Emma Sheerin
Mid Ulster · Sinn Féin · Northern Ireland
“Given what we have seen unfold across the North in recent weeks, it is important that we acknowledge that they are people with particular vulnerabilities who are particularly sensitive and, with that in mind, consider our language.”
“No, I will not give way. You have rambled on for long enough in this place. <BR /> <BR />When it comes to the early clauses of the Bill, I, like others, put on the record our appreciation of the work of Geraldine Hanna and our support for the intent of Part 1 of the Bill, which puts the role that she has been carrying out impeccably thus…”
“I thank the Minister for clarifying that immigration is an excepted matter, which means that it is the responsibility of the British Government and nothing to do with the House.”
“On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Members will be aware that the DUP and some of its lackeys in the UUP cynically used petitions of concern, two weeks ago, to block rights for children.”
“I welcome the opportunity to speak at the Second Stage of the Victims and Witnesses of Crime Bill. I am proud to be from a party that consistently supports the best available human rights advice on all matters.”
“For many years, Donaldson used his position of power to abuse and to escape justice. He presented himself as a role model. We now know that that was bogus and that his public persona was a deception.”
The complete record
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“There is not much that I can say about Christopher that has not already been said today, but I will add my own tribute, given the shock and sadness with which I met the news yesterday. I have been here for only a couple of years, and I knew Christopher for only a short time. I sat on two Committees with him. Indeed, I chaired one of them, and I have no doubt that the conversation to which Mike referred related to my chairing style, to what Christopher would like to correct there and to what Standing Order he might have found to correct me. <BR /> <BR />I have no doubt that we were polar opposites. He probably regarded some of my, perhaps, disrespect for the formalities of this place with complete bewilderment. I was totally bemused by the way in which he deferred to the formalities of Stormont.”
“was that it was a complete contradiction of what it had agreed to. That is a fact, Paul. Sin é.”
“Exactly. The reason for the attack on the DUP position”
“Will the Member take an intervention? No?”
“We know that legislation for socio-economic rights would prioritise in government many of the issues that are to the fore of the minds of all of our constituents: healthcare, housing and how to feed your children and heat your home comfortably at the same time. Never has it been more important for us to deliver rights. The DUP's blockage will last for only so long.”
“No, thank you. <BR /> <BR />They include implementing the Commission on Flags, Identity, Culture and Tradition (FICT) report findings, Acht na Gaeilge, the commissioning of abortion services, the protocol and, perhaps, a Sinn Féin First Minister. We are in a cost-of-living crisis. We have just been dragged out of the EU against the wishes of the majority. The British Government are implementing legacy proposals that no party here is happy with. We know that people across the North are living in a rights deficit: our Irish language speakers, migrant workers, our LGBTQ+ brothers and sisters, women — the list goes on. We know that a majority of people across the North want to see the delivery of a bill of rights; they told us so.”
“We, the SDLP, the Alliance Party and the UUP might have had some differences in what the final product would look like, but we all came together and did the work. Unfortunately, we were working with one hand tied behind our back, as the DUP blocked the establishment of the panel that was supposed to advise us and then, at the very last minute, produced a position paper in which it stated that it did not believe that a bill of rights is merited and that any that we would create should focus on principles, not rights. Whilst that is disappointing, it is hardly a surprise. It is consistent with all of the other things that would bring real benefit to people's lives here that the DUP has blocked or tried to block.”
“As I outlined previously, we spoke to and engaged with hundreds of people from numerous walks of life. I thank formally all of those who gave of their time to help us. I thank the former Deputy Chair Mike Nesbitt, who showed steady commitment throughout, and to Paula Bradshaw, who ably replaced him. I also thank those who joined us temporarily, including my party colleague John O'Dowd. <BR /> <BR />All of the five main parties came together two years ago and committed to the process. Sinn Féin's record on rights is clear and unequivocal. I believe that we were in the majority, in that we were acting in good faith here. To be honest, I perhaps naively believed that everyone was on the same page throughout.”
“I recognise that many will be disappointed that we were unable to present a draft bill of rights here today. It is some consolation for me, as Chair of the Committee, that we have contributed to the wider conversation about human rights and equality here. I hope that our detailed and thorough consultation, research and report will assist future work and negotiations. On behalf of the Committee, I call on the Assembly to approve the report of the Ad Hoc Committee on a Bill of Rights. <BR /> <BR />I will now make some remarks in my capacity as Sinn Féin's equality spokesperson. I know that I speak for my whole party when I say that I am deeply disappointed by the abject failure of our Committee to produce a bill of rights that could be implemented in the North.”
“<BR /> <BR />A number of witnesses, including Dominic Grieve QC, suggested that the Assembly should legislate for its own bill of rights; indeed, we also heard that the devolved legislators in Wales and Scotland had incorporated international human rights standards into their domestic law. However, there was substantial support for a bill of rights to be taken forward at Westminster, as per the Good Friday Agreement. The Committee agreed in September last year that a bill of rights should be taken forward at Westminster. However, that was subject to the advice of a panel of experts that was never appointed and was subsequently negated by the content of the DUP party position paper. <BR /> <BR />The subject of a bill of rights has been discussed and debated by many people over the years.”
“Others raised concerns about the adjudication of rights, including potential implications for the separation of powers. A common thread running through the evidence of the then Lord Chief Justice Sir Declan Morgan, Sir John Gillen and others was that any bill of rights must be specific to ensure that rights are enforceable. We also received evidence from the Human Rights Consortium and Professor Christopher McCrudden about a range of available options for the enforcement of economic and social rights, but, again, the Committee was unable to make a decision on the justiciability and enforcement of rights due to the absence of a panel of experts and the content of the DUP party position paper.”
“Eighty-six per cent of respondents called for the inclusion of environmental rights. That was particularly strongly advocated by the children and young people with whom we engaged, who also advocated the inclusion of children's rights, mirroring the provisions in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). Ultimately, the Committee was unable to make a decision on which rights to include due to the absence of a panel of experts and the content of the DUP party position paper. <BR /> <BR />I turn to the enforcement of rights. We heard regularly, particularly from civic society representatives, that a bill of rights must include justiciable rights; that is, rights that are capable of being decided on in a court of law.”
“As I have already alluded to, we identified strong support for civil and political rights, with 88% of respondents to our survey calling for their inclusion. Civil and political rights protect freedoms such as the right to liberty, the right to life and freedom of expression. Many called for the European Convention rights to be incorporated, with supplementary rights to include equality and anti-discrimination provisions. There was also huge support for economic, social and cultural rights, with 82% of survey respondents calling for their inclusion. Those rights focus on protecting people's development and livelihoods, and there was particular support for healthcare, housing and education rights. The Committee also heard some concerns about such rights, relating mainly to enforcement in government and budgetary constraints.”
“Many people said that they wanted to move away from the traditional orange and green identities and, as a result, thought that parity of esteem did not belong in a bill of rights for today, given that it refers to two communities and does not reflect an increasingly diverse society. The Committee provisionally agreed, subject to the expert advice of the panel, that a bill of rights should contain a preamble with an interpretative effect, meaning that it would guide the interpretation of a bill of rights over time. However, that decision was invalidated by the absence of a panel of experts and the content of the DUP party position paper. <BR /> <BR />As a Committee, we spent considerable time considering what rights should be included in a bill of rights.”
“<BR /> <BR />Bills of rights often combine law, symbolism and aspiration. Albie Sachs, former justice of the Constitutional Court of South Africa, and Baroness Helena Kennedy QC told us about the important role of a preamble in setting a value system and a tonality for a bill of rights, using language that resonates with people. There was strong support amongst those whom we heard from for a bill of rights to set out an aspirational vision based on foundational values. The values that seemed to resonate most included human dignity; mutual respect; justice; respect for culture, identity, traditions and aspirations; and equality.”
“<BR /> <BR />The Committee received a range of ideas on the approach that should be taken to a bill of rights, many of which are not mutually exclusive. For example, some advocated a tightly scoped bill of rights, and others pointed to approaches in other jurisdictions. A number of witnesses, such as Professor Colin Harvey, suggested that a bill of rights could act as a framework with further legislation and policy underpinning it. Others questioned whether primary legislation should address human rights issues instead. A common theme for many was that a bill of rights should draw from international human rights instruments. Again, as a Committee, we could not reach a decision on what approach to take to a bill of rights due to the absence of a panel of experts and the content of the DUP party position paper.”
“<BR /> <BR />I come now to the particular circumstances of the North, as set out in the Good Friday Agreement. As a Committee, we heard diverse opinions on that, with some calling for different interpretations. Many of those we heard from were concerned about the impact of Brexit on human rights here. There were particular concerns about the limits of the "no diminution" commitment and the reduced application of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. As a Committee, in the end, we were unable to formulate a view about what constitutes the particular circumstances of the North or about the impact of Brexit on those particular circumstances due to the absence of a panel of experts and the content of the DUP party position paper.”
“and "Help support political stability". <BR /> <BR />A small proportion of witnesses and stakeholders raised concerns about the creation of a bill of rights, including those whose views on the matter are well recorded — Jeffrey Dudgeon and Lady Trimble. Some questioned whether the bill of rights is needed in view of existing legislation, while others were concerned that it might remove decision-making abilities from the legislature. That said, in June last year, the Committee agreed that it supported the creation of a bill of rights in principle in light of the evidence received and the references in 'New Decade, New Approach'. That decision, however, was reached subject to the advice of the panel of experts, which was not made available. The DUP, in its party position paper, then reneged on that decision.”
“Of the respondents, 80% said that a bill of rights was "very important" or "important", while 6% thought that it was "not important at all". That support was evident at our stakeholder events. The Committee heard about the potential benefits of a bill of rights, including that it can:”
“As specified in 'New Decade, New Approach', a panel of five experts was to be appointed jointly by the First Minister and deputy First Minister. Many of the Committee's discussions and decisions were to be subject to prospective advice from that panel. Therefore, it was a source of immense disappointment and frustration that the panel was not established, despite the many letters that we sent to the Executive Office seeking an update on the process. <BR /> <BR />I turn to the evidence that we received. We heard that the human rights of many people here are not adequately protected, particularly in relation to disability, age, religion or belief and ethnic group. Our survey identified strong support for a bill of rights.”
“<BR /> <BR />I also thank the Assembly's engagement, education and communication teams for coordinating and promoting the Committee's call for evidence, as well as the Assembly's Research and Information Service (RaISe) for its papers.”
“Committee members are so grateful to each of the schools that took the time to participate in our focus groups, facilitated by the Assembly's Education Service, and to the children and young people for providing their views during an academic year that had been interrupted so much owing to COVID. <BR /> <BR />I acknowledge the invaluable contributions and support of the Human Rights Commission and the witnesses who shared their expertise with us from across the globe — from Queen's University Belfast to Trinity College Dublin, from London to Toronto and Cape Town. Each contribution was valued and considered by all members. We were pleased with the high level of engagement that we had throughout, which helped to ensure that the views of all communities and minority groups were represented.”
“<BR /> <BR />On behalf of the Ad Hoc Committee on a Bill of Rights, I record our sincere thanks to all those who contributed to the Committee's evidence gathering, whether at formal or informal Committee meetings, and to the individuals who took time out of their day to respond to the Committee's survey or attend one of its stakeholder events. I also thank all the organisations who supported the Committee's call for evidence, particularly Disability Action, the Red Cross, Positive Futures, Mencap, the Now Group, the Housing Executive and Women's Aid, among so many others.”
“We issued a survey that gathered over 2,300 responses, and we followed it up with a series of workshops broadly organised according to section 75 groups. Indeed, one of the highlights for the Committee was listening to the views of people who live here and hearing about their experiences. <BR /> <BR />We also held informal meetings with justices of the Supreme Courts of the UK and the Twenty-six Counties and met TDs, Seanadóirí and MPs through the Houses of the Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement. They were engaging and beneficial discussions, and we were grateful to have them.”
“A resolution of the Assembly in February 2020 established the Ad Hoc Committee on a Bill of Rights and required it to submit a report to the Assembly by 28 February 2022. Today, I present that report to the Chamber. <BR /> <BR />As a Committee, we have had the privilege of hearing from a wide range of witnesses with expertise in human rights and constitutional law, including academics, senior judges, lawyers and representatives of the Human Rights Commission. We heard from negotiators of the Good Friday Agreement, trade unions, the voluntary and community sector, language groups, the women's sector, LGBTQ+ activists and the Churches, amongst many others. <BR /> <BR />We were keen to hear from as many people across society as possible and particularly from less heard groups, as a bill of rights should be for everyone.”
“I welcome the opportunity to bring the report of the Ad Hoc Committee on a Bill of Rights to the Chamber. My initial remarks will be made in my capacity as Chair of the Committee. <BR /> <BR />A bill of rights for the North has been discussed and debated for decades. It was committed to most memorably in the Good Friday Agreement of 1998. In January 2020, 'New Decade, New Approach', the basis on which we are all here, called for the establishment of an Ad Hoc Committee to consider the creation of a bill of rights. The commitment outlined that a bill of rights should be:”
“Minister, there are no benefits to our local agri-food sector in the free trade agreements between Britain and New Zealand and Australia, both of which are massive meat producers and are our competitors. Obviously, the protocol offers some protections to our local farmers from the import of cheap meats. What engagement have you had with the British Government around the fact that our main market will now be flooded with cheap meat from those two countries as a result of the free trade agreements that your party supported?”
“I thank the Minister for his statement and the answers that he has given. Rural dwellers should have equality of opportunity, and inequality is often intersectional. With that in mind, how will women, young people and people with disabilities benefit from the rural business and community investment programme under the rural policy framework? Additionally, it could be argued that, under the previous RDP, border communities benefited the most, given the cross-border aspect of that. Will there be any cross-border route for this cooperation programme?”
“— the replacement for the ESF. Is the Minister concerned about the impact on the Executive of the funds lost as a result of Brexit?”
“Minister, last Friday, I met Workspace, a group that you will be familiar with from your Mid Ulster constituency. Workspace does brilliant work on the ground and depends on the European social fund (ESF) for the delivery of a lot of its programmes. At the minute, Workspace is incredibly worried about the short term, because of a lack of match funding from the Department for the Economy, presumably because of its loss of core funding as a result of Brexit, and the longer term, because of the lack of detail from the British Government about —”
“To help prevent the spread of TB, will the Minister consider establishing a capital grant for farmers that would allow them to implement enhanced biosecurity measures?”
“I thank the Minister for her answer, and I take on board what she said about the importance of delivering justice and the fact that primary legislation is required. Notwithstanding the backlog of court cases that need to be dealt with, we have severe labour shortages due to the omicron variant and complications with Brexit that have seen several industries struggle. Will the Minister consider some workaround to see whether a balance can be struck to allow people to be exempt when they need to be exempted for their work?”
“— and those living in poverty. Nationalists may now apply. Let us work together to build a society where everyone can.”
“They put lunch boxes under their arms, reared their families and gave them the means to get educated if they so wished so that they could walk into courtrooms and lecture halls with confidence, as well as onto building sites, into business or to work as nurses and doctors and all the other roles in between. <BR /> <BR />It would be much more appropriate for political unionism to raise awareness of and work towards removing the barriers that still exist for many of our marginalised groups. There is still under-representation in our higher education settings, our political spheres, the media and the law of women, people living with a disability, those from our black and minority ethnic communities, our LGBT community —”
“Nationalists are not a homogenous group, and they never rejected industry, but in many of the organisations of old, the Orange state closed that door for them. <BR /> <BR />It is not lost on me as a first-generation graduate that two of the victims referred to in Friday's report were Sinn Féin elected reps, including one who was a councillor in the area that I am now very proud to represent, murdered whilst on his way to work in the year that I was born. <BR /> <BR />Working-class nationalists in years gone by were unable to access things like education, a decent job or the means to put a roof over their children's heads, so they rose up. They fought for their civil rights, and they attained them.”
“In fact, as we saw evidenced last week in the release of yet another report detailing state collusion, this time in the murder of 19 people across the North in the 1980s and 1990s, nationalists were targets. Inciting hatred and othering people have consequences. We need to bear that in mind during this conversation. <BR /> <BR />Jim Wells, estranged DUP MLA, was in the media last week to defend Miss Hoey. He stated that Catholics had traditionally rejected industry. I am from and represent the industrial and engineering capital of Ireland: mid-Ulster. Our local businesses produce 80% of the world's crushing and screening equipment across south Derry and east Tyrone. Many of them are probably nationalists; all are experts in their trade.”
“We are now halfway through January, but it is easy to forget that it is 2022, given that a lot of the political discourse that we have seen so far this year belongs to a much earlier time. <BR /> <BR />Kate Hoey's concern that nationalists are dominating professional vocations reeks of insecurity and bitterness, but that she would hark back to talk of headcounts and division is hardly a surprise to anyone who knows her politics. However, a suggestion that those from a nationalist background get educated only to promote some sort of an agenda took a more sinister turn when it was endorsed by the leader of the DUP. <BR /> <BR />The days of "no nationalist need apply" are over. For much of the 20th century in this state, nationalists were disenfranchised and discriminated against. That was official state policy.”
“I thank the Minister for his statement. As he rightly stated, controlling this disease is paramount to allowing international trade of poultry products. What measures are being taken to minimise the potential impacts of avian flu on access to international poultry markets?”
“Looking over Hansard, I am reminded that the Minister spoke about the FICT report at Question Time on 28 June and 27 September and at the TEO Committee on 29 September. I have asked questions about it. Minister, will you outline your assessment of the delays and why the implementation plan that you referred to was not published along with the report?”
“Many businesses benefited from the two-year rates holiday as part of the package of support for them during the pandemic. Does the Minister expect that there will be further rates support in the incoming financial year?”
“Junior Minister Kearney has already said that the delay in publishing the FICT report did not sit with the Sinn Féin side of the Executive Office. Can the First Minister or the junior Minister outline why they are blocking the publication of the implementation plan alongside the FICT report?”
“I thank the joint First Minister for her statement. I acknowledge that the Executive Office has undertaken responsibility for the public inquiry. Why does the process have to be a legislative one? How long is the legislative process for the public inquiry and the redress board likely to take?”
“<BR /> <BR />One Bill is not going to eradicate all those stressors on people who menstruate or, indeed, for their families and loved ones who are no doubt impacted. However, it does go some way. I congratulate the Bill sponsor and its writers for ensuring that the provision of those products free of charge must be done in a way that maintains the service user's dignity and, I hope, in a confidential and discreet manner. I also encourage the Bill writers to consider whether those provisions could be widened to, perhaps, cover additional public spaces, including facilities such as homeless shelters, hostels and domestic violence shelters. <BR /> <BR />I look forward to the Bill's progress through Committee Stage. I applaud its inclusive nature to provide for all people who menstruate. I thank the Bill sponsor.”
“Women and girls are self-medicating with boxes of Nurofen — another cost from their teenage years — shutting up and putting up, experiencing mood swings, severe cramps and abdominal pain and are being told that there is nothing wrong with them, often then to be offered a hysterectomy in their 30s without any proper investigation. It takes years to get a diagnosis for polycystic ovaries or endometriosis, if you ever get one at all. Problems with vaginal mesh implants are dismissed, and the waiting list for removal is scary. Years and years on hormonal contraception can have unthinkable consequences for a woman's body, which is something that is rarely communicated at the initial point of prescription.”
“The fact that the advertising of those products is itself a cause of controversy and that the weird blue substance that is synonymous with maxi pads is something that we can all conjure up in our minds is a testament to that. <BR /> <BR />I have a friend who, as a teenager, went to her GP because of painful periods that confined her to bed for days at a time and meant absence from school. She was told by a male doctor, "That's what a period is", before being offered the contraceptive pill. I had irregularities as a teenager, with inexplicable months of missed periods that caused me serious anxiety. Again, I was offered no explanation but the pill to regulate.”
“I cannot be the only one who has fought with dispenser machines that, for some reason, are not taking the coin that they are supposed to. If Building Services are watching, I had nothing to do with one of the machines almost hanging off the wall in the ground floor bathroom beside us. Nevertheless, the stress and paranoia that that causes is unbelievable. <BR /> <BR />It sometimes feels as if women's healthcare issues have always played second fiddle. The level of ignorance and misinformation that women and girls often experience when presenting with what should be a simple problem is a huge cause of concern. Our periods are just one example of a normal part of the female experience that is still shrouded in mystery for many and, if we are honest, is still taboo across the world.”
“<BR /> <BR />As someone who grew up with privilege in a safe and happy home, with access to everything that I ever needed, I cannot imagine the pressure and strain that that causes. For parents with young girls who are going through puberty, being unable to provide those items is bound to be soul-destroying. To be a young person worrying about that change in your life, with this sudden burden that announces the dawn of adulthood and can cause side effects ranging from digestion issues to unexplained emotional outbursts, is hard enough. To have to do it without access to tampons and towels is cruel. <BR /> <BR />I know that, as an adult, just as you sometimes only realise that you have run out of milk when the tea is wet, it is easy to sometimes forget to stock up on period products or to come to work without a supply.”
“As has been said, this issue affects 500 million people across the world. That is, frankly, a frightening statistic. When we think of the emotional strain that is often connected to menstruation and the impact that monthly hormonal fluctuations can have on a person's mood, it is not hard to imagine how both stressors would coalesce and negatively impact a person's mental well-being. <BR /> <BR />The practicalities of a lack of hygiene products at that time of the month would make many daily tasks impossible. You can see how anyone who is expected to work in public whilst in that position would struggle. In addition to that, the risk of toxic shock syndrome is heightened in a situation where products cannot be replaced regularly. There is an obvious health risk that can be fatal.”
“It is shameful that, in 2021, children are going to school hungry and that many of our elderly have to choose between eating or heating their homes. For those who cannot afford to put food on the table and who physically cannot pay all their bills, every necessity causes a strain. For those who menstruate, period products cannot be done without and, therefore, cause a strain.”
“I also support this important Bill, and I commend Mr Catney for introducing it. It is particularly timely, given the conversation that we are having at the minute about the rising cost of living and the household bills that have skyrocketed this year in particular. The Bill will address an inequality that is intersectional, removing a pressure point specific to people living in poverty who also menstruate. <BR /> <BR />The mental and emotional stress that those living in deprivation bear on a daily basis cannot be overstated. It is a failure on all our parts, as a society, that there are families across the North for whom Christmas is a cause of dread instead of excitement.”