0:00:34 > 0:00:36Hello. Sorry to disturb you.
0:00:36 > 0:00:38Naomi Long from the Alliance Party.
0:00:38 > 0:00:41Yeah, uh-huh. I'm just calling about the election.
0:00:41 > 0:00:44'Politics is an all-consuming kind of a role.
0:00:44 > 0:00:48'I don't want to spend the rest of my life in Northern Ireland'
0:00:48 > 0:00:52throwing my shoes at the television and getting annoyed when I see
0:00:52 > 0:00:55things that I feel are wrong. I'm the kind of person -
0:00:55 > 0:00:56and I always have been the kind of person -
0:00:56 > 0:00:58who believes in trying to find solutions.
0:01:04 > 0:01:07Posters. Everywhere you look, there's posters.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11'They are huge demands to stand for election.
0:01:11 > 0:01:14'They're huge demands on family life.
0:01:14 > 0:01:16'They are huge demands on personal life.'
0:01:16 > 0:01:19The Ulster Unionist Party. That's myself, Doug Beattie.
0:01:19 > 0:01:22'But the prize is massive.'
0:01:22 > 0:01:26If you win, you get a chance to represent these people.
0:01:26 > 0:01:28Listen, lovely talking to yous, OK?
0:01:28 > 0:01:30Lovely talking to you. Sorry for taking your time up.
0:01:30 > 0:01:31No problem. You're all right.
0:01:31 > 0:01:33THEY CHEER
0:01:35 > 0:01:39I think it's an incredibly interesting job, but I really enjoy getting out there, meeting people,
0:01:39 > 0:01:40listening to their issues.
0:01:40 > 0:01:43I see myself as a natural problem solver.
0:01:43 > 0:01:47If I see an issue, I love to get involved in it and try to bring about a solution.
0:01:47 > 0:01:49I think that that works very well
0:01:49 > 0:01:51with being an elected representative
0:01:51 > 0:01:53and I think that if we do that, we can rebuild, perhaps,
0:01:53 > 0:01:57some of the trust that has been lost in the past.
0:01:57 > 0:02:00You know, we need to attract capable people into politics.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03We need to attract passionate, hard-working people into politics.
0:02:04 > 0:02:08We'll meet tonight just at about half eight at the house,
0:02:08 > 0:02:10just to kind of get our... Game plan?
0:02:10 > 0:02:11Yeah, get our game plan on.
0:02:11 > 0:02:14Yeah. And then everybody in bed, lights out by 11 o'clock.
0:02:15 > 0:02:18The people look at politics, they turn on the Assembly,
0:02:18 > 0:02:21they turn on the programmes, and they only see the same two men -
0:02:21 > 0:02:22and usually it is men -
0:02:22 > 0:02:25having the same argument that they've had for 20 years,
0:02:25 > 0:02:29and you know that certainly women and younger people mightn't think
0:02:29 > 0:02:32that that's, you know, something that they can possibly do.
0:02:32 > 0:02:34So, in that respect,
0:02:34 > 0:02:37it is bums on seats have to change a little bit.
0:02:37 > 0:02:41The line-up of the politicians they see needs to be more reflective.
0:02:46 > 0:02:50I spent every day in the last four years trying to really earn my seat
0:02:50 > 0:02:53and, you know, since then we've seen more and more young people come into
0:02:53 > 0:02:55politics, of all different backgrounds,
0:02:55 > 0:02:57which I think is really important,
0:02:57 > 0:03:00because I don't think that we're going to see the type of changes
0:03:00 > 0:03:01that we need in our society
0:03:01 > 0:03:03unless we have those different kinds of voices, you know,
0:03:03 > 0:03:06saying different things and representing different generations.
0:03:16 > 0:03:19Democracy, of course, is about people,
0:03:19 > 0:03:21trying to make sure that we're relevant
0:03:21 > 0:03:23to the people that elect us.
0:03:23 > 0:03:26And I know we've come from a background of violence, if you like,
0:03:26 > 0:03:28over the '70s and '80s and '90s,
0:03:28 > 0:03:31and so people see it as a black-and-white sectarian issue,
0:03:31 > 0:03:34sometimes, in Northern Ireland, but, of course, what happens up at Stormont
0:03:34 > 0:03:37is not about that at all. It's about education,
0:03:37 > 0:03:39it's about being able to deliver good health care,
0:03:39 > 0:03:42being able to bring more jobs into Northern Ireland.
0:03:42 > 0:03:45So to be relevant to people, I think, is the key part of a democracy.
0:03:47 > 0:03:49I believe in devolution.
0:03:49 > 0:03:53We need to get power off that hill down into our councils,
0:03:53 > 0:03:54through our councils,
0:03:54 > 0:03:58into communities and as close to the family unit as you can.
0:03:58 > 0:04:00We shouldn't have thousands of people leaving our shores,
0:04:00 > 0:04:05we shouldn't have people feeling that they can't achieve their full potential in Northern Ireland,
0:04:05 > 0:04:08but all those things are changeable if we have an Assembly
0:04:08 > 0:04:10that's more about delivery, more about policy development
0:04:10 > 0:04:13and more about actually changing the face of Northern Ireland,
0:04:13 > 0:04:17and much less about congratulating ourselves on historic handshakes.
0:04:17 > 0:04:19We have to move on from those days.
0:04:21 > 0:04:25If people listen, if people take account of what feelings are
0:04:25 > 0:04:27amongst their constituents,
0:04:27 > 0:04:31then we have a much better chance of delivering good policy for Northern Ireland
0:04:31 > 0:04:34than direct-rule ministers flying in for a day a week from London.
0:04:37 > 0:04:40What joins us together is the agreements that we've made
0:04:40 > 0:04:42over the course of the last 20 years.
0:04:42 > 0:04:46And I think it's very important that we all recognise that increasingly
0:04:46 > 0:04:49the world is becoming more cosmopolitan,
0:04:49 > 0:04:51and that requires all of us to be more broad-minded
0:04:51 > 0:04:54and more respectful of other cultures.
0:05:30 > 0:05:35I grew up in Markethill, which is just on the edge of South Armagh.
0:05:37 > 0:05:41In the '80s and '90s, it suffered a huge amount during the Troubles.
0:05:41 > 0:05:45It was, you know, a very politicised time right across Northern Ireland
0:05:45 > 0:05:47and I think, you know, for my generation,
0:05:47 > 0:05:50even though, you know, like, I was sort of ten in 1990,
0:05:50 > 0:05:51it was on the news all of the time.
0:05:51 > 0:05:54There was significant amount of discussion with it within families,
0:05:54 > 0:05:58I think, as well. So, yes, we were very politically attuned,
0:05:58 > 0:06:00you know, very, very conscious of what the issues were.
0:06:00 > 0:06:03So, I've got about 50 or 60 of these to put up.
0:06:04 > 0:06:07And the right way round, yeah!
0:06:07 > 0:06:11Really, my first proper engagement with politics came about at Queen's University,
0:06:11 > 0:06:14where when I came in I stood for election to the student council,
0:06:14 > 0:06:16through a lot of the passion and the anger
0:06:16 > 0:06:19and my very strong views on a whole range of issues.
0:06:20 > 0:06:24After working for...well, 15 years with one single determination
0:06:24 > 0:06:27to become a lawyer, I suppose I stepped back and said,
0:06:27 > 0:06:31"Right, I'm now a barrister. Where do I go from here?"
0:06:31 > 0:06:35And it was... It was actually quite a strange period of my life of,
0:06:35 > 0:06:39you know, having achieved something that I'd worked really hard for,
0:06:39 > 0:06:43I suppose, trying to find then something else which would
0:06:43 > 0:06:45drive me forward for the next while.
0:06:46 > 0:06:50There's a lot of similarities, actually, being a lawyer, a barrister and being a politician,
0:06:50 > 0:06:52in the sense of I'm listening to constituents.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55I'm helping and supporting them and giving them advice about how to
0:06:55 > 0:06:57navigate towards a solution that they want,
0:06:57 > 0:06:59but also that I am an advocate for them
0:06:59 > 0:07:01and that I'm working incredibly hard for them,
0:07:01 > 0:07:03and I think that that's what it should...
0:07:03 > 0:07:05You know, this job should be about.
0:07:05 > 0:07:06ACTIVISTS CHAT
0:07:11 > 0:07:13Some of our local activists here in Dromintee,
0:07:13 > 0:07:16we're just meeting up and dividing up roads between us,
0:07:16 > 0:07:17whatever we have left to cover,
0:07:17 > 0:07:20so we're trying to knock every single door and trying to talk to
0:07:20 > 0:07:22as many people as possible.
0:07:22 > 0:07:25But I suppose it's about trying to lift the profile of the election as well,
0:07:25 > 0:07:28to let people know it's on, so that we don't have a low turnout,
0:07:28 > 0:07:32and just so people are aware that they have to go out and vote on the 5th of May, so...
0:07:33 > 0:07:36I was born in 1991, so I was three at the time of the ceasefire
0:07:36 > 0:07:40and seven at the time of the Good Friday Agreement, but, you know,
0:07:40 > 0:07:42South Armagh growing up was one of the most militarised areas
0:07:42 > 0:07:45of Western Europe, so it was kind of inescapable.
0:07:45 > 0:07:47There was a very large,
0:07:47 > 0:07:50disruptive and unwanted military occupation,
0:07:50 > 0:07:54er, and that was quite evident in our everyday lives, and, you know,
0:07:54 > 0:07:59that was there right up until 2007, so it's not exactly, you know,
0:07:59 > 0:08:02ancient history at this stage, so it was always very, you know,
0:08:02 > 0:08:04present and to the fore of my thoughts,
0:08:04 > 0:08:07and I think that's probably what sparked my own interest in politics.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10Hiya! Hello, how are you? Megan Fearon.
0:08:10 > 0:08:12Hello, Megan. How are you? Nice to meet you. Brian...
0:08:12 > 0:08:14Hello, Brian. How are you? How's things?
0:08:14 > 0:08:16Best of luck. Thanks very much.
0:08:16 > 0:08:17Great to see new blood.
0:08:17 > 0:08:19I know! Thank you.
0:08:19 > 0:08:22Well, we're really just out seeing if there's any issues
0:08:22 > 0:08:24or any questions that we can answer for you or...
0:08:24 > 0:08:26Maybe the roads. Yeah, I know, yeah.
0:08:26 > 0:08:30There's a lot of wear and tear on the roads. Yeah. You're not the first person to mention that.
0:08:32 > 0:08:35Well, really, emigration's the big issue I'm worried about at the minute.
0:08:35 > 0:08:37A lot of young people that I've taught over the years,
0:08:37 > 0:08:40eight out of ten are in Australia or England or the United States.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42You know? I know.
0:08:44 > 0:08:47I come from quite a large Republican family, and, you know,
0:08:47 > 0:08:50we've always been quite active in our community and that's one of
0:08:50 > 0:08:53the things that I was kind of brought up with,
0:08:53 > 0:08:55to place a massive importance on the strength of community,
0:08:55 > 0:08:59and I think that's probably similar across rural areas
0:08:59 > 0:09:01throughout Ireland, but particularly so where I'm from. You know,
0:09:01 > 0:09:05there's a real close-knit sense of resilience and determination
0:09:05 > 0:09:07to try and make our community better.
0:09:16 > 0:09:20The Ulster Unionist Party have got good policies.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23They're progressive policies, and they are policies that work, so,
0:09:23 > 0:09:27you know, if you can look at that and maybe consider giving me a vote,
0:09:27 > 0:09:29having read that. But certainly if you get a chance
0:09:29 > 0:09:32to look at the policies the Ulster Unionist Party have,
0:09:32 > 0:09:35I think it'll be good for the country in the long term.
0:09:35 > 0:09:36Is that OK? Yeah. OK.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42Whenever I was younger, I used to play on the grassed area here.
0:09:42 > 0:09:46I particularly remember the Queen's Silver Jubilee in '77,
0:09:46 > 0:09:49er, where we set up a, um, street party on there,
0:09:49 > 0:09:52then we played the adults against the kids football match,
0:09:52 > 0:09:55all on the grass there. It was absolutely fantastic, and I remember it.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58When you're smaller, you always remember it as being so much bigger than it is.
0:09:58 > 0:10:00That's all done.
0:10:00 > 0:10:02'I'm the son of a soldier,
0:10:02 > 0:10:05'so I've sort of led a bit of a nomadic lifestyle.'
0:10:05 > 0:10:07I hope you're not backtracking on yourself now.
0:10:07 > 0:10:09'I've sort of travelled around'
0:10:09 > 0:10:11with my father and mother, him being a soldier, um,
0:10:11 > 0:10:14around the world and then, at the age of ten,
0:10:14 > 0:10:17he finished his time in the military and we moved back
0:10:17 > 0:10:21to Northern Ireland. We moved to a working-class area in Portadown.
0:10:21 > 0:10:25Um, that's myself, Doug Beattie, for the elections on the 5th of May.
0:10:25 > 0:10:28'And I grew up as a young boy, really just getting to know
0:10:28 > 0:10:31'what Northern Ireland was all about and the situation there,
0:10:31 > 0:10:34'because it was all very new and very alien to me.'
0:10:34 > 0:10:39I got to know where I stood in society, as an Ulster Protestant.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43Hiya! I understood then that there was Catholic Nationalists,
0:10:43 > 0:10:46who lived on the other side of the wall, who we didn't mix with,
0:10:46 > 0:10:51so I learnt all of these things, but they never changed my feelings of,
0:10:51 > 0:10:55er, equality and inclusion, so that never changed that -
0:10:55 > 0:10:56that remained throughout.
0:10:58 > 0:11:00This one's for sale.
0:11:00 > 0:11:04So I used to live in this house, um, with my mother, father
0:11:04 > 0:11:07and six kids - three girls and three boys.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11And it's all a little bit surreal to come back, um,
0:11:11 > 0:11:13to the house that I grew up in
0:11:13 > 0:11:15and I remember with such huge fond memories -
0:11:15 > 0:11:18and terrible memories too, because, you know,
0:11:18 > 0:11:20burying your mother at the age of 14, 15
0:11:20 > 0:11:22is quite traumatic, with cancer,
0:11:22 > 0:11:25and it was pretty aggressive cancer and it wasn't nice.
0:11:25 > 0:11:27My last sort of year and a half in here,
0:11:27 > 0:11:32with just me and my father living in here on my own, and my father, um,
0:11:32 > 0:11:34was grief-stricken with the loss of his wife.
0:11:34 > 0:11:38He turned to alcohol and there was only me to sort of
0:11:38 > 0:11:40keep him going in life. And I remember he used to come
0:11:40 > 0:11:42and wake me up at two o'clock in the morning
0:11:42 > 0:11:45to come down and sit with him while he played songs
0:11:45 > 0:11:48that him and my mother used to listen to, um,
0:11:48 > 0:11:50and I would go to bed and have to get up for school in the morning,
0:11:50 > 0:11:54and school's the other end of town, the Portadown Tech, so, you know,
0:11:54 > 0:11:57it was a difficult time but a nostalgic time, as well,
0:11:57 > 0:12:00as a young boy of ten.
0:12:09 > 0:12:13MUFFLED OVERLAPPING SPEAKERS
0:12:13 > 0:12:14That's my point.
0:12:14 > 0:12:18This would be much more plausible if you voted for the teacher exception
0:12:18 > 0:12:22and if you'd voted for integrating the teacher training in one place,
0:12:22 > 0:12:26neither of which any of the parties up here, who were in the Executive, did!
0:12:26 > 0:12:29I'm going to address exactly that. In practice, you did nothing!
0:12:29 > 0:12:30We need to say... So, again,
0:12:30 > 0:12:33my sister lives 300 yards away from
0:12:33 > 0:12:35her brilliant, local Catholic primary,
0:12:35 > 0:12:38so she's not rejecting... Why shouldn't she send her child there?
0:12:38 > 0:12:40So, one, integrated, as you know,
0:12:40 > 0:12:42isn't just about deleting the Catholic sector...
0:12:42 > 0:12:44No, no, of course not!
0:12:44 > 0:12:48'Politics was always a thing, was always in our house.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51'It was never in any way shoved down our throats.'
0:12:51 > 0:12:53It was a very open household,
0:12:53 > 0:12:55a lot of discussion and different viewpoints
0:12:55 > 0:12:57and I suppose the central one
0:12:57 > 0:13:01being that there was an alternative to how things were going,
0:13:01 > 0:13:04that, while you could have your identity,
0:13:04 > 0:13:07and it was a house that was, you know, proud of its Irishness.
0:13:07 > 0:13:09Irish was spoken in the house.
0:13:09 > 0:13:11We were, you know, very culturally engaged.
0:13:13 > 0:13:15The growing up I had, off the Lisburn Road,
0:13:15 > 0:13:19was very different in terms, primarily, of integration, you know.
0:13:19 > 0:13:22All faiths and none lived side by side in South Belfast,
0:13:22 > 0:13:27and that was something that probably shapes your politics much more
0:13:27 > 0:13:28than if everybody in your street
0:13:28 > 0:13:32is of a similar background or maybe viewpoint.
0:13:32 > 0:13:35I think a lot of the hope and optimism
0:13:35 > 0:13:39that I remember from 18 years ago is gone, and we CAN get it back,
0:13:39 > 0:13:42but I suppose those parties who are steering it at the moment had to be
0:13:42 > 0:13:46dragged kicking and screaming into reconciliation and partnership,
0:13:46 > 0:13:48and continue to sort of poke each other in the eye
0:13:48 > 0:13:50and I don't think that was envisaged
0:13:50 > 0:13:52when we thought that people would work together in partnership.
0:13:52 > 0:13:55We were supposed to be building up trust with each other.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58I became quite politically aware around the Good Friday Agreement.
0:13:58 > 0:14:00I was 17 when it was signed,
0:14:00 > 0:14:03and I suppose the central concept that I grew up with,
0:14:03 > 0:14:05particularly in our family,
0:14:05 > 0:14:08that you can be a Nationalist or you can be a Unionist,
0:14:08 > 0:14:11but there are acres of common ground to work with your neighbours,
0:14:11 > 0:14:16and that didn't seem to be reflected in politics,
0:14:16 > 0:14:17and that simple concept
0:14:17 > 0:14:22was something that I felt WAS lacking in that period, so,
0:14:22 > 0:14:27if you have the opportunity to have a crack at it and try and put
0:14:27 > 0:14:30a different viewpoint, certainly, I feel you have to take it.
0:14:33 > 0:14:39Alliance is standing 23 candidates in all 18 constituencies.
0:14:39 > 0:14:42Welcome, Naomi. Good afternoon to you. Thank you very much, William.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44What are you hoping to do in this Assembly, if you are elected,
0:14:44 > 0:14:46if the party increases its vote?
0:14:46 > 0:14:49What we want to see is an end to the division,
0:14:49 > 0:14:51to the delay and to the stagnation in Stormont.
0:14:51 > 0:14:54Naomi Long is here until one o'clock taking your calls today...
0:14:54 > 0:14:56'With politics part of life, I think,
0:14:56 > 0:14:59'having been born at the end of 1971,
0:14:59 > 0:15:01'so right at the beginning of the Troubles,
0:15:01 > 0:15:03'it was impossible to grow up in Northern Ireland
0:15:03 > 0:15:05'without politics being part of life.'
0:15:05 > 0:15:07And I remember incidents when I was growing up
0:15:07 > 0:15:11where my mum took a stand as a woman living alone
0:15:11 > 0:15:13in a very predominantly Loyalist community,
0:15:13 > 0:15:16where she felt people were doing things that she didn't approve of.
0:15:16 > 0:15:19I remember there were workmen who came from the Republic of Ireland
0:15:19 > 0:15:22to work opposite our home
0:15:22 > 0:15:24and in response to that,
0:15:24 > 0:15:26people started to paint kerbs in the street and so on,
0:15:26 > 0:15:28deliberately to make them feel uncomfortable.
0:15:28 > 0:15:31She stood up to that and challenged it and said it was wrong,
0:15:31 > 0:15:34wouldn't contribute to any money to the painting,
0:15:34 > 0:15:37and asked them not to paint the kerbs outside our house.
0:15:37 > 0:15:40Now, that might seem like a very trivial thing but, actually,
0:15:40 > 0:15:44when you're living in a community where speaking out can have
0:15:44 > 0:15:48consequences, it was quite a brave thing to do and, as a result,
0:15:48 > 0:15:51we got a massive Union flag painted on the road outside house
0:15:51 > 0:15:54with "remember 1690" and "no surrender",
0:15:54 > 0:15:58so we were taught our lesson - that you weren't meant to speak out.
0:15:58 > 0:16:00But she did!
0:16:00 > 0:16:03There will be responsibilities for ALL ministers
0:16:03 > 0:16:04in delivering this, whether it is...
0:16:04 > 0:16:07'She instilled in me the belief that we all have
0:16:07 > 0:16:10'an individual responsibility to stand up for what we believe in.
0:16:10 > 0:16:12'I guess my mum's politics...'
0:16:12 > 0:16:15I would say she moved from being a fairly traditional Unionist
0:16:15 > 0:16:18actually to quite an avid supporter of Alliance,
0:16:18 > 0:16:20in terms of what I was doing,
0:16:20 > 0:16:22but also in terms of what the party was doing,
0:16:22 > 0:16:24because it resonated with that part of her
0:16:24 > 0:16:26that really believed that justice mattered,
0:16:26 > 0:16:28that treating people with respect mattered,
0:16:28 > 0:16:30that the rule of law mattered.
0:16:30 > 0:16:33Those were things that I was raised to believe in and those are things
0:16:33 > 0:16:37that I found reflected in the Alliance Party when I joined.
0:16:46 > 0:16:48When the election comes,
0:16:48 > 0:16:50there'll be people casting a vote
0:16:50 > 0:16:53who weren't even born on Good Friday 1998.
0:16:53 > 0:16:58The Good Friday Agreement is no longer a tender young child.
0:16:58 > 0:17:02It's not even the age of a quarrelsome, difficult teenager.
0:17:02 > 0:17:04It's now attaining its maturity
0:17:04 > 0:17:07and it really is time that every political party grew up
0:17:07 > 0:17:11and ensured that we delivered on the promises that people expected.
0:17:16 > 0:17:18We have a peace process that's solid.
0:17:18 > 0:17:21We have a political process that's there and stable, and we have people
0:17:21 > 0:17:24working together. And it's fantastic.
0:17:24 > 0:17:27And we should all be very grateful for the people who got us here.
0:17:27 > 0:17:31It doesn't mean we should be happy with our current circumstances.
0:17:31 > 0:17:35We should be very impatient for change. We should say,
0:17:35 > 0:17:38"What are you actually achieving and delivering and changing?"
0:17:38 > 0:17:39That's where people are, I think.
0:17:39 > 0:17:42It's great that we have the Assembly,
0:17:42 > 0:17:45but we now need an Assembly that actually delivers.
0:17:50 > 0:17:54I think the authors of the Agreement in '98 did not envision a position
0:17:54 > 0:17:57where any party would become as dominant
0:17:57 > 0:18:00as the DUP and Sinn Fein have been.
0:18:00 > 0:18:03But if we were in England, if we were in Scotland,
0:18:03 > 0:18:06if we were in Wales, if we were in the Republic of Ireland,
0:18:06 > 0:18:09I think the voters would look at the record of the last two mandates
0:18:09 > 0:18:11and say, "I tell you what,
0:18:11 > 0:18:13"take a break, guys, take a rest.
0:18:13 > 0:18:16"We're not desperately happy with what you've achieved,
0:18:16 > 0:18:17"we're going to give somebody else a go."
0:18:17 > 0:18:20That's what happens in a proper democracy.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27There's no other part of the United Kingdom that has enforced
0:18:27 > 0:18:29mandatory coalition.
0:18:29 > 0:18:33In other words, the elections that are going to be taking place
0:18:33 > 0:18:36are going to be about putting back,
0:18:36 > 0:18:40who would say, the DUP and Sinn Fein in perpetuity,
0:18:40 > 0:18:42for as long as they like,
0:18:42 > 0:18:45because they HAVE to be brought together.
0:18:45 > 0:18:48That's what the Westminster government had decided.
0:18:48 > 0:18:51That's not democracy, as far as I'm concerned.
0:18:51 > 0:18:53I suppose the truth is this -
0:18:53 > 0:18:55that if you say to politicians anywhere across the world,
0:18:55 > 0:18:57"We can create for you a system
0:18:57 > 0:19:01"whereby you will always be in government,
0:19:01 > 0:19:04"you will never be in opposition,"
0:19:04 > 0:19:07most politicians, being selfish individuals, will say,
0:19:07 > 0:19:11"Sounds good to me." But it's not good for the people.
0:19:11 > 0:19:15Well, I think sometimes people can be very complacent
0:19:15 > 0:19:18about where we are at the moment and I think,
0:19:18 > 0:19:20if you look at the situation here
0:19:20 > 0:19:23in the north of Ireland for the last 20 years,
0:19:23 > 0:19:29we have moved from a place of intense conflict and militarism
0:19:29 > 0:19:32on the streets to a place of peace.
0:19:35 > 0:19:37You go out onto the streets of Belfast now,
0:19:37 > 0:19:40and other parts of the north, everywhere has changed.
0:19:40 > 0:19:41Yes, there are still people out there
0:19:41 > 0:19:43who are opposed to the peace process
0:19:43 > 0:19:46and there are people out there who are involved in criminality,
0:19:46 > 0:19:48but it bears no relationship whatsoever
0:19:48 > 0:19:51to what the situation was 25 years ago,
0:19:51 > 0:19:54and I think that's been a massive achievement.
0:19:56 > 0:20:00Now, in Northern Ireland, we're in a very good place of stability.
0:20:00 > 0:20:04My children don't know what it was like in the '70s, '80s and '90s,
0:20:04 > 0:20:06and I'm quite content that that is the case.
0:20:06 > 0:20:08They're growing up in a period of stability.
0:20:08 > 0:20:11Yes, there's much more to do, I know all of that,
0:20:11 > 0:20:13but I think we are in a good place now
0:20:13 > 0:20:16and we now need to keep moving forward in terms of reform.
0:20:23 > 0:20:26I want to see the Assembly reformed.
0:20:26 > 0:20:29I want to see more dynamic politics.
0:20:29 > 0:20:32I want to see government be by voluntary coalition.
0:20:32 > 0:20:34But in order to do that,
0:20:34 > 0:20:36we have to go back to why those institutions
0:20:36 > 0:20:38are there in the first place,
0:20:38 > 0:20:42and that means recognising the fact that we had a history of
0:20:42 > 0:20:44discrimination against Nationalism
0:20:44 > 0:20:47and those who held Nationalist viewpoints in this place,
0:20:47 > 0:20:50so the mandatory coalition was needed to build that trust.
0:20:50 > 0:20:53Now, that trust is still lacking,
0:20:53 > 0:20:55so, if people really want to see huge reform,
0:20:55 > 0:20:58if they want to see a voluntary coalition,
0:20:58 > 0:21:01they need to find ways of reassuring those in our society
0:21:01 > 0:21:03who have long memories,
0:21:03 > 0:21:06and who want to be sure that a voluntary coalition
0:21:06 > 0:21:08isn't code for Unionist rule.
0:21:11 > 0:21:14I think we have to be very cognisant of the fact that we are
0:21:14 > 0:21:16a post-conflict society,
0:21:16 > 0:21:19and our peace process and our political institutions are delicate
0:21:19 > 0:21:22and we can't do anything that will in any way damage that.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25Obviously, there is provision there for an opposition
0:21:25 > 0:21:28going into this next Assembly election, but for our part,
0:21:28 > 0:21:31Sinn Fein are serious about going into government.
0:21:31 > 0:21:34We're running for election to actually be in government
0:21:34 > 0:21:37and I think it's clear, judging by some other parties' manifestos,
0:21:37 > 0:21:39that they are already gearing up for an opposition,
0:21:39 > 0:21:42but we want to go into government and continue to deliver for people
0:21:42 > 0:21:45and to continue to deliver on the peace that we already have.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50No matter where we move to in the next number of years,
0:21:50 > 0:21:53perhaps in the next number of decades, you know,
0:21:53 > 0:21:55our policy will still require agreement.
0:21:55 > 0:21:58You know, agreement requires compromise.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01It requires making sure that your key principles, your key policies,
0:22:01 > 0:22:05those red-line issues, you know, that they're not compromised,
0:22:05 > 0:22:07but that, on other issues, then you need to take into account
0:22:07 > 0:22:10what are the important issues to somebody else?
0:22:10 > 0:22:11That's a lengthy process,
0:22:11 > 0:22:14but it is a process that is worth doing in order to get the outcome
0:22:14 > 0:22:18and, you know, I think people need to be realistic about that.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20Hello, sorry for disturbing you.
0:22:20 > 0:22:22Could I drop off this leaflet? You can indeed.
0:22:23 > 0:22:26Thank you. That's great, thank you very much.
0:22:26 > 0:22:29Not at all. Well, that's just the copy, as you know, of our policies.
0:22:29 > 0:22:32Yes. And my number's on the back, so anything I can do to help,
0:22:32 > 0:22:34or any questions or anything, give me a call.
0:22:34 > 0:22:36That'll do lovely. OK, thank you very much.
0:22:36 > 0:22:37Lovely to meet you. Bye-bye.
0:22:37 > 0:22:39'I think it's an incredibly interesting job.
0:22:39 > 0:22:41'At times, it can be, I suppose, a little strange
0:22:41 > 0:22:43'in terms of what you have to do.
0:22:43 > 0:22:46'You would go up to a random door, rap the door'
0:22:46 > 0:22:49and you've no idea what's going to be behind it, you've no idea
0:22:49 > 0:22:51what questions, you don't know if that person's going to be friendly
0:22:51 > 0:22:54or not friendly, so it is strange, but you do get used to it.
0:22:54 > 0:22:56And I've rapped... You know, since about January,
0:22:56 > 0:22:58I've rapped about 13,000 doors at this point.
0:22:58 > 0:23:00Hello, sorry for disturbing you.
0:23:00 > 0:23:02'A lot of what I've done,
0:23:02 > 0:23:06'over the course of the last five months that I've become an MLA,'
0:23:06 > 0:23:09is really to try to get the message out to the people of South Belfast
0:23:09 > 0:23:12who I am, what I'm prepared to do, what I want to do,
0:23:12 > 0:23:14the fact that I am a hard worker,
0:23:14 > 0:23:16somebody who's very passionate about issues, so, really,
0:23:16 > 0:23:19a lot of it has been about communication with constituents,
0:23:19 > 0:23:22just to make it absolutely clear for them who I am,
0:23:22 > 0:23:24so that they can make an informed choice as well.
0:23:36 > 0:23:38That was very difficult.
0:23:38 > 0:23:41It was very challenging to understand the ins and outs of
0:23:41 > 0:23:43what exactly had happened.
0:23:43 > 0:23:46I was very conscious of that, even as a child.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49There were four young children in the home
0:23:49 > 0:23:51and my father was the person
0:23:51 > 0:23:55who had worked, so very, very quickly, you know, immediately,
0:23:55 > 0:23:56he had lost that income
0:23:56 > 0:23:59and, you know, that was very, very challenging as well.
0:23:59 > 0:24:03It was also incredibly challenging, I suppose, for my mum, you know,
0:24:03 > 0:24:06to deal with the fallout from what had happened.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09It was a story that got a huge amount of coverage.
0:24:09 > 0:24:11I think there was, you know,
0:24:11 > 0:24:15a lot of this kind of idea of your family and your life
0:24:15 > 0:24:19being kind of all over the evening news, that kind of scrutiny,
0:24:19 > 0:24:21the issues surrounding that,
0:24:21 > 0:24:23so I think that was very difficult for her,
0:24:23 > 0:24:26as a woman who was I think slightly younger than me at the time,
0:24:26 > 0:24:29with four young children, and having to navigate her way through that.
0:24:32 > 0:24:34Whenever I decided, when I was 11 years of age,
0:24:34 > 0:24:37I was going to be a lawyer, I don't know why,
0:24:37 > 0:24:40I think I'm sure it was connected to what had happened and I suppose
0:24:40 > 0:24:42the emotional issues that were ongoing at the time,
0:24:42 > 0:24:45but my mother never turned round and said to me,
0:24:45 > 0:24:47"Why don't you pick something a bit more realistic?"
0:24:47 > 0:24:50She made it very clear, "If that's what you want to do, you CAN do it."
0:24:50 > 0:24:53And I think, for me, the lesson I've taken from that
0:24:53 > 0:24:57is how important that parental role about supporting aspirations,
0:24:57 > 0:24:58but also, in a realistic way, saying,
0:24:58 > 0:25:01"If you want to make your aspiration a reality,
0:25:01 > 0:25:02"then you do need to work at it,"
0:25:02 > 0:25:04because the one critical difference is,
0:25:04 > 0:25:07hard work can get you to where you need to be.
0:25:07 > 0:25:09PLAYERS AND SUPPORTERS SHOUT
0:25:16 > 0:25:17Well...
0:25:17 > 0:25:19They're all in the colours.
0:25:19 > 0:25:22'I do definitely feel a certain sense of responsibility,
0:25:22 > 0:25:25'being a young woman in politics, particularly here,
0:25:25 > 0:25:26'where there are so few of us,'
0:25:26 > 0:25:28because I know, growing up,
0:25:28 > 0:25:31I would have really looked up to a lot of our female politicians
0:25:31 > 0:25:34and a lot of women within the Republican movement in general.
0:25:34 > 0:25:35Is this the first half?
0:25:35 > 0:25:38Yeah. It's only on? Right.
0:25:38 > 0:25:42I never really had my sights on being in frontline politics,
0:25:42 > 0:25:44especially not at such an early age.
0:25:44 > 0:25:46It was a massive honour to be asked by the party
0:25:46 > 0:25:48to put my name in forward. I initially said no a few times.
0:25:48 > 0:25:51I was very young at the time, I was only 20,
0:25:51 > 0:25:54so it was obviously daunting and it was challenging.
0:25:55 > 0:25:59But I'd always been an advocate for having more young people and more
0:25:59 > 0:26:02women in politics, so I felt I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't, you know,
0:26:02 > 0:26:04at least try and take the opportunity
0:26:04 > 0:26:06and see how it went for me.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13Stormont is not the most welcoming place for a woman, first of all,
0:26:13 > 0:26:17and it's certainly not overly welcoming for young people either,
0:26:17 > 0:26:18and so I tick both boxes.
0:26:18 > 0:26:23There was quite a lot of, you know, hostility going in.
0:26:23 > 0:26:26People made it quite clear that they thought I shouldn't be there,
0:26:26 > 0:26:27that I didn't deserve my place.
0:26:27 > 0:26:31I had people saying that I was only there because I was a woman,
0:26:31 > 0:26:33which is an insult to me.
0:26:33 > 0:26:35I'm there because I was the right person for the job.
0:26:35 > 0:26:38So it wasn't the most welcoming place to go into.
0:26:38 > 0:26:42And it did take a while to kind of adjust to those surroundings, but,
0:26:42 > 0:26:45you know, it does kind of... I think, one day, it just hit me -
0:26:45 > 0:26:48I'm there to do a job and I'm there to represent the people of my area
0:26:48 > 0:26:51and I'm not going to let anyone and their outdated views
0:26:51 > 0:26:53stop me from doing that.
0:26:53 > 0:26:55PLAYERS AND SUPPORTERS SHOUT
0:26:58 > 0:26:59WHISTLE BLOWS
0:27:04 > 0:27:05WHISTLE BLOWS
0:27:07 > 0:27:11At the age of 16, I decided I wanted to be a soldier.
0:27:11 > 0:27:13The military was a tradition.
0:27:13 > 0:27:17I didn't have that in my mind's eye that I wanted to do,
0:27:17 > 0:27:19but in that moment in time,
0:27:19 > 0:27:21I decided that, to make my father proud,
0:27:21 > 0:27:23that I would join the Army and I did join the Army,
0:27:23 > 0:27:26and I didn't tell my father till the day before I left that I'd joined
0:27:26 > 0:27:28the Army, and I think, in that moment,
0:27:28 > 0:27:30I saw something in my father's eyes,
0:27:30 > 0:27:33which I hadn't seen for quite some time, and that was pride.
0:27:39 > 0:27:42GUNFIRE
0:27:46 > 0:27:47Yeah, fire now. Fire mortars now.
0:27:47 > 0:27:49Over the top.
0:27:49 > 0:27:53'I finished my last operational tour of duty as a soldier in 2011.'
0:27:53 > 0:27:54That was in Afghanistan in 2011.
0:27:54 > 0:27:56It was another hard tour of duty.
0:27:56 > 0:27:58I want you to engage with the 50...
0:27:58 > 0:28:01Here for 24 hours, and this is three days so far so, no,
0:28:01 > 0:28:03we're going to be here for a while, I think.
0:28:05 > 0:28:09Fighting has got this feeling where you're incredibly heightened
0:28:09 > 0:28:11and the adrenaline is really pumping,
0:28:11 > 0:28:13and you can hear the bullets whizzing past your head
0:28:13 > 0:28:15and you feel virtually invincible,
0:28:15 > 0:28:17but then it ends.
0:28:20 > 0:28:23It's like coming off a drug.
0:28:23 > 0:28:26And when you come off a drug, it can lead you to absolute tears,
0:28:26 > 0:28:29or feelings of worthlessness or feelings of depression.
0:28:29 > 0:28:32When I think about killing another human being,
0:28:32 > 0:28:34I can't be proud of that.
0:28:36 > 0:28:39And when you're there, when you're fighting, there's reason,
0:28:39 > 0:28:42there's rationale for it, and you can give credence to it,
0:28:42 > 0:28:45but when you come back and you're with your family or friends
0:28:45 > 0:28:47or you're having a pint in the pub and you think about it,
0:28:47 > 0:28:49you can't give it a rationale.
0:28:49 > 0:28:52I say to people that, when you're standing in Afghanistan,
0:28:52 > 0:28:54you cannot imagine yourself standing in Tesco's,
0:28:54 > 0:28:56but when you're in Tesco's,
0:28:56 > 0:28:58you can't imagine yourself standing in Afghanistan.
0:28:58 > 0:29:01There's just real sort of light and dark.
0:29:05 > 0:29:08What I haven't lost is that feeling of wanting to serve the people
0:29:08 > 0:29:11and whenever I came back to Northern Ireland
0:29:11 > 0:29:13and I see that serving my country through the military
0:29:13 > 0:29:15is no longer an option,
0:29:15 > 0:29:17I still want to serve the people
0:29:17 > 0:29:20and I want to serve the people of my own hometown now,
0:29:20 > 0:29:23and the best way to do that is in the political arena,
0:29:23 > 0:29:27so councillor first and, um, now as a MLA,
0:29:27 > 0:29:29I want to bring those values and standards
0:29:29 > 0:29:32that I have learnt in 34 years in the military.
0:29:32 > 0:29:34I want to bring them to Stormont,
0:29:34 > 0:29:36I want to use them in Stormont, I want to have integrity,
0:29:36 > 0:29:38I want to show them honesty,
0:29:38 > 0:29:41I want to show them selfless commitment and respect for others,
0:29:41 > 0:29:43and I... Above all else,
0:29:43 > 0:29:46I want to make sure that the people of this great town
0:29:46 > 0:29:50and Upper Bann are represented properly.
0:29:59 > 0:30:03If you tell people, "I'm going to do something for you,"
0:30:03 > 0:30:07and you don't do it, then you deserve to get kicked out.
0:30:07 > 0:30:10But if you hedge your bets all the time,
0:30:10 > 0:30:14and don't tell anybody that you're really going to do anything,
0:30:14 > 0:30:16then the people just get frustrated.
0:30:16 > 0:30:18That's why they don't vote.
0:30:20 > 0:30:23If you look at the patterns, in 1998,
0:30:23 > 0:30:2781% voted in the referendum on the Belfast Agreement.
0:30:27 > 0:30:32In the last Assembly election in 2011, in my own constituency,
0:30:32 > 0:30:36just under half of all eligible voters did not bother.
0:30:36 > 0:30:39Now, I hear some people say we should make it compulsory,
0:30:39 > 0:30:42as they do in countries like Australia. I say no.
0:30:42 > 0:30:45If there is a problem, it is not with the voter,
0:30:45 > 0:30:47it's with the politicians.
0:30:50 > 0:30:53It's up to us to make the proposition,
0:30:53 > 0:30:56to deliver the outcomes that make people
0:30:56 > 0:30:58feel that politics and government,
0:30:58 > 0:31:00and particularly devolved government at Stormont,
0:31:00 > 0:31:03is something worth supporting.
0:31:06 > 0:31:08People sometimes say,
0:31:08 > 0:31:10"Oh, it doesn't really matter if I vote or not."
0:31:10 > 0:31:14But, really, I take the view that if you want to criticise,
0:31:14 > 0:31:17if you want to say what you think of your politicians,
0:31:17 > 0:31:18then you really do have to vote
0:31:18 > 0:31:20because then you're giving your view
0:31:20 > 0:31:23as to what way you want to see the country going forward.
0:31:23 > 0:31:26Bad politicians are elected by good people who don't vote.
0:31:26 > 0:31:29We need to engage in the political process.
0:31:29 > 0:31:31People's frustration at the lack of delivery from Stormont
0:31:31 > 0:31:33isn't cured by staying at home.
0:31:33 > 0:31:37It's actually cured by becoming involved in the political process.
0:31:39 > 0:31:42I want to see people understanding that, if you come out and vote,
0:31:42 > 0:31:44you can actually change society.
0:31:44 > 0:31:47Opposition structures in Stormont
0:31:47 > 0:31:49will actually begin to open that door
0:31:49 > 0:31:51to people understanding that we can have an alternative.
0:31:51 > 0:31:54As long as we have power-sharing and equality provisions enshrined,
0:31:54 > 0:31:57we can begin to have an alternative government
0:31:57 > 0:31:58forming in Northern Ireland.
0:32:00 > 0:32:05The incentive for many people to even bother voting is diminished,
0:32:05 > 0:32:07and that is why, in Northern Ireland,
0:32:07 > 0:32:09I believe the turnout has been falling,
0:32:09 > 0:32:12cos if you say to people, "Oh, yes, you can have an election,
0:32:12 > 0:32:14"but you can't change your government,
0:32:14 > 0:32:16"you can't vote a party out of government,"
0:32:16 > 0:32:18why would you bother voting?
0:32:20 > 0:32:25It would be liberating for democracy to bestow upon us the rights
0:32:25 > 0:32:28taken for granted everywhere else and, thereby,
0:32:28 > 0:32:31I think we would see an increased turnout at the polls.
0:32:31 > 0:32:35If you analyse the reasons why people don't vote,
0:32:35 > 0:32:39and why, during the course of the last term of the Assembly,
0:32:39 > 0:32:44we had these different problems, where for three years, almost,
0:32:44 > 0:32:47the Executive were being described by commentators
0:32:47 > 0:32:51and by even other politicians as being dysfunctional,
0:32:51 > 0:32:56so I think all of that has a deep, motivating impact
0:32:56 > 0:32:59on the electorate, and the only way to change all of that
0:32:59 > 0:33:01is to make politics work.
0:33:01 > 0:33:05I think people have a right to say, "Are we productive?"
0:33:05 > 0:33:08And I don't think we've been as productive as we could be.
0:33:08 > 0:33:11The problem is, when you give politicians power,
0:33:11 > 0:33:12they guard it jealously.
0:33:12 > 0:33:16I do still think we have a section of our politicians
0:33:16 > 0:33:18who still want to waste time
0:33:18 > 0:33:23rehashing the old arguments that we've been having for decades.
0:33:23 > 0:33:27You know, I have seen some of our politicians almost, you know,
0:33:27 > 0:33:30a relief, when we were back talking about flags.
0:33:30 > 0:33:34It's like, "This is what we know, what we got into politics for."
0:33:37 > 0:33:40People will feel strongly about issues -
0:33:40 > 0:33:42that's part of democracy.
0:33:44 > 0:33:48Should that be about fracking or should it be about animal rights,
0:33:48 > 0:33:50should it be about flags issues, you know,
0:33:50 > 0:33:53this is a democratic society where people have the right to come out
0:33:53 > 0:33:56and protest and make their voices heard.
0:33:56 > 0:33:58I think that must be... In fact,
0:33:58 > 0:34:01I would go so far as to say that that should be protected.
0:34:02 > 0:34:04If that crosses into illegality,
0:34:04 > 0:34:08then I think that then becomes a big challenge, that isn't right,
0:34:08 > 0:34:12and, you know, if people want their particular view to be heard,
0:34:12 > 0:34:13then they need to come out and vote
0:34:13 > 0:34:16for people who support that particular view,
0:34:16 > 0:34:18and that's the way democracy will work.
0:34:20 > 0:34:23Really, what we need to do is try and find a basis
0:34:23 > 0:34:25where we can respect difference.
0:34:25 > 0:34:28And I think that's the biggest problem in Northern Ireland,
0:34:28 > 0:34:31is people do not respect difference.
0:34:31 > 0:34:34I still don't understand why we're still complaining about flags,
0:34:34 > 0:34:37I still don't know why we're complaining about parades,
0:34:37 > 0:34:41I still don't know why we're complaining about bonfires,
0:34:41 > 0:34:45and all of this architecture which just makes our society combative.
0:34:49 > 0:34:52Until we actually elect people in politics
0:34:52 > 0:34:55who are sometimes willing to be controversial,
0:34:55 > 0:34:57even within their own party,
0:34:57 > 0:34:59I don't think we'll really gain the respect of the public
0:34:59 > 0:35:02for the work that we do.
0:35:02 > 0:35:04We've got to be willing to take a stand,
0:35:04 > 0:35:06and I have met people who say to me,
0:35:06 > 0:35:08"I fundamentally disagree with you on issues,
0:35:08 > 0:35:12"but I respect the fact that you stand up for what you believe in."
0:35:12 > 0:35:15And for me, that is actually more valuable than anything else
0:35:15 > 0:35:20because your integrity is something that you don't lose in an election.
0:35:20 > 0:35:25'The Alliance Party has borne the brunt of Loyalist anger and protests
0:35:25 > 0:35:28'since Monday night's controversial vote on flying the Union flag
0:35:28 > 0:35:31'at Belfast City Hall. In its aftermath,
0:35:31 > 0:35:34'a death threat has been issued against Naomi Long,
0:35:34 > 0:35:37'the party's MP for East Belfast.
0:35:37 > 0:35:40'She was visited in the early hours of this morning by police,
0:35:40 > 0:35:42'who've advised her to leave her home
0:35:42 > 0:35:45'and stay away from her constituency office.'
0:35:45 > 0:35:49I will not let that threat deter me from serving my constituents.
0:35:49 > 0:35:52I will not let it influence the decisions that my party takes.
0:35:52 > 0:35:55We will take our decisions based on principles,
0:35:55 > 0:35:57based on furthering our beliefs and our objectives,
0:35:57 > 0:35:59and delivering a shared future,
0:35:59 > 0:36:02and we will not be deterred from that by violent people.
0:36:04 > 0:36:08As you all know, we're now 18 years after the Good Friday Agreement.
0:36:08 > 0:36:12We want to build on our clear vision of an inclusive, fair,
0:36:12 > 0:36:15progressive society, where everyone is treated with respect
0:36:15 > 0:36:17and with dignity.
0:36:19 > 0:36:22I believed that, by getting involved in politics,
0:36:22 > 0:36:24I was being put in a privileged position,
0:36:24 > 0:36:28but with that privilege comes a responsibility and, every day,
0:36:28 > 0:36:32there are people in my constituency who live with that fear and threat
0:36:32 > 0:36:36who don't have the opportunity to articulate an alternative view.
0:36:36 > 0:36:39They gave me the responsibility to do that on their behalf and so,
0:36:39 > 0:36:44regardless of what happened outside, I had a responsibility to them
0:36:44 > 0:36:48to continue to stand up against that kind of violence and intimidation.
0:36:48 > 0:36:51That doesn't make it easier to deal with when you go home
0:36:51 > 0:36:54and you close your door at night. You're human.
0:36:54 > 0:36:56But at the end of the day,
0:36:56 > 0:36:58you have a job to do and you've got to do it.
0:36:58 > 0:37:01When we first moved here,
0:37:01 > 0:37:03it was actually just around 2002,
0:37:03 > 0:37:06so I received the first death threat I had in politics
0:37:06 > 0:37:08just after we'd moved.
0:37:08 > 0:37:11We just wouldn't sit at the front of the house because of
0:37:11 > 0:37:12concerns around security and so on.
0:37:12 > 0:37:16When you're in politics and you're visible, people know where you live.
0:37:16 > 0:37:17They know the neighbourhood you live
0:37:17 > 0:37:19in and they know where your house is.
0:37:19 > 0:37:21There's really nothing you can do about that.
0:37:21 > 0:37:23It's simply just where you are,
0:37:23 > 0:37:25so you just have to take the best precautions you can, I guess.
0:37:37 > 0:37:40With the kids, it definitely brings on an extra challenge.
0:37:40 > 0:37:43You're never really off the clock in politics and, you know,
0:37:43 > 0:37:46you're quite often pushing the kids in the swing and on the phone,
0:37:46 > 0:37:49talking about HMO legislation or whatever you're doing,
0:37:49 > 0:37:50and in the middle, you have to go,
0:37:50 > 0:37:53"Put that down!" or, "Don't eat that!" or whatever -
0:37:53 > 0:37:55the kind of orders you need to bark
0:37:55 > 0:37:57at a two-year-old and a four-year-old. But it's hard to do.
0:37:57 > 0:38:01I think it's one of the things that I hear from families all the time.
0:38:01 > 0:38:05You know, getting decent, affordable childcare
0:38:05 > 0:38:07that actually matches the hours
0:38:07 > 0:38:09that a lot of people work in a lot of jobs now.
0:38:09 > 0:38:12OK, there's Daddy. There's Daddy.
0:38:13 > 0:38:16'It is hard and I think probably the same
0:38:16 > 0:38:18'for a lot of people in jobs that aren't nine to five.'
0:38:18 > 0:38:20But there are benefits, too.
0:38:20 > 0:38:23No matter how miserable your day has been,
0:38:23 > 0:38:27and there is negativity in politics, the kids, when you get in,
0:38:27 > 0:38:29they don't care what just happened,
0:38:29 > 0:38:32they don't care what happened in the phone call you were just on
0:38:32 > 0:38:35and there's no chance that you could wallow in it,
0:38:35 > 0:38:38so if you do come in and it hasn't been the best day,
0:38:38 > 0:38:40you snap out of it very quickly.
0:38:41 > 0:38:43OK, well, we'll go in twos.
0:38:43 > 0:38:46Guys, we're going to do Malone. I think we're broadly on course.
0:38:46 > 0:38:48We got loads of Stranmillis finished.
0:38:48 > 0:38:51Done last night, so we'll just go back...
0:38:51 > 0:38:53'This kind of four, five, six weeks around the election
0:38:53 > 0:38:57'is pretty chaotic because I am out knocking the doors every night.'
0:38:57 > 0:39:00It's not just lining up your canvassing volunteers
0:39:00 > 0:39:03and your leafleting volunteers, it's baby-sitting as well.
0:39:03 > 0:39:05I do feel a wee bit guilty.
0:39:05 > 0:39:08One, I'm not seeing the kids nearly as much as I want to
0:39:08 > 0:39:11and I don't want to look back on and think, "Gosh, where was I?"
0:39:11 > 0:39:14Hello, how are you? How's tricks? Good. How are you? Not too bad.
0:39:14 > 0:39:17'There's a bit of a mad couple of hours, picking them up,
0:39:17 > 0:39:19'taking them where I'm going,'
0:39:19 > 0:39:21then getting the canvass team out,
0:39:21 > 0:39:25so, yeah, the five to half six period is chaotic,
0:39:25 > 0:39:28so I'm looking forward to that bit ending.
0:39:45 > 0:39:48All the weeks of campaigning and knocking on doors
0:39:48 > 0:39:49has come to a head now
0:39:49 > 0:39:52and it's up to us now to make sure we get our vote out
0:39:52 > 0:39:55and that people have enough reasons to come and vote today.
0:39:55 > 0:39:58I have nine polling stations to cover across South Armagh,
0:39:58 > 0:40:01so I'll be visiting each polling station hopefully a couple of times
0:40:01 > 0:40:03to try and meet as many voters as possible.
0:40:03 > 0:40:06Megan! How are you today? Grand. Best of luck.
0:40:06 > 0:40:08People are happy to see a new face,
0:40:08 > 0:40:11happy to see a woman represent the area,
0:40:11 > 0:40:13happy to see us raise local issues,
0:40:13 > 0:40:15and we have been working hard over the last four years.
0:40:15 > 0:40:17I've always said elections aren't won
0:40:17 > 0:40:20just in the last few weeks coming up to it,
0:40:20 > 0:40:22it's the hard work that you do in the years before it,
0:40:22 > 0:40:24so I'm fairly confident that we're going to do well.
0:40:32 > 0:40:36I suppose I've done it so many times now that I'm sort of used to seeing
0:40:36 > 0:40:38my name on a ballot paper.
0:40:38 > 0:40:40I mean, even as a politician,
0:40:40 > 0:40:42you recognise that it is a privilege
0:40:42 > 0:40:45to be able to be part of that process and, hopefully,
0:40:45 > 0:40:48lots of other people will take that opportunity today,
0:40:48 > 0:40:49because it's the only opportunity we have
0:40:49 > 0:40:51to make Northern Ireland different.
0:40:51 > 0:40:53It's the only chance we get to make change.
0:40:56 > 0:40:58I'm about to go in and cast my vote.
0:40:58 > 0:41:01I'm pretty decided, I think I'm going to vote for Hanna 1.
0:41:01 > 0:41:03Yeah, I've been thinking about it a lot.
0:41:03 > 0:41:05We don't agree on everything
0:41:05 > 0:41:07but I think she's done enough to get my vote.
0:41:13 > 0:41:15I suppose you don't know what's going to happen,
0:41:15 > 0:41:18like, I'm junior minister up until ten o'clock tonight.
0:41:18 > 0:41:20So I suppose, for the first time in a long time,
0:41:20 > 0:41:22I'll be unemployed at 10.05pm.
0:41:22 > 0:41:24So that's a strange feeling as well.
0:41:24 > 0:41:27But you just work as hard as you can.
0:41:27 > 0:41:30I think I'm trying to be pretty philosophical about the whole thing
0:41:30 > 0:41:33and upbeat, so, hopefully, everything will come out OK.
0:41:33 > 0:41:36Hello there. This is the second time we've met!
0:41:36 > 0:41:40You were at the door! Yeah, good to see you. Good to see you.
0:41:43 > 0:41:46It literally couldn't have been a nicer night to poll on.
0:41:46 > 0:41:48Good weather and people are down on scooters and walking dogs
0:41:48 > 0:41:50and all sorts of things.
0:41:50 > 0:41:53The dogs are not registered to vote, I did check! But...
0:41:53 > 0:41:56I suppose this is when we are a bit demob happy, you know.
0:41:56 > 0:41:58We know that, in about an hour,
0:41:58 > 0:42:02it's home time and possibly a glass of something
0:42:02 > 0:42:04and maybe ring an Indian, or whatever,
0:42:04 > 0:42:06anything that can distract us until tomorrow morning,
0:42:06 > 0:42:09when it's the day of reckoning.
0:42:17 > 0:42:20Today, you'll find out who's in line to take the decisions,
0:42:20 > 0:42:23make the laws and take responsibility.
0:42:34 > 0:42:37What they've done now is they've emptied out all the boxes
0:42:37 > 0:42:40and we've done a sample tally.
0:42:40 > 0:42:44As you can see it's a big, long... A big, long list there.
0:42:44 > 0:42:47But there are six seats and I'm in second or third place,
0:42:47 > 0:42:49so there will be a lot going on in transfers.
0:42:49 > 0:42:52If I'm elected, it won't be for a few counts yet.
0:42:52 > 0:42:56In the media world, it's as if I've disappeared...
0:42:56 > 0:42:58Things are looking reasonably positive.
0:42:58 > 0:43:01I think it's been a good day for the DUP right across Northern Ireland.
0:43:01 > 0:43:04That's what we're hearing at this stage.
0:43:04 > 0:43:08So we're hopeful that all of our candidates will stay in
0:43:08 > 0:43:11and in South Belfast, it's looking as if there's a good chance
0:43:11 > 0:43:12the DUP could get two.
0:43:12 > 0:43:14It will come down to the last seat
0:43:14 > 0:43:17but it looks like we're definitely in with a chance there.
0:43:17 > 0:43:22As the deputy returning officer for the Belfast East constituency,
0:43:22 > 0:43:25the number of first preference votes given for each candidate
0:43:25 > 0:43:27was as follows...
0:43:27 > 0:43:28I find the count is probably
0:43:28 > 0:43:31the most difficult piece of the election, to be honest,
0:43:31 > 0:43:34because at that point, you're finding out whether what you've
0:43:34 > 0:43:36been hearing on the doors, the feeling you've been getting
0:43:36 > 0:43:39when you're out canvassing, whether the work you've put in
0:43:39 > 0:43:42is going to be returned the way you'd hoped. And, as I say,
0:43:42 > 0:43:44there's a lot of disappointment in a count centre,
0:43:44 > 0:43:46that's always going to be the case.
0:43:46 > 0:43:48..4,230...
0:43:48 > 0:43:51If you look at it, there will be people standing here today
0:43:51 > 0:43:53who might lose their job
0:43:53 > 0:43:56and they're going to lose their job not in private, in an office,
0:43:56 > 0:43:59but in public, with a camera in their face.
0:43:59 > 0:44:01It's pretty brutal. So, erm...
0:44:01 > 0:44:04I'm not a fan of the count.
0:44:04 > 0:44:06But you endure it to get to the end result.
0:44:09 > 0:44:11Naomi Long, Alliance Party,
0:44:11 > 0:44:135,482.
0:44:13 > 0:44:16CHEERING
0:44:34 > 0:44:36The few weeks leading up to the election is tiring,
0:44:36 > 0:44:40so to have it all kind of over almost in the blink of an eye
0:44:40 > 0:44:42in the last two days,
0:44:42 > 0:44:45it's quite unbelievable, but this is my first election,
0:44:45 > 0:44:48so even the whole experience of the posters and everything
0:44:48 > 0:44:50has been new for me, but this, in particular, the count,
0:44:50 > 0:44:53is surreal and it's actually such an honour
0:44:53 > 0:44:56to see people putting their votes beside my name
0:44:56 > 0:44:59and to vote for Sinn Fein and to vote for our ticket
0:44:59 > 0:45:01that we ran in this campaign, so it's really exciting
0:45:01 > 0:45:05and it makes me really proud, actually, and really just happy
0:45:05 > 0:45:07that people have put their faith in us.
0:45:11 > 0:45:13The number of first preference votes
0:45:13 > 0:45:16given for each candidate was as follows...
0:45:16 > 0:45:21Paul Berry, 1,663.
0:45:21 > 0:45:26Cathal Boylan, Sinn Fein, 6,822.
0:45:26 > 0:45:31Megan Fearon, Sinn Fein, 6,838.
0:45:31 > 0:45:32CHEERING William Irwin...
0:45:48 > 0:45:51I've just been elected on the first count.
0:45:51 > 0:45:52Absolutely overjoyed.
0:45:52 > 0:45:56Came in at 6,838 votes, so just 19 over quota
0:45:56 > 0:45:58so absolutely delighted.
0:45:58 > 0:46:00It's actually quite emotional at the minute.
0:46:00 > 0:46:01My family are all here, my friends are here
0:46:01 > 0:46:03and it's just...it's such a nice time -
0:46:03 > 0:46:05because I've been in the Assembly for four years,
0:46:05 > 0:46:08to have it actually, officially endorsed by the people
0:46:08 > 0:46:10and endorsed so strongly as well, by the people of my own area,
0:46:10 > 0:46:12it's just a really proud feeling to have
0:46:12 > 0:46:14but...not nervous about going back at all.
0:46:14 > 0:46:18Looking forward to getting stuck in and dealing with issues.
0:46:31 > 0:46:34I'm confident that the people of Portadown
0:46:34 > 0:46:37have come out to support one of their own.
0:46:37 > 0:46:40Doug has served as a soldier,
0:46:40 > 0:46:42he has served as a councillor,
0:46:42 > 0:46:47and I am confident that he will soon be serving us as an MLA.
0:46:47 > 0:46:49We are here for Doug.
0:46:49 > 0:46:51We are here working as a team,
0:46:51 > 0:46:54as we have worked from the beginning
0:46:54 > 0:46:58and although his team are here, backing him, we miss him dreadfully.
0:46:58 > 0:47:03But our thoughts are with him and we're doing this for him.
0:47:08 > 0:47:10I'm surrounded by women!
0:47:10 > 0:47:11You should have seen it this morning.
0:47:13 > 0:47:16The return for you, it must feel good to be back in the constituency.
0:47:16 > 0:47:18Yeah, it does. It's been a lovely campaign, actually.
0:47:18 > 0:47:21It's been nice to be kind of back engaged in local politics
0:47:21 > 0:47:24after a short break of a year,
0:47:24 > 0:47:27but it's been really good to be back involved
0:47:27 > 0:47:31and I'm just looking forward now to getting to work up in the Assembly.
0:47:31 > 0:47:35Claire Hanna, SDLP, Social Democratic and Labour Party,
0:47:35 > 0:47:404,516. 4,516.
0:47:40 > 0:47:43APPLAUSE
0:47:43 > 0:47:47Emma Little Pengelly, Democratic Unionist Party, DUP,
0:47:47 > 0:47:504,511.
0:47:50 > 0:47:52CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:47:54 > 0:47:57The following candidate has reached the quota
0:47:57 > 0:47:59and is deemed elected - Claire Hanna.
0:47:59 > 0:48:01CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:48:03 > 0:48:06That being the case, there are only two candidates remaining
0:48:06 > 0:48:08and two seats to be filled,
0:48:08 > 0:48:11therefore Emma Little Pengelly and Christopher Stalford
0:48:11 > 0:48:14are also deemed elected. CHEERING
0:48:47 > 0:48:50The undertaking is as follows...
0:48:50 > 0:48:53to support the rule of law unequivocally, in word and deed,
0:48:53 > 0:48:56and to support all efforts to uphold it.
0:48:56 > 0:48:59To work collectively with other members of the Assembly
0:48:59 > 0:49:02to achieve a society free of paramilitarism.
0:49:02 > 0:49:04To challenge all paramilitary activity
0:49:04 > 0:49:05and associated criminality.
0:49:05 > 0:49:08To accept no authority, direction or control
0:49:08 > 0:49:12on my political activities, other than my democratic mandate,
0:49:12 > 0:49:15alongside my own personal and party judgment.
0:49:19 > 0:49:23I don't describe it as a career. That's not what it really is for me.
0:49:23 > 0:49:24It's not what it's about.
0:49:24 > 0:49:26I actually would describe it more as a vocation.
0:49:26 > 0:49:28I'm still youngest MLA here
0:49:28 > 0:49:29but I still have four years' experience,
0:49:29 > 0:49:34which is madness, really, but it really does mean a lot.
0:49:34 > 0:49:37I'm very proud to represent my area,
0:49:37 > 0:49:39I'm very proud to represent the party
0:49:39 > 0:49:40and I take it as a great privilege
0:49:40 > 0:49:42and it's not something that I underestimate.
0:49:42 > 0:49:44I've been given a massive opportunity
0:49:44 > 0:49:46that not a lot of people have or will ever get,
0:49:46 > 0:49:48so I don't intend to waste it.
0:49:52 > 0:49:55There's a lot of anxiety about whether you're going to be elected.
0:49:55 > 0:49:58You have to believe that you are going to be, or you'd give up.
0:49:58 > 0:50:00You certainly wouldn't have the mental energy
0:50:00 > 0:50:03to stay on the campaign trail for months, as we did.
0:50:03 > 0:50:07I suppose, just before they started to open the boxes,
0:50:07 > 0:50:10just a deep, deep knot in your stomach
0:50:10 > 0:50:12because everything was resting on that.
0:50:12 > 0:50:15Mine was... Yeah, less of a cliffhanger.
0:50:15 > 0:50:18Once the boxes were opened, we knew I'd polled reasonably well.
0:50:20 > 0:50:23Personally, the result was satisfying and relieving
0:50:23 > 0:50:27and I suppose I was co-opted in ten months ago
0:50:27 > 0:50:30and I haven't really switched off since then,
0:50:30 > 0:50:32so it's nice to have that out of the way
0:50:32 > 0:50:35and to have a bit more headspace to actually think politically.
0:50:35 > 0:50:38Elections, vital as they are to the democratic process,
0:50:38 > 0:50:42do probably direct a lot of energy
0:50:42 > 0:50:45that could be used to actually getting things done.
0:50:55 > 0:50:57I think probably the most stressful time
0:50:57 > 0:50:59was that night just before polling day.
0:50:59 > 0:51:02I think it was just trying to sit and assess how everything had gone.
0:51:02 > 0:51:04You knew that really, you'd been...
0:51:04 > 0:51:07You'd knocked your last door or you'd put the last piece of literature through
0:51:07 > 0:51:09and there was very little else that you could do at that point
0:51:09 > 0:51:12apart from stand at the polling stations.
0:51:12 > 0:51:15You do go through a lot of self-doubt
0:51:15 > 0:51:17throughout that quite surreal process,
0:51:17 > 0:51:19so in a sense, I suppose, your first emotion is almost relief
0:51:19 > 0:51:23that in a way, you know, that you did work hard
0:51:23 > 0:51:26and just really grateful that people have come out and supported you
0:51:26 > 0:51:28and that people want you to be their advocate
0:51:28 > 0:51:30and their representative.
0:51:30 > 0:51:31That is an incredible privilege
0:51:31 > 0:51:34and certainly one that I want to take full opportunity of,
0:51:34 > 0:51:37you know, to bring about what positive changes I can.
0:51:45 > 0:51:52My grandson, Cameron, passed away the day before the election.
0:51:52 > 0:51:55Right now, it's still incredibly difficult for me
0:51:55 > 0:52:00to think about the loss of Cameron
0:52:00 > 0:52:06and signing the register as an MLA, the Thursday after the election,
0:52:06 > 0:52:09I was very close to saying that I can't do it
0:52:09 > 0:52:13and was very close to leaving the building at that time,
0:52:13 > 0:52:15but people who have gone through this type of bereavement
0:52:15 > 0:52:19will understand that time helps.
0:52:19 > 0:52:21But one week after his death,
0:52:21 > 0:52:24and just a few days after we had laid him to rest,
0:52:24 > 0:52:28it was...it was just the most difficult experience
0:52:28 > 0:52:30that I'd been through in my life.
0:52:30 > 0:52:32And I've done a lot. You know, I've seen a lot
0:52:32 > 0:52:35and I've seen death at close quarters,
0:52:35 > 0:52:37but I wasn't prepared for it to knock on the door
0:52:37 > 0:52:39the way it did that day.
0:52:40 > 0:52:46It's just holding me back a little bit right now.
0:52:46 > 0:52:51You know, so to say that I'm full steam ahead,
0:52:51 > 0:52:52I don't think I am.
0:52:52 > 0:52:56I think that grieving process is still ongoing,
0:52:56 > 0:53:01that battle between career and family is still being fought
0:53:01 > 0:53:05and I'd hope that my constituents will understand that
0:53:05 > 0:53:09and give me a little bit of grace and time
0:53:09 > 0:53:11to be able to come to terms with that.
0:53:16 > 0:53:18I very much felt that I wanted to come back.
0:53:18 > 0:53:21I still have a lot of passion, a lot of things that I wanted to do
0:53:21 > 0:53:24and being elected on the first count like, that was, for me,
0:53:24 > 0:53:26just a really positive experience
0:53:26 > 0:53:28and a nice way, I guess, to come back to politics.
0:53:30 > 0:53:33My ambition is for that liberal society -
0:53:33 > 0:53:36wanting to see Northern Ireland as a more normalised place
0:53:36 > 0:53:39in order that everyone can benefit from the peace that we had.
0:53:39 > 0:53:42That's why I joined the party in '94.
0:53:42 > 0:53:46It's why I became an elected representative in 2001
0:53:46 > 0:53:51and it's why, in 2016, I decided to come back,
0:53:51 > 0:53:53because for me,
0:53:53 > 0:53:56that is the biggest job that Northern Ireland needs to do.
0:53:56 > 0:53:59We need not just to change how we do politics
0:53:59 > 0:54:01but we need to change how we live as a society.
0:54:08 > 0:54:10Society has to be all-inclusive,
0:54:10 > 0:54:15in terms of the Northern Ireland that I want
0:54:15 > 0:54:17and, I think, most people want.
0:54:17 > 0:54:21If we are a settled people, then you can do things.
0:54:21 > 0:54:23Then you can move on
0:54:23 > 0:54:27and then you can accept many challenges and get over those,
0:54:27 > 0:54:32so I just want to be as settled as a people, and content, as we can.
0:54:32 > 0:54:34There's no such a thing as utopia.
0:54:38 > 0:54:41I think the public have decided to embrace the future.
0:54:41 > 0:54:44I think they want to live together, they want to work together,
0:54:44 > 0:54:46they want to socialise together.
0:54:46 > 0:54:48They want to be educated together.
0:54:48 > 0:54:51They want to see a future that, actually, is based around
0:54:51 > 0:54:55a sound economic policy, a good education system.
0:54:55 > 0:54:56Their... The public, I think,
0:54:56 > 0:55:00want to see politicians catching up with them.
0:55:00 > 0:55:03I think we can do it, but we have to be much more forward-thinking.
0:55:03 > 0:55:06We have to get out of our silos and actually work together
0:55:06 > 0:55:10and I think that's a very possible thing to achieve.
0:55:13 > 0:55:18It is possible that we could produce a better political culture.
0:55:18 > 0:55:20I think if we wait for it to evolve,
0:55:20 > 0:55:23it may proceed at the pace of evolution,
0:55:23 > 0:55:27which is very narrow shifts generation after generation.
0:55:27 > 0:55:29I think we can't depend upon that.
0:55:29 > 0:55:31We need a much more definite and firm commitment
0:55:31 > 0:55:35that we will change this society faster and fairer
0:55:35 > 0:55:38and that that will be a key priority in the immediate future,
0:55:38 > 0:55:41not something that waits for generational change
0:55:41 > 0:55:42over 50 or 100 years.
0:55:47 > 0:55:49I would like Northern Ireland to be
0:55:49 > 0:55:54one of the most attractive little countries in the world.
0:55:54 > 0:55:58And that would be measured by proper peace,
0:55:58 > 0:56:02the absence of paramilitaries and the associated criminality
0:56:02 > 0:56:03and organised crime.
0:56:03 > 0:56:08It would be a country where people are glad that they're born here,
0:56:08 > 0:56:11that they want to live here, they want to come back here,
0:56:11 > 0:56:15even if they are going away for universities or for jobs,
0:56:15 > 0:56:18that people want to invest in, that they want to come and visit,
0:56:18 > 0:56:20that they want to come and settle in.
0:56:20 > 0:56:22I think, you know, in many ways,
0:56:22 > 0:56:26what everybody needs is a spirit of generosity.
0:56:26 > 0:56:27We all have to recognise
0:56:27 > 0:56:31that where we were in the past was a terrible place.
0:56:31 > 0:56:34Where we've come from in the course of the last 20 years
0:56:34 > 0:56:36has been a far, far better place.
0:56:36 > 0:56:40And where we'll be 20 years from now will be a far, far better place.
0:56:40 > 0:56:41And we could do all of that,
0:56:41 > 0:56:43holding on to our political allegiances.
0:56:43 > 0:56:46I mean, I'm no less an Irish Republican.
0:56:46 > 0:56:49Arlene Foster is no less a Unionist.
0:56:49 > 0:56:53But it really comes down to our ability to, er...
0:56:55 > 0:57:00..our ability to accept that and respect that
0:57:00 > 0:57:02and continue to work together
0:57:02 > 0:57:04to ensure that we are delivering for everybody
0:57:04 > 0:57:06and...I think we can do it.
0:57:08 > 0:57:13It is about encouraging, motivating, inspiring young people,
0:57:13 > 0:57:16as I've said, to be proud of coming from Northern Ireland,
0:57:16 > 0:57:18to give them a sense of hope.
0:57:21 > 0:57:24If people have confidence in themselves
0:57:24 > 0:57:26and are proud about where they come from,
0:57:26 > 0:57:27I think it does lead to ambition
0:57:27 > 0:57:29for the place where they live as well
0:57:29 > 0:57:32and I hope that people do have ambition for Northern Ireland
0:57:32 > 0:57:34because I think it can do great things.
0:57:46 > 0:57:49Well, at 20 minutes to five,
0:57:49 > 0:57:53we can now say the decision taken in 1975 by this country
0:57:53 > 0:57:55to join the Common Market
0:57:55 > 0:58:01has been reversed by this referendum to leave the EU.
0:58:44 > 0:58:46Good morning, this is BBC Breakfast. Morning, Dan.
0:58:46 > 0:58:47Morning, Jenny!
0:58:47 > 0:58:50In the sports news, we have the latest on the Welsh rugby team,
0:58:50 > 0:58:53Poppy's sports day, and news on Andy Murray.
0:58:53 > 0:58:56The headlines coming up, but our next guest is really quite special.
0:58:56 > 0:59:00Jack, the toast's burning. Welcome, Daniel Radcliffe.