Edwin Poots
South Belfast · Democratic Unionist Party · Northern Ireland
“I call Mr Eóin Tennyson. Again, this is Mr Tennyson's first opportunity to speak as a private Member, so I remind the House that it is convention that a maiden speech be made without interruption. However, if you choose to express views that provoke an interruption, you are likely to forfeit that protection.”
“Sorry — Ms Armstrong. My apologies. <BR /> <BR />That the Assembly could, in some way, get that money out when it is a UK Government responsibility. The UK Government have distributed it directly in Scotland and Wales, not through the Welsh Parliament and not through the Scottish Parliament.”
“I have not got time; I am sorry. <BR /> <BR />Ursula von der Leyen, who was in the Republic last week, made some of the most ridiculous claims about the British Government, who have supported Ukraine in a way that no other Government in Europe have and who have never engaged in the activity that was suggested by Ursula von der Leyen.”
“Today, a lot of statements have been made but there has not been a lot of fact behind a lot of what has been said. We have Michelle O'Neill, who walked out of her role as Health Minister — not for six months but for three years — and abandoned her position when we had Bengoa and there were all the problems with nursing that led to the str…”
“I need to deal with the issues first. <BR /> <BR />He referred to the Budget that he produced. No party supported that Budget. The Alliance Party did not support it, because it did not cover policing and prisons. Infrastructure did not support it, because it would not allow it to do the basics of what had to be done.”
“We had a circumstance where Sinn Féin repeated, month after month after month, that there were hundreds of millions to give to the public when that did not exist and when, in reality, Minister Murphy was racking up debt that will roll into next year, which will ensure that that will be a difficult financial year.”
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“— Garvaghy Road and the other places where you seek votes. You are hurting your own people by looking for the rigorous implementation of the protocol, —”
“I have taken my position on the protocol from the outset. I indicated from the outset that the protocol would cause problems in Northern Ireland, but your party and the other three main parties — Alliance, the SDLP and the Green Party — all called for its rigorous implementation. With your rigorous implementation, what will you do about checking the 419,000 trucks that come from Great Britain to this place to feed people in Northern Ireland? Do you want more trucks stopped and checked? Do you want more cost to be added? When that cost is added to the Lidls, the Icelands, the Tescos or whoever, they will put up their prices for the people who live in Kilwilke, Taghnevan, —”
“I also stand by my word to serve in the best interests of the people whom I represent — the Member might reflect on that — whether they are people in Lough Neagh who are having trouble obtaining or selling their eels, farmers in west Tyrone or north Antrim who struggle to get blackface sheep from Scotland, which is an important part of their business, or the pedigree breeders who take animals to Scotland and bring them back if they are not sold. You say that you represent and speak for farmers. The farmers I speak to, who come from across the community, tell me that cannot go on. Do you know what? It would be much better if you stood with us on the issue and said to Europe, "Stop hurting the people I represent". I should not have to do that on your behalf, but I am.”
“We have to get on top of the disease problem and then offer vaccination, in much the same way as we had to do with COVID to stop its spread. We will have to do the same with this difficult disease, which has not been dealt with for 40 years. I understand why people find it offensive when we talk about culling badgers. It is not a Province-wide cull of badgers; it is only in areas where there are extreme problems with bovine TB. In areas where there are no problems with bovine TB, badgers will not be touched and will remain protected, as they are now. It is a difficult one, and I accept that it is difficult for the community. Nonetheless, £40 million is being spent on it, badgers are going through hardship as a result of catching bovine TB, and it is the best thing to do to ensure that we have a healthy wildlife population.”
“Slurry has to be got rid of somewhere, and that is why I find putting it through an anaerobic digestion process, which heats the slurry and reduces infection, a much preferable route. As well as an environmental benefit, there is a benefit through the reduction of any potential disease spread. Some make the argument that TB can be spread by slurry; I do not think that we have convincing evidence of that at this stage. <BR /> <BR />I have no interest or heart in taking the life of any animal, but, in order to get on top of the problem and to ensure that we have a healthy population of badgers and bovines, we will have to engage in some form of elimination, in the first instance, and vaccination thereafter.”
“<BR /> <BR />I point out to the Member that the badger is a predator and does not have any natural predators. As a result of badger predation, we have fewer hedgehogs, frogs and other species than we should have. Sometimes, a little control can help other species. The same applies to songbirds, for example: if we did not have crows and magpies being taken out, we would have fewer songbirds. We need to ensure that the actions that we take are for the benefit of not just agriculture but the wider environment.”
“Unfortunately, there is a lot of misinformation out there. I have received a letter that, I think, has done the rounds with MLAs. There is a lot of inaccurate information in it. Our Department spent five years on a test and vaccinate or remove (TVR) exercise. It tested and vaccinated badgers and removed those that had TB. A considerable veterinary scientific experience was developed through that exercise and, indeed, through other engagements that other parties have had in dealing with the issue. If we proceed with it, we will probably be looking at the removal of hundreds of badgers per annum. At the moment, around 14,000 bovine animals are slaughtered early in life as a consequence of TB. People seem to care about only one aspect.”
“The party leader has made his statement, and the party leader will stand over the statement, as will the Ministers. That will cause problems, and we understand that. It will cause problems for other parties, because the basis of the agreement under which we are in here is that we engage in North/South meetings and in the North/South infrastructure. The decision has, however, been taken that we cannot have that normality of relationships North/South whilst we have that disturbance in east-west relationships. The Belfast Agreement was built on relationships across these islands, not just on this one island. It is therefore incumbent on us to reflect that in what we do and to make sure that we can get to a situation in which we are again ensuring that relationships across these islands are maintained in a constructive way.”
“There have been discussions North/South and certainly many east-west. I have corresponded in writing and had telephone conversations with my colleagues in the UK Government on over 50 occasions, not to mention the dozens of meetings in which I have raised the issue and the difficulties caused by the protocol with them. I have also raised the issues with colleagues in the Irish Republic and indicated to them the damage that is being done to relationships as a consequence of their support for the protocol and, in particular, Leo Varadkar's bad behaviour when he showed photographs from the 1970s and said that that was what could happen in Northern Ireland. That was a disgraceful action. As a consequence, we have a European Union that argues that it is doing this to protect the peace process, when, in fact, its actions are damaging it.”
“There are considerable measures in place. One of the problems is that, as the landfill team prepare to seal the site completely, they bore wells, and, as they bore wells, fresh smells are introduced. In order to close a site down and to ensure that, in future years, there is not a continuing odour, it is necessary for that to happen. It is one of the problems that we have: if action is not taken now, we have problems in the future, but the action taken now causes problems in the here and now. I sympathise with the residents. They face a difficult circumstance. I am prepared to close the site early, but I have been told by my officials that doing that would not provide any benefit for the residents. That is why we have not done so.”
“The operator reported that it envisages that 80% of the site will be covered with its permanent cap by December 2021 and that the site will be closed in 12 to 18 months' time. I have sought further assurance from the operator that it will do everything to ensure that what can be done to minimise odour impacts on the local area outside the site boundary will be done.”
“I visited the Mullaghglass site on 3 August 2021, where I met the operator’s landfill team. I have highlighted to the operator the high volume of complaints that my office, in addition to the Northern Ireland Environment Agency, is continuing to receive from local residents, community groups and political representatives. That is of real concern to me. It was evident during my visit that, operationally, this is a very busy site with a lot of waste material being disposed of in the active phase. During the site tour, I was able to see at first hand the measures that have been put in place by the operator to capture the landfill gas, and it was evident on the day that further works were taking place to install the final cap in the most recently infilled area of the site.”
“One of the things that I have done is to promote Northern Ireland's having protected geographical indication status for grass-fed Irish beef. I will encourage it for British beef when that opportunity arises. Unfortunately, colleagues in Ireland were not as receptive to that as I might have liked them to be. I think that we are probably getting to a better place with them now, but it took a battle to achieve that. Sometimes, people South of the border might be better looking at cooperation where it is to the mutual benefit of people on both sides of the border.”
“We have a micro food business investment scheme pilot, which supports the micro food and drink manufacturing businesses, which are processing primary agricultural produce to produce new product. We want to help them to enhance their existing product, expand their range and produce more of it. Lots of work is being done, and various small grants are available to those rural businesses. We have visited many of them over the past year and a half, and it is good to see that thriving microbusinesses are involved in food production across Northern Ireland.”
“Some of the major supermarkets are assisting in buying local produce, and some of them even have markets in their car parks where people can sell their own produce. We want to encourage those small producers of quality vegetables to have that opportunity to maximise their return, because their profitability would otherwise be low. We want to encourage those artisan producers, and Food NI is doing a tremendous job at promoting that. We have companies now that are supplying Harrods, Fortnum and Mason and some of the top companies in London with our high-quality artisan foods. They are some of the best anywhere in the world. We will continue to support those companies and their development.”
“I absolutely and entirely agree with the Member, and I ask him to reflect on his party's position that we follow the Climate Change Bill being proposed by the Green Party, which would reduce livestock numbers in Northern Ireland by 83% whilst Brazil is increasing its livestock numbers by millions. I see no benefit to the world environment because, whatever cows do, they do it in Brazil as well as in Northern Ireland. I see no benefit whatsoever in importing produce from South America that can be produced in a more carbon-friendly and sustainable way here, and I urge the Member to reflect on his party's position on that particular legislation.”
“That would mean more of our locally produced food being sold and consumed, both at home and beyond.”
“<BR /> <BR />My Department supports, and is actively involved in, activities such as the Bank of Ireland Open Farm Weekend. This very successful initiative aims to bring consumers, especially families, closer to primary food production so that they have a better understanding of where their food comes from, how it is produced and why it is important to buy our high-quality produce. My officials are also developing proposals for a new food strategy framework for Northern Ireland. I am very keen to ensure that the promotion of our high-quality local farm produce is a central part of any future food strategy. My ambition is for Northern Ireland to be recognised, both at home and abroad, as a world-class food region that is known for its sustainability, quality, safety and knowledge-based approach.”
“This is the fifteenth consecutive year of the programme, with funding of £290,000 being offered in 2021-22 to support the delivery of exhibitions, fairs, seminars, workshops and information programmes. Of particular note this year, through the Northern Ireland Regional Food Programme, my Department is funding a generic agri-food promotional campaign, which is being led by Food NI. This agri-food consumer-focused promotional campaign will support the Northern Ireland agri-food industry as it begins to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic by highlighting the quality, sustainability and high reputation of all sectors of the agri-food industry. It will point to opportunities to source, buy and consume more local and seasonal food.”
“My Department has promoted, and will continue to promote, the benefits of our locally produced food and the importance of supporting our agri-food industry by buying local produce. I, and my officials, are in regular contact with industry stakeholders to discuss the promotion of local quality farm produce and how that can be enhanced. <BR /> <BR />Through the Northern Ireland Regional Food Programme, my Department provides annual financial support to industry organisations to support them in raising the profile of Northern Ireland's quality regional food and increasing its consumption in Northern Ireland, the rest of the UK and the Republic of Ireland.”
“We are clearly identifying ways and means to improve that habitat because it is a very rich and important part of our biodiversity.”
“None of us want to see biodiversity loss. That is why we have taken the actions that we have. One of the areas that I am looking at is peatlands. We have a peatlands strategy because there is very specific biodiversity in our peatlands. We need to ensure that our peatlands are wetter. We also need to ensure that we better deal with ammonia, so that there is less nitrogen deposition in our peatlands. Our peatlands are in better condition than those in some of the countries neighbouring us. They are certainly in better condition than the peatlands in the Republic of Ireland, and almost certainly in better condition than some of those in Scotland, which are in a very poor state. However, we can, and will, do much more.”
“There are so many opportunities out there to make a clean, green environment but it will not come from just words; it will come from actions.”
“That is an entirely achievable plan, and we need to apply ourselves to making it work. <BR /> <BR />Wouldn't it be great if we did not rely on oil from the Middle East, and gas from the North Sea or, indeed, Russia, but were using our own resources? From existing anaerobic digestion, for example, there is the capacity to provide biomethane to 62% of the households on the gas network. We should invest in further anaerobic digestion. We should look at slurry separation thereafter. We should take the phosphates out of the system and sell those to other parts of the world to ensure that they do not arrive in our waterways. However, we need people with the vision to do this. I cannot do it on my own; I need the support of Executive colleagues.”
“I was, perhaps, ahead of some colleagues across the way in that, when I was Minister previously, I brought in a planning policy statement for renewable energy. As a consequence of that, we are sitting on around 45% renewable energy in Northern Ireland, whereas other parts of the United Kingdom have struggled to reach 20%. Currently, the big opportunity for us lies in hydrogen. We can produce hydrogen from water and renewable electricity instead of importing fossil fuels from around the world. <BR /> <BR />I want to work with other Departments, including the Department for Infrastructure and the Department for the Economy in particular, to ensure that we embrace the opportunity that exists for Northern Ireland to lead the way on renewable energy. I want Northern Ireland to be a net exporter of renewable energy.”
“We need to get away from the aspirational fluff to what actually delivers for the environment — who is actually making the delivery and how we assist them in that — and then we will get real, tangible benefits arising from it.”
“We have a biodiversity plan. We also have a plan for green growth. We are developing, with our agriculture sector, work to improve efficiency on farms. We are helping to develop a whole renewables industry. I note that the Minister representing the Member's party refused one of the largest renewable energy projects that has come before us. <BR /> <BR />Looking after the environment takes more than just words; it takes actions. I am much more interested in actions to deliver a better environment than in glossy words. What I get in the Assembly, over and over again, is aspiration, but that aspiration is not taken to where the action actually happens, to what the costs are and what the impact is upon individuals and particular businesses or, indeed, agriculture.”
“Taking urgent action to reduce the causes of climate change and to tackle its impacts is everybody's responsibility in order to prevent further environmental damage and to deliver ecological and climate resilience in Northern Ireland. <BR /> <BR />One example of such action is my introduction to the Assembly of the Executive's Climate Change (No. 2) Bill, which is steeped in science and evidence. The Bill, if enacted, will underpin and drive forward climate action and policy across all levels of government, as it sets ambitious emissions reduction targets that, if met, will deliver on Northern Ireland's equitable contribution to UK net zero by 2050, in line with the Paris Accord.”
“My Department and I recognise the need for urgent action to tackle these issues, and we recognise the Assembly's climate emergency declaration of February 2020, when the Assembly also acknowledged a biodiversity crisis in Northern Ireland. Rather than my Department focusing resources on making further declarations, I am instead prioritising my work to drive forward effective and meaningful actions across government to tackle climate change and our ecological challenges. <BR /> <BR />In tackling the climate change emergency and the biodiversity crisis, we cannot be complacent. The evidence is clear, and we need real action, not just more words.”
“It will have considerably less impact than the Northern Ireland protocol — well over 70% of our goods come in to Northern Ireland from Great Britain on some 419,000 HGVs per annum — and the consequences of not dealing with that issue and not arriving at a circumstance where that barrier is not put between Northern Ireland and its main body of trade, when we will be able to move things forward. People cannot just believe that they can drive a coach and horses through east-west relationships without there being some sort of consequence.”
“If I had kicked off on day one, it would have been a struggle to achieve it in what was left of this Assembly term. I will not take criticism from people who actually held the Assembly back from meeting for three years. If you are that keen about the environment, it would have been much better had you ensured that the Assembly was not defunct for three years because of your own political considerations.”
“If you want to do that, maybe we should do it on an all-islands basis and see our friends in Ireland come back under the banner of the United Kingdom. I am sure that they would be very welcome to do that, given that that is where they do most of their trading and business. It is a fairly complicated, difficult and tricky issue as things stand, so I do not think that I would be keen to introduce further complications to any suggestion of the creation of an independent environmental protection agency.”
“Other issues need to be addressed first, such as the OEP and green growth strategy, which will help our recovery from the devastating effects of COVID-19.”
“<BR /> <BR />The functions of the OEP will be to monitor environmental improvement against Northern Ireland's environmental improvement plan; provide independent scrutiny and advice on environmental law and policy; investigate environmental complaints; and, if necessary, take enforcement action against public authorities that breach environmental law. It is important to note that the OEP will not take action against individuals or private businesses. That role remains the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency and other enforcement agencies. The OEP will exist to hold Government to account for the proper implementation of environmental law. <BR /> <BR />Understandably, in the current crisis, resources are spread more thinly than I would like, so some prioritisation has been necessary.”
“Consideration needs to be given to appropriate options, and those will require robust economic appraisal to determine the best option for Northern Ireland. It is no small task to scope out all the potential impacts, including significant legislative, financial and human resource issues, that would be necessary before decisions can be made. <BR /> <BR />The Assembly has given its consent to extend the provisions of the UK Environment Bill to give effect to the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) for Northern Ireland. Recently, I published a synopsis of responses to a discussion document that was issued to gauge stakeholder views on how we should deal with environmental plans, principles and governance in the future.”
“Mr Durkan knows where he is in the pecking order. Good environmental governance is always about focusing on environmental outcomes and taking a strategic approach to the environmental challenges that we face in Northern Ireland and, indeed, on the global stage. <BR /> <BR />New Decade, New Approach does not specify a time frame for the establishment of an independent environmental protection agency. I am on record as saying that I am considering the implications of the NDNA proposal for the establishment of an independent environmental protection agency to form part of the possible outline of a future Programme for Government. <BR /> <BR />An independent environmental protection agency — in other words, a replacement for the Northern Ireland Environment Agency — cannot be created overnight.”
“I am under the impression that, should I approve the application, I will be challenged judicially, and, if I refuse the application, I will be challenged judicially. I have to make a decision based on the information provided to me, not on whether one or other party will challenge me judicially thereafter. If I make a decision and one or other party challenges that decision, it is for that party to demonstrate that I have not been rational and have not done all the things that I should have done as a Minister. Who knows what would happen thereafter?”
“Unfortunately, I cannot look at the issue in the same way as the Member for East Antrim or, indeed, his colleagues from East Antrim who are in my party might look at it. I have to look at it purely on the basis of the scientific and planning evidence that is provided to me. Whatever decision I arrive at will be based on the qualitative material that is garnered by them in order to make recommendations to me. Therefore, I cannot take a decision that would be prejudiced by bias either for or against. I have to take in all the arguments and arrive at a reasoned position that is defensible thereafter.”
“I am considering a number of documents relating to the proposed Islandmagee gas storage project. The documents relate to an application for a marine licence and the review of a discharge consent and abstraction licence. The matter that I am determining is complex, and, as such, it is vital that I give the documentation all due consideration.”
“Shared Environmental Services is an independent body that was established by a previous Minister, Alex Attwood, to look at those areas of special interest. It gives advice to councils and is paid for by councils. The body has no responsibility whatsoever to the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs.”
“NIEA will use all the information that will be provided to it and assess that on the basis of what it recognises, as experts in the field, needs to be done to ensure that wildlife is protected. That work has been carried out for many years, and NIEA will continue to do it.”
“The council, in the first instance, is the planning authority and decision maker.”
“No one should be under any illusion that there are no mitigations in there to ensure that wildlife is protected.”
“The division of NIEA that deals with those matters has the ability to go through the assessments that have been provided to it by the applicant in order to identify and challenge their robustness. That can be test-based. It also involves site visits. Therefore, NIEA has the ability to adequately address those issues. <BR /> <BR />Very often, I hear of issues to do with bats, for example, where NIEA has delayed planning applications until further assessments are taken in the appropriate periods. If a planning application is granted, it is very often only on the basis that various steps are taken that will allow the bats to move to fresh roosts and so forth. Similar steps are taken where badgers are to be displaced. There is a whole series of things that NIEA will do to protect wildlife.”
“Some developments may require the submission of an environmental impact assessment under the Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017 in support of the application in order to ensure that all potential likely significant environmental impacts, including on ecology and wildlife, have been considered. <BR /> <BR />NIEA has published advice and guidance that can be used by applicants and agents to inform their projects and raise awareness of the necessary ecological requirements to accompany an application. That advice and guidance can also be used by the planning authority to inform its assessments of and determinations in planning applications.”
“That is the responsibility of the applicant, who must assess the impacts of their proposal, including on wildlife, and submit associated evidence in order to obtain planning permission, and the planning authority, which must consider and determine the application. <BR /> <BR />In order to obtain planning permission, the planning application should be supported with evidence of any potential impacts to natural heritage features that could occur as a result of the proposal. It should also provide details of any proposed mitigation and compensation that may be required.”
“<BR /> <BR />Planning consultations have to be considered against a wide range of planning policies, including, for example, those in local development plans, planning policy statement 2 and the strategic planning policy statement, all of which have provisions and policies for the protection of wildlife and species protected by law, such as the Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985. <BR /> <BR />It should be noted that NIEA has an advisory consultee role in the planning process and is not responsible for directly assessing the impact of a development on wildlife or for determining applications.”
“The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs is a statutory consultee for certain planning applications submitted to local planning authorities and DFI under the Planning (General Development Procedure) Order (Northern Ireland) 2015. The natural environment division of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency in the Department is responsible for providing advice on planning consultations that have the potential to have a significant impact on natural heritage features.”
“I beg to introduce the Climate Change (No. 2) Bill [NIA 28/17-22], which is a Bill to set targets for the years 2050, 2040 and 2030 for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions; to provide for a system of carbon budgeting; to provide for reporting and statements against those targets and budgets; to confer power to impose climate change reporting duties on public bodies; to provide for reports and advice from the Committee on Climate Change; and for connected purposes.”
“Northern Ireland needs to build a stronger, more resilient fishing and seafood industry that can adapt to change. Of course, that will not be easy, but I hope that, with government and industry working together, we can build new infrastructure, become more prosperous, improve the marine environment and enhance our reputation as suppliers of quality sustainable seafood. <BR /> <BR />My Department is finalising the business case to inform decisions about procuring the detailed environmental and technical studies that will be needed to take the harbour proposals forward. I thank all Members who commented.”