Category: Northern Ireland

The speech made by Hilary Benn, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, in Oxford on 5 September 2025. The text is the Cabinet Office version which is politically redacted.

It is a great pleasure to be back here at the BIA, and to have the opportunity to reflect upon the UK-Ireland relationship with all of you, and thank you, Dominic and Francesca, for the invitation and for all that you do to nurture this really important institution.

It has certainly been an eventful 12 months since last we met.

Continuing war in Ukraine. The unfolding disaster in Gaza. The climate continues to warm. A new partnership between the UK and the EU. And a new President of the United States of America.

But one thing that hasn’t changed has been the growing warmth of the relationship between our two countries.

Simon, I want to say how grateful I am for the friendship and enthusiasm with which you – and the whole Irish Government – have embraced not only the reset in the relationship between our two countries, but built on it with trust, honesty and ambition.

And nowhere has this been more evident than on the issue of legacy, which you and I have discussed at length in all of its complexity, and to which I shall return later on.

You know as well as anyone the Prime Minister’s personal commitment to our partnership – a commitment  shared by the Taoiseach – and it was a great pleasure to be at the first of the new UK-Ireland Summits in Liverpool in March.

I was reminded then of the poetic words of President Higgins – whose extraordinary public service we applaud as he prepares to leave office – who said on his 2014 state visit to Britain that the UK-Ireland relationship had progressed from ”the doubting eyes of estrangement… to the trusting eyes of partnership and, in recent years, the welcoming eyes of friendship”.

We are, indeed, today the closest of friends  as well as the closest of neighbours.

The UK Government has also, of course,  been working to reset our relationship with our European partners.

As part of this, we remain steadfastly committed to the full and faithful implementation of the Windsor Framework.

Not because it is perfect, but given our departure from the EU, the open border, and two entities with two different sets of rules, we had to find together with the EU a means of  dealing with a unique challenge, and the Framework was the pragmatic result.

And over the past year, we have continued to try together to ease the flow of goods within the UK internal market by:

• removing unnecessary customs paperwork;
• setting out our plans to safeguard the supply of veterinary medicines;
• and working to protect consumer choice in the final phase of ‘Not for EU’ labelling.

And of course the biggest prize from our commitment to rebuild trust and partnership has been the  Common Understanding announced in May between the UK and the EU – our largest and closest trading partner.

What a contrast with the breaking of promises and the threatening to rip up international agreements of recent years.

An SPS agreement in particular will make a big difference once it is implemented.

It will remove the checks and procedures on animal and plant products moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland – as well as making it easier for businesses across the UK to export to the EU.

This matters for practical economic reasons.

But it also matters to the sense of Northern Ireland’s integral place in the United Kingdom.

And following the publication yesterday of the independent review of the Windsor Framework carried out by Lord Murphy, the Government will of course now give full consideration to his findings and recommendations.

We have also worked to try and reset relationships with the Northern Ireland Executive.

I want to pay tribute to Michelle O’Neill and Emma Little-Pengelly, and to all of the Executive Ministers, for what they have achieved in the 19 or so months since power-sharing was restored.

They have worked constructively together and agreed an ambitious Programme for Government, published a Fiscal Sustainability Plan, brought forward a strategy to end violence against women and girls and a childcare and early learning plan, allocated the first £129m of ringfenced funding from the UK Government for public services transformation, and announced a three-year strategic plan for health and social care, to start getting on top of the long-standing crisis in the health and care system.

There is, of course, so much more to do, whether its on health waiting lists,  water quality in Lough Neagh, or the constraints on growth that come from an overloaded waste water system or slow planning decisions.

But there have also been some depressing developments. The disorder and racist thuggery – let’s call it out for what it was –  we saw in Ballymena and other towns this summer was despicable, and has no place whatsoever in Northern Ireland or anywhere else in the United Kingdom. When people feel they have to put signs or flags in their windows in hope that this will stop them from being smashed then something is terribly wrong.

We all have a duty to speak out and I greatly welcome the strong statement agreed at the Northern Ireland Executive meeting yesterday condemning racist and sectarian attacks.

The Government is providing £137 million in continued funding to tackle terrorism, paramilitarism and organised crime. The threats are changing and more than ever we have to work together to meet them.

Paramilitarism remains a scourge on Northern Ireland society, and following our agreement earlier this year, the Tánaiste and I will soon jointly appoint an Independent Expert to scope the prospects for paramilitary group transition to disbandment. I know that not everyone agrees with that decision – of course paramilitaries should have left the stage long ago – but the fact is they’re still here and still causing harm to communities.

As demand for more and better public services continues to increase and pressures grow on the public finances of governments across the world, in these straitened times, all of us know that we need to raise revenue – and spend it as effectively as possible – if we are going to deliver on our commitments.

This Government is clearly showing our support for Northern Ireland through continued and significant investment.

At the Spending Review the Chancellor announced a record funding settlement of £19.3 billion per year through this Parliament – the biggest since devolution.

This will ensure that Northern Ireland continues to be funded above its level of relative need. And it has ended the prospect of a financial cliff-edge in 2027, which had been left hanging over Northern Ireland by the previous government.

With its unique strengths in cyber and AI, in green technologies, in the creative industries and in defence manufacturing, Northern Ireland has so much to offer.
That is borne out in our modern industrial strategy, and the forthcoming defence industrial strategy.

It is reflected in the £310 million the UK is investing in Northern Ireland’s City and Growth Deals, the deal announced by the Prime Minister in March to supply Ukraine with more than 5,000 air defence missiles from Thales, and in the £30m investment we announced last month for Northern Ireland’s science and tech sectors and Local Innovation Partnerships Fund, £2m for Queens University Belfast’s Cyber AI Hub and £46m a year to fund Local Growth.

And at  the first meeting of the East West Council under this Government in June I announced the Connect Fund, which will award up to £1 million to strengthen collaboration between community groups in Northern Ireland – whose work is so important and so valuable – with their community organisations in Great Britain.

These are all further examples of this Government’s commitment to Northern Ireland’s future.

And I hope that  PM the £50m investment by the UK Government in the redevelopment of Casement Park, alongside the investments we continue to make in football, rugby and other sports in Northern Ireland will now enable progress to be made on both the GAA stadium and the sub-regional stadia programme for football. And of course we have the enticing prospect of Northern Ireland being part of the UK’s bid for the 2035 Women’s World Cup.

In the same spirit of partnership, the new Irish Government has shown its continued commitment to infrastructure development and tourism in the border regions through the Shared Island Fund, with a welcome €50 million in new funding announced earlier this year.

All of this means that the Executive has what I think is an unprecedented opportunity ahead of it to build on the positive start it has made and to do the hard work of reforming public services, generating further investment and improving the lives of all the people of Northern Ireland.

Now, it shouldn’t need to be said, but [political content redacted] let me be absolutely clear that this Government’s commitment to the Good Friday Agreement – in its entirety – is unwavering and absolute, and I know that is shared by the Irish Government as co-guarantor with us.

The Agreement on that miraculous Good Friday brought an end to three decades of appalling violence in Northern Ireland and across the United Kingdom.

[Political content redacted]

To try and unpick the Good Friday Agreement would not only be dangerously irresponsible but would also disrespect all those who sacrificed so much to help bring about the peace that the people of Northern Ireland – and across these shared islands – now enjoy.

The GFA, as Nancy Pelosi once said in a speech to the Dáil, a “beacon to the world”.

And it is with that in mind that I am greatly looking forward to welcoming foreign ministers from the Western Balkans, alongside other European friends and partners, not least yourself, Simon to Hillsborough Castle in October, as part of the UK’s hosting of the Berlin Process, which promotes prosperity, security and reconciliation in South-Eastern Europe, specifically the former Yugoslavia.

At home and abroad, let us continue to talk about our countries’ shared experience and pass on the lessons we have learned to the next generation.

Which brings me to the legacy of the Troubles.

Helping bereaved families to get answers about the deaths of their loved ones ultimately proved to be beyond the architects of the Good Friday Agreement.

But they knew it needed to be done.

They said: ”The participants believe that it is essential to acknowledge and address the suffering of the victims of violence as a necessary element of reconciliation.” But they couldn’t quite get there, given everything else they had to deal with.

Everyone in this room knows that there have been numerous attempts at fulfilling this promise but I’ve met a lot of people who are still waiting for those answers. Their voice above all needs to be heard in the current debate.

The 2014 Stormont House Agreement, negotiated by the Conservative-led coalition government and the Irish Government, came close, with its commitment to an independent Historical Investigations Unit and a separate, joint information recovery body.

But in the years that followed, the political courage required to deliver on that agreement dissipated.

[Political content redacted]

That legislation was rejected across Northern Ireland, a number of its provisions have been ruled against by the Northern Ireland courts, and this Government came into office committed to repeal and replace it.

The independent Commission, that was created by the Act, now has a growing  caseload – including some of the most high profile terrorist murder cases from those awful times, like the Guildford pub bombing and the Warrenpoint ambush.

But it is clear that the Commission in its current form does not command enough confidence in Northern Ireland. So, if it is to be successful, it urgently needs significant reform.

I have always said that I want a legacy process that is capable of commanding support across all communities. And it has always been my view, and that of the Prime Minister, that – if at all possible – this should be a shared endeavour with the Irish Government, with reciprocal commitments from both sides.

That remains the objective of the agreement with Ireland that we have been working on. And I would say we are now close to being in a position to announce that.

I have already set out many of the things that we intend to do, building on the principles of the Stormont House Agreement and drawing on the lessons from Operation Kenova.
A reformed, independent and human rights compliant Legacy Commission that gives families the best possible chance of finding answers, with investigations capable of referring cases for potential prosecution where evidence exists of criminality.

A new oversight body for the Commission, a Victims Panel as in Kenova, public hearings and representation for families.

The maximum possible disclosure of information, in line with the disclosure process for public inquiries.

The potential for a separate information recovery body, as envisaged by Stormont House and the subsequent treaty between the two governments.

The resumption of a number of inquests that were prematurely halted by the Legacy Act.

And – for the UK Government’s part – protections to ensure that anyone who served the State in Northern Ireland to keep people safe and who is asked to participate in a legacy process as a witness is treated with dignity and respect.

Most of us here lived through the Troubles, in my case at a distance but not for many of you. I remember watching the reporting on television and reading about  terrible events in the newspapers, and like you I despaired.

But unless we went through the experience, none of us will ever fully be able to appreciate what was – and still is –  felt by those people who lost dearly loved family members, but who have never been able to find  answers about what happened to them.

Answers that have been hidden for too long. Answers that some people may not like. Answers that are uncomfortable or shocking or a painful reminder of grim times and brutal deeds.

Great Hatred Little Room, Jonathan Powell’s account of the Northern Ireland peace process, concludes with these words:
“The burden of history remains, and before the two sides become truly reconciled they need to find a way to deal with the past…. If I have one wish, it is that the people of Northern Ireland find an acceptable way to lay the past to rest.”

How right he was. But I am under no illusions. This is difficult. It remains highly contentious. Different views are understandably and  passionately held. And  the pain and the trauma still run deep.

We all know that a perfect outcome is not attainable – not everyone is going to get everything they want – remembering that wonderful quote in the Ulster Museum Troubles exhibition.  ‘We have a shared past, but do not have a shared memory’.

But I am also certain that, with trust in each other and with continued resolve, we can find a way forward to deliver on the unfinished business of the Good Friday Agreement and put in place our best chance to acknowledge and address the suffering of the victims of the violence as we seek to find answers for all.

So as our two countries turn to face the future, let us neither be burdened by the past, nor turn our backs upon it.

A way forward is now within our grasp and that is why we must find the courage to do this, and do it now.

The comments made by Hilary Benn, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, on 15 April 2025.

I welcome the Irish Government’s commitment to co-operate with the Omagh Bombing Inquiry through this memorandum of understanding.

This is a very positive step that will help enable the independent Inquiry to do its job and provide answers for families.

The Omagh bombing was a heinous atrocity committed by the Real IRA at a time when communities in Northern Ireland were looking forward to peace and stability.

It caused immense pain and suffering to the many families who lost loved ones and to those who were injured. They will always be in our thoughts.

The speech made by Hilary Benn, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, on 4 February 2025.

I am delighted to be speaking here today, in these wonderful surroundings. My thanks to Ulster University; indeed The Times’ UK University of the Year 2024, no less.

This institution does so much fantastic work and is truly “a force for good in fostering peace, prosperity and cohesion”, as the judges of that illustrious award so eloquently described you. And it has been a privilege for me to meet some of your remarkable students this morning.

This week, of course, we are marking the one year anniversary of the return of devolved government in Northern Ireland.

But before I come to that, I just want to say this about Storm Eowyn.

At its peak, over 280,000 properties were without electricity including acute hospitals and other essential services. But since the winds abated, there has been an extraordinary effort to deal with the damage, to clear fallen trees and to get electricity supplies up and running again.

And I know that lots of people have worked really hard over long hours to restore services and I’m glad to say that NIE Networks is now very nearly there with the last electricity reconnections, and it has been a long time for some people to wait.

It’s been a team effort which shows the strength of the United Kingdom in offering practical support. When trouble strikes, we come to the aid of each other.

The restoration of power-sharing a year ago was a significant moment. It followed yet another unacceptably long time without a functioning government.

When I was first appointed as shadow Secretary of State in September 2023, I said to Chris Heaton-Harris that my priority was to see the Executive restored.

I want to pay tribute to Chris for the pivotal role he played in bringing back the institutions, to the leadership of the DUP for deciding to go back into powersharing, and to them and the leadership of Sinn Fein, the Alliance Party and the UUP for the great start tht the Executive has made. We all hope that its restoration is for good – the good of the people of Northern Ireland.

By its very nature, power-sharing is difficult – very difficult – but just over a quarter of a century ago we saw extraordinary political leadership make it possible.

Courage and compromise triumphed over bitter stalemate, as political leaders agreed the principles of power-sharing that endure to this day.

I have great faith in Northern Ireland’s system of government. Indeed, there were long periods of relative Executive stability prior to 2017 in which we saw the devolution of policing and justice, and the establishment of the PSNI – which today enjoys significant cross-community support. Who could have imagined that 26 years ago? It’s a tribute to the work that Naomi Long and her predecessors have done in the role of Justice Minister.

There was also significant economic growth, helped by Northern Ireland’s success in attracting inward investment. All examples of what can be achieved by sharing power.

The people of Northern Ireland need and deserve an Executive that works for them all the time, along of course with an Opposition that holds the Executive to account, an important role being undertaken by Matthew O’Toole and the SDLP. And it is vital that all of us do all we can to ensure that the stability of devolved government endures.

We have to put the days of collapse behind us and move forward.

Now I say that not because I am worried about a return to instability. On the contrary, I have been so impressed by the leadership shown by Michelle O’Neill and Emma Little-Pengelly as First and deputy First Minister.

The Executive has worked constructively together to negotiate an Interim Fiscal Framework, publish a Fiscal Sustainability Plan, bring forward a strategy to end violence against women and girls and a childcare and early learning plan, and agree a draft Programme for Government.

It’s been a successful start, and I believe the conditions are now in place for the Executive to grasp the opportunities that beckon for Northern Ireland.

The largest budget settlement since devolution with a funding formula that now reflects Northern Ireland’s level of need.

Certainty, after the uncertainty that immediately followed the EU referendum in 2016, about Northern Ireland’s place in the UK internal market.

Advantageous trading arrangements through the Windsor Framework, which can help draw in foreign direct investment.

And finally – after too many years in which Northern Ireland was too often treated by the previous government as an afterthought – this Executive has a partner in this UK Government that is committed to working together to generate investment and economic growth and to help improve the delivery of public services.

We all understand the scale of the challenge and the unique circumstances of Northern Ireland, where poverty, paramilitarism and the past are entwined. And where the pain and trauma wrought by the terrible violence that shook this place continue – for many – to be deeply felt.

And all our thoughts this week, and in the weeks to come, are with those family members taking part in the commemorative hearings in the Inquiry into the Omagh Bombing – a monstrous and despicable act of terrorist violence.

We now must all play our part in building a more inclusive society which is at peace with itself as it looks to the future.

And this is the moment for Northern Ireland’s devolved government to address the concerns that citizens have about their lives and their wish to see public services improve.

My first six months or so in office as Secretary of State has reminded me about what Mo Mowlam once said:

“People working together can overcome many obstacles, often within themselves, and by doing so can make the world a better place.”

We are all aware of the acute challenges which we are grappling with right across the United Kingdom.

Today I want to talk about three of these.

First, reform and delivery of public services.

Second, how to ensure the smooth flow of goods across the UK, while seeking to deepen our trade ties with Europe.

And third, the need for sustained and sustainable economic growth, which is essential if we are to see raised living standards, and more money in people’s pockets on which subject, today the UK Government has announced a 6.7% increase in the National Living Wage from 1 April, which will benefit millions of people across the UK, including in Northern Ireland.

The challenge for public services is particularly acute in Northern Ireland, and nowhere is this more urgent or obvious than in health.

The facts are frankly shocking.

Waiting time performance against cancer care targets continues to deteriorate, corridor care is becoming more frequent and it is striking how many people in Northern Ireland are now going private.

More than a quarter of people in Northern Ireland are on a waiting list. That is more than double the figure in England.

53% of people waiting for a first appointment with a consultant are waiting for more than a year in Northern Ireland.

In England, that figure is 4%. That’s right, 53% compared to just 4%.

That’s why the First Minister recently described the state of the health service as “dire and diabolical”.

I agree. And this is despite UK Treasury data showing that spending per head on health is nearly £300 a year higher in Northern Ireland than it is in England.

It is absolutely not that health and social care staff are somehow not doing all they can. On the contrary, they are working really, really hard to treat patients, but they are doing so in a system that clearly isn’t working.

And why isn’t it working? Because – over many years – the decisions necessary for systemic and not piecemeal reform to the health and social care system in Northern Ireland simply haven’t been taken.

Now the Health Minister Mike Nesbitt is developing a long term plan to stabilise, reconfigure and reform the health service. This is really encouraging and I sincerely wish him well.

And the challenge now for the Executive is to take the difficult collective decisions that are required to enable this change to succeed.

Doing so is now unavoidable.

The task of transforming public services won’t be without cost. I get that. And I know that talk of transformation of public services inevitably leads to the issue of funding.

So, allow me to say this.

The Autumn Budget provided £18.2 billion for the Executive in 2025/2026 – the largest settlement in real terms in the history of devolution.

This includes a £1.5 billion increase through the Barnett formula, with £1.2 billion for day-to-day spending and £270 million for capital investment.

The independent Northern Ireland Fiscal Council has calculated that the relative need in Northern Ireland is 24% more per head than in England for equivalent spending. This rightly reflects the greater needs that there are in Northern Ireland.

That is why, as part of the restoration agreement last year, a structural change was made to funding by adding a 24% needs-based factor to the Barnett formula, so as to ensure the Executive gets the level of funding it needs, now and in the future.

This financial year and next financial year, funding for Northern Ireland will actually exceed this level.

I frequently hear it said, however, that more funding is required from the UK Government and that that is the reason why public services are in such a state. But given the needs-based formula that is now in place, and given the increase in funding that the government has given, a lack of funding is not the impediment to public service transformation.

The real impediment has been the failure to reform the system. The many missed opportunities to take decisions, or to apply lessons, from other parts of the UK where reform has happened.

Of course, this has at times been down to there being no Executive in place to take those decisions, which is why it’s essential that the institutions do their job every day of the year.

At other times, there has simply been a lack of agreement among Executive Ministers on the steps that need to be taken, or on the allocation of resources, or on the revenue that needs to be raised.

I believe strongly in devolution in Northern Ireland – where decisions are made as close to the people they affect as possible, by the representatives the people have chosen.

It is only right that the Executive makes decisions about its own spending and revenue raising priorities.

However, it must take responsibility for balancing its budget and living within its means. Just as all other governments must.

Now, the Executive has nine priorities set out in its draft Programme for Government, and the work of this UK Government is guided by our five Missions and our Plan for Change. These objectives are in many ways complementary, and I firmly believe the two need to work together.

Since Fleur Anderson and I took office, we’ve been clear that we want to help ensure that the Executive has the support it needs.

We want the UK Government to be an active partner and to encourage greater collaboration and sharing of expertise, so helping Northern Ireland to make progress for itself.

And it is in this spirit that the Public Sector Transformation Board was conceived of, as part of the restoration deal, to bring together experts from across different sectors, and to enable the sharing of best practice from across the UK to support change.

We have also made available £235m of funding for projects proposed by the Executive departments to transform the delivery of public services.

I look forward to seeing the first tranche of this funding being allocated soon, followed, I hope, by the Executive -and I want to say that Caoimhe Archibald has done a great job as Finance Minister – bringing forward plans in the Budget for how the Executive will deploy its resources to deliver the wider transformation that is so urgently required in the health service.

Let me now turn to the second matter I want to address.

This UK Government will always uphold – in good faith – the Good Friday Agreement and the principle of consent on which it rests. And for as long as the people of Northern Ireland wish it to be so, Northern Ireland’s place in the Union is secure.

The task now for us as politicians is to ensure that the Union continues to improve the lives of all communities, regardless of their constitutional ambition.

Now, of course, I couldn’t come here today and speak about the restoration of the Northern Ireland institutions without recognising the issues that led to them not functioning in the first place, and the arrangements that enabled them to get back up and running.

The concerns that people in Northern Ireland – particularly but not exclusively those from a Unionist background – had about the old Northern Ireland protocol were genuine. I shared many of them. It proved to be unworkable and damaging, and I supported the Windsor Framework that replaced it.

The Framework brought significant improvements in the arrangements in Northern Ireland, thanks to the pragmatic approach the EU took in the negotiations.

It recognised that goods staying within the UK’s internal market should not be subject to the full panoply of EU rules and checks.

It ensured that medicines continue to be available on a UK-wide basis, and it enshrined an important new democratic safeguard in the form of the Stormont Brake.

The Brake has received quite a bit of attention of late. There are some who have said that because the outcome recently was not as they wished, it doesn’t have any value.

That isn’t true.

The main criterion for use of the Brake – namely, that the proposed new EU rule would have a significant and lasting impact on communities in Northern Ireland – and that is quite a high bar – is clearly set out in law. The fact that this bar was not met on this occasion, does not have any bearing on whether it might be met on any future occasion. Why? Because each case must be considered on its merits. That’s the responsibility on me in law.

But the Brake notification by MLAs – which reflected genuine concerns – did lead to a clear commitment by the UK Government to take the steps necessary to avoid new regulatory barriers in respect of chemicals. Which was the issue that had given rise to the application.

I think this was a positive outcome, and precisely what the Brake was designed to do.

More generally, I am not going to rehash old debates about Brexit. My views during the referendum and subsequently are fairly well known.

But I hope that the experience of what has happened since the referendum taught us all something important. And that is that we should beware those offering simplistic soundbites rather than grappling with difficult and complex questions, like the one which lies at the heart of this debate. How do you deal with trade between two countries with different rules but an open border between them?

Serious leadership and the questions it has to deal with – such as that provided by those sitting around the Executive table, or operating in constructive opposition in the Assembly, or by the UK Government – requires serious answers.

And when it became clear that the Windsor Framework was not the final word, through painstaking months, the Democratic Unionist Party worked through the remaining issues to secure some important new commitments in the Safeguarding the Union Command Paper.

They engaged in the detail and achieved changes for their constituents when it might have been politically safer or easier to demand the impossible from the sidelines.

Some others did take that latter path – I would say with absolutely no benefit to anyone that they represented.

So, I commend the role that the leader of the DUP, Gavin Robinson, and the now deputy First Minister, played in that process – and for the courage and commitment to Northern Ireland that they demonstrated in leading their party back into the Executive.

And for my part, let me say that I am committed to continuing to work in good faith to implement the basis on which devolution was restored.

We have clearly made good progress:

• an Independent Monitoring Panel is in place to report on how it’s going on meeting the new Internal Market Guarantee
• every public authority implementing the Windsor Framework must now look to statutory guidance on the importance of Northern Ireland’s place in the Union in discharging their duties
• every Government department must set out the impact of major regulatory changes on the functioning of the UK’s internal market, including Northern Ireland.
• an Independent Review has been established recognising that the democratic vote to continue the Framework’s application was not supported by Unionist MLAs
• we have new working groups on Veterinary Medicines and horticulture up and running – acknowledging that there is still important work to be done
• we will shortly establish Intertrade UK.

But most important of all, goods are flowing back and forth between Northern Ireland and Great Britain.

This is a process, it is not a destination.

And my commitment, as we continue to take forward Safeguarding the Union, is to continue working with all parts of the community and with all the political parties, to address concerns and problems.

It certainly won’t always be smooth, but I am really grateful to all those who are willing to engage in the hard slog each day to improve things further for the people of Northern Ireland.

And as we honour the commitments we have made in the Windsor Framework, as we must, this Government is also working to secure a stronger and better relationship with the European Union.

An SPS and veterinary agreement just to take that example would produce tangible benefits for businesses and traders in Northern Ireland and indeed across the UK by helping animal and plant products to flow freely across the Irish Sea. So there is light at the end of this tunnel.

Beyond strengthening Northern Ireland’s place in the Internal Market, investments being made by this UK Government will help to strengthen Northern Ireland’s economy.

We all know the particular challenges facing the economy in Northern Ireland, not least on productivity, but Northern Ireland’s economic output is now 9.7% above its pre-pandemic level, which is significantly higher than the rest of the UK.

In the last decade the total number of employee jobs is up 15%. And as we know Northern Ireland now has the lowest level of unemployment in the UK.

I am determined to ensure that Northern Ireland benefits from UK Government initiatives designed to generate economic growth and power the green transition.

Central to this will be our new modern industrial strategy – Invest 2035 – and our commitment to make the whole of the UK a clean energy superpower with GB Energy, a publicly owned company, at its heart.

We will work closely with the Executive and the other devolved governments on our 10-year Infrastructure Strategy and the National Wealth Fund to ensure the benefits are felt UK-wide.

Alongside the Industrial Strategy, we will mobilise billions of pounds of investment in the UK’s world-leading industries, including Northern Ireland’s strengths in areas like fin-tech and the creative industries.

I was delighted that last month, Lisa Nandy, the Culture Secretary, announced that Belfast is one of this Government’s priority regions for the Creative Industries, and this Spring will see the full opening of Studio Ulster – a truly unique facility that will not just support the growing creative industry in Northern Ireland, but will also take it into the next era of screen innovation, making it a global player in performance technology. Fleur and I had a sneak preview before we came into this hall today, and I’m looking forward to visiting the new Studio Ulster itself.

And of course, the Belfast City Deal has helped to fund Studio Ulster.

And as we move full steam ahead with the City and Growth Deals right across Northern Ireland, these will demonstrate the significant impact of a partnership that has been developed between the Executive, the UK Government, local councils and businesses to make things happen.

It is also fantastic that shipbuilding is returning to Belfast. As announced in December, a commercial deal has been reached that will see Navantia UK – a specialist in shipbuilding – purchase Harland and Wolff, thus ensuring the delivery of the Ministry of Defence’s three Fleet Solid Support Ships.

This deal, which will protect around 500 jobs in Belfast, demonstrates the Government’s unwavering commitment to UK shipbuilding, and to Harland and Wolff.

Throughout the process, the Government worked with devolved governments, local MPs and the relevant trade unions, on the commitments on jobs that are part of the deal.

And let’s not forget all of the other strengths of Northern Ireland. Farming, its fantastic universities, including this wonderful institution we’re meeting in today, the voluntary and community sector, advanced manufacturing, thriving life sciences, and a world-leading cybersecurity industry which, with UK Government investment here in Northern Ireland, is so important for UK-wide national resilience.

Investment is vital for Northern Ireland, but to maximise potential it needs to get its infrastructure right. To take just one example, last year NI Water confirmed that there are 19,000 applications for development that cannot go ahead due to the outdated and at capacity sewage network.

And, of course, political stability is crucial to encourage investors to put their money into Northern Ireland.

As I look at all of this, what strikes me most forcefully about Northern Ireland is the energy, the enterprise, the imagination and the innovation of the people and businesses and the local authorities and the politicians that I have met.

To take just one example of a firm I visited in October – I could tell you of many others – Edge Innovate designs, manufactures and exports its material handling and recycling equipment – and you have to see the size of it, some of those bits of kit are enormous- from their factory in Dungannon all over the world.

It was so impressive, so let us all tell their and other stories of Northern Ireland’s success.

Because measured by what went before, the last 26 years really have been a success. Your success. Northern Ireland has been transformed.

So, as we look towards the 30th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in 2028, I am so encouraged that a majority of people here continue to view power-sharing as the best form of government.

Of course, there is a debate about reform of the institutions – it would be surprising if there were not – but my view is this.

Just as it took agreement between the parties to establish power-sharing in the first place, so it will require agreement between the parties to reform the current arrangements. And the task for now for today is to make them work for the people of Northern Ireland.

So in doing so, let us take inspiration from the words of the great George Mitchell, I had the privilege of meeting him a couple of months ago, who – on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the Agreement – said:

“The answer is not perfection, or permanence. It is now, as it was then, for the current and future leaders of Northern Ireland to act with courage and vision, as their predecessors did 25 years ago. To find workable answers to the daily problems of the present.”

That is the responsibility that each of us takes on when we stand for elected office, whoever we are, and when the people say they want us to get on with the task.

Let me assure you. The Executive will be in the lead but it will not be alone.

And at this moment in history and at this time, I believe that Northern Ireland has all it needs to be a success and to be a beacon of hope to the world by showing that peace is truly the foundation on which progress is built.

The statement made by Hilary Benn, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, on 18 January 2025.

Acknowledging and addressing the suffering of victims and survivors of the Troubles was one of the aims of the Good Friday Agreement, but it is all too clear that for many of them and their families this task remains incomplete.

I have met and corresponded with many people who lost loved ones or were injured themselves. They have described to me the trauma they have lived through, made much worse by the lack of answers or of acknowledgement of what happened.

And I know that many are rightly angry about the previous UK Government’s Legacy Act. In Opposition, we said we would repeal and replace the Act. In Government, we remain steadfastly committed to doing so. That work is well underway.

Last month, I began this process with the introduction of a proposed draft Remedial Order which will remove a number of the Act’s provisions that have been deemed incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights, including ending the widely-opposed immunity scheme and restoring the right to pursue civil cases. There are complex issues to be worked through, including in relation to legal rulings on interim custody orders, and all of these are now before Parliament for scrutiny over the next few months.

I also confirmed that I will restore inquests, starting with those that were previously halted by the Legacy Act, and put in place a fairer disclosure regime like that in public inquiries.

Everybody I have spoken to agrees that there needs to be a means of conducting investigations and of recovering information. And we do now have – for the first time – an independent judge-led Commission, responsible for doing both these things.

I am the first to acknowledge that the legislation that established the Commission needs to be changed and I appreciate why, after all these years, and given the origins of the Legacy Act, there is scepticism about it. I know that reforms will be needed to secure the confidence of families. But a growing number of requests for investigations and information are now being made to the Commission – over 120 at the last count – and the Northern Ireland Courts have been clear that it has the powers it needs to carry out independent, human rights-compliant investigations.

What’s more, the legislation I will propose will ensure that the Commission is, in specific circumstances, able to hold public hearings, take sworn evidence from individuals, and ensure families have effective representation.

One of the advantages of having the Commission is that it can quickly get to work. It has a growing team of dedicated investigators, including the former senior investigator at Operation Kenova. The Commission also has full police powers to help find answers without the long years of waiting that are often involved with public inquiries, which must establish staff, premises and processes from scratch.

There are a number of families, including the family of Sean Brown, whose inquests were brought to a premature end, and who continue to experience great pain and suffering. For each of these families, I want to ensure that there is a full, thorough and independent investigation into the death of their loved one as soon as possible.

I urge all those still searching for answers, for justice or for acknowledgement of what happened, to talk to the Commission to hear and discuss what they propose – knowing that the Government will strengthen it in our forthcoming legislation.

The complexity and sensitivity of dealing with the legacy of the past means trying to build as broad a consensus as possible – as envisaged in the Stormont House Agreement. I am determined – with the help of all interested parties, including the Irish Government – to achieve this.

Nothing will ever ease the pain that so many families endure to this day. But we must do all we can to help society in Northern Ireland, which has come such a long way since 1998, to finally begin to heal the terrible wounds of the past and look to a better future together.

The speech made by Hilary Benn, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, on 23 September 2024.

Good afternoon, Conference.

It is an honour to address you today as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland in our new Labour Government, and a privilege to be working with such a great team. Fleur Anderson, Ruth Anderson and our PPS Matt Rodda.

The last Labour holder of this office to make the journey from opposition into government was the late, great, Mo Mowlam.

Just consider what she, what that Government, faced in May 1997.

Northern Ireland was still bitterly divided.

Numerous rounds of multi-party talks had shown promise, but not yet succeeded.

At times, the obstacles seemed insurmountable and the threat of violence ever-present.

And yet 11 months later, in April 1998, the impossible was made possible – in the words of Seamus Heaney ‘Hope and History’ rhymed – as the Good Friday Agreement was signed.

Something few people who had lived through the Troubles thought they would ever see.

Peace.

Today, we stand on the shoulders of those giants whose courageous political leadership made it happen. And be in no doubt. This Government will always uphold the Good Friday Agreement in letter and in spirit.

Northern Ireland has been transformed, but as always new times bring new challenges.

I pay tribute to the First Minister, Michelle O’Neill, and deputy First Minister, Emma Little-Pengelly, and to the whole Executive at Stormont, for the positive start they have made since devolution was restored in February.

Stability is the foundation of everything, and with itand their Programme for Government, the Executive can make the most of the opportunities and address the challenges. The longest NHS waiting lists anywhere in the United Kingdom, the pressures in education, the lack of affordable childcare and the demands on the Police Service of Northern Ireland, whose officers do so much to keep people safe, not least during the terrible disorder we saw last month.

There are no easy answers. The Executive, like all governments, must live within its means.

We will support the Executive as it seeks to transform Northern Ireland’s public services.

We get that the Executive needs to be able to plan for the future, so we will take forward discussions on a long-term fiscal framework.

We understand the importance of investment in growth, including through City Deals like the one for Belfast which is roaring ahead and the Derry/Londonderry and Strabane Deal that wesigned last week which will bring huge investment to the North West.

And we will work with the Executive to see all parts of Northern Ireland flourish.

Now, let’s be clear. The UK’s departure from the European Union, and the reckless approach of successive Tory governments, has created a problem in Northern Ireland.

So this Government will take all necessary steps to safeguard Northern Ireland’s place in the UK internal market, maintain the open border on the island of Ireland and uphold our international agreements.

We will implement the Windsor Framework – pragmatically and in good faith.

And we want to negotiate an SPS and veterinary agreement with the EU, not least because it would help smooth the flow of goods across the Irish Sea.

Conference, there is another Tory wrong that falls to us to put right.

I have met many families who lost loved ones in the Troubles. I have found it difficult to listen to their stories. Imagine what it is like for them as they recount yet again the sheer brutality of what happened and some tell of the passing of the years without finding answers.

The Tories’ Legacy Act has rightly been rejected by victims and survivors’ groups, all of the Northern Ireland political parties and the Irish Government, and that is why Labour will repeal and replace it.

And, we will of course make sure that the ICRIR – the Independent Commission whose job it is to find those answers for families – is compliant with Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

We will consult widely in doing so, recognising that this will involve really difficult conversations, and many will hold different views about the best way forward.

But history teaches us that it is only by coming to terms with the past that we can move forward to the future.

And what a future – what an opportunity now beckons for Northern Ireland – not least because of its integral place in the UK market and its access to the EU Single Market.

It is home to bedrock and cutting-edge industries.

From shipbuilding to agriculture.

Composite aircraft wings to electric and hydrogen buses.

A growing television and film industry, world leadingcompanies in cyber security and artificial intelligence.

Thriving services, great universities and a dynamic voluntary sector.

As I travel around, I am so impressed and inspired by the creativity, skill and enterprise I see in people right across Northern Ireland, and I want others to see that too so that they come and invest in the jobs and prosperity of the future.

Conference, the Agreement reached in April 1998 did not solve everything.

It was, by its very nature, a compromise. As Mo Mowlam said during the negotiations “Everybody is going to get something. No-one is going to get 100% of what they want.”

And in accepting that, everyone involved – and all of us across these islands – got something that was far, far more valuable.

An end to violence and the dawn of a new era.

So, in that spirit and with hope, let this generation show the same determination as those political giants in whose footsteps we follow as, together, we seek to forge a better future for Northern Ireland.

Thank you very much.

The speech made by Hilary Benn, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, on 7 September 2024.

Thank you very much to Dominic and to all of you, for your kind invitation.

And my heartfelt thanks to you Micheál, not only for your warm and extremely wise words, but also for the way in which you have embraced the opportunity we now have for a genuine and lasting reset in the relationship between our two countries.

It is a privilege for me to be here, for the first time since my appointment as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

I’ve only ever been to one other BIA conference, that was two years ago when I was a late substitute for my good friend Peter Kyle. I suspect it was my work as Chair of the Brexit Select Committee that made him think of me.

And over many years Dominic, you and I have shared many views about the choices the then-Conservative government made about our departure from the European Union, and the consequences of that decision still reverberate – and will continue to do so.

It was William Faulkner who once said: “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.”

But what a remarkable history the BIA has borne witness to, over these past 52 years, as this truly unique annual conference has continued to provide an opportunity for a very wide range of people to come together and reflect on the ties that bind our two countries together.

Two countries that share so much… history, culture, ideas, politics and friendships.

And it’s a story that runs like a thread through these islands and through the lives of so many of our families, including my own: on my side, it was an Ulster Scot from Fermanagh who made that journey that millions made across the Atlantic to Ohio which is where my mother came and, on my wife’s side, Irish Catholics from Cork, Mayo and Kilkenny including her grandfather who was born in your constituency.

Now the history of these islands has not been benign. Over the centuries there have been terrible wrongs, great violence, revolution, bitterness but in recent years – reconciliation.

And throughout all that time that thread has remained in place, and it has found new expression in ways that would truly have seemed unimaginable to us in the past.

I must be frank, The Good Friday Agreement was something I never believed that I would see in my lifetime. But I did. We did.

It ushered in an end to three decades of bloody violence, and its founding commitment was to self-determination and the principle of consent.

Unionists and Nationalists sitting side by side in government. As you said Micheál, the seemingly impossible made possible.

And what happened on that Good Friday 26 years ago was, and remains, an inspiration to many around the world, precisely because it was a triumph of political courage and patient diplomacy over bitter sectarian fatalism. And of compromise over intransigence.

Mo Mowlam’s words during the negotiations still resonate today, she said:

“Everybody is going to get something. No-one is going to get 100% of what they want. That is the nature of negotiation and accommodation”.

And all of those involved chose to do that in order to get something far more valuable.

Today the UK and Irish Governments stand on the shoulders of those who negotiated the Agreement. We are the co-guarantors of it and all of us in these islands are its custodians.

The Good Friday Agreement, and the peace and prosperity it has brought to Northern Ireland, is in my view the greatest achievement of the last Labour Government which I had the privilege to serve.

So let me be absolutely clear. This Labour Government’s commitment to the Good Friday Agreement – in letter and in spirit – is absolute.

Our support for the European Convention on Human Rights, which underpins the Agreement, is unwavering.

We will implement the Windsor Framework with pragmatic good faith, not least because we need to do so in order to negotiate a veterinary agreement with the European Union, but also in order to protect the open border on the island of Ireland.

The Prime Minister and the Taoiseach have agreed to hold annual summits as part of a renewed commitment to the strand 3 institutions.

And the Prime Minister and I – indeed the whole Government – will work with all parties and all communities in Northern Ireland to support reconciliation, equality, respect for human rights and parity of esteem.

Now, the stability of Northern Ireland’s devolved government – a government that can work for all the people of Northern Ireland – is absolutely fundamental to making these things happen.

And I want to pay a warm and genuine tribute to the First and deputy First Ministers – to you Emma and to Michelle – and indeed to the whole Executive, for the positive start that you have made, the impression you have created and I warmly welcome the draft programme for government that was announced this week.

The Executive now has the foundation provided by that programme. It has a needs-based funding formula that was agreed with the previous government, and we are committed to putting in place a longer-term fiscal framework.

But like every government, difficult decisions need to be taken about how to balance the books and raise additional revenue, not least because there are deep-seated deep-seated challenges that Northern Ireland faces.

You highlighted one of those Emma yesterday in your wonderful contribution, the economic inactivity rate which is 27% of the working age population which is 5% higher than the UK as a whole.

The longest health service waiting lists in the UK, a third of patients waiting more than two years for treatment. And only 47% of A&E waits meeting the 4-hour target.

I think all of us agree that can’t really continue. That is why we are absolutely committed as the government to working with the Executive as it seeks to transform Northern Ireland’s public services.

It is also incumbent upon all of us to uphold the devolved institutions, to ensure they endure and that they act for all the people in Northern Ireland.

Now I recognise that mandatory coalition is really difficult, imagine those of us with different political persuasions were having to cope with mandatory coalition in Westminster. But we all know that for over a third of the time since 1998, the institutions have not functioned fully. I don’t think this would be accepted anywhere else.

My feeling is surely the people of Northern Ireland and the political parties and all of us must recognise that what’s happened in the past cannot happen again and were it to occur, our two governments as co-guarantors of the Good Friday Agreement, working with all the parties, would need to find a new way forward.

Turning to the economy, we should clearly look at the opportunities for the UK and Irish Governments to work collaboratively on projects to help improve growth in Northern Ireland including in its border regions.

And, while being strong supporters of the Union, this Government and this Secretary of State see no contradiction in also being supporters of North-South cooperation.

And in that context, I applaud you Micheál for your work in developing and taking forward the Shared Island Programme which you referred to and the Fund, which makes a valuable contribution in so many ways. And when it comes to the all-island economy, and I know this is up for some debate, my feelings are very simple, it is a fact it is a success.

And I don’t quite understand why there should be an argument about somehow denying its existence when so many businesses and livelihoods are sustained by it: the all-island dairy industry, big multinationals, like Lidl, McDonalds, Coca-Cola and so many small and medium-sized businesses which operate on an all-island basis.

On the Windsor Framework, let me be absolutely frank. There have been some very painful moments in the UK-Ireland relationship in recent years.

I bear too many scars from the approach of the previous UK government to our departure from the European Union, but this Government will ensure the smooth flow of goods within the UK internal market.

So, as I have said, we will implement the Windsor Framework in good faith while seeking the maximum pragmatism and proportionality. It is not without its challenges – I think that is probably the understatement of the year – but it is necessary because we do want to do more to improve our trading relationship with the EU, in particular to negotiate a sanitary and phyto-sanitary agreement with the European Union which really would help. I think everybody knows that.

And with a sustained period of stability, political and economic, the opportunities are enormous, not least because of the talent, ingenuity and enterprise that exists right across Northern Ireland, and the unique trading position that Northern Ireland enjoys – what a wonderful opportunity for foreign direct investment – all within the UK internal market.

As I have travelled around Northern Ireland, both in opposition and now in Government and seen some of the world class businesses operating in life sciences, high-tech engineering, making composite aircraft wings and the buses of the future – electric and hydrogen – services and film and television, education – I am struck that all these firms have seen something in Northern Ireland and its people.

With continued political stability and optimism – and I’m the third speaker at the forum who will say I am an optimist. It is the only way, I don’t know how you can get up if you are not an optimist. We can help others to see the same thing and so encourage them also to invest in Northern Ireland’s future.

Now, the other rift in the relationship in recent years has been over ofcourse how we approach the terrible legacy of the Troubles.

I have met many families who lost loved ones in the most appalling circumstances. I have to be honest with you. I have found it very difficult to listen to their stories. To look them in the eye. To hear about the sheer brutality of the killings. The way some of them were treated afterwards. The search for answers, and the passing of the years without finding them.

The abandonment by the previous Conservative Government of the Stormont House Agreement, and the unilateral approach taken in the Legacy Act, were wrong. From my first visit to the Wave Trauma Centre, and that had a profound impact on me, many of those families have told me about the deep hurt and upset and anger it has caused them. And it was legislation of course that was rejected by all of the Northern Ireland political parties and by the Irish Government.

It could never be the basis for reconciliation or progress on legacy.

And that is why the Prime Minister and I committed to repeal and replace the Legacy Act.

Now as you know earlier this year its central provision – the conditional immunity scheme – was ruled by the High Court in Belfast to be incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.

In July, we wrote to the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal to withdraw the previous UK Government’s appeal on ECHR grounds.

I also set out to Parliament our commitment to reverse the Legacy Act’s ban on bringing civil litigation, to propose measures to allow – in the first instance – halted legacy inquests to continue, and to strengthen the Independent Commission on Reconciliation and Information Recovery.

That body, which is being ably led by Sir Declan Morgan, was deemed by the court to be capable of conducting human rights compliant investigations. It was an important – and often overlooked – finding.

But I believe that measures to strengthen the Commission, we talked about these yesterday when we met, are also necessary, and I am committed to working with you on this.

Because there is more we can do to address concerns about the Commission’s independence. To strengthen its powers. And to ensure there is the capacity for effective cooperation with the Gardaí over investigations.

This is the work we have now begun – but its success in the end, all of this legislation will be judged by those families many of us have met, who have waited so long for answers.

So we are now undertaking a period of consultation with victims and survivors, the Northern Ireland political parties, the Irish Government, veterans and others in seeking to find a practical way forward that can command support, the broadest support across communities in Northern Ireland and beyond.

I recognise, I am not naïve, that this process will involve difficult conversations, and many stakeholders do, and will hold different views about the best way forward.

But it is also clear that a resolution to addressing the legacy of Northern Ireland’s painful past will not be reached without a willingness, by all, to listen, to understand the perspectives of others, and in the spirit of Mo Mowlam’s wise words to compromise.

I also want to acknowledge the dedicated service of the vast majority of police officers, members of the armed forces, and the security services who did so much during the Troubles to keep people in Northern Ireland safe. Also the work of the Police Service of Northern Ireland for their continuing efforts to do the same for communities right across Northern Ireland.

The scenes we saw last month in Belfast, in Derry/Londonderry and in many other parts of the UK, were shocking, there’s no other word for it and we must stand resolutely against senseless violence, intimidation and – let’s be blunt – racism.

I visited three business owners who had been attacked on that terrible day. I saw the Café that was burnt out. Three people that come to Northern Ireland to make their lives, to make it their home specifically targeted because of who they were.

The Prime Minister and I had the opportunity three weeks ago to convey our thanks directly to some of the officers of the PSNI who were injured when standing up to that violence, when we visited the PSNI training college in Belfast. It was a great honour to be able to do so.

The similarities with the scenes we saw in Dublin last year are hard to ignore.

The willingness of far-right thugs and online agitators to whip up hatred and spread misinformation online pose a shared threat, but I know it is a threat which I know our two governments, with the Executive, will continue to face down together.

There are other areas in which the UK and Irish Governments can do more.

Not only because it is in our mutual economic interest, but in these febrile and uncertain times, we have shared values, and a shared commitment to democracy and the rule of law.

And given our geography, and the ties of friendship and kinship that bind us, look at the opportunities.

Just to take one example, energy infrastructure, cooperation on energy resilience, climate – where are both blessed with huge potential for more renewable wind power – and investment in Northern Ireland by GB Energy, which in turn will support the Shared Electricity Market.

And given increasingly uncertain geopolitics of the world, and I agree with every word you said about the threat to the international order which created out of the actions of the second World War and which has stood us in reasonable good stead is being undermined by people and political forces, it also makes sense to collaborate further on security.

The UK has a range of world-class capability and we will continue to work with Ireland as we together grapple with threats like cyber security, terrorism, organised crime and the threats posed by Russia and other states to the security of our nations.

On a much happier note, the UK-Ireland Euros in 2028 will allow us to celebrate our nations working together to put a once-in-a-generation footballing spectacle before a worldwide audience, although I must admit that at 5pm precisely this evening that co-operation will temporarily be suspended as Ireland take on England at the Aviva stadium.

So, in conclusion there is a lot for us to do.

Northern Ireland stands at a crossroads.

And the sense I get is that the vast majority of people just want to move forward to embrace a better future.

So let us be bold, let us get on with it and let us take inspiration from those who did make the impossible possible 26 years ago.

Thank you very much.

The statement made by Hilary Benn, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, on 5 September 2024.

I would like to thank Danny Kinahan for his dedicated work on behalf of veterans and families living in Northern Ireland.

Over the last four years, he has worked on a range of important issues that affect veterans in everyday life, including health, housing and welfare and we will continue to engage with him on these issues.

We are committed to continuing to support veterans in Northern Ireland through the Veterans Welfare Service NI and the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust.

The statement made by Hilary Benn, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, on 6 August 2024.

This morning, I joined Cabinet, where I expressed my support for the police for their continued hard work, and that of the dedicated people who are helping to rebuild communities in the wake of the damage caused.

I remain in contact with the First Minister and deputy First Minister, Justice Minister and the Chief Constable, and will continue to offer them my full support.

The violence which has sowed fear in local communities and damaged businesses is totally unacceptable.

The people of Northern Ireland deserve better.

Those involved in this violent disorder are damaging the very communities they falsely claim to represent.

I would like to thank the PSNI for their continuing efforts to keep our communities safe. My thoughts are with all those who have suffered, including the businesses that have been attacked, and the member of the public who was the victim of a serious assault during last night’s disorder.

I urge those involved to stop this senseless violence and intimidation.