there been calls for a commissioner's investigation or, indeed, discipline. What about Claire Hanna, the current leader of the SDLP? That lady put out commentary about political violence during the Brexit negotiations. She said that we could expect civil disobedience at the very minimum. Is that not an incitement to hatred? Is that not a double standard from the leader of the Opposition? There is a consultation going on right now about reforming the Assembly. The reform that the SDLP wants, however, is a reform of exclusion.”
“I will not. I have heard quite a bit from the leader of the Opposition. <BR /> <BR />A lot of hypocrisy has been called out in the Chamber. On numerous occasions, it has come from the Sinn Fein Benches, whether it is to do with the personal anguish that it has caused genuine victims of the Troubles in Northern Ireland or because it has continually attended vigils to commemorate and celebrate those who took the lives of innocent people. One day recently, I spoke to Mr Alan Black, the sole survivor at Kingsmills. To this day, when he gets on a bus, he still has comments made to him, such as "It would have taken only one bullet had it been me". Those are the types of comments that continue to hurt members of our community. How does it make people feel when a Sinn Féin Member glorifies a particular individual or attends a commemoration?”
“<BR /> <BR />It is clear that you want to accept the commissioner's ruling when it suits your political school of thought, but you do not want to be consistent in ensuring that we, as elected representatives, can do our best to make sure that our citizens are protected, catered for and have a voice. When they do not have a voice, when you exclude them from political life to give air to genuine and legitimate concerns in our community, you give rise to more sinister elements.”
“I hear gnashing of teeth from the Alliance Party, but that is a statement of fact. People such as those in the Alliance Party who have continued to bury their head in the sand on the issue have given rise to a sinister and nasty element that must be called out. Like the Member for North Antrim, I was on the ground during those days, trying to bring peace, calm and stability to my community in difficult times, as was the Minister for Communities. Some of the political opportunism that has gone on in the Chamber today is nothing short of disgraceful.”
“Last June was a particularly difficult time for many people across Northern Ireland. There was never any justification for harm to any individual; I want to make that clear from these Benches. There was no justified or warranted attack on anybody who lives in Northern Ireland. <BR /> <BR />My thoughts and concerns at that time and those of the vast majority of people were with the young girl who had just been subject to a most brutal attack. Across the country, there is huge concern about the wave of uncontrolled and illegal immigration and the impact that it has had on the people in our society.”
“Does the Member accept that it is also a gross hypocrisy that the same commissioner ruled that the Sinn Féin ministerial team that attended Bobby Storey's funeral did so in its capacity as MLAs, not as Ministers?”
“That is what your supporters were saying.”
“I thank the Member for giving way, as she always kindly does. A number of supporters of the Alliance motion, predictably, raised the matter of a new Ireland. I am interested in the Alliance Party's position on that. Would the Alliance Party rather have a Northern Ireland that is in a new Ireland inside the EU or a strong, thriving Northern Ireland that is outside the EU and firmly in the UK?”
“— yet you come to the House today to say that you do not want that.”
“I have already given way, so I will continue. <BR /> <BR />Then we have the endorsement and the importance of the Windsor framework. The motion goes on to say that, despite those protections, bureaucratic disruption continues. Well done, Alliance. Thanks for finally getting on-message. Those barriers were put in place because of the rigorous implementation of the protocol that you called for. In one afternoon, you voted to wilfully send over 300 areas of law from this place because you cared nothing for scrutiny or for the businesses that were affected. You would rather have a nice green tick beside your name from lining up in the Assembly to vote for motions and policy positions that undermine Northern Ireland's position. You voted against a motion to condemn and reject outright additional parcel taxes on the people of Northern Ireland —”
“You have placed barriers within our indigenous market, therefore affecting consumers, businesses and hauliers. <BR /> <BR />Then we wanted to talk about the economic growth index. Let us look at the composite economic index, which showed that the 1% growth in economic activity across Northern Ireland in Q3 in 2025 compared with 2024. That was driven by an increase in the services sector of 0·6%; for those who are watching, that sector is outside the Windsor framework. Construction provided for 0.3% of that growth; it is outside the Windsor framework. Of that growth, 0.9% of that growth pertains to areas outside the grip of your grubby deals to destroy trade in Northern Ireland.”
“Secondly, they say that the UK's exit from the EU was reckless and that, ultimately, friction was predictable. Friction was not inevitable but for the very argument that was put forward by the Alliance Party. That party supported and normalised the protocol and, later, the Windsor framework, fully aware of the barriers that they would place within the United Kingdom. It is hypocritical in the extreme to condemn the outcomes whilst endorsing the cause. I argue that that is exactly what the Alliance Party has done repeatedly. <BR /> <BR />Let us turn to the importance of dual market access, which Mr Honeyford often likes to talk about, but it bears no scrutiny. Why is that? It is because dual market access does not mean equal market access.”
“It is not supposed to be a speech, Mr Tennyson. I listen acutely to businesses, and I always have. When you wax lyrical about east-west trade, it is a deception of the highest order, because your party has taken no interest in the concerns of businesses. It has scoffed and laughed continually at the real-life concerns. I sat in the Chamber for an hour and 10 minutes in order to quote them, and I was laughed at and ridiculed by Members of his party.”
“Let us look at specific choices. What political decisions have been made since that vote? On every occasion, the Alliance Party has voted against the interests of businesses, farmers, hauliers, manufacturers and consumers. <BR /> <BR />I will give way to Mr Tennyson on that point.”
“That is true, but you must also accept that they are not equal, because, traditionally, Northern Ireland's trade within its own United Kingdom vastly outweighs that of its trade internationally, with the Republic of Ireland or with Europe. Therefore, choices must be made. A democratic choice made by the people of the United Kingdom was Brexit. Not all people agreed with it, and many Members in the Chamber did not. It is notable that Mr Tennyson's constituents and Mr Honeyford's constituents endorsed the concept, but that is for another day.”
“Mr Honeyford endorsed and pushed for those arrangements. <BR /> <BR />I am feeling generous, so I will give way at any time for Mr Tennyson to talk me through the many contradictions in the motion. Let us start with the first one, which is that:”
“Often, motions in this place are filled with contradictions. This motion, I would argue, takes that to staggering new heights. There are plenty of roundabouts in Craigavon, but the motion's roundabouts and U-turns are literally staggering. The Alliance Party is a fanboy of and cheerleader for the most robust Irish Sea border and friction to trade. Mr Honeyford, who could win an Oscar for his performance today, wants things to be checked and checked again. However, the real reason for the motion is not Alliance Party hypocrisy — we have come to expect that — but that its support among unionism has gone off a cliff. Alliance has cosied up to its useful lackeys across the Chamber to impose on Northern Ireland the most rigorous checks and friction with its largest trading partner, which is that within its own country.”
“I thank the Member for giving way because this is an important point. Will the Member square the circle for me that the largest area of growth — the 1% growth — comes from areas outside the grip of the Windsor framework?”
“I thank the Member for giving way. If he has been following that point, he will have noted that there is considerable dispute over those figures, given that the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) data that, I imagine, he is referring to is two years old. Two economists suggest that there is deception in the claim.”
“"Common sense" is a term used often in the House but certainly not about Mr Tennyson. The Member talks about not wanting to fight the Brexit wars of the past, but, surely, by the rhetoric in his six minutes and 32 seconds of speaking so far, he has done just that.”
“There has never been a more dangerous time to drive on our roads. The Minister says that she has a plan, but it is evident to everybody that it is not working. The Department's transport budget is around £850 million a year. Our constituents know that, in times of emergency, you prioritise that which matters. Will the Minister commit to a further reprioritisation of her Department's budget to deal with road maintenance? That is a people's priority, and I urge the Minister to get on and help those who clearly need assistance.”
“Christian-based collective worship and RE were an integral part of my school upbringing, and, indeed, that of many of my constituents, and we deeply value its meaning, purpose and worth. We would be deluding ourselves, Minister, to think that there is not an attempt by some in the Assembly and by activist organisations to undermine the principle of Christian collective worship. In that context, Minister, will you give assurances to the House that, under your leadership as Education Minister, you will ensure that there is no demeaning, undermining or banishment of Christian collective worship in our schools?”
“I thank the Member for giving way. Does he agree that the primary interference from the Committee that day was the Committee Chair's private meeting with the witness, Michelle O'Neill, the First Minister?”
“I thank the Member for giving way. Does he agree that it is a gross slur from the Alliance Party to accuse Members on the DUP Benches and, indeed, the Ulster Unionists of misogyny in this instance? There is no such thing applied in this instance.”
“Does the Member also agree that there is a potential encroachment on article 10, which is the enhanced protection of political speech for Members?”