Deirdre Hargey
South Belfast · Sinn Féin · Northern Ireland
“His double standards, including his condemnation of and opposition to equality and rights for our LGBTQ+ citizens, have caused real harm to others. The revelations about his double life expose the staggering hypocrisy of the DUP's moral facade. We need to know whether failing to act sooner left more vulnerable people at risk.”
“One week ago today, Jeffrey Donaldson was found guilty of 18 child sexual offences, including rape. That conviction was made possible only by the strength and resilience of the two victims who came forward and reported the abuse. Donaldson was an abuser. He abused children, but he also abused his position in politics and faith.”
“They now say that they knew about his behaviour, but, crucially, they did nothing to expose his inappropriate hypocrisy and double life. The 'Spotlight' programme and other reports have shown that senior members of the DUP — its most senior figures, including the then leader, Edwin Poots — were aware of serious issues and allegations abou…”
“It is therefore not credible to suggest that the intelligence agencies were blind to his compromised double standards and double life. <BR /> <BR />Those questions demand answers from the DUP leadership. They demand answers in the House from the deputy First Minister, who was closely associated with Donaldson.”
“It is clear that there is a huge disconnect between Whitehall and the reality that is being felt by people on the ground. A British Treasury policy that is managing decay, real-terms cuts and disastrous policy decisions such as Brexit or the funding of wars over public services comes on top of existing disparities between how public servi…”
“The answer is not the short-term fixes or cash injections that we have had in the past, which have allowed for the repeated Treasury script of record settlements and inability of the Executive to manage their finances — scripts that are often parroted in the Chamber.”
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“— and mental health issues. Feeling that the community is working with you on these things is critical for people. <BR /> <BR />I commend the Member who secured the Adjournment debate and call for a collaborative, cross-departmental approach.”
“We need the education system to work alongside our family and community supports, including our family support hubs. <BR /> <BR />Gordon touched on breaking down the stigma. It is a big conversation that we need to have at the heart of our communities. We need to take the conversations to the grassroots in our communities and start to break down the stigma. The community that I live in, the Market area in south Belfast, started that 15 months ago by working with Queen's University's Communities and Place. That took a long time for families, particularly those who have lost loved ones through addiction and substance misuse or through suicide, who are impacted on by trauma —”
“There is an acute need for a robust criminal justice response along with a health-led response. Recent information from a Mid and East Antrim PCSP meeting referred to the case of a young person who was spending up to £50 a day in order to sustain their use of the drug spice, which has a higher potency than normal cannabis. If a young person who is living in that constituency is doing that, I am sure that their story could be replicated across all our constituencies. It is a real issue: that is what is happening in our communities. <BR /> <BR />Education plays a crucial role for our children and young people, particularly when it comes to the increasing use of vapes in school and the use of other illicit drugs through those vaping instruments.”
“I sit on the Justice Committee, and our Health and Justice Committees have met on those issues and their impacts on the justice and health systems. It is not just about drugs and substance use; it is about mental health, trauma and support. <BR /> <BR />Recent police statistics showed that, in a 12-month period, over 35,000 calls related to people in crisis. When you look into those figures, you see the correlation with addiction and substance misuse. We cannot emphasise enough the importance of taking a collaborative, joined-up approach to dealing with these issues. <BR /> <BR />We also need a robust criminal justice response to criminal gangs, drug traffickers and paramilitaries. In the past month, there have been raids, and a significant quantity of drugs has been removed from our streets.”
“When you work in the community and engage with the many groups that have been mentioned today that work in this field, you see how those early alert systems, and the public messaging that follows, are crucial and could, I believe, save lives. I again call for the rapid drug testing pilot to be funded and, more importantly, rolled out. <BR /> <BR />As many Members who spoke in the debate have said, this issue is not just for the Health Minister, who has turned up to the Chamber this evening, but for many other Ministers in the Executive. There needs to be a collaborative, cross-Executive approach that includes our criminal justice system and the Justice Minister working collaboratively with Health.”
“Our party is one of many that has called for statutory residential services, as we have worked with many families who have felt the impact of this issue, and we call on the Minister to prioritise that. We also call for the full roll-out of multidisciplinary services in our GP surgeries. The work that has been done up to now is having an impact; it is working. The locality planning and approach is bearing fruit, and we would like to see more of that being rolled out. Of course, we also want to see the substance use strategy being fully funded and fully rolled out. <BR /> <BR />We also know the importance of real-time monitoring and early warning systems, particularly when looking at the issue from the point of view of support. We call for the rapid drug testing pilot, for which Queen's University has advocated, to be funded.”
“You cannot look at those things in isolation, and, for that reason, we need to work more collaboratively and find joined-up working solutions, whether those are at the coalface or the grassroots where the Department of Health can work with the Department for Communities, the Department of Education and the Department of Justice. We need to look at how we can have those cross-departmental teams at the coalface to meet the families and communities that are in crisis, with a focus on delivering preventions and, importantly, interventions. That work needs to include harm-reduction approaches and, importantly, strengthen early intervention and prevention. <BR /> <BR />We recently saw a review of residential rehabilitation.”
“<BR /> <BR />Drug-related deaths is an ongoing issue that does not impact on just East Antrim but across all our constituencies and these islands. We know that a siloed approach to the issue will not change outcomes or statistics. We need a more focused, cross-departmental approach and more ministerial and departmental working to set the strategic policy and the strategies. We also need to look at the implementation and at what we can do over the next period. We know that Departments' budgets are stretched and that there is a resource issue. We know the impact that 15 years of austerity has had on public spending and budgets, and we know why we are in the crisis that we are in.”
“Thank you, Danny, for raising the important issue of drug-related deaths in the East Antrim area and for securing the Adjournment debate on what is an important and concerning topic. We have seen the recent statistics from NISRA that show that there has been almost a doubling of deaths over the past 10 years. Of course, we are all acutely aware of it, as has been stated today and as we see in the many news articles that appear whenever deaths arise, particularly at times when a few deaths happen in a short period. We are also aware, however, that the stories quickly slip off the front pages of our papers or our online technology, and it is the families who are left to pick up the pieces. We have heard that acutely in relation to the East Antrim area, where seven lives have been lost to seven families over the past year.”
“The issue of the £400 million cost has been raised a couple of times. I would like to know where the anger is about the £23 billion still unpaid after the financial crash in 2008 by bankers and financial institutions or the £5·5 billion lost in tax avoidance schemes. Where is the anger, and how could that money be used for services?”
“Last summer, we also witnessed local businesses that provide services to the community being burnt to the ground, with their staff being attacked and threatened. Like every example of racism, those attacks are unacceptable and must be called out. Such attacks often happen when dehumanising and emotive language is used. <BR /> <BR />I appeal to all Members who address the motion to be mature, measured and cautious about the arguments that they deploy and the misinformation that can be used: your words have real consequences for people in the community. Instead of impersonating a pound-shop Enoch Powell, Sinn Féin will support the amendment.”
“People should be able to contribute to the place that has given them refuge. We already see that contribution every day across our communities. I know the benefits of that, and I see the incredible role that people from other places play in my constituency of South Belfast, whether that is in local hospitality, healthcare in the community, our hospitals, research and innovation in our universities, our culture and arts offering, many sports teams and clubs, crèches and, indeed, local shops. Those people are part of the community and work on its behalf. <BR /> <BR />Unfortunately, racism is an ugly reality in sections of our society. Last week, a man who was on his way home from work in south Belfast was physically attacked by a large group close to the City Hospital. The attack must have been deeply traumatising.”
“As this is an island that has two separate immigration systems, robust bilateral arrangements between the Irish and British Governments are, of course, necessary to ensure the free movement of citizens across the land border and, simultaneously, manage the immigration systems. A functioning and fair immigration system needs to ensure that those who are deemed to be in need of international protection are granted asylum in a timely manner. When someone is deemed not to be entitled to international protection, they should be returned to their country of origin safely and, importantly, with dignity. <BR /> <BR />It is important that those who are granted asylum are integrated into our communities and into Irish society, no matter which part of the island they find themselves in.”
“Sinn Féin wants to see an immigration system that works well, where the rules are applied, fairness is paramount and people — all the people — in our communities are treated with dignity and respect.”
“I find that particularly disturbing. Our health and social care service is highly dependent on the commitment and expertise of so many people who have travelled here to contribute positively to our community, yet we have not heard anything from the DUP about that. Be they a nurse, a doctor or a carer, I acknowledge and thank those people for the contribution that they make to our society, whether in healthcare or other aspects of our community.”
“Of course, there need to be systems in place to manage immigration, and, of course, there are immediate and obvious pressures on our public services, such as access to health and social care. Let me be very clear, however, that that is caused by a sustained lack of investment, which is a reality that we discuss at every sitting of the Assembly. Over a decade and a half of austerity and cuts by consecutive British Governments have been hugely damaging to public services: our health service, housing, education, youth services, skills and employment support. To suggest otherwise is disingenuous and dangerously misleading. <BR /> <BR />There is no acknowledgement in the DUP motion of the important role that people from outside these islands play in our health and social care service, agri-food sector and the wider economy.”
“Sinn Féin's position on migration is informed by our republican values and principles of equality, economic and social justice, anti-racism and anti-colonialism. It is informed by our history. <BR /> <BR />Across the world, people are being forced from their country by war, famine, the escalating climate crisis and persistent inequality. Almost uniquely for a developed Western country, we in Ireland understand, from our experience, the human, economic and societal impact of immigration on the countries from which people are fleeing. Developed countries, including Ireland and Britain, can and must do more to address the causes forcing people to flee and migrate.”
“<BR /> <BR />Ofcom was given powers to enforce the Act, particularly when companies fail in their duties. Compliance and oversight need much greater attention, particularly when it comes to tech companies with information and activity that appear online and in situations where they fail to protect children. An industry levy on social media companies, similar to that which is being looked at for the gambling industry, needs careful consideration to see how those companies can support education about online harms. Those companies make huge profits, and they have not only a responsibility but a moral duty to act on that issue and to work with us as legislators and with wider society. They must not only comply with current legislation but invest in supports and embed training to prevent the harms occurring in the first place.”
“<BR /> <BR />Online safety and protecting children and young people should be paramount, and resources should be prioritised to that area. I raised with the Department of Justice the need to ensure coordination on the issue and to have engagement with the British Government, as much of the legislation in that area is a reserved matter, as well as engagement with the Irish Government to look at island-wide impacts. The British Government enacted the Online Safety Act 2023, and it is essential that that legislation is consistently reviewed and updated to take account of the challenges of online technology and trends. The Act outlined a number of areas to work on, such as risk assessment; action to address risk; the protection of children; age verification; transparency; and user control.”
“Yes, but that is why these issues need to be taken on in a holistic way. Sometimes, the boundaries between school and the wider community are crossed, and we therefore need to look at wider protections. That is what we are saying: it is an issue not just for educators but for parents and the wider community. Responsibility lies not just with educators and parents but with social media companies, as the platforms have a profound impact on the lives of our children and young people by shaping their perceptions, interactions and experiences. Work needs to be coordinated across Departments to tackle the impact of online harms. That includes the Department of Justice — that is noted in the motion and amendments — as well as the wider justice infrastructure, which includes the PSNI and the Safeguarding Board.”
“Online safety should be a fundamental part of safeguarding and child protection, particularly in schools, so the Department of Education should support schools in developing appropriate policies and embed online safety across the curriculum and in teacher training. There should also be appropriate support through education for parents on navigating the use of smartphones by their children and on what is age appropriate etc. We know that many young people, particularly those of secondary-school age, use phones and technology as learning tools in their education journey. We need to strike the right balance between recognising that and addressing the obvious harms. That can be done by limiting screen time, monitoring application use and using parental controls and content filters.”
“Thanks very much. I thank the Member who proposed the motion for raising this important issue. <BR /> <BR />There is no doubt that advances in technology can be a driver for positive change in many aspects of our lives, from health and education to communications, but we must be alert to the dangers and the intended and unintended consequences of its use. Advances in technology, particularly in AI, are moving at such a pace that our laws and policies are often playing catch-up. Cyberbullying, data privacy breaches, disinformation, inappropriate content and online predators are all risk factors for those who interact online, particularly our children and young people.”
“The research highlights the differential hospitality VAT rates in the North and South. Would you support a reduction in the North's VAT rate on hospitality?”
“Last week, Yvette Cooper announced police vetting reforms to boost officer standards and improve confidence in policing around issues of misconduct and sexual offences, for example. Is the Minister minded to look at the vetting procedures here?”
“If we can continue the seamless transition to those documents being done electronically, that is the right thing to do. <BR /> <BR />I welcome the Minister's move to see same-sex female couples achieving equality in this scheme and allowing joint registration to take place. That inequality is an important unintended consequence of previous legislation, and an inequality is being rectified through the Bill. Again, I welcome the Second Stage of the Bill, and I look forward to working with my colleagues on the Finance Committee to ensure that we can progress this as urgently as possible and that we look at it in depth to ensure that we get legislation that is fit for purpose.”
“As the Deputy Chair said, we will do a call for evidence. We will listen to all the issues, concerns and complexities and try to craft the proper type of legislation that really meets the needs. <BR /> <BR />I welcome the making of COVID provisions permanent. As Members know from the information available, we see over 17,000 deaths and 75 stillbirth deaths registered, on average, each year. This change in the legislation will allow for those important documents to be done electronically. Again, we heard today how important it is that, when someone is going through a bereavement, the last thing that they want to be doing is traipsing down to council offices or trying to go to the different practitioners to allow that death to be registered.”
“I thank the Minister for bringing to the House the Second Stage of this important Bill, which will see the enabling of a baby loss scheme and the production of a certificate to recognise loss prior to 24 weeks. As has been said by other Members, this is an important issue. It is welcome that we are discussing it here today. It is extremely important to those families who have experienced loss. We have heard their stories, and we have heard their ask for their sense of loss to be recognised. This legislation is a commitment to provide just that: an official recognition of the loss that they have felt. <BR /> <BR />I welcome the Minister's commitment today to engage as part of this process with the families and with the organisations that have campaigned for this change and, indeed, to engage through the Finance Committee.”
“Thanks very much for your answer, Minister. What benefits will those city and growth deals deliver? Will they complement the Programme for Government and the Budget that you announced earlier today?”
“Thank you, Minister, for this important statement. You mentioned the allocation to Lough Neagh. How does that reflect the Executive's commitment to dealing with the important issues pertaining to Lough Neagh and how those are being prioritised in the Budget?”
“I welcome the statement. For how long has NI Water been made aware of the need to live within its budget?”
“I am coning in on electronic monitoring. As you said, it was part of the transformation bid. The Department has recently given a new contract to Buddi to look at monitoring across the board, and it was said that funding was the issue with electronic GPS. Can you confirm whether there is now a timeline with the new transformation bids? Will this form part of that contract looking at GPS monitoring?”
“Will you confirm again, Minister, whether you would consider undertaking a public inquiry into the scheme?”
“Co-designing interventions with communities is therefore vital, as we know that the opposite of addiction is connection — connection to tackling the underlying causes and building those community connections where people feel isolated. Together, let us break the silence, let us amplify our voices and let us build healthy and connected communities for all.”
“We are also seeing new approaches in our justice system, with the piloting of the substance misuse court trialled to help tackle the cycle of crime, looking at the root causes and providing support, such as treatment plans, alongside supervision and monitoring, to help turn people's lives around. Tackling substance use and the impact of drugs is an important issue. Of course, reviews are important, but they also must be driven by data and best practice. We must also look at how substances are used in our healthcare system, and, if changes are to be made, we need to know and understand the knock-on effects and unintended consequences.”
“That allows the community to bring the issues to the fore and, importantly, to talk about them in an open forum. They have created a toolkit, a podcast and a community tapestry photographic exhibition, and they are in the middle of doing a play that will be shown in the Waterfront Hall later this year. All that work is being supported through the Queen's University's scheme, Queen's Communities and Place.”
“<BR /> <BR />The Amplify project has been launched in my community in the Market area of south Belfast. The project is a community toolkit that aims to break the silence and tackle health inequalities such as trauma and addiction through the power of building creative communities.”
“Often, the public discourse can be around the criminal justice and enforcement approach, but we also know, from years of work at the grassroots and internationally, that that, in isolation, does not resolve the issues and the impacts. Health, education and prevention are key in tackling the issues that have an impact across society. The importance of focusing on addressing inequality also needs to be looked at. It is important that, through a holistic, health-based approach, we do not stigmatise users and those who are often impacted on by addiction. It is also vital that we do not stigmatise the ability to have an open conversation, as, often, the stigma can perpetuate the silence and disempower those who have been impacted on and the community from tackling the issues in a meaningful way.”
“Today's motion is important, and I thank the Members for tabling it. I, too, recognise the work of Sandra Larmour in the aftermath of losing her daughter, Jeni, in highlighting the important issue and the impact that drugs have on the user, their family and the wider community. I also take this opportunity to thank all those who are working in this area across our communities. I see the impacts daily in my community and constituency. <BR /> <BR />These debates can be emotive, as they often involve people who have been impacted on through losing a loved one, people who are living with addiction and people who know of the wider impacts on families and communities.”
“It is a bit concerning that the issue and the thrust of the statement are like a war of attrition. We are keen to see the reform programme progress. It was good when it was brought in a couple of months ago. You touched on a derogation, Minister, and one case having been refused. My understanding is that there is an agreement with the Criminal Bar Association to look at derogation on a case-by-case basis. What other work is being done with the Department to progress that? Is it not better to actively engage with the Criminal Bar Association, rather than have statements from one end to the other, to try to bring the dispute to an end and to resolve the issue for everyone? What proactive steps is the Minister taking to do that over the coming weeks and months?”
“The Minister and I see today's announcement as a positive step, because, as the Minister said, we are allocating £129 million of additional money to our public services to transform them, which is important. In that context, what are the benefits of the new approach to the allocation of transformation funds, and how can it be developed?”
“<BR /> <BR />We know that the programme for work is not the final or exhaustive list of priorities for the Executive or individual Ministers, and nor should it be. We will work to have scrutiny of Ministers to ensure that we see delivery on the ground. However, the programme provides an important framework and a commitment to working collectively to deliver positive change and outcomes in the interests of our whole community.”
“It is good to see that expanding the use of out-of-court disposals and community resolution notices are priorities. They will be an essential part of the work and are welcomed, along with the business case, in advancing and looking at sufficient policing numbers. <BR /> <BR />Dealing with trauma, tackling hate and prejudice and reducing offending and reoffending are important areas of work that I am glad to see in the programme for work. Early intervention and prevention are critical in tackling those issues. The commitment to joined-up, integrated working and investment in digital capabilities is also critical in the transformation that we need to see. That work also needs to be underpinned by an anti-poverty and equality lens, as we know that those who are most impacted on are from working-class and minority backgrounds.”
“A minimum of 100,000 participants will be engaged throughout the programme, and there will be a change fund through which funding is being directed through our 11 councils into our local communities, with grassroots engagement and participation ensuring that there is impact at a local level. The ongoing work of the ending violence against women and girls strategy, domestic abuse strategy, the Power to Change campaign and the establishment of sectoral groups all contribute to ending violence against women and girls and creating safer communities for all of us. <BR /> <BR />Speeding up access to justice and creating safer communities are essential in determining how people feel and the impact that that has on their quality of life.”
“<BR /> <BR />It is good to see key outcomes on ending violence against women and girls and on safer communities. Feeling safe is an essential part of how we feel in our communities, in our places of work and when socialising. It is a key quality of life factor for all of us. I am glad that those important issues are highlighted in the Programme for Government. Violence against women and girls is a critical area that has a devastating impact across our communities, and we have seen more than 20 women killed since 2020 and many more cases where women and girls are being harassed, intimidated, beaten and threatened daily. The collective effort to prioritise that and to tackle its root causes is important.”
“I thank the First Minister and deputy First Minister for tabling the motion. The publication of the Executive's Programme for Government is a welcome step. It represents a commitment by the four-party Executive to work together in the interests of everyone in our society. <BR /> <BR />We are all too aware that we are working within an extremely tight financial situation that has been exacerbated by 15 years of austerity Budgets from the British Government. That fact has been acknowledged across the Chamber, highlighting the impact of austerity on our Budgets and the deficiencies in the level-of-need funding. Despite those challenging fiscal environments, having the Programme for Government is a good step forward in setting out Executive priorities and delivering better public services and outcomes for our people.”
“How much additional funding has the interim fiscal framework secured for public services here?”
“<BR /> <BR />We will have common ground on the challenges and opportunities, but what we really need is a joined-up, coordinated approach. We need the appropriate data to make informed decisions on the way forward so that we can sustain urban planning, ensure safety and well-being, ensure that we have a balanced economy and take workers' rights into account when we look at economic development. We need to bridge the gaps and re-stitch those inner-city communities in order to create the rich physical, social and economic tapestry that has the potential to be developed further in the city. We need to see the cultural and social renaissance of our city, ensuring that we preserve its identity whilst embracing change.”
“The Department for Communities, the Department of Justice and the Executive Office also have to make sure that we drive the vision and change that we want to see. We also need to involve the arm's-length bodies associated with each of those Departments. Belfast City Council can play an important role in locality planning and approach through the LDP. There is also, of course, the private sector. <BR /> <BR />Normally absent from all the conversations on the night-time economy are the inner-city communities that form part of the city centre's rich tapestry. We need to address the democratic deficit of those communities and voices in any conversation on how we develop the city centre and, importantly, the night-time economy. That includes the voices of our culture, arts and leisure sectors.”
“We have Michael, Belfast's night tsar, who is here today, and we have the night-time commission, which is looking at the night-time economy more broadly. We have public policy through the local development plan (LDP) that looks at the night-time economy from a planning perspective. We have our business improvement districts (BIDs), and, last October, the Department for the Economy launched research into the value and potential of the night-time economy. We have Belfast Chamber, with its asks, and the emerging Belfast Agenda. <BR /> <BR />All that points to the need for an integrated and connected plan. It is essential, as I said, to address the challenges but also the opportunities. We need Departments other than Economy and Infrastructure to be involved.”
“Many factors that contribute to the problems can also contribute to the solutions, such as safety in our city, its cleanliness, the public realm, city-centre living and, indeed, increasing overnight stays in the city. There is also historical severance and defensive planning, which is an issue that I raised last week, and whether we can re-stitch those inner-city communities into the city core. I am proud to be a resident and a representative of one of the working-class inner-city communities that form our city centre. <BR /> <BR />We also need to look at infrastructure and transport, our public realm and wider regeneration, as well as our cultural venues and assets and leisure provision.”