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Category: Northern Ireland

  • Alan Chambers – 2022 Comments in Support of Striking Nurses

    Alan Chambers – 2022 Comments in Support of Striking Nurses

    The comments made by Alan Chambers, the Ulster Unionist Health Spokesperson, on 15 December 2022.

    I was happy to stand in support of an official Royal College of Nurses picket line at Bangor Community Hospital this morning.

    During my time there I witnessed overwhelming public support for their action. Many gifts of food and beverages were being handed to them by generous members of the public.

    None of the staff were happy that they had been forced into taking such drastic action at this time. Rather than enduring the freezing conditions on the picket line they would all rather have been in their place of work providing the high level of care for their patients that we are so aware and grateful for.

    Listening to their stories it was obvious that this strike is not just about pay but also about the conditions that they have to deal with on a daily basis. They have major concerns over patient safety in hospital emergency departments, they feel no one is listening to them and strike action is their weapon of last resort.

    Retention of the current workforce should be a major obligation on local trusts. The welfare of staff, especially our valued overseas recruits, should be paramount rather than an attitude of just get on with it.

    Ward ratio of nurses to patients is also higher than is fair to nurses who carry the responsibility if things go wrong in the daily care of patients. These are all issues that are causing concern on top of cost of living pressures.

    There is an acceptance that many of these issues can’t be fixed in the short term but NHS staff want to see a political road map created that will plot a way forward. It is a matter of huge frustration that reform of the NHS will remain stalled while the Assembly is in cold storage with no Executive in place. The nurses want to see political leadership provided as soon as possible.

    Former Health Minister Robin Swann MLA was putting many elements of that road map in place but was denied the opportunity to finish the job by the collapse of the Executive and a lack of political support from some quarters in relation to much needed reform of how NHS services are delivered.

  • Jim Shannon – 2022 Comments on the Annual Fisheries Negotiations with EU and North Atlantic States

    Jim Shannon – 2022 Comments on the Annual Fisheries Negotiations with EU and North Atlantic States

    The comments made by Jim Shannon, the DUP MP for Strangford, in the House of Commons on 20 December 2022.

    Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)

    I thank the Minister for his answers to the questions. He understands the issues for fisheries and, in particular, for fisheries in my constituency of Strangford and also in Portavogie. I spoke to the Anglo North Irish Fish Producers Organisation this morning. Will the Minister provide an assurance that the necessary parliamentary time will be provided to ensure the urgent passage of the statutory instrument to remove spurdog from the list of prohibited species? That will allow British fishermen to take advantage of the fact that there could be a fishery for this species in 2023, which is good news. My understanding is that the EU could fish for spurdog right now, but it has deferred the decision for two months. Time is therefore urgent. I know that the Minister will not want the British fishing sector to be disadvantaged in any way, so the two months must be used for the necessary SI to be introduced in this House.

    Mark Spencer

    As ever, the hon. Gentleman is very well-informed. There is a requirement for a statutory instrument to allow the spurdog quota to be accessed. This is a new quota. He is right in saying that we will have to process that SI as rapidly as possible. However, I cannot stand at the Dispatch Box and make commitments on behalf of the Leader of the House or business managers, but he can rest assured that the Department is working very hard to make sure that that SI is in a place to be deployed, and we will be pressing business managers to get it through the House as rapidly as possible.

  • Gordon Brown – 1998 Speech in Belfast

    Gordon Brown – 1998 Speech in Belfast

    The speech made by Gordon Brown, the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, at the Parliament Buildings in Belfast on 12 May 1998.

    To be here in Belfast at this historic moment of opportunity for the people of Northern Ireland is a privilege in itself.

    And I am honoured to be able to pay tribute to all those who, not just by their participation in the peace negotiations of recent weeks, but in their everyday actions over many years have brought us closer to peace.

    From a country that has not known a single year, a single month, a single week, in which mothers have not wept for their sons or daughters, we now have, in our grasp, an opportunity that a few years ago only poets could dream of and church leaders could pray for – a lasting peace. The greatest honour history can bestow is that of peacemaker.

    And we owe a debt of gratitude to all those who have played their part in working towards peace. And I am particularly pleased to be here today alongside someone who, with Tony Blair, has done more than anyone else over twelve long and difficult months – Mo Mowlam. And I am pleased to be here with her and also with Adam Ingram who is working closely with her.

    And hopefully – when the decision is completed – some years from now we can look back and say in the words of Robert Frost, the American poet:

    “I can say somewhere ages and ages hence
    two roads diverged in a wood
    and I took the one less travelled by
    and that has made all the difference”

    But let me first repeat how pleased I am to be here. The first serving chancellor to visit Northern Ireland for 18 years. And to be here at such an important time and to make important announcements is a privilege for me.

    I am reminded of the story of Dr Henry Cole, a minister sent to Ireland, on behalf of the Queen in the 1550s and so anxious were some to ensure he did not make the announcements he planned that when he opened his red box to take out the speech there was no speech – but simply a packet of playing cards. I have, I hope, more to offer.

    Now today I also want to pay tribute to all those who throughout the troubles, through dark days and dark years, have continued the long hard work of sustaining the productive base of the Northern Ireland economy, and kept alive the dream of peace with prosperity: those who have invested in Northern Ireland; those who have built up businesses; those who have worked together to tackle the social tensions of some of the worst-hit unemployment areas of Northern Ireland; those who through their actions have offered hope.

    But it is as a result of the hard work, the enterprise, and the commitment of thousands of men and women at work in Northern Ireland – managers and employees – that Northern Ireland has grown at 3 per cent a year on average over the last decade. That inward investment has risen, and that 73,000 jobs have been created in this period.

    For years we have been attempting to build the Northern Ireland economy against a background of violence.

    From today, 1998, we can begin to build on new foundations. Having created a framework for peace we can now create a framework for prosperity.

    Peace underpinned by prosperity. Prosperity made possible by peace. A peace sustained, because it is built on the rock of prosperity.

    So we need a new agenda for prosperity, an agenda for prosperity that is born out of an understanding of the need for growth, founded on new investment in Northern Ireland, driven forward by building up our skills and whose success will be new companies, new jobs, new opportunities in Northern Ireland.

    And let me say that the set of initiatives I am announcing today is not a shopping list dreamed up in a few days to tide us over a few months; it is a strategy that has been developed over many months that offers the prospect of prosperity for many years.

    And so today I want to match the new partnership for peace with a new partnership for prosperity.

    And to do that we need to achieve two things: to encourage the creation and growth of small and medium size enterprises and to attract inward investment.

    And there are five building blocks to achieve these goals:

    Stability – economic stability as well as political stability;
    Investment in the physical infrastructure of Northern Ireland, with a new fund for investment;
    Investment in people and in skills, with a new fund for skills;
    Investment in innovation and new ideas, with a new fund for innovation; and
    direct help to boost business investment, with a new fund for enterprise.
    And in each of these areas I want to make new announcements about what the government will do to match the enterprise of the people.

    So our policy is not for or against any one group – but against unemployment, under-investment, poverty and waste of potential.

    The first building block for prosperity is stability. To encourage entrepreneurs to set up in business here and to encourage businesses to locate here, we need stability. First, of course the stability that comes from lasting peace. But also economic stability. And this government has made it clear that it will do everything to ensure monetary and fiscal stability based on:

    Clear long-term objectives by which we will be judged – an inflation target of 2% and a commitment to fiscal stability that will be locked in by the conclusions of our comprehensive spending review; orderly procedural rules which guarantee certainty and therefore credibility in decision-making – making the Bank of England independent and legislating for a code for fiscal stability; and an open and transparent decision-making process which allows proper scrutiny and offers a confidence that a long term view is being pursued free of short term party political considerations.

    This foundation of economic stability is necessary to avoid the boom-bust which we have suffered from in the past.

    But stability is only the first building block for a peaceful and prosperous Northern Ireland. For business to succeed we have to invest in the future. We have to invest in the physical infrastructure, in skills, in innovation.

    So the second building block for prosperity is investment in our physical infrastructure.

    A modern economy needs good transport links, good schools, decent housing, reliable utilities and cutting-edge communication networks. Doing this properly means an end to the sterile old conflicts between public and private sector, it means public and private sector working in partnership to invest in the infrastructure of Northern Ireland.

    So today I want to announce new investment in our social and economic fabric. A 150 million pounds Northern Ireland investment fund to help create the transport network, housing and schools that Northern Ireland needs.

    Completing the best modern transport and communications links for Northern Ireland is a priority – linking up our towns, linking industrial estates to the seaports and airports, cutting the costs and times of travel from production to exports.

    To build a good transport system in road, rail, airports and seaports we need public and private sectors working together as a part of a publicly-led integrated transport strategy.

    We want to cut the time it takes to travel by road. Today I can announce an investment of 15 million pounds to upgrade the road from Belfast to Newry. I have been in contact with the European commission, and look forward to an early reaction on the scope for EU funding in support of further investment.

    The Belfast-Newry road and other new initiatives will be partly funded by the transfer of Belfast harbour from the public sector to a public private partnership which will further enhance the port’s operation and assure its future growth. Measures will be put in place to ensure that all employees will be able to benefit from the change.

    Today’s package will invest a further 87 million pounds to enable progress in other key road programmes:

    In the road from Belfast to Larne which will improve the connection between Belfast and this key port and important link with the mainland; in the west link through Belfast, connecting the M1 and M2 motorways, which will provide a through route from major sites of inward investment to the port and to the city centre; and in the bypass at Toome connecting Belfast and Londonderry, the Antrim to Ballymena road and the Londonderry to Ballygawley road which will all improve the road network of Northern Ireland bringing benefits to business.

    Transport links go beyond the roads. We want to raise the standard of the worst rail rolling stock to that of the best, and the Treasury Taskforce is already examining options for the development of our rail industry.

    And we will also use money from the Northern Ireland investment fund to improve infrastructure of St Angelo airport at Fermanagh.

    Some of the worst housing estates in Northern Ireland need a fresh start. And 11 million pounds has been allocated to the Northern Ireland investment fund to address these problems.

    But investing in Northern Ireland’s future means more than investing in the physical infrastructure. We need to invest in our human infrastructure – our key resource – the people. So the third building block for prosperity is investment in people and in skills so today I can announce a Northern Ireland skills fund.

    I want to remove the barriers that deprive thousands of men and women of training and employment opportunities in Northern Ireland today.

    I want employers to work with us on getting the new deal right here in Northern Ireland, not just for the young people who will benefit but for the companies to whom they will contribute.

    I want the New Deal to become more than ambulance relief for people in difficulty but the smart solution for companies looking for motivated people they can train with new skills.

    In Northern Ireland today – despite 6 years of economic recovery – over 8 per cent of the workforce are unemployed. Unemployment here is consistently above the level in the rest of the UK.

    So today I want to announce some measures to expand the new deal for jobs and training in Northern Ireland.

    Today I was pleased to see Shorts Brothers join with Northern Ireland electricity, Hilton hotels, Moy Park and other northern Irish firms to sign the agreement to participate. 220 employers in total have already signed up for the New Deal.

    Long-term unemployment has – for too long – been a drain on the Northern Ireland economy. People who become unemployed spend on average 45 per cent longer out of work than in the rest of the UK. The modernisation of the Northern Ireland economy means addressing the long-standing problem of long-term unemployment. Only then will we build a growing economy with economic opportunity for all.

    We promised in our manifesto to introduce a 75 pounds a week employment subsidy to help people unemployed over 2 years into work. That measure is particularly needed in Northern Ireland – and will begin here in June. But I want to provide more intensive help to make a real assault on long-term unemployment.

    So I can announce today that the whole of Northern Ireland will participate in a new initiative on jobs. From the autumn – everyone in Northern Ireland over 25 who has been unemployed more than 18 months can get the help they need to find work. We will create 30,000 new opportunities for the long-term unemployed.

    We will offer a gateway of support tailored to individual needs. Work experience. Help in starting a business. Work trials with employers. A “bridge to employment” programme to develop employment-related skills.

    And to give disabled people who want to work the opportunity to work a 9 million pounds pilot programme will begin in the autumn to help disabled people improve their employability through work experience, training and education.

    But the New Deal is only one way in which to invest in people. Modern employers will succeed when we get the best out of all our people, and to succeed in mastering the waves of technological change and fiercer competitive pressures we must invest in our key resource: people.

    One priority is improving standards in our schools, to which we are committed. And 18 million pounds from the Northern Ireland investment fund will be used to improve the infrastructure of our schools – building new schools and improving existing school buildings.

    But 80 per cent of those in employment today will be in the workforce in ten years time, education cannot stop at the school gates. There must be a concerted effort to improve skills and enable lifelong learning if we are to achieve the productivity gains we want in the years to come. We must have a stronger relationship between education and business in charting the way forward.

    The new University for industry will enable people from their homes all over urban and remote and rural areas to benefit from education from home, on a range of areas beyond the university level courses catered for by the open university.

    14 million pounds from the Northern Ireland investment fund will be used to support lifelong learning. More I.T. will be available to support the national grid for learning and capital investment in further education colleges.

    Adam Ingram has commissioned a skills audit in Northern Ireland to consult employers, to look at whether our education and training systems are equipped to meet the changing skill demands of business, and to identify mismatches between the skills we have in Northern Ireland and the skills we need for the future.

    And today I can announce a 14 million pounds investment in skills – targeted on the needs of business in Northern Ireland:

    conversion courses for graduates and new apprenticeships;
    technician-level training in the software and I.T. industries,
    in engineering and in hospitality – designed to meet the needs of inward investors and other employers.
    These industries are key to Northern Ireland’s future economic prosperity.

    The challenge we face is to get people back to work and equip people with the right skills. Many of you are employers who know the damage that long term unemployment can do to motivation and employability, and you know too the right skills which people need to succeed today. So we need to work together to make the new deal a success and to provide Northern Ireland with the right skills base.

    Northern Ireland has a growing reputation in research and development. But for too long great scientific advances here have gone on to become the manufacturing successes of other countries. We want the inventiveness and creative talents of Northern Ireland to flourish. But we want to ensure that ideas created in Northern Ireland are turned into successful businesses based in Northern Ireland. So we must invest in innovation, and this is the fourth building block for prosperity.

    We will therefore be inviting proposals for a new science park to provide a centre of excellence for businesses spun out from the universities and from our enterprise excellence programme.

    10 million pounds has been set aside as part of the Northern Ireland innovation fund to create the science park.

    The new university challenge fund which I announced in my budget will help convert today’s ideas in universities across the United Kingdom, into innovative businesses that will create wealth and jobs tomorrow.

    In addition a challenge fund of up to 5 million pounds will be made available to meet the funding gap faced by innovative spin-off firms at the science park and elsewhere in Northern Ireland.

    The final building block is the direct help we can give to business to boost investment and help small businesses turn themselves into large and growing businesses.

    Economic success will depends on the vision and ambition of entrepreneurs setting up businesses and making them grow.

    We must encourage these ambitions and give everyone the chance to realise them.

    So today I can announce a series of measures to encourage entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship in Northern Ireland, a Northern Ireland enterprise fund to help Northern Ireland businesses invest and grow.

    In the last two budgets we have cut tax on profits, cutting the main rate of corporation tax from 33p to 30p. And because we know that jobs and prosperity will come, not simply from having a small number of large businesses, but from a large number of small and growing businesses we cut the corporation tax rate for small companies from 23p to 20p. And to encourage investment in small and medium size companies we increased their first year capital allowances.

    It is upon this stable platform for business that we must build. So i want to announce an additional boost to investment in small and medium size companies in Northern Ireland.

    Every pound invested in plant and machinery in the coming four years will be fully offset against tax and therefore be wholly tax deductible.

    This extra tax help, to speed up investment for the rest of this parliament, will be an 100 million pound investment in the economy of Northern Ireland , 99% of businesses in Northern Ireland will benefit, including the tourism and service industries.

    Modern business investing in Northern Ireland will therefore benefit from two new sources of help: this special tax relief and the skills measures I announced earlier which will allow them to train and equip their workforce.

    In the United Kingdom our venture capital industry is proportionately much smaller than in the United States. Only 5 per cent of venture capital funds in the United Kingdom go to start-ups and early stage companies. While in the USA, nearly 25-30 per cent goes to these companies. The amount of hi-tech in venture capital is 50 per cent in the USA, but only around 20 per cent in the UK.

    For businesses to start-up, grow and be successful we need a strong venture capital market. This is a challenge facing the whole of the United Kingdom and the whole of Europe.

    I can announce that options for setting up a venture capital fund of at least 15 million pounds are being considered for Northern Ireland as a result of joint work by the department of economic development and the European investment bank. The intention is that the fund will be run on a public private partnership basis and will focus on the development of smaller businesses and the service sector, including tourism.

    Northern Ireland needs more small businesses but it also needs higher value-added businesses with potential to grow into the drivers of Northern Ireland’s future. That is why we are establishing an enterprise excellence programme. It will provide training, advice and access to finance to help today’s senior managers and research academics to become tomorrow’s entrepreneurs.

    Northern Ireland is a place of great natural beauty, a place of culture and history, and of creativity in music and in art. So with peace comes the opportunity to build a thriving tourism industry. And to kick-start the growth in this industry, as well as the tax help for investment, a 4 million pounds challenge fund will be set up together with a wide range of business support measures provided by the local enterprise development unit.

    And following the lifting of the EU ban on Northern Ireland beef there is a chance to boost overseas sales so we are setting up a 2 million pounds overseas marketing programme.

    Northern Ireland has been very successful at attracting inward investment which has helped to create many new jobs and reduce unemployment to its lowest level for a generation. 1997 was Northern Ireland’s best ever year for inward investment creating 5,000 new jobs. Fujitsu and Nortel have both located their software development facilities in Northern Ireland – bringing in 250 R&D jobs this year alone – and bringing the total jobs provided by these two companies to 700. This success at attracting inward investment must continue to grow.

    Mo Mowlam is already looking at how best to co-ordinate the work of the existing agencies, the industrial development board and the local enterprise development unit, including the possibility of creating an economic power house offering a wide range of support and services for businesses looking to invest in Northern Ireland.

    Later this year I will accompany Mo Mowlam on the first stage of a ten city tour of the United States and Canada, taking the case for investing in Northern Ireland to the captains of North American industry.

    The package I have announced today amounts to a 315 million pounds investment in the renewal and modernisation of Northern Ireland. The challenge we face is to build on economic and political stability, to promote enterprise and inward investment, to get people back to work and equip them with the right skills, and to build the infrastructure for a modern economy. And this is a challenge that we must face together – government, business and citizens, public and private sectors in partnership.

    The Northern Ireland agreement offers peace for Northern Ireland. A fresh start that offers a way out of 30 years of violence. This package offers faith in the future, the chance to build peace with prosperity, an economy of opportunity for all.

    And out of the dark days of recent years I believe we can look forward with new hope to an era of opportunity, leading Northern Ireland to a new age of achievement.

  • Hilary Benn – 2022 Parliamentary Question on the Northern Ireland Protocol

    Hilary Benn – 2022 Parliamentary Question on the Northern Ireland Protocol

    The parliamentary question asked by Hilary Benn, the Labour MP for Leeds Central, in the House of Commons on 13 December 2022.

    Hilary Benn (Leeds Central) (Lab)

    What recent discussions he has had with the European Commission on the operation of the Northern Ireland protocol.

    Ian Paisley (North Antrim) (DUP)

    How many hours his Department has spent on negotiations with (a) EU member states and (b) the European Commission on the Northern Ireland protocol in the last month.

    The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (James Cleverly)

    Fixing the Northern Ireland protocol is a top priority for this Government. Since September I have been in regular contact with Vice-President Šefčovič. We last spoke on 1 December and I will be seeing him for further talks this week. My officials have also been working with our counterparts in the EU on a regular basis to try to resolve the issues, which we recognise—and we are impressing this upon them—are causing serious, genuine and damaging friction in relationships between the various communities in Northern Ireland.

    Hilary Benn

    I am grateful to the Foreign Secretary for that answer. It was reported recently that the Prime Minister has assured President Biden that an agreement will be reached with the EU in time for the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday agreement. We also read that the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill is on ice while the negotiations continue. Can the Foreign Secretary assure the House that if an agreement with the EU is reached—and we all hope that will happen—the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill will be dropped?

    James Cleverly

    The Northern Ireland Protocol Bill exists for a reason. The commitment that I made to Maroš Šefčovič in the conversations that I had with him and others was that we would not either artificially accelerate that process or artificially hinder or retard it. We have always said that our preferred option is through negotiations. We speak regularly, the tone is positive, and I think that there is now an understanding that the concerns that we have raised, and that have been raised particularly by the Unionist community in Northern Ireland, are not confected but real, and that any agreement would need to address them.

    Ian Paisley

    Is it not the case that there has not been one hour of actual negotiations, because the EU has not extended its mandate to allow for any changes whatsoever in the operation of the current protocol? That being the case, does the Foreign Secretary not believe that the EU will smell weakness in this Government if they take their foot off the pedal with the protocol Bill in the other place? I encourage him to press on with the Bill.

    James Cleverly

    I can assure the hon. Gentleman that the UK negotiating team are very conscious of the frustrations, particularly in the Unionist community in Northern Ireland. But we have also made the point to our interlocutors in the EU that, across communities in Northern Ireland, there is a recognition that the protocol is not working, that it needs to be addressed, and that the relationships between Northern Ireland and Ireland, and between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK—of which Northern Ireland is a part—all have to function properly. That is the underpinning of the Belfast/Good Friday agreement and that is what we seek to achieve through our negotiations.

    Kevin Foster (Torbay) (Con)

    One needs only to visit the port at Belfast and see the potential for new facilities there to realise the interruption there could be to the vital east-west trade routes that Northern Ireland relies on. Does the Foreign Secretary agree that it is vital that the Government are clear that we do not take anything off the table in getting to an agreement? Even though we want an agreement, we still need all the options to be on the table, to ensure that we get what we need for the United Kingdom.

    James Cleverly

    The United Kingdom’s position has been consistent. We recognise that the way the protocol is working is undermining community cohesion in Northern Ireland and disrupting business flows, particularly east-west between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. These issues have to be addressed. That is, I think, something that the EU negotiating team understand, and we will continue negotiating in good faith. However, as I say, the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill exists for a reason, and we want to ensure that we get a good working resolution that is sustainable for all the communities in Northern Ireland.

    Mr Speaker

    I call the shadow Foreign Secretary.

    Mr David Lammy (Tottenham) (Lab)

    For 18 months we have been at an impasse on the Northern Ireland protocol. Instead of negotiations, we have had cheap rhetoric and threats to break agreements. With a UK Government showing determination and diplomatic skill, and an EU willing to be flexible, these problems would be easily resolvable. Is the real problem that the Prime Minister is in the pocket of the European Research Group, too weak to stand up to his Back Benchers, and putting his party before Northern Ireland?

    James Cleverly

    The right hon. Gentleman needs to keep up. We have had very well-tempered negotiations between the UK and EU negotiators. He will find in our public reporting of those negotiations that there has been a high degree of mutual respect. He says that there is an easy resolution. If he believes that, all I would say is that we are waiting to hear it. If it were easy, it would have been done already.

    Mr Speaker

    Let us hear from the SNP spokesperson.

    Alyn Smith (Stirling) (SNP)

    I say to the Foreign Secretary that if politics goes wrong for him, he has a great career in stand-up ahead of him.

    This discussion is not happening in a vacuum. The Foreign Secretary will be aware of a poll in The Irish Times yesterday that showed that 54% of the people of Northern Ireland are in favour of EU membership. I want to see a negotiated outcome over the protocol; we all do. There are things with the protocol that need to be addressed, and we all agree on that, but the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill is not the way to do that. Surely he must recognise that it is the biggest block to progress in these talks, and that now is the time to scrap it.

    James Cleverly

    I am the one who has been in the conversations with the EU. I know that it does not particularly like the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, but, nevertheless, the conversations that I have had with my direct interlocuters and that our officials have been having with their opposite numbers in the EU system have been progressing. As I have said, there are still a number of serious issues that need to be resolved, but we are working in good faith. The Bill exists for a reason and it is important that it is there.

    I welcome the hon. Gentleman highlighting the fact that there is pretty much universal agreement now that the protocol needs to be changed, because that is what is driving an increased degree of community tension and disruption in Northern Ireland.

    While I am on my feet, let me welcome the hon. Gentleman resuming his place.

  • Jeffrey Donaldson – 2022 Comments on the Irish Common Travel Area

    Jeffrey Donaldson – 2022 Comments on the Irish Common Travel Area

    The comments made by Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, the Leader of the DUP, on 6 December 2022.

    On 6th December 1922 the Common Travel Area came into being. It is so ingrained as part of life across these islands that we can sometimes overlook its significance. The House of Commons library estimated that the number of people living in the UK who were born in the Republic of Ireland is equivalent to around 1% of the Republic’s population. There are just over a quarter of a million people born in the UK and resident in the Republic.

    The Common Travel Area was a sensible and practical arrangement established between the United Kingdom and the then newly formed Irish Free State. It has worked to the benefit of both countries over the past 100 years and enjoys the support of people in both jurisdictions. This stands in stark contrast to the Northern Ireland Protocol which has not only failed in its objectives but also does not enjoy support across the community in Northern Ireland.

    The Common Travel Area long pre-dated the entry of either the UK or Ireland to the European Union. Whilst the Common Travel Area has been based on a concept designed to facilitate everyone, the Protocol has been based on punitive measures imposed against the UK under the cover of rhetoric about the Belfast Agreement. On this centenary we should return to the positive and practical principles demonstrated by the Common Travel Area and seek to emulate them in finding a solution to the Protocol.

  • Quentin Davies – 2001 Speech to Conservative Party Conference

    Quentin Davies – 2001 Speech to Conservative Party Conference

    The speech made by Quentin Davies, the then Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, at the Conservative Party Conference held in Blackpool on 10 October 2001.

    The words courage, vision and leadership are often overused in politics. But not so in David Trimble’s case they are entirely justified.

    Nobody has done more to try and bring together a community scarred by thirty years of terrorism or, in David’s own words, to build a Northern Ireland at ease with itself.

    Once again this morning, David Trimble restated the central Unionist case with clarity and precision.

    It is a case that we Conservatives, as a Unionist Party, support.

    Our two parties have always shared a great deal in common.

    Above all we are united in our commitment to the Union of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

    Northern Ireland’s place within the United Kingdom is based on consent – the consent of the people who live there.

    We will always uphold the democratic wishes of the people of Northern Ireland.

    And we will never allow the future of Northern Ireland to be determined by violence.

    In Northern Ireland, just like anywhere else in the world, terrorism must never be allowed to succeed, and democracy must always triumph.

    Over the last four weeks the whole world has been forced to face up to the reality of terrorism. We have seen its hideous face in this country before. Our own Party bears the scars.

    We will never forget Brighton and those who died and were maimed there. We will never forget the murders of Airey Neave and Ian Gow, and the many bombings of our cities.

    But the people of Northern Ireland have lived with terrorism – never knowing whether a parked car might contain a bomb, or their own house might be the next one to be firebombed – day in day out for thirty years. 3,600 murdered and 40,000 wounded.

    It is an appalling story. Yet one in which the Royal Ulster Constabulary, supported by the Army in Northern Ireland, where our own leader served, have played an heroic role.

    In coming to this afresh, as Iain Duncan Smith has asked me to do, I desperately want this era in Northern Ireland to be at an end.

    The Belfast Agreement held out that hope. Many people had to swallow hard. I expressed at the time my personal revulsion at the premature release of serious criminals – including murderers and multiple murderers. It was the politicisation of justice. But it had a purpose, if the parties to the Agreement kept their word, in spirit, as well as deed.

    The Irish Republic did. They changed their constitution. The British Parliament did, it legislated for devolved government including both sections of the community sharing power. The Ulster Unionist Party did, it was prepared to share government with Sinn Fein, the political representatives of men and women who had pursued their political objectives by murder and terror.

    For that remarkable sacrifice the world has properly saluted David Trimble with the Nobel Peace Prize.

    But this was an Agreement with many parts. And while prisoners convicted of terrorist offences were to be released within two years, so was decommissioning of illegal weapons to be completed within two years.

    As we know, all the prisoners were released within the 2 years. And now more than 3½ years have passed and not a single weapon or ounce of explosive has been decommissioned by Sinn Fein-IRA. All we have had from Sinn Fein-IRA have been vague statements and empty promises sometimes cynically made before important meetings and then withdrawn thereafter. Sinn Fein-IRA has been playing a cat and mouse game with the Government, and there is very little doubt in anyone’s eyes in Northern Ireland, who is the cat and who is the mouse.

    It is hardly surprising that there is now a crisis in the institutions in Belfast when all the parties have fulfilled their obligations under the Agreement except Sinn Fein. And the Government has not taken any action to sanction them.

    Why did the Government decide to release all the prisoners without even a start being made on decommissioning? They had no need to do so under the Agreement. We tried to link the two in amendments we tabled in the House of Commons to the Northern Ireland Sentences Bill in 1998. The Government rejected these.

    Whatever it was that possessed them it was the most colossal mistake. The result is that as the crunch time comes for the Assembly and for the Executive, created by the Belfast Agreement, the Government have no instruments of leverage left – either with Sinn Fein IRA or with so-called Loyalist paramilitary groups.

    The Secretary of State the weekend before last threatened the UDA with being “specified”. Unfortunately being specified means absolutely nothing. It does not enable the authorities to do a single thing they could not do anyway. That is utterly unsatisfactory.

    We must be as clear and resolute in tackling terrorism at home as abroad.

    We simply cannot have two sets of rules – one for terrorism at home and one for terrorism abroad. And let me say that we reject with contempt the characteristic hypocrisy of Gerry Adams who said in Dublin 10 days ago that terrorism was ethically indefensible but that the IRA were freedom fighters. In a democracy that distinction does not exist. And Northern Ireland is a democracy.

    What then should we now do? Is it time to reconsider the Belfast Agreement?

    I believe the answer is “no”. The Agreement as signed remains the only framework for peace that is actually or likely to be available to us. We should try, even at this eleventh hour, to make it work.

    The Government have gratuitously given away their most valuable card. They cannot now get it back. But we should insist on three things. First, no more concessions whatever – least of all on policing or security – until there is real and verified decommissioning.

    The suggestion in the negotiations at Weston Park that there should be further concessions, including allowing those with terrorist convictions to sit on district police boards, must be utterly rejected.

    Second, the Government must use to the very full all the new powers they have promised to ask Parliament for and the European Union’s new anti-terrorist measures to counter international terrorism, to cut off funds, and otherwise sanction, any organisation promoting violence in this country.

    Third, we must prevail on our friends abroad, including in the US, to treat terrorist threats to us in exactly the same way as we are treating terrorist threats to them. And if terrorist organisations in Northern Ireland, and the political parties that support them, do not decommission, every travel facility, every opportunity to raise money, every chance to present themselves falsely as good citizens or as a peaceful democratic party must be closed off to them.

    And that must include NORAID.

    Ladies and gentlemen, we find ourselves once again, as our forbears and predecessors did several times in the twentieth century, in 1914 to 1918, in 1939 to 1945 or in the crises of the Cold War, facing the threat of organised evil, of a threat to our very civilisation, on an international scale.

    Once again, as then, the Conservative Party will show the way, in quiet but unbreakable resolution, in instinctive patriotism, in firm solidarity with our friends and allies in America, the rest of Europe and around the world. And once again, whatever the sacrifices and difficulties we may face along the way, that spirit will ultimately prevail.

  • David Trimble – 2001 Speech to Conservative Party Conference

    David Trimble – 2001 Speech to Conservative Party Conference

    The speech made by David Trimble, the then Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party, to Conservative Party Conference on 10 October 2001.

    May I thank you for the invitation to speak here today. I have always wanted to see Ulster Unionism closer to the heart of British politics. Today will mark a further step in that direction. I am also glad to see this invitation has been noticed elsewhere. I happened to be in Downing Street last week and someone said to me, “I see you’re addressing the Tory Conference.” I said that it was nothing odd, after all he had a guest at his. Indeed I remarked that his guest Gerhard Schroeder said he had come to the Labour conference as part of his quest to unite Europe. My object today, however, is much more modest.

    Obviously we meet at a very special time. May I say how proud I am at the contribution Britain is making at the moment. The attack on the World Trade Center was the greatest terrorist attack on the British people since the defeat of Hitler. It affected people from all parts of the British Isles – at least three of the dead came from Northern Ireland. We all know there may be greater challenges ahead for our armed forces and indeed for society here in Britain and our thoughts and prayers are with our servicemen and all those who protect us at home or abroad.

    But the Government today is doing precisely what we would want and expect a British government to do and it will be supported.

    In a situation like this we know the need to act and act decisively even though, inescapably, one must act on imperfect information producing results that may fall short of the ideal.

    But if I can digress, Britain and America find it easier to act because they have governments capable of taking decisions. The hesitant and sometimes uncertain responses of our European partners are because in most cases they are governed by coalitions. Inevitably they are less capable of quick and resolute decision. And, of course, coalitions are the inevitable consequence of proportional representation. I have had experience of more than one form of proportional representation. But I must resist the temptation of telling you of the drawbacks of PR.

    But if the response to Bin laden and the Taleban is clear-cut, unfortunately at home in Northern Ireland, the position is not so clear. The problem is uncertainty and the Government’s reluctance to grasp the nettle.

    I still think John Major was right when he began the process. Whatever one might think of the character of those involved in terrorism, if they were saying that they were prepared to turn their back on terrorism and embrace peace and democracy, then, if only for the sake of the people who identified with them politically, it was right to explore the chance of peaceful evolution.

    The problem is that the terrorists have tried to have it both ways – the ballot box and the armalite. They have delayed a clear and unequivocal commitment to peace.

    We can all go back over the last few years and say we would have done this or that differently. But the point today is that I and my party are now bringing matters to a head in order to force Sinn Fein and the IRA to decide. We are not doing this cynically to exploit the mood after 11 September. We have been steadily, patiently, building the pressure since last October. On Monday we took the final steps, which will result, by about today week, in the resignation of the Unionist Ministers from the Northern Ireland Executive. This will be shortly followed by the removal therefrom of the Sinn Fein Ministers until they prove by decommissioning that they have left violence behind.

    We have waited a long time – three and a half years since the Agreement – seventeen months since the IRA itself promised to put their weapons beyond use. If they are ever going to do it, it must be now. If they do, fine. Then the new institutions will bed down. If they do not it will be clear that we must change the institutions so they can survive Sinn Fein’s failure. There may be reluctance to make those changes, but the need will be inescapable.

    Either way I look forward to greater certainty and stability in Northern Ireland. But Northern Ireland does not exist in isolation. It is part of the United Kingdom. There is a wider context, which we should consider.

    So it is natural to consider our relationship with national politics. Because I am here, some have speculated that I am going to talk about future links between Conservatives and Ulster Unionists. And of course there was for a long time a structural relationship between our parties and there is a strong continuing friendship. But this is too big an issue to be approached simply in a sectional way. I would prefer to reflect first more broadly.

    There is a communal aspect to party structures in Ulster. This has some unfortunate consequences. Some who do not want a united Ireland will vote nationalist out of a perceived need for communal solidarity. On the other hand some opt out of politics completely because they dislike the communal background of most parties. Most Ulster Unionists would think of themselves as small “c” conservatives. But some would identify more with labour and are Unionist for communal reasons.

    Once it was different. In the nineteenth century, both the Liberal and Conservative parties organized throughout Ireland. In the early twentieth Labour too organized there. But in response to Irish nationalism those involved in those parties coalesced to form Ulster Unionism. It was understandable and for decades it gave us stability. But it has this disadvantage – politics in Northern Ireland are based on a nationalist framework of reference. Parties are based on the fundamental issue of whether they are for or against a united Ireland.

    Compare Scotland. Parties there are based on a British framework of reference. The major British parties are there providing to the Scottish people the full range of British politics and then, alongside them there is a Scottish nationalist party. To a British person who wants to see and take part in British politics, the Scottish model is preferable to that we have in Northern Ireland.

    To its credit the Conservative Party has recognized this. Moreover it is important that the decision in the late 80s to organize in Northern Ireland was taken in response to pressure from the grassroots of the party. They felt, rightly, that some of the party’s policies on Northern Ireland were wrong, and they wanted to send a message of sympathy to the British people of Ulster.

    But a move by Conservatives alone could not break the mold. If things are to change, if we are to move from a Irish nationalist to a British pluralist basis of politics, then we need two things.

    First all the national parties must move. I am sure that this party will do its bit. The problem is Labour. It too must be prepared to move. There is an element in Labour sympathetic to Irish nationalism who have resisted this. But they must realise that, with the acceptance by the Irish government and by all the Irish nationalist parties of the consent principle, their attitudes must change.

    If Tony Blair was right when, on his first visit to Ulster as Prime Minister in May 1997, he said to some primary school children, that there would not be a United Ireland in their lifetime, then Labour has a duty to provide political opportunities for those children throughout their lives. And Labour members with Irish nationalist sympathies should remember the considerable contribution to the positive development of community relations in Scotland that resulted from Wheatley’s decision to take the Irish nationalist organization in Scotland into the Labour party there.

    The second thing concerns the party politics in Northern Ireland. Clearly it will be radically affected. I know there will be many in all parties, my own included who will be cautious. And we will not want to give up our capacity to exercise our own judgment on local issues. Moreover it is not until there is a sense of stability, a sense that Ulster’s place within the Union is secure, that the Assembly and the new arrangements have bedded – not until all that is settled will folk focus fully on these wider issues.

    But I am sure that they will want to address these wider issues. I am sure that the basic concepts of the Agreement are sound – the consent principle to settle the constitutional issue – a regional assembly to give democratic accountability on local issues – an Irish dimension to acknowledge the identity of nationalists.

    But more is needed. The Assembly is limited. It has to operate within the context of the overall economic and social policy of the national government. If the Assembly is all there is the people will not fell that they are properly involved in politics. Taxation, expenditure, defence, foreign policy, are still determined in London. Unless there is a sense of involvement and accountability on those issues, the electorate in Northern Ireland will not be satisfied.

    This problem does not exist with regard to Scotland and Wales. There the people can vote for the national parties who decide these matters. I do not think we will have a healthy political system until the people of Northern Ireland have a similar opportunity to “turn the rascals out”. And it is in the interests of the people of Great Britain, and in the interests of the people of the Republic of Ireland to encourage the development of healthier politics in Northern Ireland.

    There is another aspect too. The present structures prevent a person in Northern Ireland participating in British national politics. The last two governments contained Ministers from Northern Ireland. But Sir Brian Mawhinney and Kate Hoey had to leave Northern Ireland in order to be able to participate.

    It reminds me of the comparison between Belfast and Bangkok. The question is what can you do in Bangkok that you cannot do in Belfast? The answer of course is join the Labour party. Northern Ireland is the only place on the globe where you cannot join Labour. It is a civil rights issue.

    This is not something that is going to change overnight. It is not on the agenda today. But it is something we should think about. It will probably be on tomorrow’s agenda. It is right that it should for in a sense it is just filling in the British dimension to the Agreement. When the time comes I believe this party will be ready. I hope mine will be. Together I think we can meet the need. The real challenge, however, is for New Labour and Tony Blair.

    Mr. Blair made a good beginning on Northern Ireland. That May 1997 speech was sound on the basic principles. Without him there would not have been an Agreement in April 1998.

    But then came the implementation. Understandably he left much of that to others. To an extent he took his eye off the ball. Expediency slithered into appeasement. Confidence in the Agreement ebbed as people felt that the concessions were all one way.

    But there is the chance now to recover – indeed to fulfill the original promise. The paramilitaries can be faced down – the Assembly stabilized.

    And by moving forward with this party he could offer a range of political alternatives to the people of Ulster.

    It is often said that we are the prisoners of history.

    But the key on outside.

    Mr. Blair it is time to turn it.

    Time to treat the people of Northern Ireland as fully part of the United Kingdom.

  • Mary Lou McDonald – 2022 Speech Welcoming the European Commission President von der Leyen in Oireachtas Address

    Mary Lou McDonald – 2022 Speech Welcoming the European Commission President von der Leyen in Oireachtas Address

    The speech made by Mary Lou McDonald, the President of Sinn Fein, in the Irish Parliament on 1 December 2022.

    Ireland is a proud European nation.

    In the New Year, we will mark fifty years since Ireland became a member of what was then the European Communities in 1973.

    Since then, it has been a journey.

    There have been many positive advances in areas like equality, workers’ rights and environmental standards and challenges in terms of growing militarisation, deregulation and privatisation.

    But on this journey solidarity, fairness and a conviction that we can be strongest when we work together – to make a real, positive difference to people’s lives- has guided our greatest successes.

    I warmly welcome European Commission President von der Leyen here today.

    Through your work on the Commission you have been a good friend to Ireland and demonstrated your desire to work with Ireland towards these common goals.

    This year, Europe has shown the power of its unity and its solidarity in standing squarely with the people of Ukraine.

    Vladimir Putin’s barbaric invasion has shocked the world.

    His illegal and unjust war must be stopped and the horror of the bloodshed end.

    In this time of crisis, Europe has come together in solidarity with the people of Ukraine as they endure and resist this grotesque war.

    This solidarity has sent a powerful message to Putin that Ukraine is not alone— that Europe will stand up for what is right.

    Recent years have also shown Ireland the importance of European solidarity as we weather the storm of Brexit.

    There is no such thing as a good Brexit for Ireland.

    The people of the north voted to Remain in the EU, but were dragged out against their will by Britain- spearheaded by the Tories at the DUP’s urging.

    Throughout those years of fractious negotiations, the EU stood steadfast with Ireland and our determination to protect the peace process and the Good Friday Agreement, a peace agreement which will be 25 years old next year and has transformed our island and showed that conflict can end and peace can triumph.

    Prior to the Good Friday Agreement, British army checkpoints marked the border.

    British military installations, built and reinforced from the 1970s onwards, were symbols of division and conflict.

    The invisible border on the island of Ireland has now become the greatest symbol of peace.

    There can never be any return to the hard border in Ireland and I welcome your forceful assertion of that reality here today, President.

    It’s important to acknowledge that the Good Friday Agreement is a diplomatic success not just for Ireland but also the European Union and for that we commend you and we thank you.

    The European Union has been a critical partner for peace, providing political and financial support leading to greater economic and social progress on an all-island basis.

    I think it is particularly important to thank Michel Barnier and Maroš Šefčovič and their teams for their determination to hold steady on these crucial issues and defending peace and progress in Ireland.

    The EU’s solidarity remains essential as we continue to address the fall out of Brexit.

    Currently, the institutions in the north of our country lie dormant as the DUP continue their shameful boycott.

    Workers and families in the north pay the price of not having an Executive to work hard for them to deliver for them in the current cost of living crisis.

    It bears repeating that the Protocol is working and is necessary to protect the north from the damages of Brexit. It is supported by democratically elected representatives in the north and indeed across Ireland.

    While issues around the implementation of the Protocol exist, they can be resolved through good faith engagement.

    We must see calm and clear leadership from those at the negotiating table.

    We listened to the words of the new British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak that he is committed to restoring the political institutions and resolving issues around the implementation of the Protocol.

    His words are welcome but they need to be matched by action and meaningful talks between the British government and the European Commission.

    I know it is your fervent desire to engage constructively.

    This is what’s needed, not sabre rattling and no more threats to breach international law.

    The reality is that Ireland is changing and Brexit is responsible for some of that change.

    It was a very significant decision by the EU to state from the start of Brexit  – to our then Taoiseach Enda Kenny – that in the event of Irish reunification the north will automatically rejoin the European Union and the north’s citizens can become EU citizens once again.

    This is a very important statement recognising that the Good Friday Agreement set out the next step on Ireland’s journey – the ending of partition and the holding of referenda on reunification.

    The responsible thing for all of us to do now is to prepare for democratically, orderly, planned constitutional change.

    Just as the Commission played a key role in the peace process, I believe that the EU can play a positive role in the last length of the journey to Irish reunification, and a United Ireland within the European Union.

    We want to see the bridging of the gap on the democratic deficit.

    We want to see advances on workers’ rights, environmental protections, social justice, ethical trade, sustainable trade, research and developments, all areas in which we can make progress.

    That will challenge the European Union but we must rise to that challenge.

    The climate emergency is one of the biggest challenges facing our planet.

    As we in Ireland work to secure a better, greener future for younger generations, we know that this solidarity is crucial in delivering the major changes that area needed to secure truly meaningful impact.

    Through working together on these issues, we can deliver tangible and lasting change to our citizens’ lives.

    That is our vision for Europe.

    We are an island nation, at once on the periphery of Europe and at its heart.

    Our vision also recognises Ireland as a proudly neutral state.  To be Irish is to be from a small island, but it is also to be part of a powerful global family.

    We are somewhat of an outlier as an EU state in that we were the colonised and not the coloniser.

    We have seen conflict, we have seen partition and we have seen occupation.

    Speaking in this Chamber 35 years ago Australian former Prime Minister, Bob Hawke described this well when he said:

    “Ireland is the head of a huge empire in which Australia and the United States are the principal provinces. It is an empire acquired not by force of Irish arms but by force of Irish character, an empire not of political coercion but of spiritual affiliation, created by the thousands upon thousands of Irish men and women who chose to leave their shores, or who were banished from them, to help in the building of new societies over the years.”

    In an increasingly complex world in which our multilateral institutions must work, the presence of military neutrals and non-aligns can be a critical interlocutor in the work for peace, disarmament and social justice.

    I would go further.

    The next step is the recognition and acknowledgement of military neutrals and non-aligns within EU treaties, and of course here in Ireland.

    This would be a hugely positive step forward and would add to the diplomatic repertoire and scope of Europe.

    No doubt that there are many challenges facing Europe, but our shared commitments and values show what can be achieved through solidarity and a resolve to improve our citizens’ lives.

    We remain committed to working with our European friends on these issues as we work for a better life for all our people.

    We stand at a crossroads.

    The future of Europe can be one of retreat or one of hopeful progress. We must choose progress.

    A future in which citizens are disillusioned or empowered.

    A future of opportunities for the few at the top or a future of opportunity and prosperity for all.

    Now is the time, to look forward to the future, with ambition and hope.

    By working together, we can build a new Ireland and re-invigorate the vision of Europe as a beacon of fairness, solidarity, and equality.

    We believe we can make Ireland better, we believe we can make Europe better and by working together we can make the world better too.

  • Quentin Davies – 2001 Speech to the Ulster Unionist Party Conference

    Quentin Davies – 2001 Speech to the Ulster Unionist Party Conference

    The speech made by Quentin Davies, the then Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, in Belfast on 17 November 2001. This is the edited version released to the media.

    If one thing above all has struck me in the two months I have been doing this job it is the anxiety, the pessimism – I do not think it too much to say the despondency – of much of the Unionist community.

    So many people have said to me that they feel that things have moved inexorably against them, that the Peace Process has been a one-way street and that even a single IRA act of decommissioning does not change that.

    There is a very widespread impulse to discount any good news and – most painful of all for anyone who comes from England – a sense of betrayal – a feeling that their fellow citizens in the rest of the United Kingdom do not even regard them as such, and want nothing so much as to get shot of them as soon as possible.

    I am well aware that it is not the first time that such sentiments have been expressed in Ulster. I was struck by a passage in Thomas Hennessy’s excellent ‘History of Northern Ireland’, which I was reading the other day, in which Sir Richard Dawson Bates, then Minister for Home Affairs in Northern Ireland, said in 1938:

    ‘So long as we live, there will always be the danger of Home Rule or merging into the Free State. We will never get rid of it. One has only to go to England to see the extraordinary apathy towards us by people who should be our friends. We do not understand this apathy in England towards us …’

    If these sentiments have existed before, they have now returned with a vengeance. The thing that has caused me more pain than, I think, any other political comment that has ever been addressed to me, has been to be told several times that of course I care fundamentally much more about bombs in London or Birmingham, about blood being shed in England than about blood shed here.

    Well let me use this opportunity today to say with all the sincerity and conviction of which I am capable, that in my eyes Northern Ireland is in every sense just as much as part of our country as London or Lincolnshire where I come from, its inhabitants are every bit as precious to me and my colleagues and our responsibility for them is exactly and precisely the same.

    I know very well that it is not verbal analysis that will reassure people, it is only our deeds.

    So let me give you this commitment.

    Everything we do or say as the major Opposition party will be designed, whether directly or indirectly by exerting influence on the Government, to ensure that Northern Ireland can be, can continue to be, and can feel, a respected, a valued, and an equal part of the United Kingdom, and I hope increasingly a normalised and a prosperous part of our Kingdom.

  • Chris Heaton-Harris – 2022 Statement on the Fifth Substantive Report from the Independent Reporting Commission

    Chris Heaton-Harris – 2022 Statement on the Fifth Substantive Report from the Independent Reporting Commission

    The statement made by Chris Heaton-Harris, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, in the House of Commons on 7 December 2022.

    I have received the fifth substantive report from the Independent Reporting Commission.

    The commission was established following the Fresh Start agreement of November 2015 to report on progress towards ending paramilitary activity. That agreement set out the Northern Ireland Executive’s commitments around tackling paramilitary activity and associated criminality, and led to a programme of work to deliver a Northern Ireland Executive action plan. It also provided the framework for the UK Government, the Executive and law enforcement agencies, working with partners in Ireland, to work together to tackle the challenges of organised crime, paramilitarism and terrorism. In the New Decade, New Approach agreement in January 2020, a commitment was made to ongoing work to tackle paramilitarism, and this work continues, including through a second phase of the Northern Ireland Executive programme.

    This fifth substantive report builds on the work already undertaken by the commissioners. I welcome the progress it highlights in a number of areas, including disruptions to paramilitary groups as a result of operations by the paramilitary crime taskforce, the downward trend in some aspects of paramilitary activity demonstrated by Police Service of Northern Ireland security statistics, and the reduction in the Northern Ireland-related terrorism threat level from severe to substantial. I also welcome the success and positive impact, noted by the commissioners, that the programme for tackling paramilitary activity, criminality and organised crime is having through its focus on the development of a whole of Government approach, and joined-up and integrated working across the public, community and voluntary sectors, and through its emphasis on interventions informed by strong evidence and data.

    Yet the report also notes that the problem of paramilitarism is enduring. The criminal activity and coercive control exercised by paramilitary groups continue to cause harm to communities and individuals across Northern Ireland. A number of incidents in recent weeks have demonstrated the callous disregard that paramilitary groups, or those who claim affiliation with them, have for public safety, and the harm and disruption they continue to cause to the communities they often claim to represent.

    The commissioners have set out a number of recommendations on how the effort to tackle paramilitarism can be enhanced, including a recommendation for the UK Government, and others, on the need for a formal process of engagement with paramilitary groups aimed at facilitating their transition towards disbandment. We will continue to consider this recommendation through engagement with representatives of Northern Ireland political parties, the Northern Ireland Executive, the Irish Government, with civic society and community representatives in Northern Ireland, and with the Independent Reporting Commission.

    Paramilitarism was never justified in the past and cannot be justified today. As we approach the 25th anniversary of the Belfast/Good Friday agreement, it is important that we remind ourselves of the extraordinary progress that has been made since then on peace and prosperity in Northern Ireland. Yet it is clear that a sustained effort is required here over the long term to tackle the enduring problem of paramilitarism. We remain committed to delivering our vision of a safer Northern Ireland and to working with partners to support efforts against the enduring threat and harms posed to communities by terrorist and paramilitary groups.

    Political leadership from across the political spectrum in Northern Ireland is essential to ensure it remains clear that there is no place for paramilitarism, or the division it stems from, in Northern Ireland. It is a matter of profound disappointment that the local political parties have been unable to restore fully functioning devolved institutions. The lack of a functioning Executive inhibits Northern Ireland Departments from taking a strategic, cross-cutting approach to tackling paramilitarism in partnership with the PSNI and the wider public sector. It remains my top priority to rectify the present situation.

    Finally, I would like to express my thanks to the commissioners for their continued work reporting on progress towards ending paramilitarism.