:00:26. > :00:30.Hello and welcome to Stormont Today. Coming up on the programme.
:00:31. > :00:39.Health Minister Edwin Poots defends his opposition to gay adoption and
:00:40. > :00:43.gay men donating blood. The natural order, whether one
:00:44. > :00:46.believes in God or in evolution, the natural order is for a man and a
:00:47. > :00:49.woman to have a child. Tributes are paid in the Assembly to
:00:50. > :00:54.the founding member of the SDLP, Eddie McGrady.
:00:55. > :01:00.His words delivered by our party leader at the weekend that ring true
:01:01. > :01:03.to the man he was. He said, don't mourn for me, just get out there and
:01:04. > :01:06.finish the job. And I'm joined by the journalist
:01:07. > :01:10.Gerry Millar to look over today's events.
:01:11. > :01:16.It was the Health Minister against the Alliance Party in question time
:01:17. > :01:18.today. Children's cardiac services being centralised in Dublin and
:01:19. > :01:22.Northern Ireland's abortion laws were on the agenda but, once again,
:01:23. > :01:26.Edwin Poots' opposition to gay adoption and gay men donating blood
:01:27. > :01:29.dominated proceedings. The Minister was asked by Trevor Lunn if he
:01:30. > :01:40.believes homosexuality is an illness.
:01:41. > :01:44.In terms of this issue, I don't think it is an illness. I do think
:01:45. > :01:50.that many people have various elements to their lives that when it
:01:51. > :02:01.comes to sexuality many people who are heterosexual would desire lots
:02:02. > :02:07.of other folks. Those of us who are married should not be doing that.
:02:08. > :02:12.People can resist urges. In terms of all of this, I would encourage
:02:13. > :02:16.people to take a sensible and rational view on these issues. I
:02:17. > :02:22.know there has been a number of challenges and the various stances I
:02:23. > :02:28.take but I make it very clear that Indians of blood safety, that is
:02:29. > :02:32.truly about safety. Whether one believes in God or evolution, the
:02:33. > :02:38.natural order is for a man and a woman to have a child and therefore
:02:39. > :02:43.that has made my view on adoption very clear and on raising children
:02:44. > :02:49.very clear and it should be a man and a woman that raises a child.
:02:50. > :02:53.People can criticise me for that and challenge me for it and say it is
:02:54. > :02:58.backward. The truth is that still today, in this modern era, it is
:02:59. > :03:02.only a man and a woman that can produce a child and therefore I
:03:03. > :03:08.think it is in the best order for a man and a woman to raise a child.
:03:09. > :03:13.Does the Minister accept that since restrictions were put in place, the
:03:14. > :03:21.lack of clarity on the ongoing delay of outcome but increasing stress on
:03:22. > :03:25.families and can he give a more concrete timescale for completion
:03:26. > :03:29.and does he accept that an all Ireland network of children's heart
:03:30. > :03:39.surgery with a print in Belfast is what is needed? I do accept that the
:03:40. > :03:45.delay causes further consternation to families and that is not what we
:03:46. > :03:51.want to have. However, I need people to be agreeable to what we in this
:03:52. > :03:57.house actually want and that is what we have been working on. That is a
:03:58. > :04:01.course of work that will have to be seen through if we are to be
:04:02. > :04:07.successful. I would urge people to be patient a little longer. Time is
:04:08. > :04:13.of the essence. Professor Wood leaves his role in December so we
:04:14. > :04:18.will need to have something in place before that happens and that is a
:04:19. > :04:27.course of work that we are continuing to in gauge upon. I would
:04:28. > :04:33.hope to be in a position to give this house a full update in the not
:04:34. > :04:38.too distant future. The law in Northern Ireland does not address
:04:39. > :04:50.the issue of faecal abnormality. We must fully -- free till
:04:51. > :04:55.abnormality. My views on the issue are well known. I am opposed to the
:04:56. > :05:02.liberalisation of the law but I would look at any proposals put
:05:03. > :05:07.forward by the Minister. As members are aware, the position on the
:05:08. > :05:13.termination of pregnancy in Northern Ireland is provided in the body of
:05:14. > :05:17.criminal law. Any guidance to the document produced by my department
:05:18. > :05:22.can only reflect existing law, it cannot change it. The recent
:05:23. > :05:25.consultation has been successful in highlighting concerns health
:05:26. > :05:37.professionals and others have in relation to this sensitive issue. I
:05:38. > :05:42.have asked them to look at every possibility as ideal everyday with
:05:43. > :05:44.the difficulties faced by women and their families often in tragic
:05:45. > :05:48.circumstances. The Health Minister Edwin Poots. I'm
:05:49. > :05:54.joined now by the journalist Gerry Millar. Edwin Poots once again the
:05:55. > :05:58.centre of attention at Stormont. If I was working for a tabloid
:05:59. > :06:05.newspaper, I would be counting every headline Edwin Poots has put in it.
:06:06. > :06:10.I think it is clear that the public want ministers to keep their own
:06:11. > :06:14.personal moral opinions out of decision-making and I think Edwin
:06:15. > :06:19.Poots acknowledged that when he made a clear statement that he decided to
:06:20. > :06:25.put a ban on blood donors, gay blood donors, that it was done purely for
:06:26. > :06:29.health reasons. He has repeatedly said his beliefs do not get in the
:06:30. > :06:33.way of his ability to do his job and they do not unduly influence him in
:06:34. > :06:39.his decision-making process will stop do you think his position has
:06:40. > :06:44.changed? Three big issues tend to suggest there is a moral aspect to
:06:45. > :06:50.his decisions. The three big issues that are always going to grab the
:06:51. > :06:53.headlines, abortion, gay blood donors and gay adoption. I think
:06:54. > :07:00.they overshadow all the good work because the press will always try to
:07:01. > :07:07.grab those headlines. The new children's hospital is being
:07:08. > :07:12.shadowed -- overshadowed. Using phrases like the natural order as he
:07:13. > :07:18.did today and the best order is for a man and a woman to raise a child.
:07:19. > :07:23.I think there were mistakes and he is almost trapped by the opposition
:07:24. > :07:30.and I think he full story. When questions are asked, he probably
:07:31. > :07:35.can't help himself. He seems to get himself into the headlines. For me
:07:36. > :07:42.it is probably not for the right reasons. It is an enormous
:07:43. > :07:50.portfolio, a huge responsibility, and it is difficult to stay on top
:07:51. > :07:59.of all the nuances of that. They are very difficult, they are very
:08:00. > :08:05.delicate and the public is split on them so they are very difficult
:08:06. > :08:08.things to handle. The DUP had indicated that Edwin Poots would
:08:09. > :08:12.more likely than not be rotated out of the ministry at this stage so
:08:13. > :08:19.people are surprised that has not happened. Do you think you will be
:08:20. > :08:22.there much longer? It is going to happen sooner or later.
:08:23. > :08:25.Gerry Millar, thank you. A bit of housekeeping earlier today
:08:26. > :08:29.saw the rules around Topical Questions change. From next week
:08:30. > :08:32.they'll be asked after the submitted questions. However, today, they
:08:33. > :08:35.remained top of the Question Time agenda with the SDLP's Alban
:08:36. > :08:43.Maginness concerned about the future of one of our banks.
:08:44. > :08:52.Last week the RBS announced a review into the Ulster bank and separations
:08:53. > :08:56.in Northern Ireland. The RBS being the parent bank and being state
:08:57. > :09:01.owned. Has the Minister any concerns in relation to that and has he
:09:02. > :09:08.sought a meeting with RBS to discuss the review? I have concerns. There
:09:09. > :09:12.are areas in the report that do cause concern. The second review
:09:13. > :09:19.into establishing long-term and sustainable footing is called for
:09:20. > :09:24.further restructuring of that bank. It is inevitable that there will be
:09:25. > :09:28.further job losses. As indeed there probably will be across other banks
:09:29. > :09:41.before they get to a position where they are probably -- properly
:09:42. > :09:46.functioning. The valuation process is entirely evidence -based and
:09:47. > :09:49.naturally that evidence reflects the relative advantages and
:09:50. > :09:53.disadvantages of particular trading locations. At the end of the day, it
:09:54. > :09:59.is the open market that establishes current levels. This alone will
:10:00. > :10:03.determine who pays more and who pays less following reevaluation but I
:10:04. > :10:06.think we would be in a far worse position if it had not been for
:10:07. > :10:21.something like small business rate relief scheme which has given ?1.5
:10:22. > :10:30.million in relief to properties. This department has also frozen the
:10:31. > :10:34.nondomestic regional rate for the eighth year and we have introduced
:10:35. > :10:37.empty properties relief to tackle vacancies which are dotted across
:10:38. > :10:50.towns and city centres across Northern Ireland. The Minister may
:10:51. > :10:58.be aware of the news today that the town of Ballymena, according to a
:10:59. > :11:01.survey, is now in the unenviable position of having the highest
:11:02. > :11:05.proportion of empty shops right across Northern Ireland at a
:11:06. > :11:12.staggering 27% of all shops being empty. What can the Minister do to
:11:13. > :11:18.address that? I appreciate he can't rig the rating system but he can do
:11:19. > :11:24.more, surely, if the present concessions are not arresting the
:11:25. > :11:29.decline. Is his mind open to doing more in terms of relief for town
:11:30. > :11:34.centre shops so that we can arrest this situation in a prosperous town?
:11:35. > :11:39.In terms of what persistence and what support we can give to
:11:40. > :11:43.Ballymena, it is not just Ballymena it is right across Northern Ireland,
:11:44. > :11:50.but in terms of small business rate relief scheme, 1183 properties have
:11:51. > :11:55.got ?1.7 million of relief on their bills. In terms of empty properties
:11:56. > :12:00.and trying to address some of those vacancies, Ballymena is still to
:12:01. > :12:11.start. I think that is very uncharacteristic of the Ballymena
:12:12. > :12:16.area. I don't think, I accept there are probably other things we can do
:12:17. > :12:21.but I operate within a very defined spending envelope and no matter how
:12:22. > :12:26.many things I can do, even if I eliminated the Ritz -- rates for
:12:27. > :12:32.some businesses, it is no substitute for having sufficient turnover. If
:12:33. > :12:35.you do not have enough turnover to keep you above water, there is
:12:36. > :12:39.nothing I or anyone can do to keep you above water.
:12:40. > :12:42.Straight-talking from the Finance Minister, Simon Hamilton. Northern
:12:43. > :12:46.Ireland's politicians have failed the victims of the Troubles over the
:12:47. > :12:49.last 15 years. That was the message from Deputy First Minister, speaking
:12:50. > :12:52.in the Assembly today. Martin McGuinness admitted mistakes have
:12:53. > :12:54.been made, but he said he hopes the current talks chaired by the
:12:55. > :12:58.American diplomat, Richard Haass, could come up with a way of dealing
:12:59. > :13:01.with the past. Mr McGuinness was reporting back to the Assembly from
:13:02. > :13:09.the latest meeting of the North-South Ministerial Council.
:13:10. > :13:13.Our meeting was a very positive and good meeting and provided a valuable
:13:14. > :13:18.opportunity to focus on some of the key challenges we face. Last week
:13:19. > :13:24.came in a few short weeks after the successful investment conference in
:13:25. > :13:30.Belfast and the global economic Forum. The council recognise the
:13:31. > :13:33.value of of events and I have no doubt they will provide an important
:13:34. > :13:41.platform to provide economic growth and prosperity. Can I ask him if he
:13:42. > :13:43.and the first Minister took the opportunity to discuss how the
:13:44. > :13:46.Northern Ireland executive and the Irish government can work together
:13:47. > :13:51.to deliver a comprehensive victim centre process in dealing with the
:13:52. > :14:03.past? If so, what ideas were considered? As the member has heard
:14:04. > :14:09.me and other say over the course of the last 15 years, one of the
:14:10. > :14:17.greatest flaws in the peace process has been the approach to the past,
:14:18. > :14:22.of which there are many narratives. There is a huge responsibility on
:14:23. > :14:28.all of us to deal with that. That is why we agreed and I am pleased the
:14:29. > :14:35.member's party was part of the agreement to house -- to ask the
:14:36. > :14:40.diplomat from the United States, Richard Hass, too chaired the
:14:41. > :14:47.multiparty talks. He has been involved in the engagement, and of
:14:48. > :14:50.course he has been talking, not just to the parties but to the Irish
:14:51. > :14:58.government, the British government and we are aware the United States
:14:59. > :15:02.government through the vice president, who lie and the first
:15:03. > :15:11.Minister spoke to in the aftermath of the appointment of Richard Hass.
:15:12. > :15:15.We hope within the process we will see a resolution to the issue of
:15:16. > :15:22.flags and the issue of parades and find a way forward on the issue of
:15:23. > :15:28.how we support victims. Yes, I think absolutely all of us need to hold
:15:29. > :15:33.our hands up, and this is a signal failure. But I hope it is a failure
:15:34. > :15:38.that can be corrected. We have had in the course of the last number of
:15:39. > :15:42.days, further positive reports from those who have been analysing the
:15:43. > :15:50.situation, that there is an upturn in fortunes. Always very and to talk
:15:51. > :15:55.about green shoots, people have done that before and done it to their
:15:56. > :16:03.cost. But there is some sense things are beginning to go on the up. We
:16:04. > :16:08.expressed our concerns that the National dairy Council campaign is
:16:09. > :16:13.an abuse of country origin labelling. The deputy minister has
:16:14. > :16:18.raised this issue with the authority and the Irish government
:16:19. > :16:22.counterparts. She has brought the campaign to the attention of the
:16:23. > :16:27.European commission. We are concerned it contravenes the
:16:28. > :16:34.principles of the single market, discriminates against consumers. The
:16:35. > :16:40.news recently about a new barrier going up in east Belfast, wasn't
:16:41. > :16:46.good news, particularly in the context of wanting to ring down the
:16:47. > :16:51.walls in Belfast over the course of the next ten years. -- bring. Last
:16:52. > :16:54.night we brought you the news of the passing of Eddie McGrady, and today
:16:55. > :17:02.MLAs from across the chamber paid tribute to the former MP, who was a
:17:03. > :17:10.founding member of the SDLP. I came to know Eddie McGrady very well. We
:17:11. > :17:15.served on the first policing board and he was a true gentleman.
:17:16. > :17:23.Certainly, politics in Northern Ireland will be much sadder with the
:17:24. > :17:26.loss of Eddie McGrady. Words delivered by Alistair Macdonald at
:17:27. > :17:31.the weekend ring true to the man he was. He said, " don't mourn for me,
:17:32. > :17:38.just get out there and finish the job". My thoughts and prayers are
:17:39. > :17:45.with his children. As well as the wider family circle. His sister, his
:17:46. > :17:51.brother and of course his deep friend and political colleague,
:17:52. > :18:00.Margaret Ritchie. When I spoke to Eddie last Wednesday night, I just
:18:01. > :18:05.said a prayer with him because I knew it would not be long. He will
:18:06. > :18:13.be deeply missed as a close friend and colleague. He has left a lot for
:18:14. > :18:20.Margaret, Karen and myself to do to try and fill his shoes in Southdown.
:18:21. > :18:25.May he rest in peace. Everyone had the highest respect for Eddie
:18:26. > :18:30.McGrady. I happened to be chairing a meeting in down hospital in what
:18:31. > :18:37.happened to be his last day of the member of Parliament the Southdown.
:18:38. > :18:41.I saw him and I realised Parliament would be closed in a few hours time.
:18:42. > :18:50.I called him up to say if you last words and there was hardly a dry eye
:18:51. > :18:56.in the house. I always found him a courteous and fair colleague and
:18:57. > :19:01.enjoyed working with him. I met him recently at the opening of a school
:19:02. > :19:06.and we had a bit of banter together. I know he will be missed by his
:19:07. > :19:11.colleagues in the STL P. He will be missed and other colleagues by all
:19:12. > :19:15.of us here in this house. I want to pay tribute to the service he
:19:16. > :19:21.provided to the people of Southdown over the last two and a half
:19:22. > :19:26.decades. As a journalist I always enjoyed interviewing Eddie McGrady.
:19:27. > :19:30.I will not give too much away, but there was a time around the
:19:31. > :19:36.negotiations of the Belfast Good Friday agreement when Ulster
:19:37. > :19:42.television ran a sweepstake on when an announcement was going to come.
:19:43. > :19:48.Eddie came out to the interview point and I cast him if he would
:19:49. > :19:55.like to join the sweepstake, and he did. And he warned. Either he had
:19:56. > :20:01.inside knowledge, or he had some influence over what was going on in
:20:02. > :20:04.those talks. I will remember him both in terms of the negotiations
:20:05. > :20:08.which led up to the Good Friday agreement and in the happy days of
:20:09. > :20:13.the assembly when things were not quite as smooth running as they are
:20:14. > :20:19.now. The deals that were done in the corridor behind the speaker's chair
:20:20. > :20:23.generally involving Jim Wilson, Eddie and sometimes I got in if
:20:24. > :20:29.votes were needed, is a tribute to a man you knew it was a gentleman. If
:20:30. > :20:34.a deal was reached you knew it would be stuck to and he was a man who
:20:35. > :20:37.stuck to his word. Warm tributes from across the
:20:38. > :20:40.political spectrum for the late Eddie McGrady. One in 85 men is
:20:41. > :20:44.diagnosed with prostate cancer each year in Northern Ireland. Earlier, a
:20:45. > :20:47.motion was brought to the floor calling on the Health Minister to
:20:48. > :20:50.introduce a screening programme for the disease. It was tabled by Sinn
:20:51. > :20:54.Fein's Oliver McMullan who joins me now. Thanks for joining us.
:20:55. > :21:00.You had a very personal reason for bringing this motion. I was
:21:01. > :21:07.diagnosed earlier in the year with prostate cancer, so I brought the
:21:08. > :21:10.motion today. I have asked the Minister to do a screening programme
:21:11. > :21:16.for those people, those men who have been diagnosed with the cancer.
:21:17. > :21:22.There is little uptake after they come out of the programme. The
:21:23. > :21:26.anxiety, mental issues and I believe there needs to be a programme put in
:21:27. > :21:30.place to look at this. You think that is more important than the
:21:31. > :21:36.screening programme? At this present time, the medics are not getting a
:21:37. > :21:40.handle on the whole disease. But there is nothing there when the men
:21:41. > :21:46.come out of the programme and go home. This is part of the programme
:21:47. > :21:52.and this is recognised by the medical profession and within the
:21:53. > :21:59.research team in Queens University. Is that what you found difficult and
:22:00. > :22:05.received your initial treatment, that was fine but it was after that
:22:06. > :22:10.you struggled? After you come home, there is pressure on your family as
:22:11. > :22:16.well. When your surgeon tells you you have been diagnosed with cancer,
:22:17. > :22:22.it is a new world. A lot of people cannot handle that when you go home.
:22:23. > :22:26.It does affect your home life, because there is nothing fair and
:22:27. > :22:30.there is a big void. This is what we want to try and fill and that is why
:22:31. > :22:35.I was asking the Minister to do something about that. What feedback
:22:36. > :22:40.did you get from the Minister, how hopeful are you things will change?
:22:41. > :22:47.He did talk about it and he said he would look on it. I want to see him
:22:48. > :22:52.put it into operation. The longer we hold this off, because prostrate
:22:53. > :22:57.cancer is fast becoming the top cancer among men. The area I
:22:58. > :23:03.representing East Antrim, it is one of the highest areas for prostrate
:23:04. > :23:11.cancer. So there has to be a problem. There is these hotspots and
:23:12. > :23:18.the research unit now has a postcode list of all the hotspots of cancer.
:23:19. > :23:22.Two men watching this who think they have a problem but are nervous about
:23:23. > :23:25.going to their GP, what would you say to them? Don't be nervous, go
:23:26. > :23:32.and speak to your GP and get something done. Men are very slow at
:23:33. > :23:35.coming forward for medical help. I appeal to them to come forward or
:23:36. > :23:38.talk to someone who has been through the treatment and give them some
:23:39. > :23:41.reassurance. Oliver McMullan, thank you.
:23:42. > :23:45.The House got to hear about a raft of Public Account Committee reports
:23:46. > :23:48.today as MLAs gave their verdict on the work of the committee which
:23:49. > :23:51.pores over the account books. The PAC chair said the committee is
:23:52. > :24:00.working hard to ensure public money is properly spent. When I read of
:24:01. > :24:04.lofty projections and unrealistic business cases of reform projects
:24:05. > :24:09.and overreliance on consultants of public bodies, whose culture is
:24:10. > :24:15.transparency and good governance, I wish for some learning to take place
:24:16. > :24:18.and I cannot help thinking of the benefit my constituents could have
:24:19. > :24:28.further public money. One example of this was the account consultancy
:24:29. > :24:32.project. This was an initiative devised to introduce centralised
:24:33. > :24:40.accounts. The original contract value for this was 970,000. The
:24:41. > :24:46.final total was 9.6 million and further it was delivered four years
:24:47. > :24:50.later. Lack of transparency raises its ugly head in several of the
:24:51. > :24:54.reports. There are serious questions to be answered in relation to
:24:55. > :24:58.housing maintenance contracts and hopefully be upcoming enquiry by the
:24:59. > :25:04.committee will shed some light on what has been going on. But there
:25:05. > :25:09.are also issues elsewhere. The report into the safety of services
:25:10. > :25:13.provided by health and social care says there is a lack of evidence to
:25:14. > :25:20.show safety has improved in the last decade. Ten years! And there is an
:25:21. > :25:25.absence of robust measures of level and client patient harm which makes
:25:26. > :25:31.it difficult for the department to demonstrate improvement. First of
:25:32. > :25:37.all, let's remind ourselves what we are debating today. These are the
:25:38. > :25:44.reports that we are discussing. I am holding in my hands, ?1 million
:25:45. > :25:50.worth of work by the Public Accounts Committee. Because that is the
:25:51. > :25:58.average, an average of ?100,000 per report, ten reports, ?1 million. Let
:25:59. > :26:03.me make something clear, I think there is a role for an effective
:26:04. > :26:07.Public Accounts Committee, scrutinising expenditure across
:26:08. > :26:10.government departments. But when I look at these reports, I want to
:26:11. > :26:16.refer to some of the points members have already made. I ask myself, are
:26:17. > :26:24.we improving governments, or are we making government more difficult in
:26:25. > :26:29.Northern Ireland? The truth in some respects is, the average person is
:26:30. > :26:35.pursued until the ends of the earth for 100, 200 or ?300 of an effect
:26:36. > :26:43.that might have been falsely claimed or incorrect -- incorrectly claimed.
:26:44. > :26:48.But because of the nature of the people involved in this, enormous
:26:49. > :26:53.amounts of money went up in smoke. We recognise we need to find new
:26:54. > :26:58.ways to deliver public services. We have to do things differently and we
:26:59. > :27:04.can no longer do what we have always done because that is what has always
:27:05. > :27:10.been the way. The status quo will no longer suffice. The landscape of
:27:11. > :27:14.public services delivery is changing. To enable us to deliver
:27:15. > :27:16.world-class public services we have to be leaner, more productive and
:27:17. > :27:19.more efficient. The Finance Minister, Simon
:27:20. > :27:22.Hamilton. And Gerry Millar has joined me again.
:27:23. > :27:25.Getting back to Question Time, what's your take on Topical
:27:26. > :27:28.Questions been, they're being moved, but do you think they've been a
:27:29. > :27:35.useful tool in challenging ministers on their briefs? They are trying to
:27:36. > :27:39.make them more important and more controversial so they will be more
:27:40. > :27:43.newsworthy. It was a topical question that got the health
:27:44. > :27:47.Minister to save the controversial health statement would be big news
:27:48. > :27:50.today. If they are pushed to the end of questions, there is more chance
:27:51. > :27:54.people will be able to respond to answers already given. But it does
:27:55. > :28:00.not give ministers a chance to prepare. If you don't prepare, you
:28:01. > :28:05.are being asked questions on the hoof and it is then you prove you
:28:06. > :28:09.know your portfolio. It'll be interesting to see how that changes
:28:10. > :28:13.the quality of the debate. One other issue before we go. There were very
:28:14. > :28:18.warm tributes paid to Eddie McGrady in the chamber today. It will be a
:28:19. > :28:24.great comfort to his family that right across the political spectrum,
:28:25. > :28:30.the tributes were fantastic. A direct political opponent being so
:28:31. > :28:37.warm. He was a very kind and personable person and he transcended
:28:38. > :28:42.party politics, which is a huge tribute you can be involved in party
:28:43. > :28:48.politics and the tributes were moving and kind-hearted. Also on
:28:49. > :28:52.social media yesterday. Lots of people from right across the
:28:53. > :28:59.spectrum making the effort to go on the record? He was the ultimate
:29:00. > :29:01.constituency politician and he loved Southdown. People felt