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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“Officials will continue to monitor the progress of that important work and provide assistance and support, as required, to the British Government, TSOs and interconnector owners. <BR /> <BR />Steve Aiken mentioned offshore wind. An update of the previous strategic environmental assessment is in progress. We intend to consult soon on potential areas for offshore development. <BR /> <BR />Another area that was mentioned by a number of Members, including Sorcha Eastwood, relates to skills. The Department has established an industry-led green skills delivery group. That group will look at skills across several areas in energy transition. The green skills action plan is due to be ready by September. We hope to be able to report on that.”
“The SEM is connected to Britain via two interconnectors: the Moyle interconnector between the North and Scotland, and the east-west interconnector between the South and Wales. However, as a result of EU exit, Britain is no longer part of the internal energy market, which has impacted trading across those interconnectors. The loss of efficient trading is a suboptimal position for the SEM and can contribute to higher prices. Transmission system operators (TSOs) and interconnector owners in the EU and Britain have been working on the development of new trading procedures, as required by the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, to address the issue. However, it is anticipated that it could be around four years before they are implemented.”
“That will provide a power whereby the regulator may provide information, advice and assistance to the Department to support the development of essential low-carbon energy policies and a qualified duty that it must, so far as reasonably practical, comply with any reasonable request that is made. The Executive have agreed that a public consultation will take place on the Bill. The Department for Infrastructure and the Department for Communities have expressed an interest in the Bill's being widened to support the decarbonisation of areas that are under their remit. That engagement will take place between officials in the coming week. <BR /> <BR />Steve Aiken mentioned the issues of the single electricity market and interconnection.”
“By co-designing our policies along with those who are involved in a significant transition across multiple sectors, we will make sure that businesses and consumers are at the heart of this important change. <BR /> <BR />Contributors to the debate made a number of important points. The Committee Chair raised the issue of the regulator, which I have addressed. We have worked collaboratively with him over the 18-month period to develop a legislative solution that will support the Department in its obligations under the Climate Change Act and the Executive's energy strategy.”
“<BR /> <BR />The Department will continue to work with the Utility Regulator to understand what legislation is required in order to deliver our future net zero requirements. An important first step is a Bill enabling the Utility Regulator to support my Department in the development of low-carbon energy policies, and the Executive have recognised the importance of that legislation and have agreed that it should issue for consultation. My Department also has plans to bring forward detailed legislation on a number of other areas during the mandate. We will succeed only by continuing to show leadership and collaborating strategically on the opportunities and investments that are needed to achieve our goals.”
“The proposer of the motion spoke to that, and I will make a few points about it. It is vital that any regulation that we bring forward benefits consumers, protects the vulnerable and is not rushed. We must avoid potential negative impacts on market conditions and available prices. It is worth noting that price controls will do little to tackle the underlying causes of oil price fluctuations. That is because the price regulator would have to allow the pass-through of legitimate input costs, most notably crude oil prices. In addition, the costs of regulation, including administrative and other indirect costs, could add further upward pressure on consumers' bills, and we want to avoid that at all costs.”
“As part of a policy development process, officials have established stakeholder groups to support understanding the constraints that industry faces, particularly in heat and energy efficiency. <BR /> <BR />The motion calls on me:”
“<BR /> <BR />My Department continues to work with colleagues in the Department of Finance on the reform of building regulations to produce a series of net zero-ready building standards, and I will ensure that that cross-departmental working continues to deliver on our collective responsibility. I will also ensure that lead Departments are afforded the opportunity to progress and report on important issues that are relevant to their own business areas, such as retrofitting, which is referenced in the amendment. Of course, the Departments themselves have to lead on that. Part of the amendment suggests that I lead on reporting, which is not possible, but I will certainly play my part in supporting that. Sinéad McLaughlin made a point about retrofitting.”
“While I agree that it is important to acknowledge that responsibility for social housing lies with the Department for Communities, my Department co-chairs a residential decarbonisation coordination group along with the Department for Communities, and that group has set out a high-level pathway for policy that is related to decarbonising homes, in line with each Department's area of responsibility. The Housing Executive has a responsibility, as the home energy conservation authority, to promote high standards of new housebuilding and to provide social housing whilst targeting social need.”
“and the amendment references the need for a”
“<BR /> <BR />Plenty of companies across the island are seizing opportunities for innovation and carving out a piece of the market for themselves. Whether it is Wrightbus in Ballymena, Ionic Technologies in Belfast, Octopus Energy and Plaswire in mid-Ulster, Glen Dimplex in Newry, or Mannok's pioneering green hydrogen valley in Fermanagh, our businesses are already rising to the challenge and meeting it head-on. <BR /> <BR />The motion acknowledges:”
“The move to decarbonise our economy and to net zero more broadly is a transition that we all need to embrace, and it will present opportunities to further my wider economic plans. The scale of the technological revolution that is required to deliver net zero is immense, and if we harness the ingenuity and renowned technological capacity of our workforce in response, we can become a world-leading exporter of skills, expertise and net zero solutions. If we successfully build a green economy, we can go beyond self-sufficiency and become a net exporter of affordable renewable energy. In doing so, we will create good jobs and support a better standard of living. We will also raise our productivity, which currently lags behind that of the rest of these islands.”
“I have committed a further £25 million to energy invest-to-save projects across the central government estate. I have published a call for evidence on biomethane, with another publication that is focused on biofuels to come shortly as we assess the potential alternatives to fossil fuels for heating. Invest NI is developing a net zero accelerator fund to provide government support for the development and delivery of innovative renewable technologies. My Department is also planning two major consultations on the support that people should get to help them through transition: one is on the future of low-carbon heat support; and the other is on the future of energy efficiency support.”
“I would expect all Departments to prioritise environmental issues, and the Executive are behind that approach. <BR /> <BR />The delivery of net zero, affordable energy is a key action for all Ministers as outlined in the energy strategy and the subsequent Climate Change Act. My Department is playing its part in making that ambition a reality and seizing the economic opportunities that transition into net zero will provide. Since taking office, I have introduced a moratorium on onshore petroleum licensing, which will be followed by a legislative ban. I have launched a five-year capital energy efficiency and renewable energy support grant for local businesses.”
“A move to local, clean energy supplies will help us to break a chain that tethers us to global factors. I am keen that we become self-sufficient in our energy market, using the natural resources that we have in abundance on this island to generate affordable renewable power for local people and businesses. <BR /> <BR />I support the concept of energy transition proofing for all public policy and legislation. I support the inclusion of the development rights for green infrastructure, which rests with the Department for Infrastructure. Minister O'Dowd's Department and mine are already working closely. Yesterday, we met our respective officials to discuss a number of issues, including how planning and development can support the delivery of green infrastructure.”
“I thank the Members for bringing the motion to the Floor. It is an important issue, and I very much welcome the opportunity to speak on it. I am moving quickly to deliver on the economic plans that I set up when I took office. The plans have our energy ambitions at their core, obligations that are moral as well as legislative. <BR /> <BR />The cost-of-living crisis is exacerbated by the cost of energy, and that reflects the direct cost of reliance on fossil fuels. That cannot be allowed to continue; hence my focus on reducing our carbon emissions, as a key objective of my economic plans, and a move to sustainable renewable energy sources. The Consumer Council recently confirmed that the biggest issue facing 31% of all households was the cost of their energy bill. The research estimated that 51% of households here were in fuel poverty.”
“Go raibh maith agat, a Phríomh-Leas-Cheann Comhairle.”
“We want to make sure that the limited amount of money that we have goes as far as it possibly can to try to support that area of work.”
“We have had several reports from different groups, and we have had a lot of engagement on the matter. Our big challenge is trying to find the resource from the Department to match the ambition that exists, but there have been examples of good practice. For instance, the manufacturing sector in the mid-Ulster cluster engages with the colleges and schools to ensure that their focus is there. We need to ensure that everybody in the area of skills — schools, colleges, the Department of Education, the private sector and all those who have an interest, such as the groups that get funded through the various programmes for assisting young people — is complementing each other rather than focusing on the same area, tripping over each other and stepping on each other's toes.”
“As we have said many times here, the issue of skills is huge. The big attraction, particularly for foreign investors, is our people and their skills. The biggest challenge that we currently have is how to do that. There is a range of engagement across a lot of sectors by, for example, the Skills Council and the reference group, and there is a report from Matrix on the current and future skills that are required. We continue to engage across the Department and with the various institutions that work to provide support, including businesses. The challenge is the lack of funding to support skills programmes, but we intend to work as best we can with all those advocates to provide the necessary level for our people.”
“A meeting of that group took place a few weeks ago when my colleague Deirdre Hargey was at the helm of the Department for the Economy. It was important to come together to see the opportunities that the credit union has to support our economic plans to support regional balance, create good jobs, increase productivity and tackle issues around net zero. The Irish League of Credit Unions has a manifesto, and, in many ways, that sets the context for the working group, but the Department's work does not need to be limited to that. My colleague requested that officials provide regular updates from the working group that has been established, and I will follow through on that.”
“That exercise will show gaps in areas where we can implement short-term actions and ensure that there is no duplication. Officials agreed to bring a draft paper to the next meeting, which is on 27 June.”
“The first meeting of the social enterprise co-design group was on 31 May. I was able to attend the meeting briefly, which I was pleased to do. The group is highly motivated to see strategic support for the sector and used the first meeting as an opportunity to share its experience and wealth of knowledge. There was an understanding that the focus should be on trading, scaling and supply chain collaboration. The objectives will work towards making social enterprises more sustainable without relying on funding and allowing the sector to meet the expectations of social value. <BR /> <BR />It was noted that work is already being done to support the sector but that it is fragmented, making it difficult for social enterprises to access. The next step will be to identify potential barriers and what current supports are available.”
“I am invited to a lot of events, as the Member will be aware. It is a question of juggling the diary to make sure that I can go to as many as I possibly can while retaining a focus on the work that I need to do in the Department. I am always content to consider any invitations that come to me to make sure that I do my best to support all our businesses across the North.”
“It is incumbent on Invest and the Department to identify areas of priority, particularly clusters. The Member is quite right: there is a growing cluster with some big players, but a lot of small and medium enterprises are involved in advancing the sector. Aerospace touches on the areas of good jobs and productivity, in that there is a lot of innovation and growth in the sector, and it is in line with the priorities that I have set in the Department. Also, with quite a lot of the firms scattered across the North, it offers regional balance. We all operate within a limited budgetary framework, including Invest NI, but we have tried to identify sectors with opportunities for growth. I concur with the Member's view that there are clear opportunities for growth in the sector.”
“That is the plan. From the court rulings, there was a sense that the court wanted to ensure that people were treated fairly. Many people entered the scheme on the basis of a genuine attempt to avail themselves of a support that was there for them. We have to ensure that people are treated fairly, but we first have to get to a stage at which the Executive agree on what we are going to do about this. This is not a problem that I created; it is a problem that I inherited. I am trying to bring, as was agreed, some degree of closure to it. It is frustrating for me that we cannot even have a discussion of it in the Executive. I urge those who have been holding us up to allow the Executive to deal with the problem so that we can move on in line with the views of the court.”
“I have been attempting to secure Executive agreement on the future of the RHI scheme since 4 April. However, to date, it has not been allowed on to the Executive agenda. That is delaying participants' receipt of an uplift in their tariff. It also puts at risk the orderly closure of the scheme, as Ofgem has provided a final termination notice. Ofgem will continue to administer delivery of the scheme only until its absolute backstop of 30 April 2026. I hope that the Executive are allowed to discuss and decide on those issues so that participants can receive appropriate payments and we can close the scheme in an orderly manner, in line with the agreed Executive priority.”
“I am happy to work with the colleges and universities to ensure that they do all that they can to allow people to come into education. They design some of their facilities around the courses that they operate, but they have to be conscious that the people who are furthest from our education system and employment are people who suffer from illnesses or disabilities. They are often the people who end up with the worst elements or conditions of work, and I intend to introduce a good jobs Bill in this mandate to try to address some of those issues. I absolutely accept that, in the first instance, people require access to training. I will continue to work with the colleges and universities to ensure that they understand that they need to make learning as accessible as possible.”
“While we are working out what our budget will allow us to do in the year ahead, it is something that we provide support for, and we will provide as much as we can.”
“It is a little like the issue with jobs, training and skills in that we have to make part-time courses and part-time entry into the workforce available, because it is a big challenge for people to go immediately from being completely reliant on a benefits or welfare system back into education or from being in a caring role with complete responsibility for children or others in their home back into full-time training or education. <BR /> <BR />We all have to understand the accessibility issues. Part-time courses need to be available and accessible to people, and people need to be supported in entering them. Similarly, in the world of work, we need to ensure that employers operate part-time, accessible entry levels.”
“There is a range of support packages in those areas. We have to take our lead from the colleges and universities on the numbers. As with all such anticipatory programmes, it is hard to see what the needs will be over the course of the year. We generally manage to supplement the funding for them. A month or two ago, we were able to announce additional money for student hardship support schemes to try to ensure that people can access them.”
“Yes, they are. Many of us who have been here for many years, as the Member and I have been, pride ourselves on having a world-class education system. It is world-class for those it works for, but, unfortunately, there are far too many people it does not work for. In the situation that we are in, with almost full employment but a high level of economic inactivity, that is clearly an area that, we have to ensure, gets some attention. I would like to see that number reduced and young people, particularly from areas of deprivation, be they rural or urban, having opportunities to upskill, get education, find their way in the workforce and get decently paid jobs and a sense of fulfilment out of the work that they get so that they can live better lives. It is a challenge for all of us to support not just the economy but those young people.”
“<BR /> <BR />We want to ensure that the groups that assist young people to come back into the education system, achieve necessary skills or, indeed, achieve confidence in themselves in going out to work are supported to do that. That is a challenge, because the funding has been lost to us. We will, however, continue to work with the Departments in London to ensure that we get better, more reliable access to some of the funding from the Shared Prosperity Fund and the Levelling Up Fund so that we can give certainty to those groups and to all the young people who are in need of support in education and training.”
“I recognise that one of the greatest challenges that we have is getting people who have fallen through the cracks in the system back into training and education. Previously, support for those programmes — I am sure that the Member is aware, as I am, of many groups that work effectively on that in our constituency — came through European funding. That funding ended with Brexit and was not replaced by the Government in London. The Department has been trying to find ways to supplement that funding. Some of those groups received funding through the Levelling Up Fund or Shared Prosperity Fund, but those will also come to a cliff edge in the near future.”
“The intention behind the subregional action plan is to ensure that we get all the actors in each area to come together to identify the needs of that area. Some of that may be Invest NI work, some of it may be for the Department for the Economy and some of it may be for other Departments. We want to ensure that local areas get some resource, get the necessary structures in place and find their voice in order that they can represent the economic interests of those regions to the centre. I anticipate that the centre will respond accordingly to the needs that have been identified. That work is clearly about democratising local economic impact and ensuring that those voices are clearly heard and that there is resource to match the requirements in each area.”
“The Executive's clear intention is to provide affordable childcare. That is of benefit not only to families, individuals and communities but to the economy, because it allows people to return to work. The Executive have therefore made not a one-off commitment but a commitment over the years, and I sincerely hope that, once we get the schemes started, we will follow them through with the funding necessary to make sure that people can continue to avail themselves of affordable childcare.”
“Provision of high-quality, affordable childcare is a priority for the Executive. On 23 May, the Education Minister outlined a package of measures for early learning and childcare that has been agreed by the Executive. One element of the package is a targeted business support scheme for childcare providers to assist those in financial difficulty and in areas where the demand for childcare exceeds supply. The Executive have initially earmarked £2 million for that purpose. Invest NI has nominated an official to work with my officials and the Department of Education on the design of the scheme. The involvement of my Department and Invest NI will be important to ensure alignment with other business support interventions and compliance with state subsidy requirements.”
“That will require us to engage with UU. The task force will have oversight of and input to a more detailed plan on the allocation of that funding. It will be made available in the financial year to take forward opportunities to expand the Magee campus by developing the infrastructure and increasing student numbers. As the Member rightly said, the task force will come forward with a plan in September. It is aware of the figures that we have been talking about. If it has a different approach, I am happy to listen to that and to try to secure the additional funding. The Member will recognise, as, I am sure, will members of the Committee, the limitations on the funding that we had. Nonetheless, the commitment remains for the expansion of Magee. I see that as an Executive priority, and it is my duty to deliver on it.”
“A total funding package of £152 million has been committed for the expansion of Magee. That includes previously announced funding of £38 million from the Shared Island Fund for a new teaching block, city deals and a future fund as well as investment from the university's reserves. For the next financial year, the Department includes up to £4·1 million resource and up to £14·7 million capital for Magee expansion activities.”
“I established the independent task force in March under the leadership of Stephen Kelly and Nicola Skelly. The group has met twice, receiving presentations from Ulster University (UU) and Derry City and Strabane District Council. Local business leaders also led a task force discussion on future skills needs in the north-west. The next task force meeting will take place this Wednesday and will be attended by representatives of the local community and by the special envoy for economic affairs, Joe Kennedy. The expansion of the Magee campus to 10,000 students was a commitment in 'New Decade, New Approach' and is key to promoting regional balance, in line with my economic plans. As Minister, I intend to see that commitment delivered.”
“The Executive have a collective commitment to growing the economy; increasing the number of people who access further and higher education institutions and skills and who remain here is surely a strong way to continue to grow our economy.”
“The easiest way to do that is to have more money. If the Member agrees with me that it is unfair to place that burden on young people, who get themselves in significant debt just to have the benefit of accessing higher education, the easiest thing to do is to increase the funding available to support them. Of course, that is a different conversation to have with the Government in London. I look forward to seeing the Programme for Government being delivered very soon. I am not of the view that purdah should apply in the way that it has been applied to many things. I would like to see the Programme for Government advanced more quickly than that.”
“We have just got our budgets. We have to analyse what we have. We recognise that we do not have as much as we wanted. Every Department is in the same position. I am sure that you have heard that from other Ministers already today. We do not have the amount of funding that we would like, but, nonetheless, we will continue to provide support for students. We managed to find funding in-year to supplement that support. I am analysing how I can spread my limited budget throughout the various areas of my Department and equality-testing that as well. Once I have done that, I will be able to make announcement about how much support can go towards student support. Following that, there will be some advice on how people can access it.”
“The Executive parties made a commitment in the New Decade, New Approach agreement to get the numbers at the Magee campus up to 10,000. I intend to operate to that plan. I discussed with representatives from the universities and, since coming back very recently, with officials the ways in which we can work to ensure that the numbers are increased. It clearly will be a focus. It was an Executive commitment, but it is my responsibility to deliver on it. That is what I intend to do.”
“Although there are people who want to leave these shores to go to other places for their university experience, we want to make sure that the many young people who want to stay here have the ability to do so.”
“We want to see an increase; I have stated that as a desired outcome. The simple answer of placing the burden of the cost of that on students is unfair, because we are in a cost-of-living crisis and are putting thousands and thousands of young people into significant debt just so they can go through higher education. I have committed to working with our institutions to try to see whether we can increase numbers without placing the burden directly on students. Of course, had we more money in the system and a better settlement for our public finances, there would be more opportunities to support more places. My focus is on trying to find ways to work creatively with the educational institutions to grow student numbers.”
“I have no intention of increasing tuition fees, given that our students already face considerable cost-of-living pressures and that many take on significant debt to access higher education. I am committed to working with the higher education sector to embed sustainable funding arrangements that enable the sector to thrive and create more opportunities for our students.”
“I want to make sure that our system is as coherent and cohesive as possible and that it serves all of the community as well as our economic needs in the time ahead.”
“Across nearly all Departments, when Ministers came into office, our primary focus was to ensure that we resolved public-sector pay issues. With the exception of the Department of Education — I understand, however, that there will be, hopefully, some progress with the schools this week — those issues, by and large, have been resolved. <BR /> <BR />I met representatives from the colleges and talked to them about the issue of reform and the report on them that was done. We intend to bring that work forward now, but we want to ensure that it is not an individual or isolated piece of work. We have an education system in which we have joint responsibility for the 14- to 19-year-old cohort, but we have a responsibility on either side of that as well.”
“We have resolved, and I hope that we continue to work to enhance, the role of and support for the people who work in that system, in the delivery of teaching but also throughout the system, to make sure, if you like, that we have a happy campus, and then to focus on the areas that we have outlined as priorities for the Department for the Economy, particularly in the areas of skills and training. <BR /> <BR />I have no doubt that there will be individual issues arising among Members about pieces of the estate within various colleges. We want to work through that, but we need a cohesive forum and support for the colleges themselves to get forward with the work that they are doing. I am happy to talk to them about individual areas around some parts of the campuses that have question marks.”