:00:30. > :00:34.Hello and welcome to Stormont today. The very nature of the structures
:00:34. > :00:39.of the assembly were under scrutiny with the select committee here to
:00:39. > :00:44.take members use today. The sports minister reassure us and LA's that
:00:44. > :00:50.all is well with the police and fire games. Everything that was in
:00:50. > :00:56.place remains the same. There are couples over the opening ceremony.
:00:56. > :01:00.If hand opinion polls, flagpoles... They even squeezed in the South
:01:00. > :01:04.Pole today. We have arrived at a crucial moment where we will
:01:04. > :01:12.surrender Antarctica. To discuss that, I'm joined by our political
:01:12. > :01:14.reporter for stop hoo-ha --. Should the public have the right to
:01:14. > :01:19.know who gives a significant sums of money to our local political
:01:19. > :01:21.parties? That was one of the issues under discussion today when
:01:21. > :01:25.Westminster's Northern Ireland affairs committee came to Stormont
:01:25. > :01:28.to take evidence on a Bill proposing a number of changes to
:01:28. > :01:33.the political system here. Of political reporter watched
:01:33. > :01:37.proceedings and he is with me now. First of all, why is the committee
:01:37. > :01:40.here today and tomorrow? A this is the Northern Ireland affairs
:01:40. > :01:43.committee and they are looking at the issue of structures in the
:01:44. > :01:46.assembly. There are looking at things like the opposition, party
:01:46. > :01:49.donations and all the structures that we are familiar with because
:01:49. > :01:54.there is this Northern Ireland Bill that will be going through
:01:54. > :01:59.Westminster. They've been hearing evidence from witnesses today and
:01:59. > :02:03.they will hear evidence tomorrow. One of those that they heard from
:02:04. > :02:08.was Jim Allister, the TV -- T U C leader. He has always championed
:02:08. > :02:12.the idea of an opposition and this is what he told the committee today.
:02:12. > :02:19.A great burden of what I want to say relates to not what is not in
:02:19. > :02:24.this bill and my disappointment about that. Thatched homes in in
:02:25. > :02:30.particular on the absence of the opportunity which existed at to
:02:31. > :02:36.democratise the these institutions instalment. As things stand, this
:02:36. > :02:41.dormant is a blot on a democratic landscape. The issue of party
:02:41. > :02:45.donations was raised. One party did think it would be premature to drop
:02:45. > :02:51.anonymity at the stage. That was the United Kingdom Independence
:02:51. > :02:55.Party, who gave evidence today. One person was asked questions about a
:02:55. > :02:59.number of MPs about the issue of party donations. He was asked about
:02:59. > :03:05.this whole issue of whether or not anonymity should be dropped and
:03:05. > :03:11.this is what he told the committee. I am not asking any specific things
:03:11. > :03:14.on this issue. I am taking in the round and I am taking and thinking
:03:14. > :03:18.of the general protection of people in Northern Ireland, who would wish
:03:18. > :03:24.to sponsor ordinator to any political party. As someone who has
:03:24. > :03:28.been threatened more than once... That is why we want to hear from
:03:28. > :03:32.you? It is not something I would want to place upon anybody else's
:03:32. > :03:41.shoulders. The that was David Nutt Berry, the Alliance Party and the
:03:41. > :03:45.Greens disagree. They want full disclosure, as does the T U v.
:03:45. > :03:52.Stewart... He made it clear why he feels there should be full
:03:52. > :03:58.disclosure. I am not sure FARC for wrecked is any more or any real
:03:58. > :04:04.than it is to any business person or any other individual. -- I am
:04:04. > :04:08.not sure that is the case for any more real person. More evidence
:04:08. > :04:13.being taken by the committee tomorrow. That's right. They will
:04:13. > :04:17.hear evidence from the two Unionist leaders. They will hear evidence
:04:17. > :04:27.from Alastair Macdonald. Also from Sinn Fein and from the Independent
:04:27. > :04:28.
:04:28. > :04:33.and La David Carter. -- MLA. All these proceedings took place in the
:04:33. > :04:35.chamber. The committee will go back to Westminster, they will take more
:04:35. > :04:39.evidence in Westminster and then eventually a whole report will be
:04:40. > :04:45.presented. We will get a sense of what the committee thinks should go
:04:45. > :04:48.on to Westminster. After much speculation, it was
:04:48. > :04:51.confirmed last week that the opening ceremony of the world
:04:51. > :04:56.Police and Fire Games will be held at the King's Hall in Belfast. The
:04:56. > :05:00.topic came up several times during questions to the Sports Minister.
:05:00. > :05:06.She described the uncertainty as a hiccup but said that everything
:05:06. > :05:10.else is in place. There are 41 sport and 57 venues. Not all are
:05:10. > :05:18.based in Belfast. Something like 15 are outside. They have all been
:05:18. > :05:23.settled. Everything that was in place remains the case. Pick up was
:05:23. > :05:32.due to the opening ceremony. Can I ask the Minister how the venue will
:05:32. > :05:37.be modified to accommodate the opening ceremony? I thank the man
:05:38. > :05:44.before her question. But for last Federation visit, several visits
:05:44. > :05:51.took place between April and June, the capacity for something like
:05:51. > :05:56.21,000... The King's Hall can reach than. Even contract to see smaller
:05:56. > :06:01.numbers when it is appropriate. It is not envisaged at this stage.
:06:01. > :06:05.Even going by last week, the figures that were anticipated are
:06:05. > :06:15.still to be expected from the first to 10th August. The opening
:06:15. > :06:16.
:06:16. > :06:22.ceremony is more than able to cope with that. Could I ask the Minister,
:06:22. > :06:26.in relation to the number of people attending, you've said 41 sports
:06:27. > :06:33.have a 57 venues, can I ask the number of athletes and the number
:06:33. > :06:37.of people we anticipate coming to watch the games? I have no figures
:06:37. > :06:42.in terms of how many spectators there will be. I know that there
:06:42. > :06:48.are 10,000 athletes and with those 10,000 athletes, they are expecting
:06:48. > :06:53.15,000 to accompany them. That is up to 25,000. There will be a big
:06:53. > :06:57.local interest, particularly for some of the events. The company is
:06:57. > :07:00.looking at ticket regimes to make sure members of the public have
:07:00. > :07:04.every opportunity to attend the events and particularly for the
:07:04. > :07:06.schools. Some of the schools will be paired with countries who are
:07:06. > :07:15.visiting and competing but I have no figure, not even an indication
:07:15. > :07:18.of what the demand is yet. I expect that I will closer to the time.
:07:18. > :07:23.Would the Minister agree with me that this would be an excellent
:07:23. > :07:26.opportunity for her to show case Northern Ireland at its best? There
:07:26. > :07:31.will be so many people coming from all parts of the world and it will
:07:31. > :07:36.be a opportunity to let the people see that we have a shared heritage
:07:36. > :07:42.and we are promoting our shared and better future for everyone in
:07:42. > :07:49.Northern Ireland? I would agree with a member. Not just that, but
:07:49. > :07:52.some of the delegation have come over already, four weeks ago, from
:07:52. > :07:57.five different countries. They visited some of our historical
:07:57. > :08:00.sites, are tourist attractions and some of the communities. They were
:08:00. > :08:04.nothing but impressed with what we had to offer. That was just a
:08:04. > :08:08.glimpse of what will come from the start of August. Can I declare an
:08:08. > :08:10.interest as someone who has applied to be a volunteer in the Games?
:08:10. > :08:15.Could the Minster telly if the rumour is true that I'm going to
:08:15. > :08:25.have to have -- have an awful lot of competition to give up some of
:08:25. > :08:26.
:08:26. > :08:31.my time for free? I am afraid you are! I don't think we are done yet.
:08:31. > :08:36.There is a request for 3500 people giving up their time to volunteer.
:08:37. > :08:43.We are at 6000. One of the reasons we extended the deadline for people
:08:43. > :08:50.volunteering, was on occasions, there were difficulties to do with
:08:50. > :08:53.the services. They have applied. I think it is good news. By hope and
:08:53. > :08:59.under his successful in his application and a look forward to
:08:59. > :09:03.seeing him taking part. Plans to transplant at the
:09:03. > :09:06.University of Ulster campus in Jordan's town to Belfast are to go
:09:06. > :09:11.to the planning committee within weeks. But to the pan has been
:09:11. > :09:17.welcomed, there are some concerns as the environment minister
:09:17. > :09:23.revealed during question time. -- although the plan has been welcomed.
:09:23. > :09:28.In terms of the design of the proposal, it will masques
:09:28. > :09:34.significantly. It will go up very high. It will have impact upon
:09:34. > :09:39.Heritage, parking, traffic and so on and so forth. In terms of the
:09:39. > :09:42.nature and character and scale of this proposal, it is a very
:09:42. > :09:46.challenging one. I hope there is nobody in this House or elsewhere
:09:46. > :09:50.who thinks that this is an easy call for stop it is a big call
:09:50. > :09:55.because it is a big proposal which will have a big impact upon fad
:09:55. > :09:58.part of the city. If it is done right, it can be part of the
:09:58. > :10:08.overall development of the north side of the committee but the
:10:08. > :10:08.
:10:08. > :10:12.exchange, with north side, with it the underpass West Link. All will
:10:12. > :10:16.gather around the cathedral quarter. We have an unprecedented
:10:16. > :10:23.opportunity to shape that part of the city, an opportunity that only
:10:23. > :10:28.comes once in a century. This is a community that, especially during
:10:28. > :10:34.the summer and autumn of last year, demonstrated a great sense of
:10:34. > :10:38.dignity and resilience. High think that they deserve a particular
:10:38. > :10:44.degree of respect in terms of issues in that area, including
:10:44. > :10:47.respect of this planning application. I had very frank
:10:47. > :10:50.conversations in terms of how they should manage the supplication and
:10:50. > :10:56.in terms of the character of the application itself. I think we are
:10:56. > :10:58.moving forward. It would like to see a recommendation going to the
:10:58. > :11:07.City Council in respect of the main scheme, in advance of the town
:11:07. > :11:13.planning a meeting of 7th March. I do have major concerns to inspect
:11:13. > :11:17.of a car-parking proposal. It might be that that particular part of the
:11:17. > :11:21.application will have to be separated from the main application.
:11:21. > :11:27.I do think this would be great opportunity for North Belfast. By
:11:27. > :11:31.agree with the minister. But in this development, will the Minister
:11:31. > :11:34.take into consideration and certainly not prejudice the
:11:34. > :11:42.development of some element of social housing, which is needed in
:11:42. > :11:48.that area? Local people are certainly supportive of it. I think
:11:48. > :11:58.the issue of housing in that area needs very careful management. We
:11:58. > :12:02.don't want to see a situation arrive -- a rise where we have...
:12:02. > :12:09.There is the potential for that to happen. That is why I welcome the
:12:09. > :12:12.city council report which, working with the various people in Belfast,
:12:12. > :12:18.can map out how the student housing issue might be dealt with over the
:12:18. > :12:22.next couple of decades. And we have to recognise that there will be a
:12:22. > :12:27.demand for social housing in that area. There are areas which have
:12:27. > :12:34.previously been designated for housing and then in my view, that
:12:34. > :12:37.needs to be respected going for it. I do not think that development of
:12:37. > :12:41.all the available land for the university is the way forward. I
:12:41. > :12:48.believe it needs to be balanced development and that would include
:12:48. > :12:58.potential student housing. Have you heard the story of the
:12:58. > :13:04.
:13:04. > :13:08.finance minister who got cross- I have to congratulate the minister,
:13:08. > :13:11.and appreciated as a wonderful job. Self-praise is the recommendation,
:13:11. > :13:16.but I am giving it anywhere. Something that came that is the
:13:16. > :13:22.commitment that is being given in the department's in relation to
:13:22. > :13:27.redeeming funds as an -- at an early a stage as possible and we
:13:27. > :13:35.are not losing it, so I appreciate that. Up until now, things are
:13:35. > :13:41.working better and I know that in history, there are manys that have
:13:41. > :13:46.to go back to Westminster because they were not spent, and I know the
:13:46. > :13:50.media like to jump all over the budget will receive, the block
:13:50. > :13:54.grant we receive and the money we spend, and we are not spending it
:13:54. > :13:57.all. Can I say that within the parameters that have been set death
:13:57. > :14:04.in relation to how much we can or cannot carry forward, it is good
:14:04. > :14:08.for cheating -- set down. There will always be exceptions and
:14:08. > :14:13.circumstances that cannot be anticipated and again, I think the
:14:13. > :14:19.flexibility of the monitoring rate allows us to adjust. I would echo
:14:19. > :14:26.the Commons about the efficiency savings. Some of the departments
:14:26. > :14:29.have genuinely found efficiency, but possibly the same focus that we
:14:29. > :14:37.had previously put on financial projections and performance with
:14:37. > :14:41.innings to be addressed, because it is going to be an ongoing issue
:14:41. > :14:44.with pressure on the block grant, so on that basis I would commend
:14:44. > :14:49.the minister and the motion for the work that has been done so far,
:14:49. > :14:55.just to join in! Are no the minister would feel short-changed
:14:55. > :14:59.if I didn't mention that the ongoing costs are unsustainable.
:14:59. > :15:04.The minister did highlight in his opening remarks some office
:15:04. > :15:11.successes around tourism and maybe I need to take the opportunity to
:15:11. > :15:15.tell their how wonderful he is at this stage. However, in the face
:15:15. > :15:18.off good news stories, the recent unrest has shown how, when we
:15:18. > :15:22.scratch the surface, divisions are still very evident and that there
:15:22. > :15:26.is no doubt this division will continue to hurt us economically
:15:26. > :15:31.and financially, by deterring tourism and investment and
:15:31. > :15:35.committing our ability to attract and faint taint of talent. So while
:15:35. > :15:40.I offer my support to the Bill, the question still stands about how
:15:40. > :15:44.much longer can we as an Assembly afford to keep spending money
:15:44. > :15:49.managing division rather than finding sustainable solutions.
:15:49. > :15:53.wishing to be a party-pooper and wishing to go on record that I
:15:53. > :15:59.actually do like Sammy Wilson quite well, I rise to speak, however,
:15:59. > :16:04.fear opposition to this Budget Bill. And while they finance minister did
:16:04. > :16:06.a good job of presenting the Budget, the budget he had to do that there
:16:06. > :16:15.was a complacent but it accrued by a complacent Executive and
:16:15. > :16:19.presented to the complacent Assembly -- agreed Fife. However, I
:16:19. > :16:22.exonerates -- exonerate the minister, who is someone who has to
:16:22. > :16:26.present the Budget to create behind closed doors by the Executive and
:16:26. > :16:32.he has carried out his duty professionally. I did consider
:16:32. > :16:37.making some amendments, but what is the point? This Budget is and what
:16:37. > :16:41.a done deal before the Minister presented it to the house -- is and
:16:41. > :16:47.was. In fact, the house must share my thoughts, because there are no
:16:47. > :16:52.amendments tabled by any party. The purpose of the Bill is to authorise
:16:52. > :16:58.the use of resources totalling over 16 billion by departments and
:16:58. > :17:03.certain other bodies. Current capital receipts of over 2 billion
:17:03. > :17:06.contribute to an overall operating total of just under 19 billion. And
:17:06. > :17:10.the finance minister, in his usual combination of jolly approach on
:17:10. > :17:18.the one hand and school teachers called in on the cover, has been
:17:18. > :17:21.the only minister to present on that the -- during the Budget
:17:21. > :17:27.debate. His job was to act as the delicate it Minister task with the
:17:27. > :17:33.job of presenting a Budget Karpov agreed at the Executive table. No
:17:33. > :17:38.other minister, it would seem, felt it move -- necessary, or was
:17:38. > :17:45.present to defend their department will spend, despite the universal
:17:45. > :17:53.criticism of all departments five disassembly. The -- 5 disassembly.
:17:53. > :17:58.This short, final starch, let me emphasise that, final stage of the
:17:58. > :18:01.budget Assembly, they have been many opportunities in this house
:18:01. > :18:09.over the last couple of weeks for those who take the view that
:18:09. > :18:16.somehow or other there are fundamental flaws in this Budget.
:18:16. > :18:21.Fundamental flaws which he believed are shared by a widespread number
:18:21. > :18:26.of people in this house, and I'm sure that had he come and put a
:18:26. > :18:33.cogent case, and much more importantly, put some amendments
:18:33. > :18:38.down, then that untapped source of discontent they have been able to
:18:38. > :18:41.find some expression to it. -- may have been able to.
:18:41. > :18:44.The Finance Minister, Sammy Wilson. Now, he might not have been a
:18:44. > :18:47.household name a week ago, but he's certainly heading that way now.
:18:47. > :18:50.During an extraordinary day at the World Track Cycling Championships
:18:50. > :18:53.last week, Newtownards rider Martyn Irvine won a silver medal in the
:18:53. > :18:56.individual pursuit before going one better and winning gold in the 15k
:18:56. > :19:03.scratch race. Today, MLAs on all sides of the chamber rose to
:19:03. > :19:09.applaud his achievements. Despite being almost out on his feet after
:19:09. > :19:16.his earlier exertions, with 10 out of the 16 laps to go in the scratch
:19:16. > :19:21.event, he broke from the plunge and face if he went for it -- from the
:19:21. > :19:29.bunch. Sprinting away with every last drop of energy he had. And he
:19:29. > :19:35.has done it all on a shoestring. It is bread and water in cycling. You
:19:35. > :19:39.rightly in, but you ride with very little resource. The budget for
:19:39. > :19:44.track cycling in Ireland is well under 100,000 euros, at just under
:19:44. > :19:54.�90,000. Compare it with the 8 million available per year with the
:19:54. > :19:58.
:19:58. > :20:04.GB team available. It goes mainly -- it goes mainly to fund Mark if
:20:04. > :20:08.and one other rider. Hovered rather do more than just honour him -- I
:20:08. > :20:13.would like to do more than just on him, I would like to invest in him
:20:13. > :20:18.and show how proud we are. The this is an achiever and they'd all the
:20:18. > :20:24.more remarkable -- made all the more remarkable given the resources
:20:24. > :20:28.available to him. Even Martyn Irvine said he couldn't live on
:20:28. > :20:31.what he lives on. Everybody should be proud of what he has done
:20:31. > :20:38.through his hard work, his discipline and his endeavour.
:20:38. > :20:43.Hopefully the likes of Martyn Irvine and Wendy can inspire a
:20:43. > :20:49.generation, over the major events such as the Giro d'Italia, and
:20:50. > :20:53.Northern Ireland can be more than the capital of golf. A Hall of
:20:53. > :20:58.Newtownards will come together to celebrate this achievement -- the
:20:58. > :21:02.whole of. We will remember it is not exceptional to this area, with
:21:02. > :21:09.a silver at the recent World Swimming Championships. We
:21:09. > :21:14.congratulate Martyn Irvine and, yes, there is pride across the whole of
:21:14. > :21:16.Ireland, because he did win wearing an Irish vest and I look forward to
:21:16. > :21:21.seeing him in Northern Ireland colours next year at the
:21:21. > :21:25.Commonwealth Games. The Ulster Unionist Party's Mike
:21:25. > :21:29.Nesbitt. Staying on a sporting theme, this afternoon, Members
:21:29. > :21:33.backed a motion calling for more investment in grass roots sport.
:21:33. > :21:37.The committee is mindful of the pressures on the minister's budget
:21:37. > :21:41.and that knowledge is the difficult job she has been balancing it
:21:41. > :21:44.vestment with tangible benefits. However, the committee is calling
:21:44. > :21:54.on the minister to ensure this all sports are not overlooked for
:21:54. > :21:59.
:21:59. > :22:04.investment. By spectator and -- the Without Investment, the sport may
:22:04. > :22:07.not be able to develop. It may not have enough like it, but I was once
:22:07. > :22:12.a keen sportsman. Though I challenge anyone to the effect on
:22:12. > :22:15.share sportsman than I am now. I want to talk about that old
:22:15. > :22:19.chestnut, joined-up government. We all call for it and we very rarely
:22:19. > :22:22.see anything happening and we have a department for the very small
:22:22. > :22:27.budget which makes it even more important. If we do for for many
:22:27. > :22:30.that is probably wasted by duplication of resources and
:22:30. > :22:35.inefficiencies, not so much in this department but with other
:22:35. > :22:42.departments -- if we do that, if with a fat education, for schools,
:22:42. > :22:47.the sports fields, there is a lot of money being spent their fat may
:22:47. > :22:54.be could be spent in just a slightly different way -- that may
:22:54. > :22:57.be. Sport adds to a wide range of social and economic cultural needs.
:22:57. > :23:00.It improves health and well-being that gives us opportunities and a
:23:00. > :23:05.fast moving world to come together, celebrate and enjoy shared
:23:05. > :23:11.experiences. I should say that Mr Deputy Speaker, since the new year,
:23:11. > :23:16.I have taken to the treadmill myself and managed -- as you might
:23:16. > :23:20.observe, I am not match-fit check that I do feel a tremendous benefit.
:23:20. > :23:25.Experience has shown me that physical exercise is good for
:23:25. > :23:28.everybody and should be available for everybody. We often talk about
:23:28. > :23:33.their shared future but unfortunately, these discussions
:23:33. > :23:39.are frequently academic and lack a degree of practicality. With no
:23:39. > :23:45.physical exercise has health benefits and, like the previous
:23:45. > :23:51.speaker, I too have taken up swimming recently and it has done
:23:51. > :23:56.me great, it has helped my recurring neck problems. But sport
:23:56. > :24:02.also has the power to break down barriers in society and bring
:24:02. > :24:07.people together. It is a practical thing for fostering good community
:24:07. > :24:10.relations and that must never be underestimated. I am not too far
:24:10. > :24:15.from you. A lot of sport, if I'm not watching it through invitation,
:24:15. > :24:18.I am watching it on television or listening on the radio but I do
:24:18. > :24:23.understand the power of sport in terms of health and the economy and
:24:23. > :24:27.certainly in terms of education, and certainly in terms of safety
:24:27. > :24:30.and health and well-being across the board. And there are many
:24:30. > :24:37.overlaps for term fees to say that in my short time in the department,
:24:37. > :24:40.I have seen some of the has kept afloat.
:24:40. > :24:43.Now, an unlikely subject found its way onto the floor of the chamber
:24:43. > :24:46.today. At first glance, you might wonder how MLAs could justify
:24:46. > :24:49.spending time talking about Antarctica, but today they did -
:24:49. > :24:57.and they even managed to drag the continent - temporarily - into the
:24:57. > :25:00.flag dispute Delighted to address the House on this hot topic.
:25:00. > :25:06.It is important that in our society, this house is not the cold house
:25:06. > :25:11.for anyone, but I beg to move... don't give up the day job.
:25:11. > :25:14.Assembly will be aware that the First Minister and Deputy First
:25:14. > :25:19.Minister have led a legislated consent memorandum in which they
:25:19. > :25:24.are seeking support for a legislative consent motion, in
:25:24. > :25:29.respect of the Westminster Antartic full to Northern Ireland. The bill
:25:29. > :25:33.includes a provision that regulation of activities in
:25:33. > :25:39.Antarctica should be made and accepted matter in terms of our
:25:39. > :25:45.devolution settlement. During the drafting of the Antarctic Bill, it
:25:45. > :25:49.was identified but the Antartic and the subjective -- subject matter of
:25:49. > :25:55.the Bill had inadvertently been devolved to the legislators in both
:25:55. > :26:00.Scotland and Northern Ireland. In our case, the matter of regulation
:26:00. > :26:05.and activities in the Antartic was admitted -- omitted from his first
:26:05. > :26:09.scheduled to the Northern Ireland after 1998. While the matter is
:26:09. > :26:13.technically a devolved here, no relevant functions were transferred
:26:13. > :26:19.without and the department he has any her to spit it powers in
:26:19. > :26:29.relation to the Antartic. -- and no tip-off that he has any legislative
:26:29. > :26:29.
:26:29. > :26:32.powers. As such, it proudly flies the Union flag and I think there is
:26:32. > :26:38.no restriction that it can fly the Union flag so why was just one
:26:38. > :26:45.drink, would it be a warm house for Unionists and Belfast City Hall? --
:26:45. > :26:49.I was wondering for?. In Antarctica, effectively the day last pretty
:26:49. > :26:53.much all day, so in terms of daylight, the Union Flag can be
:26:53. > :26:57.seen for long periods of time. After that rather interesting and
:26:57. > :27:01.diverse debate, I think we have arrived at the crucial moment where
:27:01. > :27:11.we will surrender Antarctica. The question is that the motion
:27:11. > :27:17.
:27:17. > :27:20.standing in the Order Paper be agreed. All those in favour say 5
:27:20. > :27:22.Mac -- say aye. The ayes have it. Deputy Speaker, John Dallatt.
:27:22. > :27:26.Our political reporter Stephen Walker is with me again. Unusual
:27:26. > :27:30.debate there, Stephen. Yes, when you think of the things that are
:27:30. > :27:36.normally discussed at Stormont, health, education, the economy and
:27:36. > :27:40.we have the debate about Antarctica and the jokes were very predictable,
:27:40. > :27:44.skating on thin ice, a cold house for Unionists and nationalists, but
:27:44. > :27:51.it was a little bit of light relief. A quick look ahead to tomorrow, it
:27:52. > :27:56.is a pity that busy order paper. is, one of the debates that jumps
:27:56. > :28:00.out of the debates about flags. There is a motion being put forward
:28:00. > :28:04.by the SDLP and Sinn Fein that the whole issue should go to the at hoc
:28:04. > :28:08.committee. It looks like the Unionists will oppose that and it
:28:08. > :28:13.looks like they will be a petition of concern, so after Antarctica, it
:28:13. > :28:18.is back to the more normal subjects. And the Northern Ireland affairs
:28:18. > :28:21.committee, as we mentioned earlier, is here for a second day, hearing
:28:21. > :28:25.evidence and interestingly, Sinn Fein is going to be appearing.
:28:25. > :28:28.is right. The Unionist leaders are going to be there, Peter Robinson
:28:28. > :28:33.and Mike Nesbitt, Alastair McDonald will be there and a representative
:28:33. > :28:36.from Sinn Fein. We don't know who it will be, but it is clear from
:28:36. > :28:40.recent statements from Sinn Fein that when it comes to the issue of
:28:40. > :28:45.political donations, they will call for transparency. An interesting
:28:45. > :28:48.day, will have the details tomorrow night, of course. I'll be back the