04/11/2013 Stormont Today

Hello and welcome to Stormont Today. Coming up in the next 30 minutes: It

is another difficult week for Gerry Adams, but he can count on the

support of the Deputy First Minister? I don't believe there is

any similarity whatsoever between the case of the cardinal and Gerry

Adams. The First Minister makes a promise

to Translink workers about the future of the organisation. There is

no intention on the part of the executive to be involved in any

privatisation. And to look at those stories and a

whole lot more, I'm joined by our political correspondent, Gareth

Gordon. He may no longer be a member of the

Assembly, but one political big-hitter turned out to be the talk

of Stormont today. The Sinn Fein President, Gerry Adams, has been

coming under pressure because of his alleged past and today in the

chamber the Deputy First Minister had to defend his party colleague.

Martin McGuinness was answering a question from the DUP's, Mervyn

Storey. I think that the issue around the terrible circumstances of

child abuse have been well articulated and well aired in the

course of recent times and Gerry Adams has made public his position

in relation to the role that he played given that this was first

reported to both the social services and to the RUC in 1987. I believe

there is a huge responsibility on everybody within society without

exception, that whatever information they have in regard to situations of

child abuse has to be brought forward to the proper authorities

and over the course of I think many years now, many organisations I

think have learned a lot from what have been quite scandalous cases

that have been thrown up in the course of the last ten, 15 years.

Does the Deputy First Minister following on from his logic when he

called for the cardinal to resign given the allegations in relation to

child abuse within the Roman Catholic Church, does he believe it

is time for his party president to resign and to ensure there is

transparency and there is openness and consistency in regards to the

approach of what is a heinous and an evil crime and that's abuse of

children? I don't believe there is any similarity whatsoever between

the case of the cardinal and Gerry Adams. In the case of the cardinal,

a child was sworn to secrecy. In Gerry Adams' case, Gerry Adams was

fully in support of his niece, travelled to Buncrana and confronted

his brother and supported niece and her mother when she reported the

abuse to the social services and to the RUC.

I think the other thing that, you know, you can clearly see that

sometimes in situations like this people like to take political

advantage. Without recognising for example the trauma that Gerry Adams'

family went through as a result of the abuse that was inflicted on them

by their father and in many ways that entire family are victims

including Gerry Adams and I think people need towned stand that and

they need to place themselves in that situation where quite clearly

something was happening within that family which was terribly, terribly

wrong. So I think that the two situations in regards to the

cardinal and Gerry Adams are not the same.

Our political correspondent, Gareth Gordon, is with me to discuss this

further. The Deputy First Minister, Martin McGuinness, has told MLAs he

doesn't believe there's any similarity between the case of

Catholic Cardinal Sean Brady and his colleague Gerry Adams

Martin McGuinness will be expecting this question to be asked of him

because he what he said about Cardinal Sean Brady last year and it

is surprising no one has got asking it of him before today. Following a

BBC documentary last year in which Cardinal Brady was accused of

failing to act after allegations that a #14r-year-old boy had been

sexually abused by the paedophile priest, Father Brendan Smith. Mr

McGuinness was asked what he thought and he said that the cardinal should

do the right thing, meaning he should resign. So what a lot of

people are asking is the difference between Cardinal Brady failing to

act and the Sinn Fein president, Gerry Adams failing to act. For

reasons he outlined in that clip there, Martin McGuinness says the

two cases are not the same. They are different. But others will disagree

and I suspect that as far as Gerry Adams is concerned this matter is a

long way from being at an end. The SDLP have been quick to pick up

on Mr McGuinness's remarks? The SDLP had a statement out saying that

Gerry Adams and the republican movement had a growing number of

questions to answer. He claimed Mr McGuinness's defence of Mr Adams was

double standards. Alex at wood claimed the same people who made so

much about the Catholic Church's involvement last year, Sinn Fein,

were n saying and doing little about allegations of abuse of children by

republicans. Gerry Adams was already in the news

today because of another episode from the past which simply refuses

to go away? And Gerry Adams all over the news today because of the issue

of the disappeared and new allegations that he ordered the

murder of one of those who have become known as the disappeared and

that's Jean ma con vil. A documentary which aired tonne on RTE

and the BBC, Mr Adams played a starring role, a central role and he

once again denied the allegations that he was involved or ordered the

killing of Jean Mc Conville. Both these issues. The question that we

don't yet have an answer to is what damage this is doing to Gerry Adams

and to Sinn Fein particularly in the south?

Now, let's catch up with the rest of today's questions to the Deputy

First Minister, where the subject of the disappeared also came up. But

Martin McGuinness began by giving his unequivocal backing to one

long-running project. Yes, I am committed to the new bridge and I do

so on the basis of the tremendous success that a small bridge in my

own city made to the life of that city. ?17 million sterling was spent

on it and it had a massive impact on the city. And effectively represents

a new iconic image for the city. Like wise, I think that the

construction of a bridge at Narrow Water would have a similar effect

for the people of the area and add immensely to the tourist potential.

We understand the difficulties in terms of the tendering process and

the scale of the tender that was way in excess of what was expected and

since that, there have been, I think, a number of discussions

around whether or not a remedy could be put in place and myself and

another minister was involved in discussions in Ross Trevor. Would

you recommend to provide the funding which would fill the existing gap in

the Narrow Water project? It would be wrong to identify our Finance

Minister as the problem in regard tor -- to Narrow Water. There is

effectively a responsibility on the Irish Government, on ourselves, and

the SUPB and on the councils on both sides of the Narrow Water to come up

with a solution. I don't know if that solution can be found. I would

like to hear the Irish Government say more about it.

What particular help can he offer given his republican background to

enable and ensure that those bodies are returned for family burial?

Well, my full sympathy and compassion is with all of those

families. They are by far and away the most important people in the

course of this discussion. I believe that what happened to these families

was totally and absolutely wrong. I believe it was cruel. I believe it

was unjustified and of course, the IRA were responsible. I and other

Sinn Fein leaders, other republican leaders have over the course of a

number of years been involved in ex-health authoritying anyone --

exhorting anyone with any scrap of information about the location of

these bodies to bring them forward. And that has brought considerable

success for some families, but sadly not for others and I would again

reiterate my appeal to anyone out there in the community who in anyway

were involved in any of these situations to bring forward that

information, to bring forward it to the commission, to bring it forward

to anybody in a responsible position within society and to bring it

forward to republican leaders who I think are anxious to see this

situation resolved. So my full compassion and support is with the

families. It has been a terrible ordeal. It has been a despicable

ordeal and I believe there is a huge responsibility on everybody

including myself as a republican leader to appeal to anybody out

there who can assist these families out of the nightmare that they face

on a daily basis. .

The Deputy First Minister, Martin McGuinness. Privatisation by another

name - that was the subject at the heart of a debate about Translink in

the Assembly today. In one corner was the Regional Development

Minister and in the other, his committee, arguing that private

operators should be allowed to tender for running services. Mr

Speaker, I want to nail this spurious accusation at the outset.

At no time either during the course of the inquiry or in the reporting

of the committee findings and recommendations have I, the deputy

chair or the committee called for Translink to be privatised. They did

not and were not used. How does the department deliver against its

legislation? Against its strategic business case? It awards

TransLibbing a ten year contract. And on top of that, promises a

contract to deliver Belfast Rapid Transit. Where is the opportunity

for competition in this? Where is the drive to attract meaningful

delivery. The department had the opportunity to make a real

difference, but I suggest chickened out for convenience sake. At no time

did the committee as the chair said agree to privatisation of our

transport system. The terms of reference set out by the committee

clearly set out objectives in order to improve transport solutions for

all of society. It is time to review the public transport system and who

delivers it. To maximise the organisation and delivery structures

and improve efficiencies. Nowhere in the terms of reference was the

concept of tisation mentioned. In the 21st century, public transport

should be people's first choice, not last resort. I have spoken to

drivers and other personnel and to their trade unions and they have

shared with me their frustration because they know their routes, this

he know the systems and they know their job and yet rarely is their

advice on how improvements could be taken into account, it is by and

large ignored. At this point, Mr Speaker, it is worth pointing out

that we should debunk the notion that the report is anything to do

with privatisation of public transport in Northern Ireland. The

report is about were providing appropriate competition and ensuring

that Translink deliver the best public transport system for Northern

Ireland. The Northern Ireland transport holding company with the

three subsidiary companies of Northern Ireland Railways and the

City Bus and Ulster Bus is a very tangled web of governance. It is a

cumbersome structure. I think that's really what the report is trying to

attempt to deal with. I confess that I'm disappointed with the thrust and

indeed, the quality of this report from the committee. I have

acknowledged and continue to acknowledge the valuable input and

support from the committee in the past on other issues, but there is

simply nothing in this report that I can properly take forward and I hope

that the committee will he therefore review its conclusions. I have no

intention of legislating for powers that either already exist or indeed,

to review something so recently reviewed and I am certainly not

prepared to privatise Translink. The First Minister spoke to

protesters from the Unite union outside Parliament buildings. Peter

Robinson told them there are no plans to drastically alter

Translink. There is no plans to be involved in privatisation. From an

Executive point of view, it is a matter for the Department of

Regional development and they will be working on it. But any changes

that take place that come under the heading of being significant or

controversial come to the Checktive so it is not a case of us being

sidelined on the issue. There will be nothing that will happen without

us having a full debate and discussion about it and what you

have to say will be taken into account by us when that decision

comes around. Peter Robinson speaking to Unite

union members outside Parliament Buildings.

The idea first came to light during his party conference speech, and

today the Ulster Unionist leader brought a motion on an International

Mental Health Centre to the floor of the Assembly. He suggested funding

for the stalled Maze Peace Centre should be used for a new trauma

centre. The need to tackle mental health issues garnered support from

across the chamber. The motion is the declaration of intent. We

therefore do need to develop the concept. We need to be very clear

about central issues like who is the centre for? What will the outcomes

be? Where will the centre below kated? How will the centre be

funded? We need to put more meat on the bones in relation to development

all of those proposals. The SDLP are supportive of a health

centre of international standing, but we want to design such a

facility, a collaborative effort must be sought. It is a case of

designing it to its best capacity and it will deliver in a much more

comprehensive way. This motion, it would appear, it would seem comes in

the context of the UUP's misguided and opportunistic campaign against a

peace and reconciliation centre the Maze. The UP put forward this

proposal as an alternative to that development. This should not be

framed as a choice. There could and perhaps should be room for both. We

have to make sure that whatever concepts or whatever initiatives

that we launch that they are effective and it is very easy to

make broad statements and soundbites be certain issues, but when we are

dealing with a very personal issue. A very traumatic time in the lives

of people who suffer from mental health issues, it is important that

we are looking for an effective solution and something that will

work and help these people who need the help and need the support of

Government as well. I would have preferred had the motion said today

that it was calling on me to support the creation of as opposed to

supporting the creation of a new international mental health centre

for Northern Ireland that would be a world-class facility for all. I

would have preferred it if it had been the development of mental

health services that would be a world-class facility for all because

I don't think that the creation of a new building will create a

world-class service. Mike Nesbitt joins me now. You must

be glad that the motion was carried, but there were a few dissenting

voices? Yes. Well, the hour-and-a-half was positive. There

was a bit of party politics in it and you have captured most of it in

that report, but not enough for anyone to say I want to put this to

a vote. I made the call over two weeks ago. Overall a positive

response to it and I am pleased we were able to get it into the chamber

so quickly. We have had that debate. The next phase is to start fleshing

out what it might look like now. The minister is saying the building

isn't the key to it. Well, if that's the case, that's fine. If it turns

into an international mental health set of centres, so much the better.

Or if it becomes an international mental health initiative, fine. It

is the outcome. It is the end rather than the means to the end that

matter to me and that's helping because we acknowledge in the

chamber per head this problem of poor mental health affects Northern

Ireland more than just about any country on planet earth.

That's right. What would work better and Edwin Po ots touched upon it. It

might be improving mental health services for people that live here.

You talked about it being a centre of excellence that would draw people

into Northern Ireland to benefit from our experience. The two things

are not the same? I think there are three functions that you would look

at it. One is treatment. One would be training and one would be

research. Now, in terms of treatment, I am very clear that you

can't expect people to travel to one centre. I am, very informed on this

by a man from Fermanagh who survived three assassination attempts. His

daughter used to drive him, when he left to go home, they were great and

by the time they got to Augher, Clogher, they could feel the stress.

This could be instead of the Maze Peace Centre, that's is a move that

some people feel strongly about? Let's talk about that. Everything is

negotiatable if it means people with mental health having better mental

health. We are saying let's talk about this in its own right and

everybody did agree that in its own right it is aing big issue and it

needs more resource. That doesn't mean that you are

warming to the idea of the Maze Peace Centre. I wouldn't want to say

that people with poor mental health have to suffer because of party

politics. We can all agree that we will do this and I went around the

parties of the Exec TV and -- Executive and they agreed that we

need to discuss this with experts and if that works, there maybe

another meeting and somebody else, another political party can chair

it. Mike Nesbitt, thank you.

Who precisely is in charge of Northern Ireland Water was under the

spotlight during questions to the Minister for Regional Development.

The post was advertised in March of this year, but in October it was

revealed that the position hadn't been filled, despite the fact that a

recruitment agency was being paid to find the right candidate. Can the

minister outline how much the failed process has cost the public purse

and when the new Chief Executive will be in post? I am grateful to

the member for her question. I can confirm that costs to date are going

to be in the region of ?70,000. Obviously, efforts will be made by

the board of Northern Ireland Water in conjunction and in consultation

with the department as to how quickly we can move forward to

resolve this situation. It is better to wait for a candidate of the right

standard than appoint a top applicant to fall short of the right

standard? I agree and it is important to secure the best

candidate for any position and particularly that of the Chief

Executive of Northern Ireland Water and I think the principle of merit

should be the abiding principle. A total of 34 candidates expressed

interest in this position, but after careful contribution, the panel

concluded that it was not satisfied to make an appointment. I regret, of

course, the potential cost, but I think everyone is agreed that the

appointment when it is made has to be the right appointment.

The DRD committee has been told by Northern Ireland Water they intend

to look at erecting 350 foot high turbines in the silent valley area.

Can he give an assurance that he will neither encourage such a

development and indeed, will actively discourage a development of

this nature that would destroy the landscape in the area, would hurt

the tourist industry and of course, would damage his constituents? Well,

I am grateful to the member for his question. I am grateful to for the

opportunity to set the record straight on this because I believe

there has been some unhelpful comments on this and misguided

comment on it. I can confirm that Northern Ireland Water have no

current proposals. I can confirm also that I have no proposals or any

plans for windfarms in the Mournes. And Northern Ireland Water advised

it doesn't foresee the development of windfarms in the Mournes and of

course, he will know any such proposals would need to go through a

business case, regulatory and planning approval processes, but I

am happy to place on record that in an area of outstanding natural

beauty in the Mournes that I have no intention of putting forward

proposals and I don't believe Northern Ireland Water have either.

The Regional Development Minister, Danny Kennedy.

Education, as ever, proved a contentious topic between the two

main parties. The DUP brought a motion calling on the Minister to

review enrolment procedures in the light of some schools being

oversubscribed. In his response to the debate, the Minister wanted to

know how the DUP would solve the problem. The motion doesn't present

the DUP proposal on how we ensure that all local children attend their

local school. It calls on me as minister, the person who spent the

opening part of his speech telling the world and its mother that I

can't run the department. Well, so, it seems a bit of a contradiction...

Is the minister telling us in the House today in the light of the

lecture he has given us that computer based assessments that the

department got it right. Levels of attainment, the department got it

right. If he is, then he really is not living in the real world. He is

the minister and he knows he is in the wrong. The providers did not get

it right and we are going through that. Levels of progression, not

only have I proposed levels of progression. The Education Committee

agreed with the levels of progression and sent them to this

House agreed with them. The Education Committee agreed with my

proposals on levels of progression and passed them through to

legislation. I believed the member is a chair of the Education

Committee. I spent my weekend off studying the DUP's response to the

common funding formula. I was no more enlightened at the end of the

weekend than I was at the start of the weekend in relation to a

contrary proposal from the DUP in regards to that matter either. When

you introduce a formula or criteria for entry into a school and you are

dealing with around 24,000 applications every year, you are

going to run into a number of difficulties where you do not meet

the circumstances of individual pupils or individual families.

That's the reality of the situation. I believe the formula we have in

place and the legislation we have in place is working well with a 96%

firs preference and 97% and third and second preference. I have no

difficulty in reviewing it to ensure we increase the rate and ensure that

we, if there is any anomalies in the system we identify them and move on.

It would be nice to come into the chamber when somebody came in with a

thought out proposal. The Education Minister, John O'Dowd, giving vent

to some of his frustrations. Gareth Gordon is back with me again. What's

happening tomorrow? The Health Minister will take centre stage.

First of all, you will remember he announced back in September that he

was setting up an inyrry into child sexual exploitation and that was

following the disclosure that over 30 people in Northern Ireland have

been arrested as part of a major investigation into into the sexual

exploitation of children and young people. Tomorrow, the minister will

reveal the name of the person that will chair that inquiry and in the

afternoon a Sinn Fein motion on the ban on gay blood and of course,

that's the ban which led to a High Court judge finding against Edwin

Poots and accusing him of breaking the Ministerial Code.

That's all for now. I'll be back at 11.20pm tomorrow on BBC Two. For

now, bye-bye.