Sian Mulholland
North Antrim · Alliance Party · Northern Ireland
“Members from different parties recognised that our justice system must continue to evolve and continue to have children, young people and victims at its heart. What, we know, works to reduce offending and create safer communities has that support. <BR /> <BR />Not every contribution reflected that approach.”
“I will use my final Member's statement before recess to reflect on the work of the Ten is Too Young Coalition and all those who have worked so passionately to increase the minimum age of criminal responsibility (MACR), including Voice of Young People in Care, the Children's Law Centre, NIACRO, the Northern Ireland Commissioner for Childre…”
“We so often hear calls in the Chamber for legislation that is evidence-led, data-driven and compliant with our human rights obligations. Those are principles that I wholeheartedly support, but they cannot be principles that are applied only when they are convenient. Children's rights are human rights too.”
“<BR /> <BR />The triggering of the petition of concern mechanism was a misuse of a mechanism that was designed to protect minority rights. Here it is, blocking change designed to protect those who are most vulnerable.”
“Safeguarding falls within your remit, Minister. We know that, but we also know that it is the responsibility of each and every one of us. That is part of the Children (Northern Ireland) Order 1995. Faith-based counselling is not subject to the same regulation as other clinical counselling services.”
“Thank you, Minister. I am glad to hear you say that the role played by social workers is "complex and challenging". From what I hear from those who have contacted me, social workers are stretched to capacity. What is the Department doing to address that?”
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“The independent investigation found that the Member's comment to the Chair to "breathe" constituted an "unreasonable and excessive personal attack" under rule 15. However, contrary to media commentary, notably delivered ahead of the embargo this morning, that was only one part of a deliberate ploy to undermine the Chair's integrity. <BR /> <BR />The report notes that the comment was both "unreasonable" and "excessive" and can be "perceived as dismissive or invalidating", as well as "condescending and patronising". I want to be clear: there have been attempts to diminish that element — we have just heard it — as the rough and tumble of politics. There is a clear difference. That was not in the robust debate of issues.”
“First, I thank the former, independent Commissioner for Standards, Dr Melissa McCullough, the Committee and all others involved in the response to the complaint. What we have is an independent, considered and expert-led outcome. I remind others that the content of the report is the only basis for today's debate. Whilst others have sought to distort and distract the narrative in and outside the Chamber, that is the issue before us today. <BR /> <BR />A summary of the allegations in the complaint is that the Member concerned repeatedly failed to follow the Chair's directions, disregarded the rules regarding the remit of the Committee and made inaccurate public statements about the Chair.”
“Thank you, Minister, for coming to the Chamber. In your statement, you referenced the business growth accelerator policy, which was discussed last summer during my conversations with businesses in North Antrim on the Reval process. They talked a little bit about the business growth accelerator programme that is happening in other parts of the UK. Will we see that soon? Do you have a timeline for bringing forward any of that policy?”
“I believe that the Member for North Antrim Mr Gaston did both during his Member's statement, and I ask that you make a ruling on that.”
“On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Again, under Standing Order 24A(6)(b) and (d) Members' statements must not:”
“Does the Minister believe that the ministerial code has any meaning whatsoever, if Ministers can reject the findings on a breach not once, but twice, and face no consequences? The public cannot hold you to account, Minister, and this Assembly cannot hold you to account. Is that correct?”
“Take the anti-poverty strategy, for example, Minister. Academics have raised with me the fact that some references in the draft strategy go back as far as 2008. In fact, there is Joseph Rowntree Foundation research from 2012, which has been updated. What can your Department do to ensure that you liaise with academics to ensure that the research that you use is as up-to-date and current as possible?”
“I thank the Minister for his answer and for the work that he and his Department have done so far. Will the Minister give an update on the new rural policy framework?”
“to the nearly one million visitors, hopefully, who will come to Belfast. Like Sister Maria, I look forward to seeing the city:”
“<BR /> <BR />If we get this right, the fleadh can leave more than just memories: it can leave confidence, skills, connections and a renewed belief that culture, at its very best, brings people together. Obviously, my party will support the motion. We will also support Mr Carroll's amendment, which calls for a working group. Ádh mór oraibh”
“It shows that the people who live and breathe those traditions do not see culture as a zero-sum game. <BR /> <BR />Unfortunately, there has been a wee bit of predictable negativity around the event in Bangor. Despite reassurances from council officials, clear support from the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association and the obvious economic and cultural benefits, some people seem determined to look at a celebration of music and search for something about which to be annoyed. Apparently, to have two music events on the same day is not an opportunity but a crisis for some people. The TUV representative is not here, but it was his party colleagues who made those comments. If the bands community can see the value in sharing space, audiences and energy, it is very hard to understand why some politicians cannot.”
“Thank you. <BR /> <BR />Yes. Inclusion has been not only talked about but acted on. Belfast City Council has actively engaged with the Belfast Bands Forum and the Orange Order, recognising that inclusion is not accidental: it is intentional. That outreach by Ards CCE has sent a powerful message — one that I could not agree with more — that culture can be a space for celebration, not division. That approach was further strengthened by the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association Northern Ireland, which has written in support of the dual approach in Bangor, where the Ulster Pipe Band Championships and a fleadh fringe event will take place on the same day. That intervention really matters because it comes directly from the bands community and people who actually know what they are talking about.”
“to lift the spirits. I want to start by paying tribute to the Ards branch of the Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann, especially Niall, Bronagh and Mervyn, who have worked tirelessly with Belfast City Council to bring the fleadh here. It is no small achievement. Maith sibh agus comhghairdeas”
“I love the fact that the world's largest festival of Irish music and dance will take place in Belfast this year. At a time when there is so much doom and gloom, we could all do with a bit of ceol”
“There should be limits on short-term holiday lets to protect homes for members of the community, and we should at least look at the viability of a statutory housing ombudsman with the powers that would be needed to uphold standards and protect tenants when things go wrong. <BR /> <BR />Regardless of what happens, the direction of travel needs to change immediately, because housing is not just a commodity; it is the foundation of people's lives, and it is a human rights issue. Anything that we can do within our scope at the moment has to be prioritised.”
“As Mrs Cameron mentioned, I understand the importance of the opportunity to buy your own home, but how can that be justified when the housing crisis is being driven by the fact that not enough homes are being built at a time when social housing stock has been sold off and not replaced? Every social home that is lost does not just disappear; it reappears as pressure elsewhere. That is why the call in the motion for "robust third generation rent controls", alongside stronger tenant protection, matters. <BR /> <BR />As my colleague Ms Armstrong outlined, we support practical, achievable reforms, an affordable rent triple lock to stop damaging rent hikes and an end to no-fault evictions, so renters can put down roots.”
“Housing instability is one of the most significant stressors that a person can face. When it becomes widespread, it not only harms the individual but places additional strain on our health services. I imagine that all MLAs have had people who have come in with health issues relating to mould in rental properties. It places additional strain on our homelessness systems and emergency accommodation, all of which are costly reactive responses to a problem that should be prevented rather than constantly reacted to. All that we have talked about is overlaid by the fact that housing policy is unable to keep pace with reality. <BR /> <BR />The continued loss of social housing stock, which many of us have mentioned, intensifies pressure right across the system.”
“Maybe the Minister could confirm whether he has had any conversations with local councils about the issue recently. A quick update would be really helpful. <BR /> <BR />Fuel poverty is also a key issue in the picture, particularly in the private rented sector. Many renters live in poorly insulated, energy-inefficient homes, with little power or capacity to be able to improve them. Too often, landlords will not invest in energy efficiency, leaving tenants to be hit twice, once by their high rents and, again, by their high energy bills, both of which directly feed into poverty. <BR /> <BR />I hear all the time from constituents, particularly younger renters and their families, that they would never challenge poor conditions or unsafe repairs for fear of eviction or sudden rent increases.”
“In North Antrim, I regularly hear from people who are paying so much more in rent than they would pay if they had a mortgage, yet they are unable to access a secure, high-quality home in the private rented sector. In the north of my constituency, that pressure is compounded by the loss of long-term private rentals to short-term holiday accommodation. Homes that once housed local families are increasingly being priced and repurposed away from the local need. To be clear: this is not about opposing tourism. Tourism is vital to our economy. I live in a very tourist-centric town. However, without regulation, unrestrained short-term lets reduce supply, drive up rents and force local people to compete for fewer homes. That is destroying communities across my North Antrim constituency amongst others.”
“I support the motion because affordable housing is a poverty issue, a mental health issue, a child well-being issue and, increasingly, an equality of opportunity issue. It is another clear example of why we need a Government in which all Departments work together to address what has become a serious societal crisis that is like a loop on repeat. We do not need the Office for National Statistics analysis to tell us that private rented accommodation in Northern Ireland has become less affordable since 2020 as rents have increased more rapidly than pay. We hear that from our constituents every day. Like for Mr Butler, week after week and month after month, it is, by a country mile, the issue that is brought into my constituency office most commonly.”
“Thank you so much for outlining the issues that are at play here, Minister. I am mindful of my constituents and particularly of the Mitchell family, who lost their beautiful daughter Chloe in June 2023 and who have spoken about preparing themselves for an imminent trial. I ask this with them and their trauma in mind: what steps have been put in place to support victims and witnesses during this time of uncertainty?”
“It is disgraceful that, at a time when public services are stretched and ratepayers are under so much strain, a rates bill for an office connected to a political party has gone unpaid for years. Given that the unpaid rates bill is linked to a particular political party and rather than naming the individuals, can the Minister outline whether the onus is on the political party to pay it?”
“Thank you. Minister. The centre's closure in 2017 was a massive loss. However, given the admirable new commitments by the Scottish Government in their Schools (Residential Outdoor Education) (Scotland) Bill, what percentage of children in Northern Ireland have the opportunity to engage in an outdoor education experience?”
“I thank the Minister for the very welcome statement; I am delighted to see that step towards my colleague Danny Donnelly's Member's Bill on the UNCRPD. Will the Minister give an idea of the timeline? What will come first? A wee bit of clarity would be useful on whether the recruitment for the disability forum will happen first or the actions will all happen alongside one another. I really welcome the disability forum, which is a great idea — we have to put people at the heart of the policies that matter to them — but how will the forum members be recruited? What will the process be, and how will the Minister ensure that the forum is fully representative?”
“Deputy First Minister, I appreciate your answer. There is a real fear about hidden harm, especially in rural and semi-rural communities. You mentioned the planned interventions, but can there be an evaluation of whether an extension to the existing programmes, such as Urban Villages and Communities in Transition, would prevent those rural and semi-rural communities from being left behind?”
“Are there any plans to install additional Changing Places facilities in Parliament Buildings?”
“Lowering emissions targets would undermine Northern Ireland's climate commitments and our global reputation. <BR /> <BR />Progress has to be fair and evidence-based and to avoid carbon leakage. The Sinn Féin amendment reflects a more balanced approach, and we will support it. Ensuring food security and sustainability can go hand in hand. That is the reality, and that is why we will oppose the unamended motion and support the amendment. The motion looks at food security in the rear-view mirror, when what this region needs more than anything is a vision for the future. The Minister has clearly set out a vision, but he needs the support of all his Executive colleagues to make that vision a reality.”
“There are Ministers in the Executive from the DUP who have the power to ease food security more effectively than any change to climate targets or legislation. The Minister for Communities holds the pen on the anti-poverty strategy, and the Education Minister holds major responsibility for food security through free school meals and holiday hunger provision. Let us talk about food security, but let us talk about it honestly. It will not be secured by lowering our climate ambition, and it will not be secured by ripping up trade agreements. That is why I support the Minister's doing whatever he can to enable farmers to invest in technology and practices that future-proof agriculture but also future-proof our environment, rather than rolling back on our environmental ambition.”
“It is not just trade: the DUP backed the UK Government's migration White Paper, despite years of warnings that the agri-food sector, including mushroom growers, need that access to labour. It is absolutely critical. It is deeply hypocritical to claim to be defending farmers whilst supporting policies that leave farms without workers on a seasonal basis. The architects of Brexit are now protesting the barriers that they helped to build. <BR /> <BR />From my Communities perspective, I also put on record that, while we talk about food security from the point of view of production, it is also about the depth of poverty in this country. Food security is not only about what we produce but what people can afford to put on their plates.”
“The motion takes a real concern — food security — and uses it as a vehicle to roll back on climate ambition and to reopen political arguments about the Windsor framework, rather than genuinely addressing how we ensure that people here access good food in the years ahead. Scrapping the protocol would not be a solution but an act of self-harm. As agri-food leaders have said, Brexit created major frictions and challenges, most of which were resolved by the protocol, which now offers new opportunities. Another stakeholder put it plainly when I spoke to them, saying that their members benefit from unfettered trade to GB and onwards to the EU, and they want those benefits to be protected.”
“We are a region with a proud agricultural heritage, and I have such a deep respect for our farmers, who work every day in every season to feed the rest of us and the countries further afield where our food is exported. They deserve honesty, and the motion does not provide that. It reads like another attempt to undo the consequences of a future that the proposers helped to create. <BR /> <BR />Food production is already recognised as a strategic asset through the food strategy framework, which links food to health, education, climate, sustainability and economic growth. The truth is that there are sectors in our agri-food industry that, without the Windsor framework, would simply collapse. If anything has held our agriculture back, it has been Brexit and bad trade deals that the DUP actively welcomed.”
“Thank you, Minister. You talked a wee bit about information-sharing and the sharing of knowledge. Has there been any discussion around the sharing of information on disqualified drivers?”
“Minister, is it still your intention to provide the Minister of Justice with first call at the next monitoring round in relation to the moneys that were hoped for for PSNI recruitment?”
“<BR /> <BR />Minister, to echo those who have spoken before me, I ask you this: are you prepared to commit to ensuring that Birch Hill is prioritised in your request for the capital investment plan? Will you provide a public timeline with milestones so that staff and families can plan with confidence? With regard to the northern half of the Northern Trust area, will you guarantee that there will be no closure or scaling back of the Ross Thomson unit until replacement capacity is fully funded and operational? Will communication improve with stakeholders from the Causeway area?”
“<BR /> <BR />When we hear about the conditions in Holywell, as the alternative, and at the Ross Thomson unit, I think that the safety of patients and staff is at risk. If the Ross Thomson unit were to close prematurely and the date was before any proposed timeline for Birch Hill, the pressure would shift immediately to Holywell and to Antrim Area Hospital. Beds would become scarcer and admissions so much more complex. We know the practical outworkings of that. It means that patients in mental health crisis and acute distress wait longer in EDs and are placed on general wards where the environment is not appropriate to their needs. That affects everyone, whether they are in mental health crisis or waiting for physical healthcare, emergency care or elective procedures.”
“Staff work in an overstretched environment. Patients already wait far too long for specialist care. There is anxiety about what happens next, because, whilst there are plans for the Ross Thomson unit to close, there is no publicly confirmed date or any guarantee that I know of that it will remain open until the replacement capacity at Birch Hill is fully operational. That is causing an awful lot of anxiety among staff who work in the Ross Thomson unit, families and, as Ms Hunter mentioned, the community and voluntary organisations and other stakeholders. At the minute, they feel as though they are being asked to prepare for a future that they cannot see. That is not the transformation that Northern Ireland so badly needs.”
“I thank Mr Kearney for bringing this issue to the Floor. I echo the comments made by my colleague John Blair, who has long championed the need for safe, modern and accessible mental health services across our shared trust area. It speaks volumes when you have representatives from three constituencies who are all invested in the issue. <BR /> <BR />I want to talk about the pressure and uncertainty that my constituents face with the delay in delivering Birch Hill and from the proposed closure of the Ross Thomson unit at Causeway Hospital, which affects people right the way from Ballycastle and the glens over to Ballymoney. Mental health services in the Northern Trust area are already under strain. That pressure will only grow. The pressure on Causeway and, in particular, the Ross Thomson unit is growing.”
“Thank you, Minister, for your statement. I understand that recommendations 25 and 26 in the response talk about some changes relating to smaller venues and creative spaces and things like that. How does the Department intend to ensure that smaller arts and cultural venues, which often rely on occasional alcohol sales to sustain their programming, are not disadvantaged by any current legislation and by the licensing regime, given that there is no provision for them to really feed in to that? What engagement, if any —”
“Thank you, Minister, for coming to the House today with the statement. We know that housing associations are independent businesses in their own right that and that it is up to their boards to determine whether, with such a significant change, they can afford to continue to deliver new homes. Minister, will you give us a wee bit of insight into your basis for saying that you do not think that this will impact on the number of new homes that will be started?”
“— and shaped by lived experience. A strategy without delivery is not a strategy at all.”
“Child benefit, the working family payment and free school meals and schoolbooks have lifted 150,000 children out of income poverty and 94,000 out of consistent poverty. That is what happens when depth and deprivation are taken seriously. <BR /> <BR />We need targeted interventions that shift the outcomes. Above all, we need an anti-poverty strategy that is worthy of the name, grounded in objective need, framed in a life-cycle approach —”
“Therefore, we urge the Minister of Education to review the decision, raise the eligibility threshold for free school meals and work closely with his colleague the Minister for Communities to deliver a coordinated response. <BR /> <BR />The Communities Minister tends to bristle a bit when I use Scotland as a benchmark, so we will look instead at the Republic of Ireland. That jurisdiction has placed a real emphasis on measuring the depth and level of deprivation. It measures "at risk of poverty", "enforced deprivation" and "consistent poverty". Recent Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) work identifies children who are deprived even when their parents' income sits just above the poverty line.”
“I come now to the UUP amendment. We welcome it and share the concerns that it raises. Rising food costs have placed significant strain on households across Northern Ireland. They have deepened food insecurity and widened health inequalities. We are concerned that the Education Authority's recent increase in the cost of school meals will only add to those pressures, particularly for families who are already struggling to make ends meet. Access to affordable food, including school meals, is essential in tackling child poverty and improving health outcomes, so we will support the amendment. It is vital that decisions by all Departments and all arm's-length bodies align with what is, as we are constantly reminded, an Executive anti-poverty strategy.”
“The draft anti-poverty strategy contains no targets or indicators, so I ask for them to be included. We cannot continue with a broad-brush approach when the evidence shows that hardship is concentrated, severe and worsening.”
“Those people are experiencing and managing the deepest and most damaging forms of hardship — severe food insecurity, destitution and hunger and hardship — that go far beyond what the headline poverty rates capture. <BR /> <BR />In Northern Ireland, the persistence and depth of poverty and the poverty gap are not routinely measured. We rely entirely on absolute and relative poverty rates despite all the evidence that those headline figures no longer capture the severity of the hardship.”
“Do we have all three of those in the House? <BR /> <BR />Unless people living in poverty can see their fingerprints on the solutions, they will not have those people's trust. That brings me to a point that the motion implicitly recognises: it is not about how many people are struggling — we know the numbers all too well; we have heard them many times in debating many other motions — but about how deep the struggle has become. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation shows us not only that poverty is widespread across the UK but that it is deepening. <BR /> <BR />Hardship is intensifying and becoming even more entrenched in Northern Ireland. The Trussell Trust's 'Cost of Hunger and Hardship' report estimates that 200,000 people, including 62,000 children, which is roughly one in seven, face hunger and hardship.”
“Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, for the opportunity to speak on the motion. I thank the Members who brought the issue to the Floor. The anti-poverty strategy consultation may be over, but poverty is not pausing. Poverty is tightening its grip on such a wide swathe of households, but it is the depth of poverty that should trouble every one of us in the Chamber. <BR /> <BR />At a recent Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) round table that we attended, Baroness Lister of Burtersett, one of the UK's leading social policy thinkers, set out with absolute clarity what an effective anti-poverty strategy must look like:”
“It is a wee bit disappointing that we still do not have a timeline. I feel that we waited quite a long time until the draft strategy was initially released, and now it feels like we are back in a holding pattern. Will the Department publish the responses that were received from the stakeholders, and is the Minister able to indicate whether those responses were supportive of the current draft document? When we will hear about the sector's responses?”
“Thank you so much for bringing the statement to the House, Minister. I absolutely agree with some of your points about how there should be no discrimination in any sport, regardless of a person's background or perceived background. I welcome the fact that the review took place, and I welcome its recommendations. Minister, will you give us a wee bit more detail about why you believe that the Department did not follow through on the recommendations in the 2013 Morrow report and about how the recommendations on the code of conduct and social media policy will flow through via an arm's-length body?”
“, President Higgins leaves a legacy of compassion, intellect and deep cultural pride. On behalf of those who have admired his leadership, I offer heartfelt thanks for his service to people across this island and beyond in his international role. <BR /> <BR />As his tenure comes to a close, we extend our warmest wishes to Catherine Connolly as she begins her term in Áras an Uachtaráin. I hope that her service will continue the spirit of empathy, equality and imagination that President Higgins so beautifully embodied. Go raibh míle maith agat, a Uachtaráin, as gach a ndearna tú ar son mhuintir na hÉireann.”