Colm Gildernew
Fermanagh and South Tyrone · Sinn Féin · Northern Ireland
“I thank the Minister for his statement. I have been working with Dungannon Chamber of Commerce and Industry. It will welcome this work, particularly in light of its concerns about vacancy and protecting the retail heart of towns such as Dungannon.”
“I thank the Minister for his answer. Minister, you said that there has been an improvement. However, recently, there were reports of over 1,400 patients waiting more than 28 days. How will you ensure that trusts consistently meet the targets for suspected cancer appointments in particular?”
“However, the Committee will want to examine carefully how any new or amended powers would operate in practice. Powers relating to information sharing, official warnings, directions, removal from office and disqualification can have significant, long-standing consequences for charities, trustees, staff, volunteers and, indeed, public confi…”
“<BR /> <BR />The regulations are consequential to the uprating order and provide the supporting technical changes needed to ensure that the revised benefit rates operate correctly. The regulations increase the earning limit for carer's allowance from £196 a week to £204 a week.”
“In response to those findings, Minister Hargey introduced the Charities Bill, which was enacted in 2022. The legislation put in place many of the review's priority recommendations in the limited time remaining in that mandate. The Charities (Amendment) Bill represents the next stage of that reform programme.”
“The Committee will wish to explore the implications of those changes, including for organisations operating across jurisdictions or delivering charitable activity in or from the North. Our charity sector includes a diverse range of bodies.”
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“It is through this LCM placing the medicines information system on a statutory basis that greater assurance and safety will be delivered. By improving the ability to reduce harm, we are serving patients well. No one in the House can express opposition to that. <BR /> <BR />The handling of data is a serious issue. As MLAs, we know the responsibility that comes with handling sensitive information. In the right hands, information is a powerful tool, but, in the wrong hands, it is dangerous. For service users, particularly in relation to health, the protection of that personal information comes with a bond of trust that must not be breached.”
“It is an eminently sensible move, and, like other Members, I will not delay the House for long in outlining my reasons for supporting it. <BR /> <BR />In health, data is key, and the sharing of data and information is vital to the use, safety and effectiveness of products that are used to secure better health outcomes for those in healthcare settings. The Bill provides for an enabling power within the Medicines and Medical Devices Act 2021 to allow for a UK-wide medicines information system to be established and managed by NHS Digital. I wholeheartedly support that and see NHS Digital as the right mechanism by which this information-gathering can be managed. <BR /> <BR />Ultimately, we want to reduce risk and potential harm to those in healthcare.”
“The Committee was advised that work was ongoing to identify any gaps and to make improvements. The Committee was also advised that any registry would not impact on the movement of medicines from the EU into the North. The Committee agreed that it was content with the LCM. <BR /> <BR />Mrs Cameron: I understand that all three LCMs are on the back of the Health and Care Bill introduced in the House of Commons on 6 July 2021. The purpose of the Bill is to give effect to the policies set out as part of the NHS recommendations for legislative reform following the long-term plan and in the White Paper entitled 'Integration and innovation: working together to improve health and social care for all', published in February 2021. <BR /> <BR />I support the legislative consent motion on medicines and healthcare products.”
“In relation to this LCM on medicine information systems, the British Health and Care Bill provides for an enabling power within the Medicines and Medical Devices Act 2021 to allow for a wider medicines information system, including Britain and the North, to be established and managed by NHS Digital. The Bill proposes to place the system on a statutory basis to ensure that the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency will be able to build registries designed to improve the ability to reduce harm to patients. <BR /> <BR />During the briefing, the Committee sought assurances that any information collected would be necessary and GDPR-compliant. We sought assurances that the systems here in the North were adequate for collecting data and could feed into any broader register.”
“The Committee has only 15 working days to consider and report on the LCM once it is laid, and it is difficult for us to undertake significant consultation. Therefore, it is imperative that engagement happens at the earliest opportunity.”
“There are concerns that the impact in the North of Ireland is, therefore, not always clear or fully understood. Engagement should happen at British Government level during the formulation of Bills and when the Department of Health has agreed to take forward the legislative consent process.”
“The Committee was further advised on 27 February that the Minister would progress the four legislative motions separately. We were briefed by officials on the four separate LCMs on 14 October. A number of issues were discussed, and officials agreed to provide the Committee with further information on a number of areas. The Committee considered that response at its meeting on 4 November and agreed that it was content with the LCMs. A copy of the Committee's report on the three LCMs that were laid was agreed on 11 November, and published and issued to all Members on 12 November. <BR /> <BR />As a general comment on LCMs, the Committee would like to see better local engagement with stakeholders on the content of LCMs. The Committee is concerned that there is not enough focus on ensuring that there is input from locally based stakeholders.”
“I welcome the opportunity to make some remarks as Chair of the Health Committee. The legislative consent motions are being considered as three separate motions. I plan to outline the Committee's general consideration of the LCMs in the first debate. In the second and third debates, I will outline issues that the Committee raised specifically on those LCMs. <BR /> <BR />It is worth noting that the Committee was briefed on four separate LCMs and that only these three have now been laid. I would appreciate an update from the Minister on the fourth LCM on arm's-length bodies and the transfer of functions. The Committee was first made aware of the LCMs when the Minister wrote to us in July advising that officials would be taking forward a deferred legislative consent approach after the summer recess.”
“A health summit that includes the Department of Health, the Committee for Health, health and social care workers, patients, professional bodies and all others engaged in the sector must be convened immediately so that we can discuss and decide on measures that will mitigate the worst of the crisis in the tough months ahead.”
“<BR /> <BR />We must think of the fear and worry that the headlines generate for staff and patients across the North, who, respectively, are faced with intolerable work stresses and sitting at home with a sense of hopelessness about their ability to access the healthcare that they need or that they are, indeed, discouraged from accessing. We must also consider the families who desperately need a care package for a loved one but have little hope of getting one in the current climate. What kind of worry and stress must that cause? <BR /> <BR />A chairde, we must do something about the health and social care crisis. It is our job. It is why we are in the Assembly. The solutions must be found, and we must possess the political will to find them.”
“The ongoing and unprecedented pressures in Craigavon Area Hospital are yet another symptom of a healthcare system in crisis. Clearly, the situation in Craigavon is not limited to that area. The pressures in the hospital and emergency department are simply being pushed into other areas that are also under intense pressure, such as Daisy Hill Hospital, and the wider health and social care system. It is a recipe for disaster. <BR /> <BR />Week after week, we are confronted with crisis after crisis. While there are myriad problems, and significant financial resources have been made available, the underlying cause is the chronic staff shortage and the Department of Health's failure to come forward with a workforce plan with the urgency that it deserves.”
“They were dragged through the remains of the furniture. <BR /> <BR />I acknowledge Austin in that sense and extend my condolences to his family and his party on their sad loss.”
“I acknowledge the long connection between my family and Austin through the Caledon squat. It is a little known historical fact that the eviction of Austin, my Uncle Patsy and Joe Campbell from the house happened on the day following the original eviction of my grandmother, my mother, who was expecting me at the time, and my godmother, Mary Teresa, who had been seeking the house, which had been allocated to a single Protestant girl. <BR /> <BR />The event at which Austin, Patsy and Joe Campbell were evicted attracted significant media interest and was in support of the family following their violent eviction. During the first eviction that took place, the family were dragged out by their heels. Three women and another man, Edmund Burke, were dragged from the house by their heels after the furniture had been smashed in front of them.”
“Minister, in the early months of the pandemic, the Health Committee looked at regulations that would allow recruitment outside health workers to assist with vaccination. However, you have taken vaccinators largely from the Health and Social Care workforce: 121 from the Belfast Trust, 92 from the Northern Trust and 66 from the Western Trust. Given the pressure on the system, will you consider taking voluntary vaccinators from other sectors? Also, given the pressure on GP appointments and that the dashboard indicates that GPs are providing by far the most vaccinations, will you commit to further extending the voluntary vaccinator cohort?”
“As I mentioned previously, the Committee seeks the extension due to the extremely heavy workload that is in front of it and the size of the Bill. That workload means that the Committee must meet twice weekly in order to be able to consider all the evidence for those Bills and get them through Committee Stage before the end of January 2022. The Committee therefore requests an extension to 28 January 2022. That proposed extension would allow us as much time as possible for detailed consideration while balancing the consideration of other Bills. I commend the motion to the House.”
“The Adoption and Children Bill passed its Second Stage on 5 October 2021 and was referred on for Committee Stage the following working day. The purpose of the Bill is to reform adoption law in the North, to implement the proposals in the Adopting the Future strategy that require primary legislation and to amend the Children (NI) Order 1995 to improve outcomes for looked-after children and young people who have left care. <BR /> <BR />The Bill is large, with 160 clauses and five schedules. It is disappointing that the Committee has very limited time to consider such a detailed and large Bill. That is on top of scrutinising another five, possibly six, Bills. The Committee has received a number of written responses to the Bill and will begin oral evidence sessions on 25 November.”
“Minister, in June, I asked about the publication of the report of the review of urgent and emergency care. I have not received an answer. Will you advise when the report will be published? <BR /> <BR />Also, has the time not arrived to convene a health summit, as requested by the royal colleges and unions, to get into one room everyone who, through their awareness of the problems here, can be part of the solution?”
“Thank you for that clarification and the recognition that there is scope for confusion, given that things are so complex. You stated that you are disappointed at where we are at present, so is consideration being given to reopening some of the walk-in centres to make a start on fast-tracking the programme?”
“I thank the Minister for his remarks. I welcome the fact that Community Pharmacy is now involved. There is further scope to employ the volunteer vaccinator cohort to take the pressure off GPs, who are so stretched in trying to provide appointments. Does the Minister recognise that there is now some confusion about where people can go to get not only the booster vaccine but the first, second and third vaccines? With so many moving parts, it has become confusing for some people.”
“It is imperative that we put in place monitoring systems so that we can properly track and pick apart measures to determine which are working, which are not working so effectively and what we can do better in the future.”
“It is therefore difficult for us to get an understanding of which measures are potentially driving increased transmission and which measures are most effective at stopping transmission. <BR /> <BR />Today, we have to recognise the pressures that are on the health service. That is the imperative. As well as saving lives and protecting people's health, we need to consider how much our health service can take, to be honest. We are seeing severe stress across the system, yet stubbornly high levels of COVID-19 remain. <BR /> <BR />It is crucial that we get better at collecting data that is specific to here. We have differences in our system here. I do not think that we can rely on data being extrapolated from elsewhere.”
“Above all, the Committee wants to see that learning from the past 20 months has been captured, communicated and understood and that that learning is being used by the Department of Health to inform the Executive on future decisions. The Committee agreed to recommend that the health protection regulations be approved by the Assembly. <BR /> <BR />If I may, I will make a few brief remarks as an MLA. For the record, I state that Sinn Féin's search for evidence is to provide better information and to learn from what we are doing. It is not to question whether evidence did not exist for some of the very draconian restrictions that had to be put in place. I make that very clear. <BR /> <BR />These are a complex and interlocking set of restrictions, and the easings are often similarly complex and interlocking.”
“I have mentioned in the past number of debates on the coronavirus regulations that Committee members continue to voice their frustration at the lack of evidence being provided to the Committee to enable it to consider how the Department advised the Executive and the probable impact that the easing of restrictions will have on transmission of the virus. The Committee was disappointed that it was unable to see the evidence and modelling for the specific restrictions being eased. <BR /> <BR />During the briefings, members also highlighted the issue of monitoring of rules and guidelines and how the Department is capturing adherence to them.”
“That is why it is so important that we continue to follow the current rules and guidelines. I again encourage anyone who is eligible for the vaccine and has not yet had it please to go and get it. <BR /> <BR />I also welcome the roll-out of the booster jab. I hope that the booster jab campaign will again lessen the impact of the virus and save lives. <BR /> <BR />The Committee was briefed on the regulations at its meetings on 14 and 21 October. As the Minister outlined, the rules are the outcome of Executive agreements over recent weeks and include the easing of a number of restrictions.”
“I will make some very brief remarks as Chair, and I will then make some equally brief remarks as Sinn Féin spokesperson for health. We are now over 20 months into this pandemic, and, as restrictions continue to be eased, we all hope that we are heading back to some form of normality in our daily lives. We are still faced, however, with the fact that there remain a stubbornly high number of daily cases of COVID. The figure has remained consistent over the past couple of months and continues to place immense pressure on an already overstretched health service and already overworked health workers. <BR /> <BR />Unfortunately, we are seeing the total number of deaths continue to rise, and our thoughts and sympathies are very much with those who have lost loved ones over the past number of weeks and, indeed, throughout the entire pandemic.”
“I will be back to request further extensions for the Adoption and Children Bill and the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) Bill in the coming weeks. <BR /> <BR />The Committee is requesting an extension until 14 January 2022. The proposed extension will allow sufficient time for detailed consideration while balancing the Committee's consideration of other Bills. Although an extension to 14 January has been requested, I assure the Assembly that the Committee will endeavour to complete the Committee Stage earlier if at all possible. I commend the motion to the House.”
“The Autism (Amendment) Bill passed Second Stage on 21 September 2021 and was referred for Committee Stage the following working day. The Bill has three main objectives: to enhance the autism strategy; to provide information on autism training for staff of public bodies and to set out details of an autism early intervention service and a new autism information service; and to require the appointment of an autism reviewer. Although the Bill is relatively short, with only five clauses, there is a lot of detail in those clauses that will need to be looked at during the Committee's consideration. <BR /> <BR />As I have mentioned previously, the Committee is seeking this extension due to the extremely heavy workload that is in front of it. Committee members are committed to getting the Bills that we have through Committee Stage.”
“The proposed extension will allow sufficient time for detailed consideration of the Bill while balancing that against consideration of other Bills. Although an extension until 21 January has been requested, I can assure the Assembly that the Committee will endeavour to complete Committee Stage earlier, if possible. I commend the motion to the House.”
“<BR /> <BR />The Committee has received a number of written responses to the Bill and will begin oral evidence sessions on 18 November. The Committee is seeking this extension owing to the extremely heavy workload that we have in front of us. On top of dealing with the problems that the pandemic has caused to the health and social care system, this is only one of six Bills that the Committee has at Committee Stage, and an additional one or two private Member's Bills could still come forward. That heavy workload means that the Committee has to meet twice a week to consider all the evidence for those Bills and to get them through Committee Stage before the end of January. <BR /> <BR />The Committee is requesting an extension until 21 January 2022.”
“The Organ and Tissue Donation (Deemed Consent) Bill passed its Second Stage on 20 September 2021 and was referred on to Committee Stage the following working day. <BR /> <BR />The Bill would change the current system in the North from one in which people can choose to opt in or opt out of the organ donation register to a new statutory opt-out system, in which consent is deemed or presumed, except in certain exempt circumstances or if a person has made a decision to opt out during their lifetime. <BR /> <BR />Although the Bill is relatively short, it provides a significant change in policy and includes a duty to promote transplantation. The Bill also requires the Minister to report at least once every five years on whether the Act has been effective in promoting transplantation.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire. Minister, thank you for your statement. I very much welcome the priority given to Health in the October monitoring round, with an allocation of £200 million. Do you agree that health should continue to be the top priority for the Executive? As we move to a three-year Budget and given the importance of multi-year Budget to planning within the Health and Social Care (HSC) service, can you outline any upcoming engagements that you have planned as part of the process of agreeing a draft Budget?”
“We need a robust vaccination campaign that effectively examines the role that volunteer vaccinators can play in moving the vaccine campaign along at pace. We may also need to consider reopening walk-in centres so that we can get these vaccines rolled out as soon and as effectively as possible. Perhaps now is the time for the Minister of Health to call an emergency health summit to bring together unions, professional bodies, trust leads and others who can discuss some solutions to get us through the crisis that we are currently engulfed in.”
“In addition, there is a delay in the roll-out of booster vaccines for those aged over 60. I have been contacted by very worried patients in my constituency who should have received their booster vaccine weeks ago. We were told that booster vaccines will be given at GP practices, but GP practices are ill-prepared to provide this service given the pressures that they are experiencing. There is also confusion around where first, second and, indeed, third COVID vaccines will be administered. It is vital that we get this right as we still need to encourage uptake of the vaccine given that our numbers are extremely low compared with other regions. <BR /> <BR />We must have some solutions from the Minister of Health before the healthcare system collapses.”
“Emergency rooms are filled to capacity, and, at times, there are no hospital beds for patients who need them.”
“This past weekend, we heard of a worsening crisis across various health trust areas, with some patients even being cautioned against presenting unless faced with a life-threatening situation. The warnings given were stark and alarming, and all of us can imagine the stress and fear that this crisis will be causing for anyone who is experiencing unmanaged acute pain or who was concerned about their health condition over the weekend and unable to access health treatment. <BR /> <BR />The staffing crisis all across the health and social care system is causing havoc, and we are hearing that in the stark statements from various trusts. The GP crisis continues, with patients still being unable to see their GP. We are also hearing of a further reduction in GP out-of-hours services in some areas.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire as a chuid freagraí go dtí seo. Thank you to the Minister for his answers up to now. Minister, you referred to the public messaging campaign that will go along with the autumn/winter plan. I recognise and support the need for good, clear public messaging. Can you outline what that public messaging will be and how it will be brought forward?”
“The Minister should seriously consider the future of the General Teaching Council and whether we need to look at winding down the organisation. When was the Minister first made aware of issues with teacher registration? What were the main issues driving those unacceptable delays?”
“<BR /> <BR />While cancer screening is obviously worthwhile and should be offered to firefighters given the increased risk that they face — we all support it — we should do much better in reducing the risk and preventing cancer in the first instance. That is why the Minister, the Department and the Fire Service should engage with the Fire Brigades Union and firefighters to interrogate international best practice and ensure that we are putting in place the best procedures for decontamination and fire-kit laundry and replacement in order to protect firefighters, their families and their colleagues. I support the motion and the amendment.”
“The potential for contamination from the toxic materials that they encounter in their job poses considerable additional and ongoing risk to firefighters and their families. <BR /> <BR />During the COVID pandemic, we saw how important PPE became in keeping our healthcare workers safe. Modern and effective PPE equipment is also needed by firefighters as they try to go about their work and keep themselves safe. The Sinn Féin amendment addresses the preventative measures that the Department of Health can take to ensure better health for firefighters. One of the key issues is the decontamination of kit and equipment. A firefighter recently told me that more kits and better, more efficient processes for laundering and replacing PPE are required if they are to reduce their risks.”
“Sinn Féin's amendment takes the prevention idea a step further by asking the Department to look at other ways in which we can help to protect the lives of firefighters and those of their families. After all, firefighters put themselves and, by extension, their families at additional health risk just by doing their job and doing it well. <BR /> <BR />If better equipment saves the lives of our firefighters, they should have better equipment. If upgraded decontamination procedures and better PPE protects our firefighters from further risk and disease, they should have those. In their everyday work lives, firefighters take considerable risks on our behalf. However, a chairde, the risks to their lives do not end at the scene of an accident or when the fire has been extinguished.”
“Honestly, I do not think that we can ever do enough to repay them for the sacrifices that they make every time that the siren rings and they put on their uniforms to rush to the scene of an accident or a burning building. That type of work presents unique challenges. <BR /> <BR />Therefore, I welcome David and Jonathan's motion, which calls on the Department of Health to provide annual screening of all firefighters to detect early signs of cancer and other illnesses. As we know, the early detection of illnesses is often the key to recovery and, perhaps, particularly when it comes to cancer. That is the very least that we can do for these workers.”
“It is extremely worrying that cancer rates are, on average, four times higher amongst firefighters because of their dangerous work. Contact with toxic materials that are released during fires, and even some of the materials that are used to fight fires, are only some of the dangers that are faced by firefighters and, indeed, of further concern, by their families. <BR /> <BR />The dangers of life-threatening contaminations due to the work that they do is the reality of every firefighter's life. Firefighters are worthy of every tribute that is paid to them in the Assembly. They are front-line workers who put themselves at considerable risk to protect the rest of us.”
“I thank the Member for giving way. The Member references that very few protests cause concern, but will he acknowledge that the impact on each individual who is caught up in those very few cases is substantial and, perhaps, life-changing?”
“It is regrettable that we have to find a way to secure a patient's access to a healthcare procedure that they might need. It is also regrettable that workers are being harassed or intimidated when going to their place of work, in the course of which they provide healthcare to all. In often delicate and sensitive times in the lives of some women, they are being confronted by protests that use inflammatory and offensive imagery to traumatise and often re-traumatise and trigger patients. <BR /> <BR />I support the Bill and what it aims to do. It proposes to provide safe passage to workers and patients while recognising the rights of others to free speech and to assemble and protest.”
“I thank the Member for her intervention. I agree that it is certainly a healthcare issue. We must ensure that healthcare can be accessed and provided in a way that is free from intimidation. <BR /> <BR />We have heard that the protests are impacting on people who are dealing with really tough situations that at times involve the loss of a much-wanted baby. These are difficult decisions in difficult circumstances, and, indeed, even at times involve those who are struggling to carry a difficult pregnancy to term despite knowing that the result may be the loss of their child at or soon after birth. <BR /> <BR />The protests are also causing stress across trusts, with services having to be secured and sometimes moved from one site to another, causing additional expense and burden on trust staff, who are already hard-pressed.”
“<BR /> <BR />The protests that we have seen at clinics in recent months infringe on the rights of others: those of patients who seek healthcare and those of workers who are trying to provide that care in a compassionate way. The protests are not always what anyone would describe as respectful. They are sometimes frightening and intimidatory, and they target vulnerable patients who are simply exercising their human right to access the healthcare that they need and to which they are entitled.”
“I thank Clare and acknowledge her first-hand experience with regard to this difficult issue, which we have all seen play out in front of our own eyes. We must recognise that there is an issue here and that we have a responsibility to engage to see how it might be moved forward. <BR /> <BR />The right to protest and the right of free speech are rights and values that I endorse. I also endorse the human right to access healthcare. I support that right for every patient in every circumstance. I endorse the right to go to work safely without fear of intimidation. It is the entitlement of every worker. I hope that Members agree with that.”
“Ms Bailey advised the Committee that the case was unsuccessful and that an appeal was lodged in the Supreme Court. Its decision was not to allow that challenge and to uphold the original decision. <BR /> <BR />Ms Bailey also outlined that there could be some costs following implementation of the Bill. She outlined that the comparable costs in Britain were approximately £250,000 a year and were largely legal costs to contest challenges. Members raised other issues during the briefing. Provided the Bill passes its Second Stage, the Committee looks forward to engaging with stakeholders and scrutinising the Bill in further detail. <BR /> <BR />I will now make a few remarks as Sinn Féin's health spokesperson.”
“The Bill sponsor briefed the Committee on the principles of the Bill at its meeting last Thursday. She provided the Committee with an overview of the need for the Bill and the consultation that had been undertaken. She also provided her personal experiences of being a client escort with the Marie Stopes centre. <BR /> <BR />Members asked a number of questions during the briefing, including some on the definition of harassment and the need for further training for police to deal with those situations. There was a discussion about possible challenges to the legislation, the likelihood of a number of challenges being brought forward on safe access zones and the possible differences in interpretation by all those involved. The Member outlined that a legal challenge had been taken forward in England on safe access zones.”
“The PSNI reported on engagement with trust staff and people who were engaged in protests. The Committee will publish all its correspondence on the issue alongside its report on the Severe Fetal Impairment Abortion (Amendment) Bill.”