Sinéad McLaughlin
Foyle · Social Democratic and Labour Party · Northern Ireland
“After decades of silence, being believed matters; having your experience acknowledged matters; and knowing that society finally accepts the truth matters deeply. That is what, I hope, the legislation provides. <BR /> <BR />Throughout the process, I wanted to ensure that, where we could strengthen the Bill, we did.”
“Today is an important day because it is a day of accountability. I welcome to the Gallery all of the birth mothers, all of the adult adoptees and all of their family members. I thank everyone who has journeyed with you and loved you throughout the process.”
“As time passed, I believed that the original figure no longer reflected the recognition as strongly as it should have done, so I was pleased that Members from across the Chamber supported that amendment.”
“Behind every clause is a person; behind every amendment is someone's lived experience; and behind every decision that we make in the Chamber are people who have spent years carrying the consequences of decisions that they never made. That is why the legislation is so important.”
“It is often Members who receive the attention in debates such as this, but good legislation depends on the dedication and expertise of many people working quietly in the background. Today, we complete the legislative journey, but we should not pretend that justice begins and ends with the passing of a Bill.”
“We are here because survivors refused to accept that their stories would remain untold. We are here because they never stopped asking for what should never have been so difficult to receive in the first place: recognition, dignity and justice.”
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“Sorry. I have literally five minutes in which to speak. <BR /> <BR />We need to tell the truth about the programme in front of us, including its shortcomings and omissions. It lacks ambition. Over months now, we have debated issue after issue, many of which related to legislation. Now, we know that the Executive parties met 100 times in advance of the return to the Assembly. In that context, I am surprised that the programme is so light in substance and that so many important issues are missing. <BR /> <BR />The Minister of Education has said that he is looking at legislation involving a price cap on school uniforms, but that is nowhere to be seen. Families are looking down the barrel of another summer of forking out absurd sums of money to send their children to school.”
“<BR /> <BR />It is also welcome to see that the Justice Minister has committed to legislating on a range of issues, notwithstanding the long list of issues that remain unresolved, from the necessary ban on good character references to stand-alone hate crime legislation. <BR /> <BR />As SDLP economy spokesperson, I welcome the Bill that will adapt the functions of the Utility Regulator and look forward to the House's scrutiny of it. As we will debate later this afternoon, energy costs are out of control. That is thanks in no small part to the Government's failure to properly regulate the sector by giving the Utility Regulator the power to advise Departments, as well as the power to regulate home heating oil, something that, I hope, the Minister will consider including in the Bill.”
“After all, stop-start government has repeatedly prevented legislation here, and certain Bills have been delayed by dysfunction in this place. For example, the First Minister and deputy First Minister's Bill on a mother-and-baby institutions, Magdalene laundries and workhouses public inquiry and financial redress scheme cannot come soon enough; indeed, for many victims, it is already far too late. The Executive Office should proceed with haste with its introduction, conscious of the years of justice delayed and denied to those victims by the decisions of the parties of the First Minister and deputy First Minister to collapse this place again and again in recent years.”
“I welcome the opportunity to discuss the Executive's legislative programme. It is good that, after almost 130 days, we finally have a bit more clarity on what exactly the Executive intend to do in the remaining time in the session. <BR /> <BR />There is a lot in the programme that I welcome and would like to see progressed as quickly and as judiciously as possible, and I further clarify that the leader of the Opposition has clearly stated that the SDLP will not force a Division. We are, however, rightly critiquing the level of ambition. As the official Opposition, we have repeatedly pressed the case for delivery, and it is right that greater transparency is welcomed, even in the absence of a Programme for Government.”
“— the last time that we debated it, in 2021. Let us do this. Let us get it over the line.”
“We were told that a ban was to be introduced by the then Minister —”
“LGBT people have already had traumatic experiences in society and been subjected to levels of fear and discrimination that would shame other parts of these islands. It is the job of politicians and the Assembly to unpick that history. Banning conversion practices is part of that journey. Amnesty International supports our call today, calling conversion practices "inherently humiliating, demeaning and discriminatory". It has been clear that international human rights law prohibits conversion practices, and any Bill that is introduced must meet the recommendations of the UN independent expert on sexual orientation and gender identity. The question is not about whether the Assembly supports a ban, but about when we will get the ban over the line. I was really disappointed that, in the previous mandate, we failed to introduce such a ban.”
“The fact that we have still not banned the practice is an outworking of how dominated our society has been by religious organisations and coercive social conservatism. In my view, there is nothing Christian about conversion practices, and I know that Christians and people of all faiths are opposed to such practices. <BR /> <BR />It is 2024, and the slow progress on LGBT+ rights is a sign of a society that has an entrenched fear of and hostility towards people of difference that is rooted in patriarchal norms and standards and dominated by religious teachings. When we have made progress, it has often been made not in this Chamber but at Westminster. The Assembly has so often failed to act for LGBT people.”
“I would like to think that everyone in the Chamber will be united today in opposing conversion practices. That pseudoscience is nothing short of barbaric and is predicated on the idea that LGBT people need a cure. It has been termed as creating a "significant risk of torture" by the United Nations Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination, and it has been denounced by just about every credible medical expert. It is sometimes called "therapy", but it is nothing of the sort. It is undeniable torture designed to repress people's identity, which is one of the most cruel things that can be done to any individual. It is also worryingly common. <BR /> <BR />In 2022, a YouGov survey found that 18% of LGBT people had been subjected to efforts to change, cure or suppress their sexual orientation or gender identity.”
“It is incumbent on a range of Departments, not least the Executive Office, through its good relations work, the review of the Together: Building a United Community (T:BUC) strategy and the racial equality strategy, to lead on that agenda. <BR /> <BR />Preventative work is crucial. It cannot be solely the responsibility of any legal framework to eradicate hate crime. However, the Assembly needs to send out a very serious signal that addressing hate crime is not only the morally right thing to do but our political priority. I fear that, by stepping back from that commitment, we are sending the opposite message. I urge the House to back our motion today and oppose the amendment, which seeks to water down a commitment from the Minister. Let us all make progress, once and for all, on hate crime.”
“It is now a genuine concern to people right across society, many of whom engaged in that review, that the review's recommendations appear to have been undermined by recent comments from the Minister. To be clear: we would not support a dilution of urgency on this issue. Our call for a stand-alone hate crime Bill is not intended to encourage the Minister to kick the issue further into the long grass, or to pass it off to her successor in the next mandate. It is up to Ministers to step up to the issues that they are charged with addressing. <BR /> <BR />Of course, legislation is not the only way in which we, as an Assembly and a society, can combat hate crime. Legislation is only one part of tackling that heinous scourge. It is also crucial to change attitudes from the very earliest age through effective education.”
“We were told that that was the reality of government. The reality of government is also that we need to live up to the responsibilities of our commitments, and to deliver on the promises that have been made to the people. We have lost two years of Assembly business, which is deeply damaging to our politics, but that is no reason to step back from our commitments; it is, instead, the very reason to redouble our efforts. <BR /> <BR />Although it is welcome that the Minister still appears to be committed to some elements of the hate crime legislation, I really fear that it is inevitable that provisions will be watered down or ignored completely if a stand-alone Bill is not pursued. Indeed, it appears that we would risk repeating the same failures of a piecemeal approach, which the review recommended we should avoid.”
“Unfortunately, it appears that, by last month, the Minister had concluded that insufficient time remains in this mandate to take forward a stand-alone Bill. She is, effectively, backing away from the commitment that she and her party have made. On 20 May, the Minister told my party colleague Matthew O'Toole:”
“Like many others, I welcomed the consultation stages on such a Bill, including the extensive work that had already been undertaken on the more complex issues, such as dealing with sectarianism, and whether misogyny would be specified as a hate crime in the Bill. The Minister previously described the Bill as being of huge importance in protecting people's dignity, rights, safety and security. In the legislative programme that was set out by the Justice Minister's party in its 2022 manifesto, the second item listed is a:”
“Similarly, the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) confirmed that a single piece of legislation would assist in communicating to the public how seriously such matters were taken. The wide support for such stand-alone legislation shows just how much consensus there is for a Bill that could bring an overarching focus to hate crime, improve transparency and help to raise public awareness. <BR /> <BR />The call for stand-alone hate crime legislation is a recommendation that has also been repeatedly accepted and endorsed by the Justice Minister. In April 2021, speaking in the Chamber, the Minister said:”
“At the time, the Equality Commission said that strengthening hate crime legislation by consolidating it in one Bill:”
“He also made clear, in recommendation 31, the need to end the current piecemeal approach and consolidate current hate crime legislation into one Bill. That was supported by 79% of respondents to the consultation on the review. The current piecemeal approach was considered to be:”
“<BR /> <BR />Like many people, I have been deeply shocked and appalled at the racist anti-asylum seeker graffiti painted on walls across Northern Ireland. Many hate incidents have gone unpunished. Unfortunately, progress has been far too slow on this issue, and we risk adding action on hate crime to the list of issues that still have not been progressed by the Assembly. My party colleagues and I believe that making progress on hate crime should be right at the top of our priorities. <BR /> <BR />In 2020, Judge Marrinan published his seminal independent review of hate crime legislation in Northern Ireland. It engaged extensively with academics, experts and stakeholders. Its recommendations were clear and unambiguous, and he said that the current system and current laws were not fit for purpose.”
“Those attitudes have been given far too much oxygen in recent months. Last night, I attended the installation of the new Mayor of Derry City and Strabane, Lilian Seenoi-Barr. It was a joyous, profound and moving evening, but her appointment has shown us just how far we have to go when it comes to hate. If anyone has seen the trolls on her social media over the past four weeks — indeed, the trolls were out in some form last night again — they will find them really quite shocking. That has given me a sense of some of the darkest elements of the hate of difference in our society. We know that those are just some of the examples of the deeply toxic and damaging hatred that has come to the fore recently.”
“There should be no place for hate crimes anywhere across the North. We must root out hate everywhere we find it and never allow it to fester, including by dismantling the attitudes that drive those crimes in the first place.”
“Thank you, Mr Speaker. In proposing the motion on hate crime legislation, I particularly want to voice the SDLP call for such stand-alone legislation to be introduced within the next 12 months. <BR /> <BR />Everyone across the Chamber is appalled by hate crime in all its forms. We all want to make progress on this issue, and our shared interest is in ensuring that progress is made as quickly and effectively as possible. Hopefully, we are all united in finding the statistics on hate crime utterly horrifying. In the 12 months from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024, the following hate-motivated crimes were reported: 839 on the basis of race; 241 on the basis of sexual orientation; 730 on the basis of sectarianism; 58 on the basis of disability; 48 on the basis of faith and religion; and 41 on the basis of transgender identity.”
“Thank you, Minister, for your answer. Your Department's implementation strategy for integrated education does not set any targets for the growth of integrated education or tell us how much money you are going to spend. However, your actions have told us that you are not serious about integrated education, because you have taken away £150 million of capital spend on integrated education. Will you explain how we can reach realistic targets if we are not setting them in the strategy?”
“I thank the Minister for that answer. I know that he appreciates that a functioning Invest NI alone does not represent regional balance and that it has a much wider remit than that and is about not just his Department, as other Departments have to come in beside him to commit money and resources with him in order to really deliver deep and meaningful regional balance that will have good outcomes. I welcome the Minister's commitment to that. Rather than ask another question, I will say that I know that this is an ongoing issue that needs to be resolved quickly in this mandate.”
“The task force will produce a paper in September. The funds that are in place do not take into consideration recommendations that may come from the task force. Minister, are you confident that you will have money to put towards the expansion?”
“<BR /> <BR />It is no secret that Lilian's nomination has been met with intense and sustained online abuse. That should be a cause for all of us to unite and to denounce the cowards who hide behind screens and faceless profiles on social media. In a week in which we will debate hate crime, it is right that we say loudly and clearly to those voices that they do not represent us and certainly do not represent the people of my city. My city is one of protest and progress. Our people have always spoken up and fought for social justice. The fact that it will be Derry that nominates the first black mayor in Northern Ireland is deeply fitting and is a sign of our city taking another step on that march for equality and civil rights. <BR /> <BR />Lilian, congratulations. I wish you all the best in the year ahead as mayor.”
“She came here as a refugee and sought protection in Northern Ireland. The fact that she will now become our mayor is a sign of the possibility that exists for all people from all backgrounds. The barriers that Lilian has broken down are more evidence of the opportunity that exists for anyone who thinks that they may not be able to go as far as their talents will take them. There are now possibilities. <BR /> <BR />I am also proud that my party nominated her because she is someone who embodies our vision of a peaceful, prosperous, anti-sectarian future here based on difference and diversity. Lilian's appointment as our city's first citizen is also a mark of how far we have come as a society. It reflects a changing place and is a symbol of the diverse and pluralist community that we in Northern Ireland now all share.”
“I am delighted to mark a historic day for Northern Ireland. Tonight, my friend and colleague Lilian Seenoi-Barr becomes the first black mayor in Northern Ireland. Lilian's appointment is first and foremost a mark of her personal tenacity and resilience. Anyone who has met her knows that she is simply relentless. Lilian and I entered politics at the same time, and, in that time, I have seen at first hand how she has been a dedicated campaigner for her community and an unstoppable advocate for Foyleside and all the people across Derry. She has already made an enormous impact as a councillor and campaigner, and I know that she will make a remarkable mayor for Derry city and Strabane. She will truly speak up for everyone across the city and district. <BR /> <BR />Lilian's personal story is nothing short of extraordinary.”
“— coherence and cohesion in this Government. We will not support the Budget.”
“The Minister has not been able to identify who is responsible for leading the work on regional balance. When pressed, he effectively told me that it was everyone's responsibility. Well, if it is everyone's responsibility, it is nobody's responsibility. <BR /> <BR />Finally, we know that the public is crying out for a change in the way that we do politics here. We only need to look at the COVID inquiry in the past few weeks to see proof of the devastating impact of the silo mentality. We need to see more —”
“More worryingly, I am concerned that no funding appears to exist for the recommendations produced by the Magee task force. This cannot be pushed on to future years. The task force is likely to make recommendations in the coming months, and we need to see a ring-fenced budget to implement them. <BR /> <BR />In totality, it is concerning that there is no provision to screen any of this funding for regional balance. There has been a lot of talk about regional balance; there is no money for regional balance in any of the budgets, and there has been no meaningful screening with targets. It is supposedly one of the Minister's top priorities, but, too often, the Department has not been able to answer my basic questions for written answer on regional balance.”
“Those cuts are even more damaging when we consider that the Sinn Féin Minister for the Economy has rolled back on the DUP Minister's commitment to a full review of higher education. Since February, we have been asking about that review, which was supposed to consider support for the teaching institutions as well as for the students. The Minister has only been able to tell us that officials are still considering it. Well, that is not good enough. The Budget effectively cuts support to higher education, which is morally indefensible and economically illiterate. <BR /> <BR />It is good to see some funding allocated for the expansion of the Magee campus, albeit with a lack of clarity on its exact purposes, and, admittedly, it is a fraction of the amount that is likely to be needed.”
“I turn to the specific allocation made to the Department for the Economy. It is clear that the Department faces a number of significant challenges, including with Invest NI, where the £3 million pay pressure has remained unfunded and no specific funding exists to implement the findings of Sir Michael Lyon's review or the transformation of that organisation. Higher education is particularly badly affected, as the £7·5 million shortfall in the teaching grant has not been addressed, and the increase in student hardship funding made last year has not been repeated. It represents an effective cut to students who are already struggling to make basic ends meet. We are forcing students into poverty while they struggle to invest in their education.”
“That includes families who are struggling with childcare costs, and many of us were pleased to see the announcement last week by the Minister of Education about childcare costs. We know that that is only the start, as £25 million will never represent the kind of transformation of the early education and childcare system that we need to see. The fact that childcare bills have been allowed to spiral to such a significant extent is an indictment of the political failure here for many years. We must see much more ambition from the Executive in the coming months.”
“In the absence of competence and, too often, in the shadow of callousness, this Budget has come after the start of the fiscal year, and the reliance on short-term financial support has continued, while more and more people are forced into chronic and crippling poverty.”
“The gap in healthy life expectancy between the poorest and the most affluent areas is still between 11 and 15 years. That is unacceptable, and we all bear responsibility. <BR /> <BR />The Budget is a consequence of failure: the failure to sustain political stability here. Nobody can move away from the fact that, in a large way, that is due to the two biggest parties in the House. It is also a consequence of the failure of the UK Government to understand or even to empathise with our needs and of the failure of the Government here to generate the inclusive growth that is needed.”
“The failed economic strategy of the Government across the water, in Westminster — the bleak and cruel lifespan of which will, fortunately, finally come to an end in the coming weeks — has consistently undermined the ability of this place to deliver public services that meet all the needs of our people. <BR /> <BR />It is not the fault of the Tories alone. This morning, the chair of the BMA committee in Northern Ireland spoke about the end of the health service. Our public services are in complete free fall, collapsing before our eyes. We cannot just blame the Tories: this Government have failure writ large all over them. The absence of the institutions for many years and our hokey-cokey Government have broken our public services. Across Northern Ireland, thousands of people are effectively shut out of our health and education systems.”
“<BR /> <BR />This is the tenth year in a row when a single-year Budget has been agreed, despite repeated calls from parties across the Floor for a multi-year Budget. Also, the Budget was agreed in the absence of a Programme for Government, which is really regrettable. In essence, we are funding pressures instead of planning for our priorities. Clearly, the Budget will be agreed in a difficult context with a much higher proportion of unmet bids than in previous years. There is little doubt that the years of underfunding and brutal cuts from Westminster have taken their toll.”
“Thank you very much, Mr Speaker; I was not expecting that either. <BR /> <BR />As we debate the Budget, I want to acknowledge that it is good that the Assembly is in the position to discuss government spending priorities and exercise our legislative scrutiny role. At the start of this year, that was by no means guaranteed; indeed, some of us had lost faith that it would be back up and running any time soon. I also worry, however, that, due to the understandable relief that the Government are up and running again, we have set the bar much too low. I will make a number of points, first on the Budget and the process in general, before moving on to speak as the SDLP economy spokesperson to address that Department's allocations.”
“I commend the work of Brian Langstaff, the chair of the inquiry. He has done a tremendous job. He has gathered evidence over the past six years and presented a thorough report and recommendations. He has been a real champion of the victims of the blood scandal. <BR /> <BR />Minister, will individuals have a right of appeal against the compensation that they are awarded?”
“That is how a fragile peace process has survived. I am profoundly uneasy at the British Government's actions when they roll out red, white and blue PR exercises to appease one party here. That threatens the balance of relationships in this place, and it is characteristic of the Government and shows no understanding of our current context. <BR /> <BR />Finally, the conflicts around the world from Gaza to Ukraine ask all of us not to explore the profits of war but to make every effort for peace, particularly in Gaza, where the unfolding genocide is a humanitarian catastrophe. The UK should immediately stop any exports of arms to Israel, a country that is raining down terror on innocent men, women and children. That much should be obvious to anyone. We will not be able to support the motion.”
“Sorry, no. This is a time of immense pressure on our public services. Our health system is on its knees, and our schools are literally crumbling. There is a long list of priorities in this place, and we are still waiting to find out the Executive's approach to addressing them. In that context, I would not find it prudent to direct resources that, Ministers repeatedly tell us, are scarce towards this endeavour. The ambition of scaling up defence spending in Northern Ireland is not one that we share, and I do not want the Minister for the Economy spending her time on that effort when so many other more pressing issues are across her desk. <BR /> <BR />I also take the opportunity to put on record our opposition to the 'Safeguarding the Union' paper, since it is referenced in the motion. This place is all about balance.”
“I think that everyone on that Committee agrees that the Minister for the Economy should adopt a much closer working relationship with the Minister of Education to develop that pipeline and ensure that people of all ages can be skilled and reskilled for all sectors, including the sectors that, traditionally, have been neglected.”
“<BR /> <BR />Of course, while we would usually welcome greater economic output, I think that everyone accepts that increased demand for the production of weapons due to increased global unrest is a cause not for celebration but for alarm. It is a sign of escalating conflict and of a brutal regime's oppression of its neighbour. A strong and robust European defence policy is, of course, needed, and close cooperation between those nations is vital in order to protect peace and security. <BR /> <BR />The motion puts an emphasis on the skills of the future. I know that others in the Economy Committee are as concerned as I am that the Department has, in the past, been found sorely wanting when it comes to developing the skills pipeline that is needed to ensure that all our industries have the people that they need.”
“As we speak, I am conscious of the thousands of people employed by the aerospace, defence and security industries in Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland is already a global leader in innovative aerospace and security technology, and it is a source of pride for many people throughout these counties that their work leads the world in those industries. I am also aware — I am sure that the Minister will articulate this later in the debate — that Invest NI is already undertaking extensive work to seek investment of that kind, particularly but not exclusively in and around the Belfast clusters. Those industries are growing, and areas of Northern Ireland are quickly developing specialisms in those sectors.”
“First, I welcome you to your post, Minister. I very much look forward to working with you in the coming weeks. <BR /> <BR />It is good to see Invest NI and InterTradeIreland working really closely together. How is that collaboration promoting the North's dual market access and, in particular, the advantage of locating in the north-west city region? Does the Minister agree that a specific plan should be put in place for the north-west city region that can exploit opportunities in a collaborative fashion?”
“It may not be a pandemic, but something will definitely arrive and provoke instability in this place once again. <BR /> <BR />The truth is that the current structure of the institutions delivers bad government. If we do not use the opportunity to change the way Stormont works, remove the toxic veto and put the common good ahead of political party interests, we will once again be found sorely wanting. The COVID-19 inquiry should be another wake-up call to everyone in the Chamber to work together to reform the institutions. I hope that the biggest parties in this place will finally start listening and that they will step in and step up to the plate.”
“Such acceptance of that shortcoming as an inevitable part of our institutional arrangements is a dereliction. We cannot simply resign ourselves to the silo mentality. It is the job of our political leadership to break down that mentality, which serves no Department, no Minister and certainly not the public whom we represent. <BR /> <BR />Since the Executive returned, the issue of reform has slipped down the agenda, and the Executive parties have refused to take any meaningful action. There is absolutely no sign of the Assembly and Executive Review Committee properly dealing with the veto issue. My party's ask on our first Opposition day motion is therefore as relevant now as it was then. We do not know what the next crisis will be.”
“In that summary, she rightly identified the challenges of an inherently and institutionally dysfunctional system in which party political interests are placed above the interests of the people whom we are elected to represent. Those attitudes have led to the stop-start system of government that has not only frustrated our attempts to improve our health and education systems but crucially undermined the capacity of our institutions and Civil Service to respond to the pandemic. That point was re-emphasised by the words of the First Minister, as she admitted that we have a:”
“Like many people across Northern Ireland, when I watched the testimonies at the COVID-19 inquiry last week, I was left reflecting on what they said about our system of government. Brenda Campbell KC, in her blistering summary of the evidence, spoke of:”
“<BR /> <BR />The Republic of Ireland's tourism and hospitality market is eight times the size of Northern Ireland's, even though its population is just three times the size. That is no accident. It has been the intentional policy of the Republic of Ireland to put in place measures that boost hospitality and seize the enormous potential of the island, including through VAT. The huge differential in the VAT charge creates an imbalance North and South. Oxford Economics has calculated that a 1% reduction in VAT has equated to a 1·2% increase in employment. My colleague Matthew O'Toole will take that point further as we go through the debate.”