Carmel Hanna: I support the motion. I pay tribute to Research Services, the previous Clerk to the Committee for Health, Social Services and Public Safety and other staff and the groups who gave evidence to the Committee. The extent of obesity in our society is very worrying. The Fit Futures strategy focuses on preventive measures among young people, offering a joined-up policy on physical activity....
Carmel Hanna: I welcome the opportunity to speak on the critical issue of child poverty. I also welcome the work of the Labour Government. During their years in power, they have shown a commitment to tackling child poverty. However, in Northern Ireland, we need to take more control of the issue. We have particular needs and difficulties, and we have set our own ambitious targets. Devolution is all about...
Carmel Hanna: I understood that we were talking about competence in the justice system and how we can achieve that. I apologise if I misunderstood.
Carmel Hanna: I beg your pardon, but I am talking about community confidence. My remarks have been far more direct than some of what I have been listening to since noon. [Interruption.]
Carmel Hanna: We need to concentrate on community confidence. It is interesting that, in August last year, David Ford recognised that the Executive were failing in their duties and not dealing with the substantive issues. He said: “The Alliance Party will not be taking the Policing and Justice Ministry. This Executive is failing in its duties, so Northern Ireland needs a strong and coherent opposition....
Carmel Hanna: Through its amendments to the justice Bill, the SDLP is seeking to ensure that the public is best protected and served. It is important to remember that the Bill is about providing good community policing and robust local justice powers. Sinn Féin, in particular, has stated that there should be no further hurdles to the devolution of justice and policing. The deputy First Minister and other...
Carmel Hanna: I apologise; I obviously took the Member up wrong. Nevertheless, it begs the question: what is the DUP’s job description for the justice Minister’s post, which openly excludes an SDLP Member? It says, in other words, that no nationalist need apply. According to Ms Anderson, a unionist justice Minister, from either the Ulster Unionist Party or the DUP, would not be acceptable to the Sinn...
Carmel Hanna: That is exactly what I said. However, I do not believe that the SDLP electorate would be opposed to either a unionist or nationalist justice Minister who was appointed fairly. How much has really changed? Is this about community confidence or is it about discrimination and sectarianism? Whichever it is, it is extremely depressing. As a solution, we have heard the DUP, Sinn Féin and Alliance...
Carmel Hanna: I do not agree with that statement; the SDLP has always supported inclusive politics. For most of the population of the North, community confidence is about how we deal with victims of crime, the imprisonment of offenders, the provision of youth justice services and ensuring that we have the best resources, such as state-of-the-art forensic science technology, so that we can catch criminals....
Carmel Hanna: Wise expenditure of taxpayers’ money is always essential, but never more so than in the present economic downturn. It is always a challenge to prioritise and make tough decisions, especially for the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety and the Minister. However, we must have zero-based budgeting on all programmes, all of which must be on the table and justified as...
Carmel Hanna: I wish to present a public petition that relates to support for victims of institutional abuse. It was presented to me by Margaret McGuckin and signed by several thousand members of the public who support the campaign. Last week, the House passed a motion that called on the Executive to: “commission an assessment of the extent of abuse and neglect in Northern Ireland, to liaise and work...
Carmel Hanna: 2. asked the Minister of Education to outline the reasons for the delay in appointing a project manager for the building of Irish-medium schools which are on her Department’s capital build scheme, namely (i) Bunscoil an Iúir, Newry; (ii) Gaelscoil Uí Dhochartaigh, Strabane; (iii) Gaelscoil Éadaoin Mhóir in the Derry City Council area; and (vi) Gaelscoil Uí Néill, Coalisland; and to...
Carmel Hanna: I thank the Minister for her answer. The delay has caused a lot of disappointment. Will the Minister comment on the procurement process, and will she ensure that there are no further delays and that there is a definitive timescale?
Carmel Hanna: Finally, we must never forget that children in care are the most vulnerable and at-risk in our society, a fact that continues to the present day. We must ensure that child protection protocols are in place and are rigorously monitored, so that the abuse that was revealed in the Ryan report will never happen again.
Carmel Hanna: I beg to move That this Assembly expresses grave concern at the findings of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse report (the Ryan report) published in May 2009 in the Republic of Ireland; considers that such neglect and abuse of children and young people’s human rights must be subject to criminal law; recognises that children who were placed by state authorities in Northern Ireland in...
Carmel Hanna: 1. asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development how, and when, she will implement the recommendations of the report on the better regulation and simplification review. (AQO 202/10)
Carmel Hanna: Will the Minister outline the overall costs of the review and specify whether any anticipated savings will result from the implementation of the recommendations?
Carmel Hanna: I thank the Members who tabled the motion. The SDLP has sympathy with the intent of the motion, although it is my understanding that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has issued guidance on whether prosecutions will take place in individual cases. The guidelines do not and cannot decriminalise assisted suicide, which is still illegal under the Suicide Act 1961. I welcome the fact that...
Carmel Hanna: I thank Anna Lo for tabling the motion because it is important that we recognise the contribution that migrant workers make to life in Northern Ireland in relation to our economy, society and culture. The SDLP believes that all migrant workers, like all citizens, are entitled to civil rights and the protection of interests. The Human Rights Commission has defined those rights in advice guides...
Carmel Hanna: Therefore, they are entitled to the same rights and dignity.
