Conor Murphy
Newry and Armagh · Sinn Féin · Northern Ireland
“More detailed consultations with individual childcare providers and parents are taking place this month and into February. The group agreed that the research would conclude in March 2025. The work is on schedule; there has been no delay. Childcare is an excellent example of various Departments coming together to deliver for our people.”
“The Bill looks at the issue of flexible working, but at every meeting that we have had with employers, we have made a point of talking to them about the need for them to be flexible, particularly in relation to women who are returning to the workforce, and to offer people arrangements that entice them back to the workforce and give them t…”
“I welcome the opportunity to speak to the motion. <BR /> <BR />Although the Department of Education leads on childcare, it is a priority for the Executive as a whole. When setting the Budget for this financial year, the Executive earmarked an additional £25 million for childcare.”
“As a matter of fact, I publicly launched the scheme and the courses in the Met last summer. My officials are also working with our six further education colleges to develop childcare microcourses for future delivery. <BR /> <BR />I also offered to assist Minister Givan's Department as required.”
“The group identified the need to better understand the business models for childcare, what type of support is needed to ensure the sector's financial viability and how support should be targeted. Given my Department's business expertise, we volunteered to take that work forward.”
“No tensions or obstacles have been placed in the way of any of that work, and I hope that that continues to be the case, because the issues are much more important than party political exchanges across the Chamber. We will continue to work in that manner.”
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“I thank the Member for her remarks about the overall piece of work, and I am very much looking forward to getting it out there and getting responses back to it. If there are disparities, I am very happy for them to become part of the consultation so that we can tease them out. We in the Department certainly recognise that we have to deal with HMRC. You have to pay for anything that is outside what it currently provides, and you have an ongoing administrative charge with it. There is an estimation of what the cost may be, but this measure is demand-led, so these are estimates of the potential cost to the Executive. It is my ambition to have paid carer's leave, but, clearly, we recognise the financial constraints that we are in and that we have to wait to see what the consultation throws up to us.”
“The purpose of my good jobs agenda is to ensure that working people can provide their families with a decent and secure income and meet their family and caring responsibilities. The consultation will help us to draft a Bill that furthers that good jobs economy. I look forward to working with Members, the business community and trade unions as we design and implement this important Bill.”
“In implementing the changes, we need to be mindful that micro and small businesses, many of which operate on tight margins, make up the vast majority of our businesses. My Department will therefore use the consultation period to assess the impact of changes on smaller businesses in order to ensure that they can continue to thrive as part of a good economy with good jobs. <BR /> <BR />Given the wide range and detailed nature of the package, I have extended the consultation period from the standard eight weeks to 13 weeks. It is important to note, however, that we have only two and a half years left in this mandate, so my Department, the Committee and the Assembly will have to work at pace to ensure that the Bill is delivered within the available time.”
“The consultation proposes to allow paternity leave to be split into non-consecutive weeks of leave so that it can be used in a way that best serves the needs of the parents. It also proposes to abolish the 26-week qualifying period and to make paternity leave a day-1 right. <BR /> <BR />The package of measures promotes good jobs through the comprehensive modernisation of employment law, which includes tackling zero-hours contracts; protection for agency workers; proper holiday pay; the right to disconnect; better trade union representation; more flexible working; and better leave entitlements for carers and parents whose newborns are in neonatal care. Those changes and others that are in the consultation document will benefit workers, businesses and society as a whole.”
“<BR /> <BR />Under current law, employees can take one or two consecutive weeks of paid paternity leave within the first eight weeks of their child's life or adoption placement. That leave must be taken in a single block and cannot be split.”
“The consultation proposes to give working parents of newborns admitted to neonatal care an additional week of statutory leave and/or pay for each week that their child is in hospital, up to a maximum of 12 weeks. The leave element would be a day-1 right. <BR /> <BR />The consultation proposes stronger protections for pregnant women against redundancy, as well as extending the current protected period from the date when a woman returns to work from maternity leave to 18 months after giving birth. It proposes similar protections for parents taking adoption leave or shared parental leave. Before making any such employee redundant, an employer would be required to offer a suitable alternative vacancy where possible.”
“My officials estimate that, initially, that could cost £6 million for the HMRC system-change costs and an annual administration fee payable to HMRC to administer the statutory payment, plus up to £60 million a year in payments, which would have to be funded from our block grant. That would be a significant level of funding in the context of the financial constraints imposed on the Executive. I am committed to working with my Executive colleagues to make sure that we find the best way to support carers. The consultation will therefore be used to seek further views on the role that carer's leave could play in a wider support than the Executive can offer carers. <BR /> <BR />Currently, there is no distinct right to leave and/or statutory pay for working parents whose newborn requires neonatal care.”
“A good job allows an individual to balance their work with their family and private life. The consultation seeks views on allowing a statutory request for flexible working to be made on the first day of employment, rather than having to wait 26 weeks, and to enable two statutory flexible working requests to be made in a rolling 12-month period. It also asks how we can support workers who need to take time off to care for a loved one. The consultation proposes giving carers the right to take up to one week of unpaid leave per year. It is also my goal to ensure that carers can avail themselves of paid leave.”
“Trade unions play a critical role in articulating the interests of workers and in ensuring that workers share in the benefits of economic growth alongside employers and society as a whole. However, various outdated restrictions make it difficult for labour to organise, so the consultation seeks views on lowering the bar on trade union recognition from 21 to 11 workers, making it easier for trade unions to enter workplaces and reducing the notice period for industrial action from seven to five days. In addition, trade unions can currently use only postal ballots to survey their members. Therefore, I am consulting on allowing trade unions to ballot their members using modern technology. <BR /> <BR />The fourth theme of the consultation is promoting a healthy work-life balance.”
“That creates a risk that individuals will not receive their correct entitlement. The calculation of holiday pay has been the subject of several high-profile court cases over recent years. I am therefore seeking views on how to make it easier for employers and workers to calculate holiday pay. <BR /> <BR />While remote working has many benefits, it has muddied the line between when someone is working and when they are not working. It is important that people can properly switch off outside their working hours and get proper rest and relaxation. I am therefore consulting on how to strengthen workers' right to disconnect. <BR /> <BR />The chapter of the consultation on voice and representation seeks views on how to ensure that workers have a voice in the decisions that affect them.”
“Members will be familiar with the disgraceful practice of fire and rehire. Some employers use that tactic to put pressure on workers to accept reduced terms and conditions in order to keep their jobs. I want to hear views on what action could be taken to combat that practice here. <BR /> <BR />The second theme is pay and benefits. Minimum wage legislation is currently reserved in London. In preparation for that power being transferred to the Assembly, I have commissioned research into how it could be used to promote the living wage. In terms of our existing powers, I am consulting on legislation that will ensure that tips are passed on to workers in full. <BR /> <BR />Calculating holiday pay entitlements can be complex, particularly for people who work irregular hours or seasonally.”
“Members should be aware that this is a complicated issue, which interacts with tax law, including reserved matters, so the cooperation of the British Government may be necessary. <BR /> <BR />Agency workers are another category of people who are often called upon to fill short-term absences or to react to peaks in demand. The casual nature of that employment relationship means that it is important to have checks and balances in place. My Department is seeking views on closing the so-called Swedish derogation. That is a legal loophole that permits agency workers to be paid less than their permanent counterparts, even after 12 weeks on the job. <BR /> <BR />The consultation invites submissions on how to strengthen the enforcement powers of the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate (EAS), which regulates the private recruitment sector.”
“That miscategorisation denies the worker basic protections such as holiday pay, the national minimum wage, family-related leave and pay and redundancy rights. The consultation seeks evidence on the sectors where that is a problem and on the best way to deal with it.”
“Legislation there restricts the use of zero-hours contracts to very specific circumstances where work is of a casual nature, done in emergency circumstances or needed to cover routine absences of staff. People who regularly work more than their contracted hours can be placed on a contract with a band of hours that reflects their actual working pattern. People are paid compensation when they are called into work but do not receive their expected hours or if they are required to be available but are not called into work. I am seeking the public's view on those and other potential ways of tackling the problems associated with zero-hours contracts. <BR /> <BR />I also want views on tackling bogus self-employment. That refers to a situation where a person is, to all intents and purposes, a worker but is contracted on a self-employed basis.”
“An extreme example is zero-hours contracts, which do not guarantee the worker any hours at all. Some businesses have a genuine need for short-term or emergency cover. However, zero-hours contracts deny workers many of the rights provided by a regular employment contract. They do not ensure a stable income for workers and their families, nor do they provide workers with certainty over when and how many hours they will work so that they can plan their finances and their family responsibilities. The consultation therefore seeks views on how to ensure that flexible contracts meet the interests of the employee as well as the employer. <BR /> <BR />There are potential lessons in that from the South of Ireland.”
“In February, I outlined four key objectives for the economy, one of which is to increase the proportion of the working-age population in good jobs. Ensuring that workers and their families can rely on a decent and secure income is important in its own right. Good jobs also help to attract and retain people in the workforce, thereby reducing our high level of economic inactivity, and there is compelling evidence that good jobs boost workers' productivity and health. <BR /> <BR />Today, I am launching a consultation on how to ensure that our employment framework supports good jobs. The consultation seeks views on four aspects of a good job as defined by the Carnegie framework. <BR /> <BR />The first theme is "terms of employment". Over recent years, we have seen a growth in insecure and precarious forms of employment.”
“to Declan Kearney for his contribution as well. <BR /> <BR />As I said at the outset, the Working Time (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2024 will clarify statutory rights in relation to leave. I commend the motion to the House.”
“I thank Sinéad McLaughlin for speaking, and go raibh maith agat”
“Go raibh maith agat, a Phríomh-Leas-Cheann Comhairle.”
“The amendment to regulation 2 provides clarification that the definition of statutory leave within those regulations is the same as that within Part 9 of the Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996. The amendment to regulation 17 provides that compensation related to an entitlement to leave will cover unused leave at the point that a worker's employment is terminated if the worker is entitled to carry over that unused leave into the next immediate leave year by virtue of a relevant agreement. <BR /> <BR />The draft Working Time (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2024 will provide legal certainty regarding leave entitlements. I look forward to the Assembly's support.”
“My Department did that prior to 1 January 2024, and it included the issues of maternity and parental leave. Some other leave rights are domestically derived and require a statutory rule to be affirmed by the Assembly in order to be restated, and that is what I am seeking to do today. <BR /> <BR />The draft Working Time (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2024 seek to provide clarity in our legislation and restate certain statutory rights in relation to shared parental, parental bereavement, adoption and paternity leave. The purpose of the regulations is to remove any potential uncertainty in law about previously agreed and accepted annual leave entitlements following our exit from the EU. <BR /> <BR />The statutory rule amends regulations 2 and 17 of the Working Time Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016.”
“I am seeking the Assembly's approval of the draft Working Time (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2024. All Members will be aware that workers' rights are at the forefront of my economic vision, and I will continue to work towards improving them throughout the mandate. <BR /> <BR />The Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 (REUL) revoked aspects of EU retained law from 1 January 2024, together with the principle of the supremacy of EU law and some other legal concepts. As a result, the Department identified that certain commonly accepted principles relating to annual leave and pay could be at risk of misinterpretation if action were not taken to provide domestic legal clarity. Some of our annual leave rights are EU derived and, as such, could be restated using the powers in the REUL Act.”
“Go raibh maith agat, a Phríomh-Leas-Cheann Comhairle.”
“I assure the House that we will continue to work with those education institutions in the time ahead to ensure that that is the case. <BR /> <BR />I assure Members that we will work with, as I said, the HE and FE sectors, colleagues in the South and others to ensure that everyone who wants to can stay here to study and to build a prosperous and a fulfilling future, making a valued contribution to a healthy and thriving economy that benefits everyone in our society. I concur with the desire expressed in the motion to see that people who want to stay here and whose first option is to stay here to study are able to do so. That, of course, presents challenges, not least financially, but we will continue to work with the institutions to develop the best possible options for all of our young people and those returning to studies in the future.”
“The Chair of the Committee raised the issue of the maximum student number (MaSN), and he is aware, as he has received information from me and my officials in Committee, that we are committed to working with the higher and further education sector to grow student numbers sustainably. As the 'New Decade, New Approach' (NDNA) document that committed to expanding Magee campus recognised, significant expansion of higher education here is likely to require changes to the MaSN, but, of course, those are all budget-related, as he is also aware. While we want to work with the universities and will do so and will have a dialogue with them and with the colleges to try to grow student numbers, that has to be done in a way that we can sustain ourselves from the finances that are available to us.”
“As well as that, my Department's higher-level apprenticeship programme offers an alternative route to the kinds of qualifications at levels 4 to 7 that traditionally have been available only through study at a higher education institution. Higher-level apprentices are employed and attend college or university, usually on a day-release basis. More than 70 separate qualifications are now offered as HLAs by the six regional further education colleges, the College of Agriculture and the local universities in a wide range of sectors, including engineering and manufacturing technologies, computing, finance, hospitality and health and social care. <BR /> <BR />I turn to some of the other points that were mentioned aside from apprenticeships and the higher-level apprenticeships options.”
“If we are going to look at that issue strategically, the conversation needs to be broader than simply increasing university places. We need to make it clearer to young people that their skills can be developed both through our local universities and through alternative pathways. <BR /> <BR />I encourage anyone who is considering undertaking a higher education course either at home or in any other jurisdiction to explore the opportunity to study here at any of our further education colleges. The colleges, in addition to further education courses, offer a wide range of high-quality higher education courses.”
“<BR /> <BR />We should also recognise that there are pathways alternative to university that will be the best route for many of our young people to follow. Tom Elliott and a number of other Members mentioned that in the debate. There is a gap in the motion where it is does not focus on this. In that regard, my Department is working with the Department of Education to ensure that, in careers advice, we ensure that not only children but parents are aware of the variety of pathways that are available to people to move into higher-level apprenticeships (HLAs) as well as higher and further education. Clearly, awareness is required there, and perhaps the wording of the motion reinforces that. We could start a pilot scheme in the Chamber to make sure that people are aware of the full gamut of pathways available to people.”
“I intend to explore, as part of that engagement, ways in which we can remove barriers to cross-border study. <BR /> <BR />Progress to reduce barriers to North/South student mobility and enhanced cooperation on higher and further education across Ireland is being made through initiatives in both jurisdictions. For example, from next year, postgraduates from the North who are studying in the South will be able to access tuition fee loans. The Irish Government have been proactive in providing funding for the expansion of Magee and have improved cross-border mobility by reviewing A-level grade equivalences. There is much more to be done, but I am encouraged by the engagement to date, and I intend to build on that going forward.”
“Delivering on those objectives will help to create a thriving economy that works for everyone, which will make the North a more attractive place in which to live and work, thereby helping to retain our best and brightest. Creating opportunities for graduates will help not only to retain more of our local students but to attract students from elsewhere, including the South. <BR /> <BR />As Members will be aware, it is a priority for me to improve student mobility across Ireland. Prior to his becoming Taoiseach, I had a positive discussion with Simon Harris TD in his then capacity as the responsible Minister on the steps that we can take together to reduce barriers across the island. I have recently reached out to my counterpart, Minister Patrick O'Donovan TD, with a view to continuing that dialogue.”
“That might be from a desire for new experiences in a new environment, for the opportunity to pursue a particular course offering or to attend a particular institution. <BR /> <BR />There is third group of students who leave but whose motivations are harder to capture and who may be persuadable. In respect of that group, we have much more work to do to address perceptions about a lack of good job opportunities or future quality of life here. We need to take action to change that mindset and show the value of staying here for a third-level education and a future career. <BR /> <BR />As Members will be aware, I want to increase the proportion of working-age people in good jobs, promote regional balance, raise productivity and reduce carbon emissions.”
“<BR /> <BR />While there is a particular focus on the expansion at Magee, I will work with all our higher education institutions to ensure that we provide as many opportunities as possible for people to study here. There are several hundred reluctant leavers annually who do not stay in the North even though they have applied to an institution here as a first preference. We need to make sure that those individuals can stay here, not only by making sure that there are sufficient places but by ensuring that the right opportunities are available. We also know that there are and always will be determined leavers who simply do not apply for a university place here and actively choose to leave the region for a variety of reasons.”
“A larger pool of talented and skilled graduates emerging from Magee will attract firms to the north-west and fuel innovative start-ups in the area, contributing to increased business success and prosperity and improving the prospects for economic development in Derry and the surrounding region. <BR /> <BR />To help deliver the commitment, I established an independent task force under the leadership of Stephen Kelly and Nicola Skelly. The task force will publish its agreed action plan before the end of this year and will remain in place for the remainder of the mandate to monitor implementation. The funding required to implement the recommendations will be prioritised as part of future-year budgets.”
“That will help us to achieve the New Decade, New Approach (NDNA) commitment of 10,000 student places at Ulster University's Magee campus in Derry. Reaching 10,000 students will require an increase of at least 4,500 students at Magee over the coming years. It will mean delivering new undergraduate and postgraduate places. It will require work to promote Magee as a destination campus, enabling an increase in the number of students retained in the area while attracting more people from elsewhere in these islands and further afield to live, study and work in the Derry area. <BR /> <BR />The expansion of the Magee campus is key to promoting regional balance in line with my economic plans, and it will assist in efforts towards increasing productivity and creating good jobs.”
“I welcome the opportunity to speak on the motion and thank the Members who tabled it. <BR /> <BR />It is important to be clear that, although many students from the North study elsewhere, the data shows that we perform better than many comparator regions at retaining our talent. For instance, around 75% of local students stay here to study at our universities, which is a higher proportion than for Wales or any English region. Additionally, about half our students who study in Britain return home to work within 15 months of graduating, which, again, is a higher proportion than for Wales, Scotland and most English regions. Only London and the north-west of England perform better in that regard. <BR /> <BR />Nevertheless, we must do more to retain our talent here.”
“Go raibh maith agat, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle.”
“I know the situation from my time at Finance, and, with that hat on, I would say that we reduced business rates by 18% just as COVID was coming in. We then had a rates holiday for about two and a half years. We have to remember that rates contribute about 10% of the Executive's income, so, if we forgo more rates, it becomes about the balance between allowing businesses to pay less in bills and having less money available for public services. That is a delicate balance to strike, and I am sure that the Finance Minister will consider it among all of her options.”
“We are also working through the tourism agencies to promote the idea of working in hospitality as a career choice rather than something that people go into part-time or while they consider moving on to what they intend to be their career. <BR /> <BR />We recognise the significant challenges to hospitality posed by issues such as the cost of living, cost of energy and cost of doing business. We will, of course, continue with the incoming Government the argument for more financial support for the Executive to ensure that we have more money to spread around all businesses.”
“We are supporting businesses in a range of ways. We continue to provide support to Tourism NI for promoting more visitors coming to areas and therefore availing themselves of hospitality. We recognise that getting skilled employees is one of the biggest challenges. We had a presentation this morning at the North/South Ministerial Council on how the view of hospitality as a part-time job for students but not a career is changing. There is a scheme to promote good employee conditions in hospitality to ensure that more people both join and stay and that they consider it to be a career. We have to provide appropriate courses for hospitality work, ensuring that they give people the right skills to meet the needs of the hospitality industry, and we are talking to the industry about that.”
“The primary objective is to ensure that businesses that need support get it. If some of that is due to a lack of information, we are prepared to work with them to make sure that they can get that information in and access the schemes that we have already decided. If it turns out that some of the £10 million is unspent, we will look at ways of using that to continue to support businesses in the affected areas.”
“The delay in making payments is due to information not being submitted by businesses, for example proof of payment for works incurred. For businesses that have not made payments for work incurred or planned, owing to, for example, cash flow problems, the Department has agreed that councils can make advance payments. Councils meet loss adjusters weekly to ensure that there are no bottlenecks to hold up any claims and that council staff make themselves available on the ground in Newry and Downpatrick to assist businesses in submitting the information required to progress their claims.”
“The schemes are administered by the district councils. The enhanced flood support scheme provides support of up to £100,000 to businesses that are directly flooded, and the flooding hardship scheme payment of £5,000 is for occupants who are not eligible for other supports. There is also a flood hardship payment of £2,500 for small and medium-sized enterprises that were not directly flooded but were unable to access their premises or to trade. <BR /> <BR />The majority of hardship payments — around £200,000 — barring a few for which information was incomplete, have been issued. To date, councils have issued letters of offer to 39 enhanced scheme applicants, and approximately £2·2 million of funding has been provided to councils to enable those payments to be made. Councils have made payments of just under £1 million to businesses.”
“We have an objective to get more economically inactive people back into training, education and employment, and we are working closely with the universities and colleges to ensure that we are on the same page and that accessibility is a key factor for them.”
“We constantly talk to the universities and colleges about ensuring that there is accessibility for everyone who needs it. We have a high level of economic inactivity. Some of that relates to people who have not been in the education system or who did not go through it fully because they fell out of it for one reason or another. A lot of it, however, relates to people who are trying to come back into the system. Just like people coming back into employment, students have to have the ability to access education on terms that are suitable for them or that appeal to them at that time in their life. We want to ensure that the colleges and universities run courses that are accessible to people.”
“We are trying to provide support to students and to institutions so that they can take in more students, but it is a big challenge, because our budget is essentially the same as last year's, which is, in effect, a reduction.”
“It is another matter for which the overarching picture is one of financial challenge. Had we more money available to us, we would have more students and more support for them. We have the ability to increase emergency support for students in-year. We have already done that this year in order to add support. When it comes to the overall package, however, we are trying to work through the implications of the budget that we have just received to try to stretch it as far as we can when we allocate it. <BR /> <BR />The debate that will resume after Question Time will return to this point, but the number of students who are able to do courses at colleges and other education and training facilities here is hugely important to growing our economy.”
“<BR /> <BR />I do not get involved in individual decisions, but, overall, I want to ensure that colleges have the facilities, the staff and the ability to provide as many places for students as possible so that we can continue to grow numbers in the FE sector.”
“We recognise clearly its importance. One of the biggest challenges to growing the economy, which is an Executive priority, relates to skills and the availability of people with the necessary skills to enter the workforce. Colleges are critical to all of that. I have had conversations with the college heads collectively on a number of occasions, and I have encouraged them to collaborate and to ensure that the colleges operate to full capacity. We have tried to provide as much support for the college sector as is possible under the current budgetary arrangements, but it is the biggest sector to receive support from the Department for the Economy. We will continue to provide that support.”
“We want to continue to grow the number of students in our further education colleges, so I want to see no action taken that jeopardises the ability to do that. The operational decisions about how campuses are managed are matters for the colleges themselves, however.”
“That is a matter for Belfast Met. We have been kept abreast of developments, but decisions on the operation of the campus are a matter for the college, not the Department. The Department does not take those decisions; they are taken by the college management. A number of representatives have brought the issue to my attention. In my dialogue with the MP for the area about Spirit AeroSystems, we also discussed the Castlereagh campus. Other representatives have raised it with me as well, but it is a matter for Belfast Metropolitan College. <BR /> <BR />We are keeping an eye on the situation. We want to make sure that our colleges grow and continue to have the capacity to offer as many student places as they can.”