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.”
The complete record
Every one of 2,397 lines we hold for Colm Gildernew, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 34 of 48.
“However, again, this is a process, and I urge everyone to follow the guidance and regulations and not to push or bend the rules at this time, especially with the increase in the number of cases and the prevalence of the delta variant. I encourage all of those who have not yet been vaccinated to please book in or go to the walk-in vaccine centre and get vaccinated. I welcome the fact that the SSE centre is now open on a walk-in basis to everyone over 18. <BR /> <BR />The Committee was briefed on the regulations at its meeting on 17 June 2021. As the Minister outlined, the rule ends the table service requirement for unlicensed premises such as cafes and permits food to be ordered at a buffet or carvery. Officials outlined that feedback from the sector on the changes was positive.”
“I will make some brief remarks as Chair, and then I have a couple of even briefer remarks to make as Sinn Féin health spokesperson. Before I start, I welcome the new Deputy Chair of the Health Committee to his role. I look forward to working with him, as I did with his predecessor. <BR /> <BR />First, I welcome the fact that we have now delivered over two million doses of the vaccine in the North. The vaccination programme has been a great success and has provided for the gradual easing of the restrictions that we are considering today and, hopefully, in the future. I pay tribute to every one of those who have helped to deliver the vaccines: GP surgeries; our local pharmacies; and vaccinators and staff in the vaccination centres. They have all played a hugely significant role in getting us to where we are today.”
“Does the joint First Minister agree that the displays and behaviours that we often see at this time of year, such as the proliferation of flags and displays of hatred on bonfires, totally fly in the face of what we are seeking to achieve through T:BUC? Does she agree that people in positions of political leadership and responsibility have a duty to confront that behaviour, rather than encouraging it?”
“Go raibh maith agat, Minister; thank you for your statement. <BR /> <BR />Minister, the first memorandum of understanding on COVID-19 cooperation was signed in April 2020. You have announced that the Chief Medical Officer will review the MOU. On 16 March, in advance of the NSMC meeting, I asked you about the scope and scale of the review. Will you set that out for us?”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire as a ráiteas. The Minister has allocated £5·1 million towards the A5 and A6 projects. Will that allocation ensure that progress is made on those important road-infrastructure projects this year?”
“We need to see how much is needed to provide for new training places, to upskill health and social care workers and to provide the safe staffing that was agreed with the unions, and we need to know what a fair rate is for domiciliary care workers and providers in the future. <BR /> <BR />I could go on, but those are the details that I will be seeking from the Department of Health in the time ahead. It goes without saying that, without multi-year budgeting, the task becomes increasingly difficult. I will end by reiterating my support and that of Sinn Féin to addressing the health emergency before all of us today.”
“I acknowledge the work and the additional resource that the Department of Finance and the wider Executive have provided to help already. However, as we have seen with the waiting list plans, there is a considerable ask, amounting to an estimated £700 million over the next five years. More detailed plans, however, are now needed to address health. We have yet to see a detailed costed plan to address the crippling workforce shortages and pressures, and, without those pressures and shortages being addressed, we will not deliver on the ground the change and the increased service that are needed.”
“Mr Gildernew is not as exercised as the Principal Deputy Speaker, but thank you.”
“I note that the Department has been very good at identifying and tracking COVID spending and pressures, and we need to see a similar approach to those priorities over the coming years. The Committee will continue to engage constructively with the Department to ensure scrutiny of its spending over the coming year. <BR /> <BR />I will now add some brief remarks as Sinn Féin spokesperson. I want to acknowledge the work that has gone into elective care plans to tackle waiting lists. I also acknowledge the work and the additional resource that the Department of Finance and the wider Executive —.”
“That is further complicated by the differing approaches and reporting in the Department, the Health and Social Care Board (HSCB) and health and social care trusts. That can make it complicated and confusing to follow the funding and, importantly, to track outcomes to see what is working and what could work better. <BR /> <BR />The Committee is keen to ensure that there is transparency in the spending plans and that it is able to follow the funding across each of those organisations. We need to be able to identify and track spending, especially on priority issues such as how much is being spent to address waiting lists, to reduce inequalities, on mental health, on autism diagnosis and follow-on services, and to support unpaid carers. We need to see how much is being spent on those priorities and the outcomes of the funding.”
“We hope that that will happen as soon as possible and that an update will be provided on the outcomes of the meeting. Waiting lists have to be one of the Executive's priorities over coming years. <BR /> <BR />I will reiterate some of the comments that I made in the last Budget debate about the scrutiny of spending plans and priorities. I have to say that, in the Department of Health, it is very difficult to identify spending on priorities and, then, to track that spending over the financial year. With such a large budget in the Department of Health, we tend to get a headline figure, with no real detail of the total spend to tackle waiting lists and health inequalities and spend on mental health.”
“We hear news stories every day about the size of waiting lists and the length of time that people are being told that they will have to wait for a first consultation, never mind for whatever treatment they may require. <BR /> <BR />While we welcome last week's statement from the Minister on the elective care framework, considerable investment is needed in the health system to not only address the waiting lists but bring forward the important transformation agenda to ensure that the health system is both efficient and provides effective treatment when it is needed most. It was for that reason that the Committee wrote to the First Minister and deputy First Minister to request that an Executive meeting be held to consider the issue of waiting lists.”
“I will speak on behalf of the Committee and then make some brief comments as my party's spokesperson on health. The Department of Health has been allocated almost half of the entire resource budget, with a resource allocation of almost £6,451 million. There is no doubt that this is a significant amount of resource funding for the Department. However, the Department has indicated that, despite the large allocation, this is a standstill budget and there is no funding space available to tackle backlogs and waiting lists. <BR /> <BR />There is no doubt that the 2021-22 budget allocation for the Department of Health is challenging. While all Departments are under considerable pressure, we are all too aware of the real-life experience of our constituents in accessing healthcare and treatments.”
“I thank the Minister for giving way. I am reflecting on what he said about the carers' COVID payment not being within the legislative scope of the Department. That will come as a blow to many carers, and will be hugely disappointing. Will he provide more information on why that is, what steps he has taken to address that, and the legislative scope within which the provision of that support would exist?”
“We also need to recognise the fact that the health and social care system does not work without the input of carers every day of the week and often every hour of the day.”
“It is deeply disappointing, and, in some ways, it is only a token, but it would provide some recognition to carers that they were being recognised. I do not think that the financial element will actually compensate in any way, but it has to be considered. <BR /> <BR />The bottom line is this: we have to give carers a break. If we do not, we will be dealing with broken carers, and if we are dealing with broken carers, we will be dealing with broken care arrangements, and that will put further pressure on an already overstretched system. We need to recognise the work that they have done. We need to improve the supports. We need to work together. The Department of Health clearly has a central role, but we need to work across all Departments and the entire Executive to provide the support that carers so badly need and so richly deserve.”
“They need to get the minimal supports because, often, they just see caring as part of life. The problem is that, if they do not recognise themselves as carers, they do not reach out for help, and they then get into a situation where they can no longer cope. <BR /> <BR />The impact of COVID on day-care and respite services has been phenomenal, and the lack of services is the single most important issue that carers raise with me. Why are other services back in place, yet we have still not seen the full restoration of those supports in health and social care settings? That is an important issue that we need to return to. I also think that it is important that we see progress on the carers' COVID payment.”
“I thought that was bad enough, but when I asked her what it was for, she said that she needed that hour to get her own appointments done, to get to the chemist to collect things and, if possible, to get her hair done the odd time. I have to say that I felt ashamed going out to that lady. I had to go back and fight the case to get her that one hour, which I eventually did. We let that woman down. It is not fair, it is not sustainable, and it is not something that any of us can stand over. We have to look at what we are going to do about it. <BR /> <BR />There are several issues around all that. First of all, there is the issue of who the carers are. We do not have the right information, and, very often, carers are too reluctant to identify themselves, but they need support and they need to be identified and put on the register.”
“We also have sandwich carers. I feel that that is a rather strange term, but it captures in some way the fact that some people are looking after younger people and also parents, and they are trying to juggle both. <BR /> <BR />I declare an interest as a former social worker, and I will reflect on one case that I dealt with towards the end of my career before I became an MLA. I went out to visit a lady in my constituency who was 87 years old, and she was looking after her 91-year-old husband, who had had multiple strokes. She was providing that care 24 hours a day, seven days a week while struggling with her own increasing age and health conditions. The purpose of my visit was in response to a request from her that she needed more help. When I went out to her, she asked me if she could get someone to sit for one hour a week.”
“A carer is potentially a nurse who has had to give up her full-time contract and take bank shifts because her son has autism and she is struggling to get an assessment or to get services. A carer is also the teacher who is reducing his hours because his mother is being discharged from hospital, but no care in the community package has been identified, so he has to take time off work. A carer is also — I think that this is one of the most worrying ones — the young kid in school who is sent to the principal because he has used his phone, and he is too embarrassed to tell anyone that his mum is struggling because of her caring responsibilities at home and that he is helping to look after his little brother or whoever it may be. So there are a range of carers, and that tells us that we need to have a range of supports in place.”
“They are reporting that they are exhausted, worn out and stretched beyond breaking point. <BR /> <BR />Before the pandemic, there were problems with carers accessing breaks, with 44% of carers saying that they did not get the breaks that they needed. The pandemic has only exacerbated the issue, and the problem with respite services remaining vastly reduced or closed needs to be addressed urgently. Although we understand the difficulties of keeping services open during the pandemic, we must now focus on reopening the respite services that our carers need. I call on the Department to prioritise that area over the coming months and provide some much-needed respite for our carers. <BR /> <BR />I will now say a few words as Sinn Féin health spokesperson. We talk about carers as a large group, but there are many carers and many different needs.”
“That has a huge impact on their health and well-being.”
“That is a hugely worrying message. Furthermore, 72% of carers who responded to the Carers' Week survey reported poor mental health, while 67% said that their physical health had also deteriorated during the pandemic. There is no doubt that those are hugely worrying statistics and that there is a need for the Department to address those issues before things get worse. <BR /> <BR />One of the key ways in which the Department can help carers is to consider how it can restore and improve respite services for carers. A wide-ranging survey has shown that, before the pandemic, carers received an average of 38 hours of support every month. That was support from services, family and friends. Since the pandemic, carers are now reporting that they receive an average of 13 hours per month, mainly from family and friends.”
“Fewer than 10% of them are confident that the support that they receive with caring will continue after the pandemic. We need to do all that we can to provide the support and help that carers need to enable them to carry out their caring role. <BR /> <BR />Last week, Clare-Anne Magee, head of Carers NI, said:”
“<BR /> <BR />There is no doubt that, over the past seven months since November, that figure has increased. Many carers need recognition, help and support through these difficult times. Last week, a publication by Carers NI outlined that one third of people who care, unpaid, for family members or friends feel unable to manage their caring role, and 79% of carers have not had any breaks from their caring role during the pandemic. <BR /> <BR />After a difficult and challenging year, during which carers have provided many more hours of care for loved ones during the pandemic and have coped with reduced support from health and social care services, unpaid carers are seriously concerned about the support that they will have to help them to care in the future.”
“I want to thank each and every one of them for that. <BR /> <BR />Carers play an invaluable role in the health and social care system. The help and support that they provide not only supports the family member or friend but plays a significant role in the delivery of the health service. The work of carers frees up staffing and resourcing to other areas of the system. A study at the end of November 2020 outlined that, over the course of the eight months of the pandemic at that time, the value of the care that had been provided was £4·8 billion or the equivalent of £19 million per day. Previous research by Carers NI found that 85% of carers in the North had taken on more care since the start of the pandemic, and, in November, 73% said that they were exhausted and worn out.”
“Last week was Carers' Week. Its theme was "Make caring visible and valued". In the debate, we want to support those who have played such an important role over many years, and especially over the past 15 months of the pandemic, to provide support and care to a family member or friend who has a disability, illness or mental health condition or needs that bit of extra help as they grow older. <BR /> <BR />While we rightly seek to highlight the commitment of our professional health and social care (HSC) workers during the COVID pandemic, in the same manner, we want, now, to highlight the real commitment and work of carers, who have gone above and beyond what would be expected and, in many circumstances, provide care 24 hours a day, seven days a week. They have put others before themselves. They have put family and friends first.”
“I am pleased to bring the motion to the Assembly on behalf of the Health Committee. I hope that it will attract broad support, given the interest at hand. I want, briefly, to thank the outgoing Deputy Chair of the Committee, Pam Cameron, for her contribution to the motion and, more fully, to the Health Committee in what has been an unprecedented and challenging time. I thank her for her contribution, commitment, knowledge and expertise and for her assistance and support to me.”
“Will the Commission update us on the measures that will be in place to protect public visitors to Parliament Buildings?”
“Go raibh maith agat leis an Aire. Thank you for that. I welcome your reference to PPS 21, which is particularly crucial. Are you planning to take forward any changes to that, and in particular to the limit of only one dwelling house in 10 years, given that clearly there is a need for people in rural communities to be able to get planning permission to stay in their local community?”
“The Department of Health must ensure that a find, test, trace, isolate and support strategy is so well established that it can be triggered effortlessly where and when there is another outbreak. In that context, I welcome the focused operation that was put in place in Kilkeel. That was a welcome step and is the type of quick, reactive and locally focused campaign that will yield benefit, along with all the other measures. <BR /> <BR />Finally, once again, I welcome the gallant efforts of our Health and Social Care (HSC) workers, who have brought us through these unprecedented times. Their efforts must be rewarded through fair pay and good working conditions so that all staff are working in a Health and Social Care system where they are properly supported, rewarded and recognised.”
“<BR /> <BR />The Committee agreed to recommend that the health protection regulations be approved by the Assembly. <BR /> <BR />I will make a few brief remarks as Sinn Féin's health spokesperson. Whilst I welcome the progress that we have made so far in fighting the pandemic, I continue to urge caution, as the delta variant still poses a considerable risk across our communities. As the restrictions ease, the risks inevitably increase. We all have a role to play in how we move forward so that we can reopen safely and resume as normal a life as is possible in the current circumstances. That responsibility is twofold. To prevent the spread of any variant that comes along, we must all individually adhere to the public health messaging. We must wash our hands, safely socially distance and wear masks where needed.”
“Members sought clarity on the levels of fines and on who has the power to rescind fixed penalty notices issued by the PSNI. Members also sought further information in relation to the Irish Cup final, as you mentioned, Minister, its use as a test event and what learning was taken or has arisen from that event. The Committee will welcome sight of the report on that event when it is available. <BR /> <BR />Each time I speak on regulations, I raise the issue of the limited opportunity for the Committee to consider the rules. We understand the tight time frames. However, the role of the Committee is to scrutinise legislation, and the process leaves the Committee unable to effectively undertake that role. We would therefore welcome a time frame for when the Department will revert to normal processes for the health protection and travel rules.”
“However, again, I outline that this is a process, and I urge everyone to follow the guidance and regulations and not to push or bend the rules at this time, especially given that we are seeing an increase in transmission of the delta variant. It is important that we follow the rules and guidance as they are eased, as that will ultimately allow us to move more quickly to the point where COVID has less of an impact on our lives. <BR /> <BR />The Committee was briefed on the regulations at its meeting on 3 June. The briefing session from the Department on the regulations gave members the opportunity to discuss them in more detail, and a number of issues were raised. Members asked how the Department deals with new emerging variants of COVID. We also asked questions about live music in hospitality venues.”
“Those pressures were non-COVID-related. It is therefore important to ensure that we take all the actions that we can to protect our health service and not put additional pressure on our staff. It is hugely important to point out that, according to the NISRA statistics, we are at almost 3,000 deaths in our community as a result of COVID-19. COVID has been and remains dangerous for so many people, and every one of those deaths is an individual tragedy. <BR /> <BR />As a Committee, we welcome the introduction of the rules and the continued easing of restrictions, including those on hospitality, indoor and outdoor gatherings, sporting events and libraries fully reopening.”
“I say to them that the vaccination programme is the road to recovery and will not only provide protection for you and your family but will allow for the easing of restrictions and the recovery of our health systems and the economy, alongside the other public health measures of find, test, trace, isolate and support. <BR /> <BR />Last week, it was welcome that we had the first day when there were no COVID patients in intensive care. However, at the same time, we heard that hospitals were running at over 100% capacity.”
“I will make, first, a few remarks as Health Committee Chair and, then, a few brief remarks as the Sinn Féin spokesperson for health. <BR /> <BR />First, I welcome the fact that, in the North, we now have over 1·1 million people who are vaccinated with their first dose and over three quarters of a million people who are fully vaccinated. The vaccination programme has been a great success and has provided for the gradual easing of restrictions that we are considering today and will consider in the future. <BR /> <BR />With the ongoing transmission of the delta variant of COVID-19, it is more important than ever to ensure that our population is vaccinated. I encourage all those who are eligible for their first vaccine or have an appointment for their second vaccine to go and get that vaccine.”
“Crucially, given that the Minister has outlined how we arrived at this situation — because of austerity Budgets over a number of years — what discussions have there been, or will there be, with the British Government on providing that additional funding? What will happen if the funding is not made available? <BR /> <BR />How many mega-clinics have been identified? Can the Minister tell the House more about the criteria for where they will be located, and how people who may face challenges to travel to those larger centres will be supported to do so?”
“I thank the Minister for bringing the statement to the House. It is an area of huge importance for us all. I welcome the statement and thank the Minister for discussing it with me earlier. <BR /> <BR />I also take the first opportunity that I have had to extend my support to the Minister over the disgraceful comments that were made before the weekend. As a father of two young children, I fully appreciate and understand the impact that such comments have on the people for whom they are intended and also the people around them. They were unacceptable. <BR /> <BR />The Minister has identified the levels of funding and scale of planning that are needed. What funding is currently available in the Department of Health budget for the framework? What discussions have been held with Executive colleagues?”
“We must continue to be cautious, and we must proceed in cooperation as the delta variant poses a significant concern. <BR /> <BR />In the weeks and months ahead, let us use the breathing space that has been provided to us by the successful vaccination programme and the lower infection numbers that we see at present to put in place the necessary find, test, trace, isolate and support apparatus that will help us to continue to ease restrictions, to reopen our society and economy, to stay reopened and to resume our lives as normally and safely as possible.”
“<BR /> <BR />While Mr Swann and I have had exchanges that have been heated at times and the odd disagreement about a particular issue, we have been required to work closely together, to cooperate with each other and to challenge each other as we make our way through the pandemic. We may not have always agreed on particular issues, but our disagreements have been courteous, well intentioned and well mannered, as, I believe, they should be. I believe that what was said in the hotel about the Minister should be condemned by everyone. <BR /> <BR />A key point about this is that we are by no means out of the woods as far as COVID-19 goes. We continue to see variants of the virus emerging. They are more transmissible and are demonstrating signs of being more effective at escaping the vaccine. That presents significant public health concerns.”
“NI Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) statistics demonstrate that, as of last week, 2,976 people died here in the North, and 4,971 died in the Twenty-six Counties, giving a total of 7,917 people across this island who have lost their lives as a result of COVID-19. Every one of those was an individual whose death was a tragedy for a family. <BR /> <BR />We have asked so much of each other and of our community over this time, and the vast majority of people have observed public health guidance and acted according to the best interests of everyone across our community.”
“Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. The comments made against the Minister of Health in a nearby hotel recently were out of order and should and must be rejected. What we heard and saw was a direct verbal attack on the character of the Minister at the most inopportune of times. <BR /> <BR />Throughout the past year, we have faced real danger. The COVID-19 pandemic has put our Health and Social Care system at risk and posed a threat to everyone across our society. It has impacted our economy and every aspect of our social lives. It has also led to deaths across this island.”
“Although COVID-19 is certainly not gone and we cannot become complacent about that, I pose this question, to which the Department of Health, the wider Executive and, collectively, the House must find an answer: what can be done now and in this year to address the public health emergency that faces the entire Health and Social Care system, that we see daily in our constituency offices and clinics and that our people are suffering as a result of?”
“I thank the Member for his intervention, and I absolutely agree. In fact, two weeks ago, the Health Committee called for an emergency summit to take place across the Executive to deal with health and social care. I believe and I think that the Committee believes that we need to adopt the same urgency, attention and action to deal with waiting lists and the other problems in health as we did with COVID-19. I absolutely agree. <BR /> <BR />I acknowledge that it is a one-year Budget, but, when we look at how last year's one-year Budget pivoted to emergency action on COVID-19, we see what can be achieved when everyone works together and when staff are involved, are delivering the service that they can do so well and are given the tools to do so.”
“Without carers, there is no health and social care system. It is that simple. Unless we address the practical issues facing carers, we are at grave risk of seeing carers stop asking about breaks and starting to talk about care arrangements breaking down. We need to give carers a break. I urge the Minister to look at what he can do now to increase the provision of respite and day-care services, which have been run down for such a long time now as a result of the pandemic. <BR /> <BR />This week is also infant mental health week. I encourage the Minister and his officials to consider what can be done through the mental health strategy to ensure that early-years mental health needs and, in particular, infant mental health needs are not only considered but included in the final strategy.”
“<BR /> <BR />As has been referenced often today and in yesterday's debate, there also needs to be progress on multi-year budgets. The staggering levels of workforce vacancies remain a huge difficulty for delivery in the health service. The Health and Social Care (HSC) system needs to address workforce pressures and staffing as a matter of emergency. If there are no staff, there is no service. If there is no service or capacity to be seen, you are placed on a waiting list, and, until capacity increases, that waiting list will continue to grow. Even if we had money to throw at the problem, it would not immediately or automatically solve it. We urgently need to put effort and planning into health service staff. <BR /> <BR />Yesterday, I covered some issues facing carers, but, as it is carers' week, it is worth recapping those issues.”
“It is about people having difficulty accessing their GPs or a care package to get a loved one home from hospital. It is also about that wide range of waiting lists, with one in every four of our population on some sort of health waiting list. I will not dwell overmuch on the obvious problems; we all know and recognise those. <BR /> <BR />What is being done to address and fix those problems is key. The Bengoa report and the ministerial action plan, 'Delivering Together', set out not only the need for transformation but some of the areas in which to start delivering it. As I mentioned, only 0·7% of the budget has been allocated to that transformation. The double running and funding of services have not been anywhere near sufficient to support a long-term transformation. We will all have to grasp that fundamental problem.”
“The Department has been good at identifying and tracking COVID spending and pressures. We need to see the same approach being applied to the other priorities over the coming year. <BR /> <BR />The Committee will continue to engage constructively with the Department to ensure scrutiny of its spending over the coming year. I thank the Committee Clerk and staff for the huge amount of work that they put into the Committee in general in what has been a hugely busy period and in supporting the Committee's scrutiny of the budgeting procedures. <BR /> <BR />I will now add some remarks as a Sinn Féin MLA. As an MLA with a busy constituency office, I can safely say that health and social care queries are the number-one issues that we encounter. I am sure that that is the same for every Member.”
“I understand that that is not the responsibility solely of the Department of Health and that there needs to be an Executive approach to tackling inequalities, but the Department is paying for the outcomes of those inequalities. <BR /> <BR />We need to be able to identify and track spending on the key issues. How much is being spent to address waiting lists? How much is being spent to address inequalities? How much is being spent on mental health? Is the spending on waiting lists, inequalities and mental health making a real difference to people's lives? Activity is easy to measure. Outcomes are much more difficult to measure, but outcomes matter most. Transparency should be based on the issues rather than on finance headlines, which can be difficult to understand and track.”