:00:30. > :00:34.Hello and welcome Stormont today. For once, our MLAs were forced to
:00:34. > :00:38.concede centre stage. The Prime Minister was on the hill but
:00:38. > :00:42.without any more news for the executive or corporation tax.
:00:42. > :00:47.A bid to include clerical victims in the historical abuse inquiry
:00:47. > :00:53.bill is turned down in the latest stage. It is unfortunate that in
:00:53. > :00:58.the addressing of it, we create a hierarchy of abuse victims. Sinn
:00:58. > :01:03.Fein MLA, Barry McElduff gives us a preview of the stories that make up
:01:03. > :01:08.his new memoir. I wasn't the only political person to see the inside
:01:08. > :01:17.of a prison cell. One ex-prisoner visited me, namely Ian Paisley.
:01:17. > :01:23.own visitor today is political commentator Alex Kane.
:01:23. > :01:28.Events inside the Assembly chamber very often get hot and heavy. The
:01:28. > :01:33.grounds outside can seemer is reen in comparison, not so today. At
:01:33. > :01:37.rifle of the Prime Minister prompted a buzz. First David
:01:37. > :01:43.Cameron visited a factory in Craigavon and made the big
:01:43. > :01:48.announcement of his trip. chairman of the G8 I get to decide
:01:48. > :01:51.where to hold the big G8 conference next year on June 17, 18. I've
:01:51. > :01:58.decided the right place is right here in Northern Ireland and we'll
:01:58. > :02:01.be holding the G8 on the 17th and 18th of June in county Fermanagh. I
:02:01. > :02:05.think this will be... APPLAUSE
:02:05. > :02:13.A brilliant advertisement for Northern Ireland. Our visitor today
:02:13. > :02:17.is the political commentator Alex Kane.
:02:17. > :02:23.Events inside the Assembly chamber very often get hot and heavy. The
:02:23. > :02:26.grounds outside can seem serene in comparison. Not today, the arrival
:02:26. > :02:30.of the Prime Minister prompted a buzz over on that part of the
:02:30. > :02:36.estate. First, David Cameron visited a factory in Craigavon and
:02:36. > :02:41.made the big announcement of his trip. As chairman of the G8, I get
:02:41. > :02:45.to decide where to hold the big G8 conference next year on the 17th
:02:45. > :02:53.and 18th of June. I've decided the right place to hold it is right
:02:54. > :02:57.here in Northern Ireland. We'll be holding the G8 in county Fermanagh.
:02:57. > :03:02.I think this will be a brilliant advertisement for Northern Ireland.
:03:02. > :03:06.That news was cheered here in Stormont chamber by the enterprise
:03:06. > :03:09.minister Arlene Foster whose home patch in Fermanagh will host some
:03:09. > :03:15.of the world's most powerful leaders. It will not surprise you
:03:15. > :03:21.to know that I am ecstatic that the G8 summit is coming to Fermanagh in
:03:21. > :03:24.2013. I think it says a lot about Northern Ireland today that our
:03:24. > :03:29.Prime Minister can have the confidence to come to the most
:03:29. > :03:33.westerly part of Northern Ireland and have the G8 summit. What he
:03:33. > :03:38.said today was one of the most beautiful parts of the UK.
:03:38. > :03:42.Confirmation then of this week's worst kept secret about the G8
:03:42. > :03:47.coming to Fermanagh next June. I'm joined by Alex Kane. Are you
:03:47. > :03:51.excited that the prospect of the G8 coming to town? Not particularly.
:03:51. > :03:54.I'm glad it's not coming to Belfast. Usually Belfast goes into lock down
:03:54. > :03:57.with anything like this. It's a pre-Christmas Prime Ministerial
:03:57. > :04:01.visit with good news for Northern Ireland and particularly good news
:04:01. > :04:05.for the resort which I think is in administration. The resort is in
:04:05. > :04:12.administration. The last time Britain hosted a G8 sum tit was in
:04:12. > :04:17.Gleneagles, which has -- summit, it was in Gleneagles, which is a
:04:17. > :04:20.global reputation. This resort is relatively young and has had
:04:20. > :04:24.difficulties of its own. Did they choose it because it's remote
:04:24. > :04:28.because from a security point of view it ticks all the boxes?
:04:28. > :04:30.think it does tick the boxes. Oddly enough, maybe ironically the fact
:04:30. > :04:33.that it is having financial difficulties, the Prime Minister
:04:33. > :04:37.who wants to be seen to be doing something for local economy, you
:04:37. > :04:40.couldn't do anything better than say, look, here's a hotel which has
:04:40. > :04:46.difficulties, but I have enough confidence in its ability and in
:04:46. > :04:51.its staff and the people of Northern Ireland to clifr a big,
:04:51. > :04:53.world-class -- deliver, a big, world class conference.
:04:53. > :04:56.political is this on the part of the Prime Minister and the
:04:56. > :04:59.Secretary of State to say we have lots of choices here but we're
:04:59. > :05:02.plumping for Northern Ireland? These choices are political. It is
:05:02. > :05:05.the name of the game. I don't think he could take it to Scotland in
:05:05. > :05:09.view of what's happening in terms of referendum and independence.
:05:09. > :05:13.There's not much happening in Wales. Northern Ireland, it is, they're
:05:13. > :05:17.going to have Londonderry as the City of Culture next year. Also,
:05:17. > :05:20.because you've had these signs from dissident Republicans, this is a
:05:20. > :05:23.Prime Minister, clearly saying, over and over again today of the
:05:23. > :05:27.United Kingdom, this is a splendid place in the United Kingdom, making
:05:27. > :05:29.his mark, saying he's happy with Northern Ireland. He's happy with
:05:30. > :05:33.the peace process, telling the world to come here. That's
:05:33. > :05:39.important. Security concerns must have been a consideration here.
:05:39. > :05:43.This is, you know, this is not some second-rate gathering. These are
:05:43. > :05:46.the eight most significant world leaders, probably eight of the most
:05:46. > :05:49.recognisable people on the planet. To bring them here and be
:05:49. > :05:53.responsible for their security when they are here is a pretty big deal,
:05:53. > :05:58.isn't it? Location is perfect. It's surrounded by water. It's not easy
:05:58. > :06:03.to get to. High visibility all over the place. Let's not forget the
:06:03. > :06:06.PSNI are one of the best forces in the world when it comes to dealing
:06:06. > :06:09.with rioting and terrorist threats. It's their whole living, breathing
:06:09. > :06:12.operation. The Prime Minister will be pleased there was a broadly
:06:12. > :06:15.positive response to his announcement on the G8. We're not
:06:15. > :06:20.much clearer about the other thing that we thought he might say
:06:20. > :06:24.something about, that was corporation tax. Did he hedge his
:06:24. > :06:29.bets? I think the trouble with corporation tax, I'm not convinced
:06:29. > :06:34.it's coming. If you get it in Northern Ireland, what happened --
:06:35. > :06:38.happens to Scotland and Wales? What happens to the relationship, an EU
:06:38. > :06:42.relationship between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland
:06:42. > :06:47.and Great Britain? They haven't been squared off. It will go on and
:06:47. > :06:52.on. I suspect some time maybe next Easter, it will be landed very
:06:52. > :06:55.gently and just bypassed until forever probably. What are the
:06:55. > :06:59.implications locally? Our politicians here have invested a
:06:59. > :07:03.lot in the idea of it. They've said this is something we should be
:07:03. > :07:07.working hard to get, at the right price, but it would be good news
:07:07. > :07:11.for Northern Ireland, plc. If it doesn't come, what's the Plan B?
:07:11. > :07:14.don't think there is a Plan B. Plan A was nothing more than we want a
:07:14. > :07:17.cut in corporation tax, but we don't want to have to pay for that
:07:17. > :07:21.ourselves. We don't want that out of the Northern Ireland budget. We
:07:21. > :07:26.don't want to pay anything else at local level. There is no way,
:07:26. > :07:29.there's no way the Chancellor can say yes to that without having
:07:29. > :07:32.every other part of the United Kingdom asking for exactly the same
:07:32. > :07:36.thing. No special pleading for Northern Ireland? No, I think
:07:36. > :07:39.that's the thing. Northern Ireland has its own Government. Governments
:07:39. > :07:43.have to make their own decisions. They have to get away from the
:07:43. > :07:46.notion that they can constantly go to Number Ten and say we are still
:07:46. > :07:50.a special case. We are not any more. Let's get over that. Thank you.
:07:50. > :07:54.Inside the chamber, most of the time today was taken up with the
:07:54. > :07:57.debate on establishing an inquiry into the historic abuse of children
:07:57. > :08:02.in care homes and other institutions in Northern Ireland.
:08:02. > :08:06.There were 79 amendments to get through. Jim Allister wasn't
:08:06. > :08:11.pleased his amendment to include the scope to include clerical abuse
:08:11. > :08:15.wasn't accepted by the Speaker. Many victims of abuse, Mr Speaker,
:08:15. > :08:20.have lobbied courageously to get to a stage whereby this inquiry will
:08:20. > :08:26.become a reality. They are indeed to be commended for their efforts,
:08:26. > :08:32.for their determination and for their undoubted courage. Mr Speaker,
:08:32. > :08:40.we have a raft of amendments today at the consideration stage of this
:08:40. > :08:49.bill. 79 in total I understand. The vast majority of these have come
:08:49. > :08:54.from OFMDMF -- OFMDFM. Mr Speaker the issue of who this legislation
:08:54. > :08:58.should cover is an important one. I want to consider that in some
:08:58. > :09:02.detail having received representations on this from
:09:02. > :09:07.constituents. We have to bear in mind that there are children from
:09:07. > :09:10.Northern Ireland who suffered abuse in the Republic of Ireland and
:09:10. > :09:19.there are children from the Republic of Ireland who suffered
:09:19. > :09:24.abuse here. These victims, most of whom are now adults, exist in
:09:24. > :09:30.jurisdictional limbo. There has been an impression that neither
:09:30. > :09:37.side, neither jurisdiction wishs to take responsibility. Indeed, I've
:09:37. > :09:44.raised this matter separately with the Minister for Justice in the
:09:44. > :09:48.Republic of Ireland. In short, it has been left to be somebody else's
:09:49. > :09:52.problem. Today, I think, is an important opportunity to say to
:09:52. > :09:59.those people that they are recognised as victims. That they
:09:59. > :10:03.will get the time and space to tell their story and all efforts will be
:10:03. > :10:09.made to ensure that never again will people be exploited and abused
:10:09. > :10:13.in this way. A number of specific examples have been brought to my
:10:13. > :10:18.attention. For instance, a young person who suffered gross
:10:18. > :10:21.malnutrition had to be rescued by the local church of Ireland
:10:21. > :10:26.clergyman and was sent back to Dublin. Then sent to Northern
:10:26. > :10:31.Ireland to a relative of the family where he suffered further neglect.
:10:31. > :10:38.I've been told of a mother whose children were sent to the West Bank
:10:38. > :10:41.orphanage that closed in 1998 and were denied knowledge of sibling
:10:41. > :10:47.relationships. I will begin by expressing regret that amendments
:10:47. > :10:52.which I sought to table to widen the scope of this inquiry to
:10:52. > :10:58.include clerical abuse are not before the House. I think it is
:10:58. > :11:02.fortunate, right as it is that we certainly address the issue of
:11:02. > :11:09.institutional abuse, I think it is unfortunate that in the addressing
:11:09. > :11:14.of it we create a hierarchy of abuse victims. Those abused within
:11:14. > :11:19.institutions and those abused outside institutions who
:11:19. > :11:25.predominantly were the object of clerical abuse. Whereas I've heard
:11:25. > :11:30.others in this debate say that that issue cannot be forgotten about, it
:11:30. > :11:36.cannot be swept aside, the reality of this bill is it does forget
:11:36. > :11:45.about it. I've yet to hear affirmations that that will change.
:11:45. > :11:50.So I think this was an opportunity to address all abuse, including
:11:50. > :11:53.clerical abuse and I very much regret it hasn't been taken..
:11:53. > :11:58.the request of the victims and survivors who have spoken to us, I
:11:58. > :12:05.would pay tribute to those who have gone before, who are not alive to
:12:05. > :12:10.see this day and to equally salute their courage and tenacity in
:12:10. > :12:19.helping us to get to this point and not to underestimate the pain that
:12:19. > :12:27.they suffered and that they endured during this process. It is pain
:12:27. > :12:35.that is the most vulnerable. These were children, children who didn't
:12:35. > :12:40.have mums or dads or step mums or step dads. Or other care givers to
:12:40. > :12:45.go back to. These were people who were abused and hurt in the most
:12:45. > :12:51.horrible ways by the people who were entrusted to care for them.
:12:51. > :12:56.And to provide the support and love for them. That is why we have
:12:56. > :13:03.defined residential abuse because these were the children who had
:13:04. > :13:08.nobody else to go back to, whose home and into whose care they were
:13:08. > :13:17.the victims of those who shamefully should have been there to protect
:13:17. > :13:23.He is proposing we do away the terms of reference completely. We
:13:23. > :13:30.believe this would have an effect of detrimental reducing the
:13:30. > :13:40.detailed remit of the inquiry. extent to which this was a deeply
:13:40. > :13:41.
:13:41. > :13:45.imperfect Bill is reflected by the House today. The SDLP's Conall
:13:45. > :13:47.McDevitt and after several hours of debate the vast majority of the 79
:13:47. > :13:57.amendments were passed. Fresh from welcoming the decision
:13:57. > :13:58.
:13:58. > :14:00.to hold the G8 summit in her for man -- in her Fermanagh
:14:00. > :14:03.constituency the enterprise Minister was back to bread and
:14:03. > :14:07.butter policy issues in the chamber this afternoon. The focus of much
:14:07. > :14:10.of her Question Time was the utility regulator, just hours after
:14:10. > :14:16.it emerged that NIE had rejected this ruling on how much it can
:14:16. > :14:20.charge customers. It is not for me to become involved
:14:20. > :14:25.in the due process to be followed in determining the price controls.
:14:25. > :14:27.However, Mr Mr Deputy Speaker, it is important the price control
:14:27. > :14:31.process ultimately gets to the point where there is an appropriate
:14:31. > :14:33.balance between ensuring that the energy firms have sufficient
:14:33. > :14:40.financial cover to make the investments necessary and
:14:40. > :14:45.infrastructure and that the cost to consumers are minimised.
:14:45. > :14:50.Thank you. The Minister will know that the commission's indications
:14:50. > :14:56.are that the utility regulator has failed to act in the public
:14:56. > :14:59.interest in referring the Phoenix Gas and ultimately the actions of
:14:59. > :15:02.this utility regulator is damaging confidence in investors and
:15:03. > :15:07.consumers are ultimately going to be left to pick up the cost. Does
:15:08. > :15:10.the Minister believe that the utility regulator is damaging
:15:10. > :15:17.confidence in investors and, therefore, damaging to consumers
:15:17. > :15:20.who will ultimately be left to pick up the cost? Recent responses to my
:15:20. > :15:24.department's consultation on the new energy bill have showed firms
:15:24. > :15:28.do have some concerns about the way in which the utility regulator is
:15:28. > :15:33.operating and of course, these concerns need to be balanced
:15:33. > :15:38.against the principle duties of the regulator and indeed of the
:15:38. > :15:42.department, for electricity particularly, the duty is to
:15:42. > :15:45.protect the consumer and therefore, there is that balance. It is a
:15:45. > :15:52.difficult balance. I think that's recognised. Is it within the
:15:52. > :15:57.actually review the utility regulator's role and if so, is
:15:57. > :16:01.there any intention to do so in the near future? Well, as I have
:16:01. > :16:07.indicated, these concerns have been raised in response to the
:16:07. > :16:12.consultation on the energy bill and I do recognise that there are
:16:12. > :16:16.genuine issues that we need to address around accountability and
:16:16. > :16:20.the need to ensure that the regulatory framework for energy in
:16:20. > :16:23.Northern Ireland ensures the right investment for the future and
:16:23. > :16:28.that's why I am bringing forward proposals in the new energy Bill
:16:28. > :16:32.which will ensure provision to ensure that this happens and
:16:32. > :16:36.specifically I am bringing forward a proposal for a new strategy and
:16:36. > :16:42.policy statement which will be developed by the Department,
:16:42. > :16:52.obviously consulted upon and led before the Assembly for debate and
:16:52. > :16:53.
:16:53. > :16:58.particular strategy and policy statement in the performance of his
:16:58. > :17:01.duties. But also ensure that the regulator is aligned with the
:17:02. > :17:03.executive's strategic energy goals, as well. Of course, we are not
:17:03. > :17:09.suggesting for one minute he doesn't do that at the moment but
:17:09. > :17:11.what we are doing is we are providing confidence that there
:17:11. > :17:13.will be greater Coe hereence between policy and regulation and
:17:13. > :17:17.it's something I I intend to brining before the House so we can
:17:18. > :17:24.all discuss that issue but I have to recognise those concerns have
:17:24. > :17:28.been registered with me. Question number four, Deputy
:17:28. > :17:34.Speaker. Both my officials and the Northern Ireland tourist board have
:17:34. > :17:40.had discussions with the Belfast visitor and convention pwaour Ree,
:17:40. > :17:41.and wider hospitality industry to ensure participants in the games
:17:41. > :17:45.and visitors will have a good experience. Almost 27 seminars will
:17:45. > :17:48.have been held with local businesses using the tourist
:17:48. > :17:52.information centres and industry association net w. The tourist
:17:52. > :17:57.board, convention centre and games company will continue to encourage
:17:57. > :18:07.the whorld of whole -- whole of Northern Ireland to maximise
:18:07. > :18:12.
:18:12. > :18:18.The greater Belfast already has 3764 hotel rooms, if you replicate
:18:18. > :18:25.the 86% occupies and rate achieved for the period that year that will
:18:25. > :18:28.leave 527 rooms spare for an anticipated visitor numbers of
:18:28. > :18:38.15,000, would the Minister agree that's a tight fit? Yes, and I am
:18:38. > :18:43.
:18:43. > :18:46.not asking them all to share. I the G8, as well. We know that there
:18:46. > :18:51.will be thousands of people that will come to Northern Ireland for
:18:51. > :18:56.that event, as well. But it is about being flexible. It's about
:18:56. > :19:01.working with accommodation providers, being innovative in
:19:01. > :19:06.terms of pop-up hotels, for example. And making sure that we stay very
:19:06. > :19:09.close to the limited company who are planning the World Police and
:19:09. > :19:13.Fire Games and that's exactly what we are doing. Arlene Foster. You
:19:13. > :19:17.may have noticed in some town centres derelict shops and
:19:17. > :19:20.buildings have had a makeover. During today's environment
:19:20. > :19:25.questions the Minister said with more funding he would like to give
:19:25. > :19:28.more towns a facelift but first, here is the Minister giving his
:19:28. > :19:35.verdict on communication between applicants and the planning service.
:19:35. > :19:40.Sure, there are as we always know, contact centres levels of delay and
:19:40. > :19:46.frustration. But I am not being told that that is the broad
:19:46. > :19:54.experience. If 22% of contacts are being dealt with by the contacts
:19:54. > :20:00.centre, if 80% of other issues are being responded to by the planning
:20:00. > :20:06.service within 24 hours, if calls are being answered within 15
:20:06. > :20:12.seconds of the call being made, all of that suggests that this new
:20:12. > :20:19.approach to citizen agent developer contact with the planning service,
:20:19. > :20:25.that it is beginning to bed in more and more and together with access
:20:25. > :20:29.to the planning where there are over 130,000 points of contact
:20:29. > :20:33.every month, in my view, that is all helping aid the planning
:20:33. > :20:37.process, certainly there will be nobody in the planning system,
:20:37. > :20:40.including myself, who will not call for even better performance than
:20:40. > :20:49.that. But I think that performance is working and working to the
:20:49. > :20:54.We do intend to roll out changes to the planning system that will see
:20:54. > :20:59.applications being made online, rather than the current system made
:20:59. > :21:03.through the paper process. So, yes, we will continue to look at
:21:03. > :21:13.opportunities to roll out and improve the service. My answer is
:21:13. > :21:18.go to Portrush and port Stewart and go to Derry-Londonderry in the -
:21:18. > :21:24.City of Culture, where I believe that the interventions to mitigate
:21:24. > :21:29.decay and derelictation have and continue to prove that this is for
:21:29. > :21:36.a moderate sum of money a worthwhile investment. I did make a
:21:36. > :21:40.bid which was denied. I did make a bid for monies in September and the
:21:40. > :21:45.recent economic package, it was denied. But I think that the
:21:45. > :21:49.argument is gathering pace around the Executive table, that for
:21:49. > :21:54.relatively small scale of monies deployed to address decay and
:21:54. > :22:00.derelictation in towns and cities across the north, has added value
:22:00. > :22:05.in this time of recession. I think the Minister for his reply, I do
:22:05. > :22:11.have to agree with him that some people now describe Portrush as a
:22:11. > :22:15.northern kergs of kin -- version of Kinsale. Has the Minister plans for
:22:16. > :22:20.rolling out his successful scheme to other towns? And indeed to
:22:20. > :22:27.encourage, if not compel property owners to take a greater interest
:22:27. > :22:31.in port that's fallen into derelictation? Or is an eyesore?
:22:31. > :22:36.Well, I have written to the chief executive of Coleraine Borough
:22:36. > :22:46.Council, acknowledging the good work that's been done, asking him
:22:46. > :22:48.
:22:48. > :22:53.so that it can be more like Kinsale going forward. If I were to say
:22:53. > :23:01.today there is a more are to kwroupl on out of -- moratorium,
:23:01. > :23:11.there will be a rush to the PAC or they would say is this is against
:23:11. > :23:12.the law, it's against planning The environment Minister Alex
:23:12. > :23:18.Attwood. Now the Prime Minister's arrival at Stormont wasn't the only
:23:18. > :23:26.thing prompting a flurry around the House today. Sinn Fein's MLA Barry
:23:26. > :23:29.McElduff held a reading of his new book. It's described as a memoir of
:23:29. > :23:34.his experiences at home in Tyrone and in Stormont. Our political
:23:35. > :23:40.correspondent got a sneak preview of yes, you have guessed it, Keep
:23:40. > :23:44.It Lit. I have taken risks, I have spoken about my unionist opponents
:23:44. > :23:47.here at Stormont. One of the stories is explaining the
:23:48. > :23:56.difference between David McHrarty and David McNarry, now there is a
:23:56. > :24:06.risk and a half. I suppose my story emNates from Carrickmore, Tyrone,
:24:06. > :24:07.
:24:07. > :24:11.Really that's my story, I maybe want to provoke curiosity from
:24:11. > :24:14.people beyond that community as to what makes us tick. I have
:24:14. > :24:18.something to say and I want to say it and I am saying it in the form
:24:18. > :24:22.of a book. You have spent sometime at Her Majesty's pleasure, do you
:24:22. > :24:27.touch on that in the book? I do, I spent some months in the Crumlin
:24:27. > :24:31.Road remand prison. During that time I learned a lot. I wasn't only
:24:31. > :24:37.political person who ever saw the inside of a prison cell. In fact,
:24:37. > :24:42.one ex-prisoner visited me then, namely, Ian Paisley. He was then a
:24:42. > :24:46.DUP member of the European Parliament and he came into prison
:24:46. > :24:50.to assess the conditions of the jail for the benefit of loyalist
:24:50. > :25:00.prisoners essentially. I did ask to meet him and when I discovered he
:25:00. > :25:23.
:25:23. > :25:26.was in the prison it was made possible for me to meet him. But I
:25:26. > :25:30.specifically made the request to meet Ian Paisley and he abg seeded
:25:30. > :25:32.to that request and we had a productive meeting at the time.
:25:32. > :25:36.you seek permission of the Sinn Fein leadership before writing this
:25:36. > :25:46.book? I imagine they were a little bit nervous or were they? I got
:25:46. > :25:46.
:25:46. > :25:56.great support. One of the people that encouraged me to write the
:25:56. > :26:06.
:26:06. > :26:09.Barry McElduff there. We'll see if that strategy was a sensible one,
:26:09. > :26:13.when we see the reaction to the book over the next few weeks. Our
:26:13. > :26:17.guest Alex Kane is with me again. We'll talk about the book in a
:26:17. > :26:22.moment. But let's have a word about Jim Allister, the former Deputy
:26:22. > :26:28.Leader of the Assembly group with the Ulster Unionist Party who made
:26:28. > :26:32.a speech again yesterday about opposition and about the need for a
:26:32. > :26:36.formal opposition here at Stormont. Not surprised that he should have
:26:36. > :26:41.done that, but does the case stack up in your view? I think it does
:26:41. > :26:45.stack up. It's worth bearing in mind that since 1998 every opinion
:26:45. > :26:49.poll has shown majority, substantial majority in favour of
:26:49. > :26:53.having opposition at Stormont. All the political parties have talked
:26:53. > :26:57.about having opposition and at Leeds castle and St Andrews they
:26:57. > :27:02.talked of the need for opposition. No-one has done anything about it.
:27:02. > :27:06.Allister, give him his dew, he went into the leadership campaign and
:27:06. > :27:10.that was his big idea. It doesn't exist now. It's interesting he has
:27:10. > :27:15.come up with the idea of the private members bill. For all the
:27:15. > :27:18.talk of opposition, personally I'm supportive, there's huge
:27:18. > :27:22.difficulties. If you had structures of opposition, do you have to have
:27:22. > :27:24.a cross-community opposition? If you have a leader of the opposition
:27:24. > :27:29.does it have to be Unionist and Nationalist working together? If
:27:29. > :27:31.you have a formal, funded, properly structured opposition, do you have
:27:31. > :27:36.the situation where you have to have a cap on the percentage and
:27:37. > :27:40.number of MLAs? At the moment if you have over a certain percentage
:27:40. > :27:45.you're in the executive if you want. If you're in opposition, isn't it
:27:45. > :27:48.sensible to say, I'm sorry, you haven't enough to be in Government.
:27:48. > :27:52.The Deputy Leader of the SDLP floated this idea, saying her party
:27:52. > :27:55.should be thinking about, it even though it's not what her leader
:27:55. > :28:02.talked about in his speech. She said it's something we should
:28:02. > :28:11.discuss. Is it a scenario where we have a Shadow First Minister and
:28:11. > :28:16.then a deputy Shadow First That's thousand would have to work.
:28:16. > :28:20.If you are setting up opposition as an alternative to what's been
:28:20. > :28:24.described, as the Sinn Fein DUP carve-up, I am not sure how you
:28:24. > :28:27.have a credible alternative which consists of one party and if these
:28:27. > :28:30.two parties are saying we have a role and relevance and we could be
:28:30. > :28:34.better than the other two parties, we can show we can work together
:28:34. > :28:38.then they have to do it together. Here is the thing, surely, politics
:28:38. > :28:42.is about power, it's about getting your hands on the hrefers of powers,
:28:42. > :28:46.having control of the purse purse strings. They have that power at
:28:46. > :28:50.the moment to go opposition they would be giving it up. I am not
:28:50. > :28:52.sure they have that power. Having observed them since 2007 when the
:28:52. > :28:56.DUP-Sinn Fein became the two biggest parties, they have very
:28:56. > :29:00.little input. They have little influence. They're often ignored at
:29:00. > :29:05.key executive decisions, not told until they arrive at the meeting, a
:29:05. > :29:08.decision has been taken. A final word about Barry McElduff's book
:29:08. > :29:12.that he was talking about. Do you think that any unionist politicians
:29:12. > :29:16.will have a copy of it as a secret pleasure in their Christmas
:29:16. > :29:20.stocking? Probably if it's given to them as a present! I don't think
:29:20. > :29:22.they'll rush out and buy it. I am tkphrad to see someone -- glad to
:29:22. > :29:27.see someone writing about the background to the Assembly because
:29:27. > :29:29.it can be a fun job and it's an entertaining job and also it's
:29:29. > :29:34.instructive given Barry's background to see where he is now
:29:34. > :29:37.and writing, so openly about it. That's good. Would you be happy to
:29:37. > :29:41.have a copy? Yes, it anybody wants to send me a copy I will happily