Matthew O'Toole
South Belfast · Social Democratic and Labour Party · Northern Ireland
“I appreciate my colleague's giving way. Unfortunately, I was not here for all of the Minister's remarks — like her, I have been in the Chamber for a lot of today, so I had to pop out and attend to some other business. I presume that the Member will agree that these provisions could be more properly included in the Sentencing Bill.”
“Clearly, however, the regulatory and enforcement regime for all those watercourses and marine environments is way out of date ecologically and, indeed, economically.”
“We learned about the antics of Jeffrey Donaldson that were not criminal — so far — only after his conviction. Reporters have been able to go and find that information and people have been able to speak — felt able to speak — because Mr Donaldson has been sent to prison, convicted of appalling crimes, and is therefore less likely to seek r…”
“We are pleased, in broad terms, to support it at Second Stage. We welcome the move towards an approach to fisheries management that is ecosystem-based rather than narrowly species-based.”
“We were robust in opposing those who were not willing to deal with the nutrients action plan, for example, which should have been a core part of dealing with Lough Neagh. Of course, the farming industry needed to be engaged, and the Minister has been doing a lot of that work recently.”
“On a point of order, Mr Speaker. In just a few hours' time, the House will go into recess for more than two months. There are two outstanding and grave matters that the public in Northern Ireland want us to deal with, but we are walking away, so I want your advice on Standing Orders.”
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“When I repeatedly ask the now Finance Minister, who was an Infrastructure Minister, what the plan is to invest in NI Water, he brushes me off. He talks about water charges. I do not want water charges — that is not our policy — but I want something. I want some form of investment. If that involves borrowing, by all means, let us hear it. Let us hear the plan. I have not heard the plan. The only thing that we have heard so far is words, and then, at the very first opportunity, people walk away from the core part of the Lough Neagh action plan.”
“<BR /> <BR />The Lough Neagh action plan, which we would like to have gone further in other areas, was clear that education, support and innovation will also be necessary. I welcome the fact that the Minister is here today. I want to hear from the Minister about what else is being done to support our agri-food businesses and our farmers in making that journey. This may not be his responsibility, which is why I would also like to hear from the Executive about what the Minister for Infrastructure and the Executive more broadly are doing about the crisis in Northern Ireland Water, because that is also a significant, but not the main, driver of the crisis in Lough Neagh. We simply are not investing enough in our waste water infrastructure.”
“However, we have a problem with our politics here in the North, which is the junction between words and the actions that follow. You cannot promise to deal with Lough Neagh and the crisis that we have there, which is the degradation of the source of 40% of our drinking water and one of Western Europe's largest lakes, and then, at the very first opportunity, vote to abandon the necessary action. Politics is about leadership. It is about standing up, occasionally making difficult decisions and communicating trade-offs. It is about saying to people that, in order to achieve something, which is the protection of that lake, we need to take this step. In saying that, it is also the case that we need to bring people with us.”
“If we reverse at the very first hurdle and the very first moment of starting to deal with the nutrient overload, which is the major, predominant driver of the degradation of Lough Neagh, what good are we? What good would we be as an official Opposition if we did not take that responsibility seriously? <BR /> <BR />It is important that we talk about accountability. I welcome the fact that the First Minister is here. As a constituency MLA, she has engaged consistently on and talked about the subject. I want her and her party to provide leadership, because the First Minister has said consistently that she wants to deal with the pollution at Lough Neagh and to restore the lough to full health. I welcome those words; I have always welcomed those words and intentions.”
“The decision to support the abandonment of the nutrients action programme while saying that we support the restoration of Lough Neagh was a grave error. Often, when we make errors in politics here, we have to wait years or decades for the error of those ways to be shown. We did not in this instance; we had to wait weeks — weeks — to see the algae bloom at Lough Neagh again. It is like a scene from sci-fi. Earlier, Mr Bradley, a Member for East Derry, mentioned the green water flowing — I think that he was talking about the lower Bann — up towards the north coast. It is happening before our eyes now. It will take years, if not decades, to fix.”
“<BR /> <BR />It is understandable that farmers and those in that sector have questions about how the programme is applied. It is their livelihoods and their communities that will be affected, and they need to be consulted. They were being consulted, but a motion was brought to the Assembly to abandon the consultation before the Minister who is responsible for the environment had even completed it. The programme is clearly the single most important action in the Lough Neagh action plan. All the parties in the Executive, bar the Alliance Party, the Minister's party, supported the motion. I am often accused in the Chamber of scoring points and being political. I do both those things because that is my job. It is also my job to try to find solutions and to be constructive and to offer people a way forward from bad decisions.”
“Our farmers are a treasure, they are precious and our party takes their protection seriously, but we have to be honest about the specific driver of pollution in Lough Neagh. The majority of it is being driven by agricultural run-off, with the other additions that I have mentioned. <BR /> <BR />Before the summer, a motion was brought to the Assembly to abandon something called the nutrients action programme (NAP). The nutrients action programme is core to, and is possibly the most fundamental part of, the Lough Neagh action plan. That plan is designed for the long term because restoring our greatest natural resource, Lough Neagh, and undoing some of the damage that has been done to it over generations, will take a long time. It is about starting to restore that precious natural resource over which we have custodianship.”
“There are multiple reasons for the blue-green algae, including the presence of zebra mussels, which clarify the water; the intensification of heat due to climate change; and a failure to invest in our waste water infrastructure, which means that we are, effectively, pouring hundreds of thousand of tons of effluent into the lough and other waterways. The single biggest driver, however, of the pollution and degradation of our greatest natural resource is environmental run-off. In saying those words, I have to be absolutely clear that I am not attacking farmers or our agricultural sector, which is also precious and something that we treasure and rely on for our food security, our prosperity and our rural communities.”
“We are here for a very short time, both on this earth, obviously, and in elected politics. Our time in politics — whoever we are — is brief, but Lough Neagh has been around since time immemorial. We have, therefore, been given the profound responsibility of being the custodians of our most precious natural resource. In this jurisdiction, our most precious natural resource — the source of 40% of our drinking water, Ireland's largest lake, the UK's largest lake, one of Western Europe's largest lakes and a treasure — is Lough Neagh, and it is dying. That is not hyperbole, and it is not exaggeration. It is an observable fact. <BR /> <BR />This summer, we saw the return of blue-green algae, a cyanobacteria that has blossomed all over the lough.”
“The response, however, from the state of Israel has been indescribably disproportionate and immoral. I do not know when it is going to end, because I fear that the world order is collapsing, with a grotesque lawbreaker in the White House who seems happy to allow genocide to happen. That is why it is so important that those of us who have a voice use it. <BR /> <BR />We will, of course, support today's motion. I welcome the fact that the matter has been brought back to the Chamber, and it should continue to be brought back to this Chamber and every Chamber in every democracy around the world that cares about decency, humanity and human rights. We support the motion.”
“People should use their voice and stand against the appalling actions of the Israeli state. <BR /> <BR />On 22 August, the UN World Food Programme, the World Health Organization and others said that half a million people were experiencing famine in Gaza. Half a million people, which is a quarter of the population, in a space the size of the Ards peninsula were experiencing famine. Four days later, Israel bombed a hospital. Innocent people were obviously killed, because that is what happens when you bomb hospitals. Then, when people went to rescue those who were trapped and dying under the rubble, Israel bombed the hospital again. A grotesque, genocidal war is being visited upon innocent people in Gaza. I do not minimise and have never minimised what happened on 7 October.”
“<BR /> <BR />All that I am saying today is that they should look back on the statements and read the words of Israeli Government Ministers. Read what they have said and then come back to the Chamber and repeat some of what you have said over the past while. I genuinely do not want to get into a back and forth across the Chamber. The most important thing is that we in the Chamber, even though we are on the island of Ireland, which is many miles away from Gaza, have a voice, and we have the ability to stand against an appalling genocide. Everybody has a voice, be it through a social media account or the ability to stand and participate in a protest, as people have done on numerous occasions on this island, including yesterday when Mothers Against Genocide stood outside the front of this Building.”
“The current Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, said that Israel had the right to blockade food, water and aid from Gaza. The Prime Minister said that, so do I think that his former Foreign Secretary and his Government are credible on the issue of genocide? Obviously not, Dr Aiken. <BR /> <BR />On the recognition of Palestine as a state, that is another example of where Mr Lammy will be on the wrong side of history, because, a few months ago, he pathetically and shamefully said, with great aplomb and apparently expecting praise, that the UK would, with conditionality if Israel did not do certain things, recognise the state of Palestine, giving a genocidal state — members of whose Government have said that they effectively want to wipe out the Palestinian people — the final say over whether a Palestinian state is recognised.”
“Thank you, Madam Principal Deputy Speaker. <BR /> <BR />I say this with the greatest respect: Dr Aiken has come to the Chamber on multiple occasions and said the most disreputable things on the subject. I do not want to get into a back and forth with him, but I think that he will look back and reflect on some of the statements that he has made in here. I hope that he thinks about the wisdom of those remarks. As I said, I do not want to get into a back and forth, because the subject is too important. <BR /> <BR />To cover his point specifically, do I think that the UK Government are credible on the subject of Israel and genocide? Of course I do not. They have spoken out of both sides of their mouth. They have been mealy-mouthed.”
“I wonder whether they will look back and reflect on what they said and whether they used their words, their platform and their mandate to stand against an appalling, depraved genocide that was happening in our times — in our lives — and that was facilitated by states, including the UK, which has been a long-time ally of the state of Israel. I sometimes wonder whether people will look back then. I will give way to Dr Aiken.”
“Respectfully, I will give way in one moment to the Member.”
“I sometimes wonder whether they think about themselves 10, 20 or 30 years hence, having had the opportunity to be elected representatives at a time when a genocide was happening. I wonder whether they and others will look back and reflect on their record when they had a platform in this Chamber, even if it was —.”
“We debated the appalling genocide and criminal actions of the Israeli state in Gaza just a few months ago. Since then, thousands of innocent Palestinians, including hundreds of children, have died. Let us put that into some context: more than the entire loss of life during our three-decade conflict has been lost in just a few months in a tiny strip of land about the size of the Ards peninsula. <BR /> <BR />When I hear people talk in the Chamber — I want us to approach the subject with seriousness, given the seriousness of what we are talking about — I sometimes wonder whether people quite appreciate the gravity of what we are living through when they say that we should, for example, "inject balance" into our remarks or, indeed, that what we say here does not matter.”
“The Member says that Hamas would be the barrier to a two-state solution. I am not and have never been a supporter of Hamas. I have criticised Hamas multiple times in the Chamber. Does the Member accept, however, that Israeli West Bank settler terrorism, violence and illegal settlements also represent a fundamental barrier to a two-state solution? Will the Member say that?”
“I appreciate the answer, Minister, and I am glad that you have read our six tests. You will know that I am not in government; I am in opposition, as is your colleague, uachtarán Shinn Féin, Mary Lou McDonald, who talked yesterday about being in opposition. My job is to ask you questions, because you have power. I did not ask you whether you thought that it would be built; I asked you when it would be built. You did not tell me. You said that it would be built in due course and that you were seeking meetings with your colleagues. Am I to understand that there has been no further progress on delivering Casement Park since the allocation of that £50 million? If I am wrong, please correct me.”
“Minister, you and I agree that we have a fundamentally broken fiscal and, indeed, constitutional model and that we need to take more power back here and on to this island more generally. Given that we know that the Budget, when it finally comes, will reflect an even greater fiscal squeeze in the UK because of its underperforming economy and a range of other decisions that we do not agree with, is not now the time to take powers and initiative into our own hands and for you to publish your proposals for greater fiscal devolution on a journey to much greater independence for us here and, indeed, change in this island?”
“Minister, obviously, we have a motion on Lough Neagh later, and we look forward to working with you on dealing with that. Lough Neagh and Belfast lough were raised by Members who spoke earlier, and it is clear that there is less North/South cooperation, less potential policy focus and less resource and regulation, because neither Lough Neagh nor Belfast lough is covered by the Loughs Agency or, for that matter, Waterways Ireland. That should change and would be a possible positive step. Would you support the extension of the Loughs Agency's remit to cover, for example, Lough Neagh, Belfast lough and, indeed, Lough Erne?”
“Let me just say that being robust and challenging is not the same as being disrespectful, Mr Buckley. <BR /> <BR />The Member talked about cross-community consent, but is it not, by definition, impossible to have cross-community consent on a post-Brexit arrangement because Brexit, by definition, does not have cross-community consent?”
“I thank the Member for giving way, and I will try to be brief. She mentioned cross-community consent and cross-community views. First, I have never ever demeaned or diminished unionist opposition to the protocol: I have not.”
“Does he want to unpack those myths and reject them? Some people are desperate to push the myths about what it means for what is, after all, a small and pretty vulnerable group of people and their parents?”
“It is important to talk sensibly about the issue and to unpack some myths. It is important, first of all, to say that trans people exist and trans young people are members of society who deserve healthcare, support, respect and esteem like everybody else. <BR /> <BR />Earlier, two things that feel like myths were mentioned. Partly, they were mentioned to discredit them, but they need to be properly discredited. The first is that care generally means that young people are pushed towards immediate surgery, and the second is that people are coerced. Will he outline whether he has any evidence of either of those things happening in Northern Ireland? I would like to hear it, because I am not aware of any campaigner or medical practitioner who would ever advocate immediate surgical intervention or coercion at all.”
“Minister, Malone is a brilliant school, and it really deserves a new building. Is it not the case that, if the approvals go through, Malone will be added to a capital list that is already heavily oversubscribed? Can you give Malone and other schools in the constituency, including St Joseph's College on the Ravenhill Road, some sense of when progress will be made on that list? If you say that there is too much constraint, at least be honest today by and say when, you think, that might be delivered.”
“Saying that "more needs to be done" is a remarkable understatement. The deputy First Minister did not specifically address the point about the cheap headlines that her party and the Education Minister are chasing today around vulnerable kids and guidance in schools. <BR /> <BR />I want to ask one other specific question that relates to delivery. We set six tests for you, and one is very specific: will work have begun on a rebuild of Casement Park by the end of the mandate?”
“Given the conversation that we have just had on violence against women, it is important to put on record the fact that Donald Trump was found liable by a jury in a New York court of sexually assaulting a woman and that there have been numerous other allegations against him. May I ask that, in your and your office's engagement with President Trump, while acknowledging his office and the importance of the United States to this place, we do not operate a values-free policy, whether that is in relation to violence against women, the ongoing genocide in Gaza or the use of the authorities in the United States to intimidate people? It cannot be a values-free engagement, so may I ask the deputy First Minister to ensure that it will not be?”
“Hang on one second. I let you in. <BR /> <BR />It is not going to upturn its entire relationship with the EU because a few unionist MLAs are ranting about it at Stormont. That is not going to happen. Here is the thing: grow up and accept the consequences of the Brexit that you championed. If you actually want this place to work, get down to real work rather than bringing this nonsense to the Assembly.”
“The UK, which is struggling with growth and says that it does not have enough money to fill its fiscal black hole, will not jeopardise its just-repaired relationship with the EU, in the context, by the way, of a war on the continent of Europe. It is not going to upturn its entire —.”
“The UK Parliament — I want a new Ireland — voted for these arrangements. I am sorry for Ulster unionism that it has got itself into the position in which the UK Parliament voted for arrangements that unionism detests so much. Perhaps unionism should reflect on the original Brexit decision and on its tactics now of tabling these absurd and futile motions for debate. <BR /> <BR />I care about the needs of business. I want smooth processes for businesses, whether they import or export. As Mr Tennyson rightly said, exporting businesses in Northern Ireland are increasing their exports. We are performing better economically than the rest of the UK. Yes, I want smooth processes east-west, but you are constantly tabling motions for debates like this about things that will not happen.”
“I will say this: I was delighted to hear the Member have a little pop at the work of civil servants. In front of her is the deputy First Minister, who has SDLP, Sinn Féin and Alliance Party civil servants working for her. What the Member just said is, frankly, a slur on all civil servants, but that is fine. I have made clear my view on all of that. <BR /> <BR />I will go back to the point that the Member made about majority rule. Mr Brooks mentioned the idea of a constitutional norm, but that is an absurd and wrong argument. By definition, the constitution of this place does not require double majorities for everything. We are in the UK, but I do not consent to that. That is not the way in which this place works, so it is an absurd argument. Mr Brooks also acknowledged that Parliament is sovereign.”
“The mad decision that was made by English/British voters in June 2016 is what has driven that. Brexit was not something that I wanted, but it will expedite something that I do want, which is a new Ireland. Today, unionism is once again having a debate in the Assembly not about healthcare, waiting lists or Lough Neagh but about a debate that it cannot win. The Windsor framework is something that you created and have made worse every time. <BR /> <BR />I will be honest: as someone who worked in London and understands how that machine works, I know that no one over there cares about the Windsor framework at the moment. I am really sorry to have to say that, but let me be blunt: it is not on the agenda in London or in Brussels. The Murphy review makes some sensible, practical suggestions. <BR /> <BR />I will give way very briefly.”
“I did not say that it was not worthy of debate. I will tell you this, Mr Buckley: I am happy to debate this any day of the week. I and my side will win the debate, because we have won the debate repeatedly. <BR /> <BR />I say this in the nicest possible way: I am in politics here because of Brexit. I have talked about that many times. Ms Ferguson mentioned that, next year, it will be a decade since Brexit. I was then a civil servant, working in the middle of it. I was literally in Downing Street when it happened. I left that life and career because I could not stay in it. I thought that Brexit was dreadful for Ireland, for Northern Ireland and for the whole system, and so it has turned out to be, worst of all for unionism. <BR /> <BR />I think that we are moving towards a new Ireland, back in Europe.”
“I recognise, however, that some sensible things are recommended in the report: better resource for Assembly Committees; some action on repayments under the duty reimbursement scheme; and a number of other things. We engaged with Lord Murphy and mentioned our proposals for an EU Commission office in Belfast, as well as observer status for Northern Ireland representatives, be they MLAs or, indeed, directly elected MEPs. <BR /> <BR />I give way briefly to Mr Buckley.”
“I will be happy to give way in a moment; I just want to outline some of my points. It will come as no surprise to anybody in the Chamber that the SDLP will oppose the motion and the amendment. <BR /> <BR />I will say this: the Murphy review offers practical ideas for smoothing processes in moving goods from Britain into Northern Ireland and improving democratic scrutiny in the Chamber. It is a reasonable bit of work. I do not agree with everything in it. Of course, I did not agree with Brexit: Northern Ireland should be back in the EU. I reiterate the point that I have made multiple times in the Chamber: the only way that that will happen — the only way of taking control of that process — is by voting for a new Ireland back in Europe.”
“Here we are again. We return after a summer break with, as Mr Tennyson said, public services in crisis, Lough Neagh dying in front of us, race and sectarian hate crime on the rise and a list of other things to debate, and, sure as day follows night, we have a motion on the Windsor framework in which the DUP seeks to negate the consequences of, as many Members have said, the hard Brexit that the DUP itself championed, delivered and insisted on.”
“I thank the Member for giving way. He says that cross-community consent is a constitutional norm. Should it not therefore have applied to the concept of Brexit overall for the UK's leaving the EU? His colleague clearly does not agree, but, if it is a constitutional norm, why did it not apply to the central decision of leaving the EU?”
“This is perhaps the most obvious test of all: can they promise that they will still be here and that there will still be an Executive in 2027? <BR /> <BR />Those should not be difficult questions, but, for the Executive, they probably are, because they are failing to deliver on all those things. We set out those six tests today not to be oppositional or difficult but to ask simple questions on behalf of the public of Northern Ireland, who deserve better. Can the Executive deliver for them, be honest with them and do right by them? We have set the tests today. Let us see the Executive follow.”
“They should not be difficult or impossible, because they are the tests that they set themselves. They are either based on things in the Programme for Government or are official targets. Can this four-party Executive pledge that, by the end of the mandate, waiting lists for cancer treatment — Miss McAllister spoke about that earlier — and waiting lists in emergency departments will be coming down and that we will have met the targets that are set out in law? Can they promise that work will have started on the life-saving A5 and the landmark Casement Park? Can they promise that nutrients flowing into Lough Neagh will be reducing? Can they promise that the Executive will have delivered 6,000 social homes by 2027? Can they promise that childcare costs will be lower for working families than when the Executive came in?”
“Mr Speaker, I welcome back you and all our Assembly colleagues after a long summer break during which not much happened. The public of Northern Ireland might not have noticed that this place was not here, because not much has been delivered since we returned in February 2024. There has been a litany of failure by the four-party Executive. The Executive are not just failing; they are comatose. They appear to be somnolent and inert, and nothing is happening. The public out there were promised change and clear action back in February 2024, but nothing has happened and nothing is happening. Levels of public trust in the Executive are at rock bottom, but it does not have to be like this. <BR /> <BR />As a constructive Opposition, we are robust, and will continue to be so, in challenging the Executive. Today, we set them six simple tests.”
“Given his background as an educationalist, he retained a profound interest in education and its possibilities for transforming people. We are in his debt. <BR /> <BR />He was an extraordinary Irishman, an extraordinary Fermanagh man and an extraordinary educationalist and public representative. His friends, colleagues and comrades in the SDLP continue to thank him and his family for his service. He is survived by his wife, Eileen, and their children, Clora, Thomas, and Donogh. May his gentle soul rest in peace.”
“When it came to getting electricity and expanding the NIE Networks service to areas in rural Fermanagh, roads or anything else, Tommy was a diligent and proud local representative in Fermanagh. <BR /> <BR />Those of us who serve here will know that sometimes this place can be stressful and challenging. You are not sure whether you are prioritising the right things or doing the right things. Over the past year or two, I regularly received text messages from Tommy Gallagher, who kept abreast of everything that was happening in politics, both in Stormont and on this island. Those were encouraging text messages, but sometimes they came with a suggestion about an issue that I might want to focus on, particularly in relation to education.”
“As you said, Mr Speaker, he taught for decades at St Mary's High School in Brollagh. Not only did he teach there but he coached GAA. Brollagh became a force in Fermanagh schools GAA — a force that probably belied its relative size. He was committed to that. <BR /> <BR />In the 1990s, he was brought into the talks team by John Hume and Seamus Mallon. He was passionate about education, but also passionate about North/South issues. Being not just a border MLA but a border resident, he knew about the potential of not just reconciliation but better working across the border for the good of those communities. He fought hard for those communities for years as an SDLP representative.”
“Tommy was an extraordinary man. He was part of a generation that, in some cases, we are now losing: one that, through the darkest days, helped to stand for the values of peace, reconciliation and justice and then helped to craft the peace that we enjoy today. As you said, Mr Speaker, Tommy had one of the longest commutes to the Assembly, from his home in Belleek. That is something that he shared with my Committee counterpart Jemma Dolan, who knows how long a drive that is to serve the people who sent you here. In many ways, Tommy's connection to that Belleek community was what stuck with him. <BR /> <BR />He was born on the Donegal/Fermanagh border in 1942. He had a passion for GAA, which was a thread that ran through his professional and personal life, but he was also an educationalist.”
“It is with sadness but also immense respect and gratitude for the life of Tommy Gallagher that I rise to lead the tributes today. Thank you, Mr Speaker, for giving us the opportunity today to share some words and reflections on the passing of Tommy Gallagher.”
“I appreciate the Member's giving way. I was formerly, briefly, a Member of the Committee on Procedures. This is an important thing that is being brought forward. Does the Member agree that part of the reason that it is so important is that, although we are now in 2025, there are several Bills outstanding from what was, originally, the 2024 legislative programme? This new Standing Order will allow us to keep a score, on behalf of the public, of all those bits of delivery.”
“In broad terms, the fact that we have the Administrative and Financial Provisions Bill is welcome. There is lots of detail that we have not had the chance to go through, as a Committee or as individual MLAs, so I say once again that, although, rightly, we will pass the Bill at Second Stage, members of the Finance Committee, who will be doing their job, and other Committees need to look through the detail of what we are passing and understand precisely the legal ramifications. The provisions are all sensible, and the Bill is largely a tidying-up exercise, but we should still be across the detail, because a fundamental point about the seriousness of this legislature is at stake. In broad terms, we support the Bill's passing at Second Stage.”
“It has often been used to fund hotels, which are not necessarily excluded from commercial lending. In one case, which was particularly interesting, it was used to fund a car park. That is, I think, worthy of interrogation. That is the NI Investment Fund. I hope that that will work better and that, in the course of interrogating the Bill, we will understand how the Department intends to manage the NI Investment Fund much more strategically.”