Timothy Gaston
North Antrim · Traditional Unionist Voice · Northern Ireland
“I begin my remarks by putting on record, once again, my thanks to the victims and survivors who have campaigned for many years to bring us to this point today, where the Bill will pass its Final Stage.”
“There is an onus on the Assembly in the next mandate to ensure that the work continues, with a second phase of redress that will consider individualised acknowledgement of the harm and trauma that the birth mothers and adult adoptees experienced.”
“I trust that those who have worked diligently in the background on the terms of reference will reflect the requests of the Committee and those who have given evidence to ensure that they are victim-centred and that truth and justice will be pursued.”
“Throughout the process, the Committee has taken steps to ensure that victims and survivors of religious institutions, state homes and private homes see themselves reflected in the Bill.”
“At a recent meeting of the Committee for the Executive Office, the Migrants' Rights Network complained that, in the second half of 2025, the UK Government increased raids focused on illegal working. When raids increased by 76%, arrests increased by 169%.”
“The revelations that have come to light since dirty Donaldson's conviction and the red flags that his colleagues ignored raise profound and troubling questions for the DUP, but for Sinn Féin generally and Deirdre Hargey in particular to come to the Chamber and pontificate about safeguarding is utter hypocrisy.”
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“My remarks will be brief. I do not wish to speak for longer than it took me to read the Bill and the accompanying explanatory and financial memorandum. <BR /> <BR />I will be clear from the beginning of my remarks that the agriculture industry in Northern Ireland is the backbone of our economy. It provides thousands of jobs and, most importantly, feeds our nation with top-quality produce that cannot be matched anywhere else in the world — from farm to fork. It is important, therefore, that we take all the necessary steps to protect all farms and ensure that they continue to provide top-quality and affordable food on our doorstep. <BR /> <BR />This Bill is short, sharp and focused, targeting farmers who are located in areas with natural constraints.”
“The Minister for the Economy's role is to promote Northern Ireland and bring jobs to our wee country. The loss of those 300 well-paid jobs with Cantor Fitzgerald exposes once again the toxic nature of Sinn Féin on the global stage. Minister, how many more jobs has Sinn Féin cost Northern Ireland because of your continued stance of always backing the oppressor and your continued glorification of terrorism in Northern Ireland?”
“Minister, I have written to you to make the case for additional nursery places at Cloughmills Early Years and Taylorstown Cross Community Preschool, which do not have enough places to meet this year's demand. This morning, both preschool settings had to turn away children who live in those small villages, with the PAN having been based on the previous year's intake. How will you support non-statutory settings to allow them to grow and meet demand instead of continuing to penalise them because of one year's low intake?”
“<BR /> <BR />On a brighter note, there will come a day when Mr Adams and his cohorts will stand before a higher court, where justice will be satisfied. That is the only peace that victims will get. They have been denied justice in this life, but Mr Adams will meet justice in the next.”
“Six days later, an IRA delegation flew to London for talks with the Government, and, again, Gerry Adams was there. For 30 years, the IRA waged a murderous campaign across this land, leaving thousands dead and injured. Throughout those years, Adams remained at the centre of the IRA — a fact attested to by numerous journalists — so what were victims to think when the case collapsed? They see a system that cannot give them answers and a process that ends without resolution, and they see Gerry Adams emerge to address the press flanked by not one but two bombers: Pat Sheehan and Gerry Kelly. How crass and insensitive. Victims are told that that is justice. Is it any wonder that victims say that they have been failed by the law?”
“Thank you very much, Madam Principal Deputy Speaker. That is grand. <BR /> <BR />Last week, the civil case against Gerry Adams collapsed. Anyone in the Building can go to the Library, lift Peter Taylor's book about the Provos and read that Gerry Adams was part of an IRA delegation that met a senior Northern Ireland Office official on 20 June 1972 in Londonderry. One attendee said of that meeting:”
“If we want to do something about this issue, that is where we need to target our money and focus to ensure that no other generation has to grow up living through a time like this when such a number of women and girls have been murdered in Northern Ireland. This needs to be a living, breathing document, but, for that to be the case, we need to spend our money and time in a targeted way; not, as is currently the case, through grants that we award through councils. We need to get our core funding right for those who are on the front line and delivering services daily, and we need to put money into our education system to ensure that no generation has to live through what we are going through at the minute.”
“Spending millions of pounds on grants that are awarded through councils instead of on targeted interventions through schools and youth clubs is a missed opportunity in my eyes. It is time that we had more than platitudes from the parties that head up those Departments and real delivery for groups on the front line, such as Women's Aid. That, not speeches in the Chamber after a murder has taken place, would show determination to address the issue. <BR /> <BR />Recently, at the Executive Office Committee, Youth Assembly Members shared with us experiences of women and girls in the education system.”
“As policymakers, we need to face up to the issues that have been highlighted in the aftermath of that murder. This morning, a lady from Foyle Women's Aid pointed out that, while there has been much talk about ending violence against women and girls and the funding that has accompanied that flagship scheme, the reality is that we are falling down when it comes to the basics. There is no core funding for the groups that provide services daily for those who suffer domestic violence. In the PSNI, there are no specialists who should be assigned to domestic violence cases as a matter of course. There is an appalling backlog in our court system. All of those are real issues about which this place could and should be doing something, particularly in the Executive Office and the Department of Justice.”
“I express my sincere condolences to the families of Ellie Flanagan and Amy Doherty. My mind turns particularly to Amy's two young children, who have been left without a mother and robbed of that centrepiece in any family. I am sure that I am not alone in the House when I say that my sincere prayer is that they will know the comfort of almighty God, whom the Bible describes as:”
“— coming to the Chamber to tell anybody about —.”
“We have heard fancy words such as "delusion" coming from the Benches opposite, and we have heard about "morally wrong" and "illegally". My goodness, the hypocrisy that comes from that side of the Chamber; to this day, Sinn Féin supports the actions of the IRA — they are joined together as one — but it comes to the Chamber to lecture us. The hypocrisy knows no bounds, and, Mr Sheehan, you are the prime culprit. You come to the Chamber — a bomber —”
“That is why businesses, such as Cantor Fitzgerald, do not want to do business with its Minister. You cannot claim to be the First Minister for all, while you cling to being the First Minister of no alternative.”
“Deputy Speaker, when the Members sitting across from me profess that they shed tears for the children killed in Iran, my mind turns to events closer to home here in Northern Ireland. Yesterday was the anniversary of the murder of 11-year-old Alan McCrum, who, in a no-warning IRA bomb, was killed in Banbridge 43 years ago. You cannot claim outrage over the deaths of children thousands of miles away in Iran and Gaza and tell me that there was no alternative to the murder of an 11-year-old Protestant 45 minutes down the road from this very Building. This motion once again shows the hypocrisy of Sinn Féin.”
“Absolute hypocrisy. Just like his mates, the terrorist ayatollahs; just like his mates in Hamas. That is the side that Mr Sheehan likes to be on. Mr Sheehan, I put it to you: would you like to enlighten the House as to what elements of the UN Charter and international law you concerned yourself about when you went to plant the bomb in the cash-and-carry?”
“Thank you very much, Deputy Speaker. The hypocrisy hanging out of Mr Sheehan, who gets up on his feet to lecture us in the Chamber after what he did, and his convictions in his past —.”
“Could you say that? Every loss of life, Pat. Every loss of life is regrettable, but you cannot say that, you or your mates in Sinn Féin.”
“Unlike you, Mr Sheehan, I can say that any loss of life is regrettable. Can you say that? When you went to plant the bomb in the cash-and-carry, could you say that, if that would have caused loss of life?”
“I am happy to give way to the cash-and-carry bomber.”
“First responder footage showed women's bodies lying mutilated after being raped and murdered. Hamas body-camera footage showed a man being decapitated with a shovel. That was the face of Iran's allies in Hamas, yet Sinn Féin comes to this Chamber to lecture Israel and the US on international law. There is not one of us present here who, on seeing our family butchered by Iran's mates, would sit around waiting for approval before acting to prevent Iran from securing a nuclear weapon.”
“<BR /> <BR />That brings us back to 7 October 2023, when Iran funded and armed Hamas terrorists to stream over the border from Gaza into Israel and butcher anyone whom their paths crossed with. Those were the animals that Sinn Féin champion and aligns itself to. Last week a film was shown in this Building of some of the raw footage of what happened that day. Security camera footage showed a girl pleading for her life before being shot in the head. Home CCTV footage showed a father with two young boys hiding in their home, only for a grenade to be thrown among them, which killed the father. After that, the young boys sat crying on their mother, as armed terrorists casually strolled about their home, drinking from their fridge and eating their food.”
“I oppose the motion and support the amendment standing in the names of Mr Beattie and Dr Aiken. <BR /> <BR />The motion pays lip service to condemning the regime in Iran, but it should not be lost on anyone in the Chamber that Sinn Féin did not rush to the Business Office to table a motion when tens of thousands of people were being massacred by their own Government on the streets of Iran. Sinn Féin, the party of selective human rights, strikes again and exposes the fact that, once again, it supports the oppressor. True to form, it was only when Israel got involved that Mr Sheehan, the cash-and-carry bomber who likes to lecture everyone in the House, got exercised enough to put his name to a motion. That, of course, raises the question of why Israel and their allies in the US thought that now was the time to strike.”
“This debate cannot simply be another discussion about writing strategies or producing action plans and glossy documents. That time has long passed. If the Assembly is serious about women's health, the focus must be on reducing the waiting lists that are leaving women stuck in that 15-mile queue. Unless and until that changes, women across Northern Ireland will continue to experience a healthcare system that is simply not meeting them at their point of need. The motion shines a spotlight on where we are failing and where we must do better. That must start with the Minister coming to the House and telling us all what he is doing regarding women's health and updating us on where the 2024 strategy is.”
“If every woman currently waiting for their first appointment stood shoulder to shoulder, the queue would stretch for more than 15 miles. That is the scale of the problem that we are dealing with in women's health service provision. Behind those numbers are women waiting in pain, women waiting for a diagnosis and women waiting for treatment that, in many cases, could dramatically improve their quality of life. <BR /> <BR />It is, therefore, entirely reasonable to ask how we have got to this point and reached a position where thousands of women in Northern Ireland are waiting for years simply to see a specialist. I must ask the Health Minister this question: where is Mr Swann's health strategy, which was promised in the House back in 2024?”
“I support this pointed motion calling for the Health Minister to bring forward a fully costed and time-bound women's health strategy within the next 12 months and before the end of the mandate. <BR /> <BR />I will begin by referring to a concerning statistic raised recently by my colleague Councillor Anna Henry when speaking about her personal experience. Anna highlighted the fact that nearly 12,000 women in the Northern Trust alone are currently waiting for a first consultation with a gynaecologist. That figure should stop every Member in the Chamber in their tracks and cause us to pause. That is not across Northern Ireland; it is in only one trust. We are also told that Northern Ireland has the worst gynaecology waiting lists anywhere in the United Kingdom.”
“We are well used to the toxic nature of Sinn Féin being exposed locally. We now know that its toxic nature —”
“Thank you very much, Principal Deputy Speaker. Last week, the public here in Northern Ireland got a further glimpse into why Cantor Fitzgerald pulled out of plans to locate an office here in Belfast. Documents released under the Freedom of Information Act to Sam McBride show that the major American financial services firm had agreed to create 300 well-paid jobs. That project had reached the stage of a signed letter of offer from Invest NI. Discussions were already under way about the timing of the public announcement, and then something happened. On 11 March last year, the Economy Minister travelled to New York and met the leadership of the company in what officials themselves described as a critical meeting. After that meeting, the deal collapsed, and 300 jobs vanished.”
“Deputy Speaker, there are only 15 seconds left, and I gave the Minister the opportunity to come in. He wants to be smart, but he knows rightly that it is DFI. It is putting 20 million tons of raw sewage into our waterways. If he wants to be smart about it, I ask him to go and speak to the Sinn Féin Minister, who could not, would not be drawn, because it was their Minister leading to the problem with pollution —”
“The first is to Northern Ireland Infrastructure, so that it can stop pouring 20 million tons of untreated sewage into our waterways and unlock the capacity to get our housebuilding sector going again. If that is not acceptable, the second one is that the Minister should look at giving grant aid to the farmers, who could then bring in new environmental projects that will lower emissions on their farms. They are being strangled and prevented from doing so because of the red tape, poor responses by NIEA and SES. <BR /> <BR />I am happy to give the Minister time to come in.”
“<BR /> <BR />Farmers are already under severe pressure from rising costs, greater regulation and the uncertainty of what the next round of nutrients action programme (NAP) proposals will be. A powerful new environmental regulator risks laying even more restrictions on that sector that is vital to our economy, our rural communities and our food production. This is especially absurd when the Minister and his party already have the powers and levers at their disposal to do something about it. <BR /> <BR />At a time when public finances are under immense strain, the people of Northern Ireland will rightly ask why millions of pounds should be spent on another administrative body. If that money exists, I suggest two places where it should go.”
“Forgive me, Mr Deputy Speaker, if I roll my eyes when the Alliance Party tables a motion looking for an independent environmental protection agency. The Minister is already in charge of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA). If Mr Tennyson's summing up is correct on the doom-and-gloom picture that he lays out regarding the environment, I suggest to him that he write to his Minister, because he is the man who has the power to do something about it. Oh, no! He is in the same party, so we have to farm this out to, guess what, an independent body. That is the code word in here for saying, "No responsibility here". Look at the MLA pay increase: "It is independent, so it is not our problem, guv".”
“Let us remind ourselves what those serious allegations are, as reported by a whistle-blower who worked to AFBI: slurry spreading during the closed period, including blowing slurry into Hillsborough Forest; collecting Bovaer milk in a tanker and disposing of it into the willows, diluted with dirty water; biosecurity failures, with badgers roaming around the yard; and numerous animal welfare concerns. I regard that as another fail on the environment by Minister Muir. Those allegations strike at the very heart of fairness and credibility in the Department on the watch of the Alliance Party, which tabled the motion. The allegations suggest the existence of a two-tier system: one rule for private farmers and another for a government-run, publicly funded body.”
“I have been in the Chamber for 20 months and have continuously pushed you on that issue. At the very beginning, you said, "Oh, it's not my Department. I'm not into the blame game", but, thankfully, you have woken up and moved to the mood music that you have to do something about it. You criticised the farmer but protected Northern Ireland Water. I am glad that that narrative has changed. <BR /> <BR />Let us look more broadly at the environmental side of Minister Muir's portfolio. The Minister is under pressure over allegations relating to the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) that were first reported to his Alliance colleagues 11 months before, the Minister claims, they were first brought to his Department by an MLA and GB News.”
“I regard that as the Minister failing to protect our waterways. He still has not done anything about that issue.”
“I welcome the veto that the DUP is exercising at the Executive to oppose the creation of yet another unwanted, costly, green-welly-brigade quango in Northern Ireland. The proposal is the latest example of the Minister prioritising his environmental ideology over the agriculture sector — the very sector that he is supposed to champion, yet continually treats as the poor cousin in his portfolio. Let me be clear: protecting our waterways and our environment matters, but creating another costly quango is not the way to achieve those protections. <BR /> <BR />Let us examine the Alliance Minister's record on the issues that he wants to farm out to another body. On 3 March, Minister Muir told the House:”
“Would the Member like to clarify for the House which party's Minister is in charge of the 20 million tons of untreated sewage that goes into our waterways each year? Sinn Féin seems to want to distance itself and have that independent body. What is your party's Minister doing about that?”
“when referring to Stormont's trans-inclusive toilet policy that allows men into women's bathrooms on its outdated guidance. Will the woke members of the Commission commit to footing the bill for damages if the current policy is challenged in court?”
“In the words of the equality commissioner, Geraldine McGahey OBE,”
“As I outlined, approximately 90% of goods entering Northern Ireland come here via ferry routes. The Scottish exemption is 100%. You are bumming up and talking about how good it is to have an Assembly and Ministers in place.”
“The Minister said that "it falls everywhere", but does he accept my argument that the UK Government could bring back an improved offer for Northern Ireland that does not discriminate against us, using the Scottish model that is already built into the legislation? Why should we be treated differently from the Scots?”
“The House has a clear choice to make. There is a better and more cost-effective way for business. We should reject the Order today, and the Government should return with a better offer for Northern Ireland.”
“For those reasons, I cannot support the Order in its present form, and I urge other Members to vote against it and require the Government to come back with regulations that treat Northern Ireland fairly. <BR /> <BR />My last comments will be from the director of TST Group, who has been in touch. If Members do not want to take my word for it, they should listen to what he has to say. TST contacted us, concerned about the disproportionate impact that the proposal will have on Northern Ireland businesses and supply chains. He said:”
“Members should reflect carefully on that, because the issue has already been examined at the Committee. Members know how their parties voted there, so the question today is straightforward: why would anyone vote to pass a flawed version of the regulations when they could simply reject it and ask the Government to come back within days with a version that does not discriminate against Northern Ireland vis-à-vis Scotland? <BR /> <BR />It is not acceptable for Northern Ireland to be treated as an afterthought in UK policymaking. It is not acceptable to add cost to the supply chains on which our economy depends. It is not acceptable to impose a policy that places Northern Ireland at a competitive disadvantage in its national market.”
“The Government could table revised regulations within days, so the idea that rejecting the Order today will somehow jeopardise further and wider ETS arrangements simply does not stand up. What would be extraordinary is for the House to knowingly pass legislation that treats Northern Ireland worse than other parts of the United Kingdom. <BR /> <BR />At the end of the day, the question before Members is simple: are we prepared to support a measure that will increase costs for Northern Ireland businesses and consumers, offers no environmental benefit and treats Northern Ireland less favourably than Scotland? If this discriminatory version of the Order passes, it will not be because there was no alternative; it will be because Members chose not to insist on fair treatment for the people whom they represent.”
“If that were the direction of travel that we wanted to take, it does not go against it. All that it does is require the Government to return with a better drafted and fairer version of the regulations. <BR /> <BR />The solution is remarkably simple. The Government could withdraw the Order, amend a small number of words so that Northern Ireland receives the same exemption as has been granted to Scotland and then reintroduce the measure in revised form. That happens frequently with secondary legislation. When drafting errors occur or policy flaws are identified, the Government correct them and bring forward a revised statutory instrument. There is nothing extraordinary about that, and doing so would cause no real delay.”
“Why did the Northern Ireland Executive not do the same? Why should businesses in Northern Ireland face costs that ferry services to Scotland's island communities do not? Why should our constituents be placed at a competitive disadvantage simply because our Executive failed to make the case for the businesses? <BR /> <BR />We are also told that Members should support the Order because rejecting it might somehow jeopardise discussions between the United Kingdom and the European Union regarding emissions trading schemes or carbon border adjustment mechanisms. That argument simply does not stand up to scrutiny. Voting against this version of the Order does not bring maritime decarbonisation to an end. It does not dismantle the UK ETS. It does not prevent further and future alignment with European systems.”
“That is why ferry services serving the Scottish islands have been granted an exemption. The Government accepted the argument that imposing costs on those routes would unfairly burden island communities. That is a perfectly reasonable position, but here is the difficulty: Northern Ireland depends on maritime connectivity as well but receives no equivalent exemption. We hear the Minister talk about the 50% partial exemption that he has secured, while the Scottish islands get 100% exemption until 2028. Why are ferry routes that are servicing Scottish islands exempt from the costs, while ferry routes servicing Northern Ireland are not? When the issue has been raised with officials, the explanation offered is striking: the Scottish Government, we are told, lobbied hard. That raises uncomfortable questions.”
“Normally, a carbon tax works by encouraging people to switch from a more polluting option to a cleaner alternative, but that logic works only where a viable alternative exists. In the case of maritime transport serving Northern Ireland, that alternative does not exist. What happens when you impose a carbon cost in those circumstances? It does not drive behavioural change but simply adds cost. Therefore, what is being proposed is not an environmental instrument; it is a tax on trade and a tax on people's connections through personal travel. <BR /> <BR />Even if Members were prepared to overlook those problems, there is a second issue that is even more troubling. The Government have already recognised that maritime routes can face disproportionate impacts.”
“The maritime sector has warned that compliance with the extension of the ETS could add around £1·10 per freight metre. That works out at roughly £15 per trailer. That may not sound dramatic in isolation, but, across thousands upon thousands of freight movements every week, it quickly becomes a substantial additional burden. Industry estimates that it could lead to an increase in freight costs of around 6%. Every one of those costs will inevitably find its way into the wider economy. <BR /> <BR />Members will hear this defended as an essential environmental policy, but the central difficulty with that argument is this: the mechanism that is being imposed cannot change behaviour in the way in which environmental policy is supposed to.”
“Our supermarkets depend on it; our manufacturers depend on it; and our agri-food sector depends on it. The everyday functioning of our economy depends on reliable and affordable maritime links with Great Britain. Therefore, when additional costs are placed on those routes, they do not sit in isolation. They flow through the entire supply chain. They affect exporters selling into Great Britain, businesses importing components and goods from Great Britain and, ultimately, the price paid by the consumer.”