24/02/2014 Stormont Today

Hello and welcome to Stormont Today. Coming up on the programme: The

Enterprise Minister promises to help those made redundant by the closure

of a Dungiven company. We will do all that we can to support them, of

course, and to assist them in relation to either finding a job or

indeed starting their own business and we will do that through Invest

NI. Martin McGuinness says he believes the United States

government still has faith in the Richard Haass proposals. There can

be no doubt whatsoever that the United States of America remains

very engaged in this work. And I'm joined by our Political Reporter,

Stephen Walker, for his view on today's proceedings.

Friday's dramatic news of 202 job losses in Dungiven was the subject

of an urgent oral question in the chamber today. KPL Contracts went

into administration and the local Sinn Fein MLA, Cathal O hOisin, said

that was a massive blow for the area. He asked the Enterprise, Trade

and Investment Minister what will be done to help those affected. A

redundancy clinic has been organised for 2.00pm on Wednesday, February

26th at the Elk inn in too many bridge. Advice will be provided on

entietedlements and business start-ups support for those who may

be considering self-employment as an option. The news broke on Friday. I

spoke to the administrator the a lunch time on Friday and again

today. It would appear there is a considerable volume of work that is

there with large employing bases and the minister has outlined them, such

as DRD Road Service, NIE and BT. Will the minister have discussions

with our executive colleague and others to ensure that if we have the

skilled workbase there that can carry out the work that needs doing,

the work still needs done, that some of these companies will be able to

offer employment opportunities to the former employees of KPL? Well,

certainly if there are companies looking for workers, they will find

them with skills in abundance in relation to KPL. We will assist any

companies that want to come forward to us and look for help in relation

to job fund applications. I have had a brief opportunity to speak to my

colleague, the DRD minister in relation to the matters. He is

looking into this, as you would expect him to do, in terms of the

agencies involved with KPL. I'm sure that's the case with the private

companies as well, who have assured us they have contingencies in place

in relation to customers. That's not the question we are talking about

today. The question is in relation to those people who have found out

they no longer have a job. We will do all we can to support them, of

course and to assist them in relation to either finding a job or

indeed starting their own business and we will do that through Invest

NI. The Enterprise Minister, Arlene Foster, pledging her support for the

KPL workers made redundant last week. The state of the

Dungiven-based company was also mentioned during questions to the

Deputy First Minister. Martin McGuinness also discussed the

Maze/Long Kesh project, the Richard Haass proposals and, firstly, his

visit with Peter Robinson to the US next month... On Monday, had 10th

March we'll meet with HBO's President of Production and six

other top executives. We met HBO in Los Angeles in 2000 the when we

persuaded them to take a leap of faith and locate the production of

the Game of Thrones series here. We'll support a charity at an

evening event in Los Angeles that will include young people from

disadvantaged backgrounds from here and LA. We will then travel to San

Jose to meet with Seagate's seen area management team. Seagate

technology, as you know is one of our most prestigious hi-tech

companies whose fas nit Derry employs over 1,300 people. The

company makes a major contribution to the economy of the north-west and

this is our first opportunity to meet sap seagate's seen area

management team at its US headquarters. We look forward to T

we will host an investment luncheon for over 120 Silicon Valley business

executives, to discuss the merits of doing business here. Later that day,

we will travel to San Francisco to officiate at the official opening of

Invest NI's new office on the west coast. Well, I absolutely agree with

the member, the loss of 200 jobs through KPL's difficulties in Given

is very very disappointing -- Dungiven. But in recent years we

have become increasingly successful in attracting foreign direct

investment. Foreign direct investment is very, very important

but also, we understand the huge importance of our own indigenous

businesses and the massive contribution they make towards

employment. And that's why we are so disappointed that the collapse of K

p. L. PL -- in the collapse of the the company in Dungiven that has

left 200 people on the dole queue. Every effort will be made to make

sure they get report. Will he be discussing the Haas process with

political representatives, which I know might depend on getting an

invited to the White House? Well, I don't think there is any possibility

whatsoever of us travelling to the United States and not being the

subject of a conversation around the whole issue of the Haas process,

given that Richard Haas and Megan O'Sullivan are two highly

represented diplomats and well-known on Capitol Hill. So, I think that

there can be no doubt, whatsoever, that the United States of America

remains very engaged in this work. Could I ask the Deputy First

Minister, if, in the course of his forthcoming trip to the USA, he

receives a serious business inquiry about a potential investment in the

Maze site, what advice would he give that potential investor at the

present time? Well, I don't have any doubts that the Maze Long Kesh site

is a site of huge national and international importance. And, I

have no doubt whatsoever that there are quite a number of businesses

very interested in seeing that site developed. The Peace Centre was

designed to be just that, a centre for peace and reconciliation. The

only shrine at that centre will be a shrine to peace and reconciliation.

And our Political Reporter, Stephen Walker, joins me now. Some familiar

themes there. Let's start with the references to Richard Haas. Where

are we, with that protest? Well, it is now the post-Haas world. Richard

Haas was mentioned there but this process is now firmly in the control

of the parties since the New Year. There have been a series of

meetings, often on a weekly basis. They had discussions last week. I

under understand there are more discussions to. They are called

leaders plus one meetings. The documents floating around. The DUP

and other parties have presented papers. Basically everybody knows

everybody else's position but there is no sense that this process is

moving towards an agreement. One revelation today, the cost of the

Haas talks reported at around ?250,000. That doesn't include a fee

because obviously Richard Haas and Megan O'Sullivan didn't charge one

but that's the cost right up from last summer to New Year's Eve. The

cost is ticking, it has been made that the Americans want the issue

wrapped up by St Patrick's Day. He made them during an interview on the

View, and he talked about a deal in St Patrick's day when Peter Robinson

and Martin McGuinness are there. Nationalists are clearly hoping for

it much the unionists have never accepted this. But as I said

earlier, there no quugs, that the way the talks are going at the

moment, that there would be any kind of agreement. So whilst that is one

date in people's diry, the 17th March. I think what is clear is,

people are thinking about other things further talk the track and

particularly thinking about the local and European elections in May.

We got flavour of that detail of the US trip that the First Minister and

Deputy First Minister are planning in the middle of March. We got some

detime. On these occasions they try to do this as an opportunity to have

political meetings but they also try to use it as an opportunity to

showcase Northern Ireland in the hope that there will be investment

further down the track. Finally, we heard there, previously, the Maze

development raising its head once again in the Chamber and all the

controversy that brings with T Very familiar themes, if you think what

we had today in Deputy First Minister's questions. Obviously a

lot of discussion on the Haas talks. A lot of discussion about St

Patrick's Day and all this comes surrounding the Maze when it was

reported today that the ?18 million that was going to be used from

European funding for the Maze project, reported today at one stage

it was thought the money would be lost, but it is reported today that

money could be channelled back. Clearly the parties cannot agree on

what to do with the site. I think they would all agree they want the

money to be used for something. But does that mean - effectively do we

think the money will be lost to the Maze/Long Kesh vote. ? Well, we need

to know what the detail is. But certainly the implication today was

that money will still be made available for other projects.

Thank you very much for now. The Social Development Minister was once

again questioned on the alleged overcharging of Housing Executive

contracts, with one MLA asking him if he would reconsider his position.

Nelson McCausland was also asked about social housing. He started by

giving figures showing there is equal unionist and nationalist

housing need in North Belfast. The figures there speak for themselves.

1,994 people from the protestant community, 1,988 from the Roman

Catholic community. A difference of six.

The a first I thought, Mr Speaker, that the minister was simply

spinning, but now I believe the minister is also self-delusional in

relation to housing in North Belfast but irrespective of whatever spin or

self-delusion he indudges in, there is a basic need for housing in North

Belfast. Will the minister properly address that need and urgently?

Well, first of all, if I could deal with the member's point that I'm

self-delusion self-delusional? The figures that I quote quoted were in

fact produced by the Housing executive. They are not my figures.

I didn't create them, I didn't write them. They were given to me this

morning by the Housing Executive. Now, if the member thinks that the

Housing Executive is delusional, that's his opinion, he is entitled

to that. But he can not get around the fact that these are the figures.

It may not be the figures he wants to hear, or the figures he heard in

the past but they are the facts. From what the minister now knows,

does he accept that his enthusiastic announcement of an ?18 million

over-charge was a gross exaggeration, and did gross damage

to contractors and their credit standing? Does he now accept that? I

did not invent the figure of ?18 million in relation to the

over-estimated -- the estimated over-payments to contractors. I was

advised of the figure by the Chairman of the Board following a

report to the Board of the Housing Executive in May 2013. The report

estimated the sum of over-charging was in the region of ?9-13 million.

I have already stated that will whilst that remained a substantial

amount of tax payers' money, I was somewhat relieved that the level had

slightly reduced. However, at the end of the day, I have already

stated clearly this afternoon, we must all awhich the the outcome of

the current negotiations and I am hopeful that we are coming to the

point where those negotiations will be concluded and a settlement

between the Housing Executive and the contractors will have been

reached. Mr Speaker, the minister refuses to confirm that there wasn't

a significant over-charge. Would he agree with the House in fact that

there was significant under-charges and really at this stage, would the

minister consider parking the ministerial car and perhaps giving

the brief case to someone else? Over quite a number of years, the

handling of contracts by the Housing Executive was really unacceptable.

Management... Well, people ask the Minster was, indeed. That's a

question that people might well ask. But it is important, anyway. THE

SPEAKER: Order. He doesn't have a car to give up now.

A Nelson McCausland in robust form, and once again talking about the

Housing Executive. The Financial Provisions Bill was debated in the

Chamber today and matters focused on the Small Business Rates Relief

Scheme. Sinn Fein's Daithi McKay proposed a review of the scheme. The

small business rates release scheme commenced in April 2010 and has been

in operation for some fouriers and there has been some changes to it in

that time, for example, the extension to properties with an NAV

of up to ?15,000. It has been very much welcomed by small and

medium-sized enterprises in particular, and many shops within

our town centres and of course around 25,000 properties currently

benefit from it at this moment in time. We are all in agreement that

there needs to be a review and for that reason, I cannot see why anyone

would object to this particular amendment. I think it is useful...

Yes? I've listened to the acceptance by the Member and the proposer of

the Motion that there has already been agreed to be a review. That was

agreed by myself and current Minster. Why is such an amendment

necessary then? Is it because the Member does not believe that such a

review is going to make place? That he doubts the sincerity of the

Minster, or is this simply to have an amendment of some sort down?

Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. I thank the Member for that

intervention. The Member should know by this stage that I take every word

that comes out of his mouth as truth and would not dare, under any

circumstances, to contradict him. But, it's always reassuring to have

what is said underlined and underlined in legislation. An

evaluation of the Small Business Rates Release Scheme will be

undertaken by my department later this year. This intention has been

made clear for sometime and has been made clear by my predecessor and by

myself and has been made clear in this House and has been made very

clear elsewhere as well. So, the very clear, stated position of two

successive minsters of Financial and Personnel representing the

department, has been that an evaluation will be carried out,

because one needs to be carried out at that stage in the life of the

Small Business Rates Release Scheme. If we cast our minds back. It has

been accepted it is an incredibly successful scheme. It has been

extended where half of all businesses in Northern Ireland are

getting at least 20% off rates bill. We all agree it has been successful.

The Finance Minister, Simon Hamilton, who had a busy day today,

because a bill to give Government departments access to their funding

passed its final stage. The Budget Bill has been fast-tracked through

the Assembly and now simply requires Royal Assent. This Budget Bill

covers the 2013/14 financial year and provides legal authority to

spend in the first few months of 2014/15. Looking nerms it of the

management of public expend Stour, we began the year with an

over-commitment we sought to manage through the monitoring rounds and

the year monitoring process. Through three monitoring rounds we were able

to you can is sowsfully imagine down this over-commitment as well as Real

Kate surplus funding. However, this process by no means draws a line

under the 2013/14 financial year and it would be remisof me as Finance

Minster if I gave that impression. There are five weeks left the

financial year and minsters and committees must continue their work

to ensuring departmental budgets are maximised using sound financial

principles and thereby ensuring we have to return unspent funding to

Treasury. Department are in the latter stages of planning for the

next financial year the first few weeks are covered by this

legislation. There planning will be further complicated if we continue

to delay progress on welfare reform. Should that delay run into 2014/15

we are facing significant reductions in our block grant from Treasury,

which will have an impact on all departmental budgets. As has been

wreck flied previously by the Finance Committee, the sledge

slative stages of the existing budge eted and financial process are come

boresome and knead to be streamlined. Indeed the Committee

and Minster are concurrently considering a proposed memorandum of

understanding between the Assembly and Executive on the budget process,

which if operated effectively would support the future streamlining of

the legislative stages of the budget and financial process, thereby,

expediting Assembly aproving of the Executive's annual stuments and

budget Bills. There has been, to date, a failure to reach agreement

around the Haas talks and the various issues involved there. And

that failure to reach agreement, it does have an impact - it has an

impact on our ability to attract foreign direct investment. But also,

the failure to agree within this House on important key legislation,

I think also impacts on public spending. The current system is

ineffective and does not show transpan youcy or direct read

across. Moreover, ministers must make every effort to ensure

departmental budgets are adhered to and that underspend is kept to an

absolute minimum. We have to avoid the risk of having to return any

unspent funding to the Treasury. The Minster has said such an occurrence

would be extremely difficult to explain to the tax payers, as we

work through one of the tightest budge nets recent years.

The Budget Bill is about more than welfare reform. But I've got to say,

the job of the Financial Minster is made much more difficult by the kind

of attitude that we have seen towards welfare reform, and the

response of this Assembly and the Executive to welfare reform.

The d.d U pu. 's Sammy Wilson there. -- DUP. Has recent wet weather been

a consequence of climate change? The Alliance Party certainly believes

so, and earlier this evening called on the Executive to reduce its

environmental footprint. The motion was proposed by the Alliance MLA

Anna Lo, who joins me now. In fact, you were successful. Ye, I'm very

please pleased that certainly we'll receive all-party for it. Yes, there

may be one or two who argued whether climate change is man-made or

whether it is, you know a phenomenon that is happening by itself, but all

of them agree climate change it is here. There is no question about it.

There is a large amount of scientific evidence to say it is

here. So, it is really whether we face it, we do something about it,

we mit git it, we adepartment ourselves to do the best we can.

What does that actually mean in real terms? I think that's what some

people are frightened about. They don't really know what the

consequences of dealing with that might be? Can you sum it up? What do

you think needs to happen? We need to, first of all, reduce our carbon

footprint. We need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It's at

all levels. Individually, we can all can do something. We all can say -

not buy plastic bags. Which need carbon foot prints to produce them.

We can start maybe not driving lots and lots of distances. Short

distances. Maybe we can walk, psych 'em, take public transport. --

cycle, take public transport, rather than taking our car with one driver

there driving to work and home. There are lots of things we can do

individually but there are lots of things government can do and it is

important that government has a co-ordinated approach to it.

Because, really, reduction of carbon footprints, reduction of greenhouse

gas emission is in our programme for government. We have pledged that we

will reduce 35% of greenhouse gas emissions by 1990 level by 2025.

And, of course a lot of people would say it is all very well and laudable

and maybe we should do more but actually continue wouldn't mean

anything globally if other emembers of the jurying countries, like, for

example, China which is becoming a huge industrial park, doesn't do

something as W the rate at which it is building, coal fire plants and

enormous factories, balances out anything we do. How do you respond

to that? It is a serious point. Absolutely. I think you are wrong in

saying that. China used to be the biggest polluter they are not any

more. They have invested hugely on renewable energy and are producing

lots of re renewable energy products. They are one of the

biggest, I think, producers now of wind turbines, and the solar plans.

So, I mean we are not doing enough. We also need to be thinking about -

the debate today is also mainly about flood. Flooding is going to be

the biggest effect of climate change are for Northern Ireland. OK, we

need to leave it there. Thank you very much for coming in to join us.

The Human Trafficking Bill was discussed once again at the Justice

Committee last week. Giving evidence were two high ranking police

officers. We join proceedings as the committee chair, Paul Givan, asks

Assistant Chief Constable Drew Harris for his view about Clause 6

of the bill, which would make it illegal to pay for sex here. We have

no opposition, I can say overall in respect of the Bill we welcome the

Bill and welcome the focus on victims and welcome the focus on

what other legislative tools may be brought to bear around human

trafficking and also then prostitution, our focus would be on

organised crime groups N respect of Clause 6, no, we have no opposition.

I think there is a qualification in our mind about its impact going

forward, because, what are the unintended consequences? Outside of

the organised crime group, the element of prostitution, we do have

links in with the remainder of the industry. We do wish to provide them

a service because they are vulnerable. We wish to make sure

that they are protected and in passing this legislation, we would

want to be careful to maintain that sense that those individuals do feel

that the police service will protect them from assault, serious harm from

crime. Where you see the particular benefit is as an additional tool to

tackle the serious organised crime gangs, I'm taking this as you saying

this will be of benefit to the police, giving another tool? Of

course there are investigations in respect of just public nuisance

element of prostitution but that is billioned as well, in that we do not

want -- that is balanced as well in that we do not want any victims of

serious crime but particularly those who are vulnerable, not feeling they

can come forward to the police and make complaints. Prostitutes are

particularly vulnerable in society and vulnerable to serious crime and

assault. Can I take it then that prostitution or an estimate, or some

section of prostitution is very mobile in so far as people being

shipped around the country? There is an expression called the chicken

run, which is an expression used in the trafficking industry where girls

would be moved from locations throughout not only Northern Ireland

but throughout the island of Ireland and there has been documentaries

about that to show people have been moved around. Part of that is simply

to meet the choice of people who want to use the services, rather

than revisit a brothel a week later and find the same girls there. It is

to keep that fresh, as it were. Detective Chief Superintendent Roy

McComb ending our look back at last week's Justice Committee

proceedings. And Stephen Walker is with me again. A few final thoughts.

Away from the Chamber, Gerry Kelly the Sinn Fein MLA is making

headlines again. That's right this. Relates to an incident last summer

up at Carrick Hill during the loyalist tour of the north when

Gerry Kelly was on the bonnet of a police Land Rover. Sinn Fein said

today, Gerry Kelly in common with any other citizen is entitled to

access the courts when he believes he has been wronged. This is about

taking action against the police. There hoos been unionist criticism

about Gerry Kelly's decision today. DUP's Nigel Dodds says this is one

of the most petty and small-minded acts taken on behalf of Sinn Fein

and Tom Elliot was very, very critical of Gerry Kelly and

basically said he should hang his head in shame. A lot of criticism

from unionists directed towards Gerry Kelly. And finally, the

fishing industry is asking Stormont for help? Yes, we have had similar

stories to this last year when we had the heavy snow. The farming

community looked for help and local fishmen have called on Stormont to

provide financial ad after the bad weather. They said the conditions

meant they couldn't go out in their boats. Any Mel O'Neil, the

Agriculture Minister is meeteding them tomorrow and the South Down MLA

is calling for a meeting of Executive and has called for more

aid. That's all for now. I'm back again

tomorrow on BBC Two at 11. 20pm. For now, goodbye.

Should Britain have entered the Great War?

Britain's decision for war was a disaster

not just for this country, but also for the entire world.

What if we'd stayed out? What if Germany had won?

war would have ended with a German victory in 1916, if not earlier.

from what we might call the Blackadder take on history

is to believe that it was all so futile,

that it didn't matter which side won.

We're left with just one question - was it worth it?

on whether we were right to go to war.