:00:26. > :00:31.Hello and welcome to Stormont Today. Coming up in the next 30 minutes:
:00:32. > :00:40.The First Minister reacts to concerns over the judge-led inquiry
:00:41. > :00:45.into OTRs. I want to see this issue dealt with and dealt with
:00:46. > :00:49.thoroughly. If at any time I feel it has not been dealt with robbery and
:00:50. > :00:53.thoroughly I will try for you. There were rhyming couplets in the Chamber
:00:54. > :01:01.as one MLA asked about poetry funding. Budgets, flags, parades, we
:01:02. > :01:05.drop out one by one and only recently we have hovered on the over
:01:06. > :01:09.those On the Run. And joining me to give his view on another busy day at
:01:10. > :01:16.Stormont is political commentator, Alex Kane.
:01:17. > :01:21.A row over On the Runs was threatening to derail Stormont just
:01:22. > :01:26.a few weeks ago. The First Minister suggested he'd quit if he didn't get
:01:27. > :01:30.a full inquiry. Now there's several inquiries including one by the
:01:31. > :01:32.Justice Committee. It quizzed the permanent secretary of the
:01:33. > :01:36.Department of Justice this afternoon. But let's hear first from
:01:37. > :01:41.Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness.
:01:42. > :01:43.The judge led inquiry demanded by the First Minister has been
:01:44. > :01:47.criticised because Lady Justice Hallet will only examine a sample of
:01:48. > :01:56.cases and won't consider whether the letters sent to Republicans classed
:01:57. > :02:05.as On the Run were legal. I met with the judge yesterday. I
:02:06. > :02:09.believe she will conduct a fair and impartial review of this. At a time
:02:10. > :02:16.like this, all sorts of political agendas are trying to influence it.
:02:17. > :02:19.My sense of it is she will not be influenced, she will stick to the
:02:20. > :02:27.agreement. That is what she has got to do. Dominic Grieve, the Attorney
:02:28. > :02:34.General, was a perfectly lawful process. All of the cases will be
:02:35. > :02:39.reviewed whether they are reviewed by the police or by the judge is the
:02:40. > :02:44.issue. As I understand it, the police are reviewing all 228 of
:02:45. > :02:53.those who are involved in receiving letters. Many of them might have
:02:54. > :02:58.been considered to be associated with multiple offences so we're
:02:59. > :03:03.talking about many hundreds of case files. There are some nonsense,
:03:04. > :03:08.political opponents are trying to make something of it, that this is
:03:09. > :03:14.not a full review. If we had the kind of public enquiry that some
:03:15. > :03:19.people are asking for this issue would go on for at least a decade.
:03:20. > :03:22.That is not acceptable to me no visit acceptable to the victims of
:03:23. > :03:30.terrorism in Northern Ireland. They want this issue dealt with quickly.
:03:31. > :03:35.I am prepared to fold the delay until the end of June if that is
:03:36. > :03:39.required. I want to see this issue dealt with thoroughly. If at any
:03:40. > :03:43.time I feel it is not been dealt with properly and thoroughly then I
:03:44. > :03:47.will cry foul. The Justice Committee began its own
:03:48. > :03:50.inquiry today. The first witness was Nick Perry, the highest ranking
:03:51. > :03:55.official in the Department of Justice. Mr Perry was aware of the
:03:56. > :04:00.scheme when he was a director at the Northern Ireland Office. But did not
:04:01. > :04:06.inform the Justice Minister when he moved over as this would have been
:04:07. > :04:09.contrary to civil service rules. The justice minister has addressed
:04:10. > :04:15.on a number of occasions many areas of confusion. I mention it again
:04:16. > :04:18.because it is of a fundamental importance. Nor the Department of
:04:19. > :04:26.Justice or any of its staff have had any involvement to the scheme dealt
:04:27. > :04:28.with OTRs. There had been suggestions the department had been
:04:29. > :04:34.implementing these arrangements without the Minister 's knowledge.
:04:35. > :04:41.That is wholly incorrect. I don't see anywhere that explicitly stated
:04:42. > :04:51.aim in -- administrative scheme will be retained. You make an assumption
:04:52. > :04:57.that because of a delectable, this is a matter we are going to keep. It
:04:58. > :05:01.is an issue you were going to close your ears to shut your eyes to
:05:02. > :05:05.without getting any independent legal advice as permanent Secretary
:05:06. > :05:08.of the Department of Justice. I find that not just remarkable but
:05:09. > :05:15.incredulous that is the position you would take. I would repeat the
:05:16. > :05:21.point. I do make the assumption, and it is a reasonable one, that the
:05:22. > :05:30.division between devolved and non-devolved matters was taken on
:05:31. > :05:33.the basis of legal advice. You may ask some other ministers what their
:05:34. > :05:39.view is. If I was the Minister for Justice and you had withheld this
:05:40. > :05:44.information from me, you wouldn't be my permanent secretary. It'd be a
:05:45. > :05:51.clear breach of trust. Withheld this information based on nothing more
:05:52. > :05:59.than your own assumptions. But isn't something I would tolerate from any
:06:00. > :06:10.permanent secretary. I am entirety happy I worked within the guidance.
:06:11. > :06:15.Have you find yourself in a situation when the Minister has
:06:16. > :06:21.asked the question that if it goes and answered, you may have
:06:22. > :06:28.information which could compromise? No, I haven't. Could you find
:06:29. > :06:36.yourself in a position? I don't believe so. This issue will always
:06:37. > :06:42.going to re-emerge. A blank man on a galloping horse would realise this
:06:43. > :06:45.would re-emerge. I think that is what you should have briefed your
:06:46. > :06:48.minister at the time but you fail to do that.
:06:49. > :06:51.And with his thoughts on this issue and more, I'm joined by the
:06:52. > :07:01.Newsletter columnist, Alex Kane. What did you make of the revelations
:07:02. > :07:04.around this judge led inquiry? I am not surprised. The minute as Oz
:07:05. > :07:08.announced he had that in quietly and then another three, this is the
:07:09. > :07:18.fourth one. They are all going to have overlap in all squabbling
:07:19. > :07:23.remits. Peter Robinson says it is acknowledged Lord Justice Hallett is
:07:24. > :07:28.as great a look at all of them. All of that is going to take months to
:07:29. > :07:32.sort out. What if they come to differing conclusions? What if they
:07:33. > :07:41.concentrate on different nuances? I do think you will be any clearer on
:07:42. > :07:46.this OTR mess. The critics include Jim Allister. We had statement today
:07:47. > :07:50.from Mike Nesbitt who said this remit is disappointing. The two
:07:51. > :07:54.Robinson is making out these aren't just political opponents trying to
:07:55. > :08:00.make a Beavis issue. -- Peter Robinson. He said he was going to
:08:01. > :08:07.step down if he did not get a thorough investigation. He got the
:08:08. > :08:12.fairness minimum he could get. -- their list. He is using the excuse
:08:13. > :08:16.of five of the committees which even got ask for, he did not make the
:08:17. > :08:21.resignation issue. They are saving his bacon. I would not be
:08:22. > :08:27.sympathetic with Jim Allister and Mike Nesbitt but I think on this one
:08:28. > :08:32.they are right. Do you think first -- the First Minister overplayed his
:08:33. > :08:36.hand? He knew it was never is going to come to that point. The
:08:37. > :08:46.government knew what he was going to accept. Nick Perry in the hot seat
:08:47. > :08:48.there. Later, the chairman of the Justice Committee put out a
:08:49. > :08:51.statement saying many people would have questions about the fact that
:08:52. > :08:56.make that Nick Perry says he did not have the details or the content of
:08:57. > :09:01.the legal advice the minister asked for on this issue. Do you find that
:09:02. > :09:06.odd? I do find it odd cause we do know she knew the details but chose
:09:07. > :09:09.not to pass them on to the Minister. He says that is normal ministerial
:09:10. > :09:20.convention. Ministers are not supposed to give stuff other
:09:21. > :09:23.ministers had. This department did not exist before. He could have
:09:24. > :09:29.found a way of letting the minister now. Sinn Fein members on the
:09:30. > :09:34.Justice Committee could have told David Ford about this. They said
:09:35. > :09:39.they knew about this all along. Finally, it doesn't matter to the
:09:40. > :09:44.electorate out there is it going to be issue? No, it isn't going to be
:09:45. > :09:48.an issue. They have already made up their minds.
:09:49. > :09:52.It's not often you would like our MLAs to be poets, but one MLA used
:09:53. > :09:54.his poetic licence when asking a question of the Culture, Arts and
:09:55. > :09:58.Leisure Minister earlier. Ulster Scots funding was also on the
:09:59. > :10:03.agenda, but first we turn to mental health initiatives.
:10:04. > :10:10.Can the Minister indicate if any thought has been given to ensuring
:10:11. > :10:16.that a champion of people will mental health issues can be brought
:10:17. > :10:19.forward to help promote those issues in terms of leisure pursuits and
:10:20. > :10:28.active sports participation in that category? I thank the member for his
:10:29. > :10:36.question. We are looking. We have a champion for soccer. We have a
:10:37. > :10:39.number of sports personalities who have been proactive and genuine in
:10:40. > :10:48.their support around this issue and a happy to give up their time. We
:10:49. > :10:54.have Paddy Barnes in north Belfast. We have two boxes who went along
:10:55. > :11:02.with the strap line of we have got your back, we have got to your
:11:03. > :11:10.corner. We will roll it out across. We talk in anger and just, it is
:11:11. > :11:16.tempting to give the very best. Budgets, flags, parades, we dropped
:11:17. > :11:20.them out one by one. We hovered on the brink on those On the Run.
:11:21. > :11:26.Minister, my supplementary is unconditional. We recognise that
:11:27. > :11:29.poetry is traditional? Have you got the money to fund this expression
:11:30. > :11:43.will you let it flow away in another depression?
:11:44. > :11:47.And you did not wrap! I couldn't then the base for you. That is
:11:48. > :12:00.probably one of the best exchanges we have ever, ever hired. -- had.
:12:01. > :12:06.But the members point is right. We need to find poetry. We have a great
:12:07. > :12:11.history and heritage of poetry in the North. We have marked the sad
:12:12. > :12:21.passing of Seamus Heaney amongst others. We need to support them.
:12:22. > :12:25.They will be exam plus four other poets, budding poets and other cases
:12:26. > :12:35.including guitars. I have consistently asked the Minister to
:12:36. > :12:40.bring similar programmes. I am waiting on those programmes and have
:12:41. > :12:45.been waiting since September 2011. Whatever influence you have, it is
:12:46. > :12:51.important that people from the Ulster Scots community see
:12:52. > :12:59.ministerial investment and support in those initiatives. Can I have an
:13:00. > :13:08.assurance that if the project is brought forward, whether it be
:13:09. > :13:12.language history or culture for the Ulster Scots community across
:13:13. > :13:18.Ulster, it should have full support and he resourced in terms of money
:13:19. > :13:22.and people. I have already spoken to people and I appreciate that in
:13:23. > :13:28.terms of the pressures of language from its not the same. What we do
:13:29. > :13:33.need to do is look at cultural heritage. It is very important. So
:13:34. > :13:40.many times I have offered my support and I have encourage initiatives to
:13:41. > :13:44.come forward. The door is still open and I'm still waiting. I can assure
:13:45. > :13:48.the honourable member and other members that when they are brought
:13:49. > :13:51.forward, I will look at them with a view of giving them full support.
:13:52. > :13:54.And, staying with the Culture Minister, she faced a call to work
:13:55. > :13:57.with Environment Minister and sporting bodies to evaluate the
:13:58. > :14:00.existing facilities in the 11 new council areas. The Sinn Fein-led
:14:01. > :14:03.motion noted the lack of sporting facilities for people with special
:14:04. > :14:15.needs and disabilities. If it sounds familiar, it is. At present, people
:14:16. > :14:22.with disability exercise less than those without. Just 12% participate
:14:23. > :14:26.on a regular basis in sporting competitions. This figure indicates
:14:27. > :14:30.the problem. The most important legacy from the London 2012 Olympic
:14:31. > :14:36.and Paralympic games was the increase in the number of people
:14:37. > :14:42.wishing to but it abate in sport. -- to participate in sport. We heard of
:14:43. > :14:46.the increased demand from people with increased disabilities.
:14:47. > :14:50.Statistics show that disabled people are still half as likely to get
:14:51. > :14:55.involved as somebody who does not have a disability. Given that 20% of
:14:56. > :15:01.the population is considered to have a disability, this is a worrying
:15:02. > :15:06.statistic. We have made great progress. You have only got to look
:15:07. > :15:16.at the demand and the achievements of our athletes. It gives you an
:15:17. > :15:21.idea that there is demand, but the more the elite athletes achieved,
:15:22. > :15:26.the greater the demand. That is good and beneficial to all of us. We must
:15:27. > :15:38.do to address the need. Now we need to do our part. One has been
:15:39. > :15:42.accredited. 19 haven't even gone through any process. We need to
:15:43. > :15:46.ensure now that this is the opportunity to get all of our
:15:47. > :15:50.councils on board, to hammer the message home that it isn't good
:15:51. > :15:58.enough to put up around here, a ramp there. Everybody has to have access
:15:59. > :16:07.to our facilities. I believe it is a worthy debate. Like many other
:16:08. > :16:12.ministers, I am prepared to work with our stakeholders. For me, that
:16:13. > :16:17.includes our Minister for environment, our local authorities,
:16:18. > :16:25.this sports -- disability sports organisations and the Minister for
:16:26. > :16:30.health. In short, section 75 and the falling limitation of this
:16:31. > :16:39.legislation is everyone's business. -- full implementation. The
:16:40. > :16:43.seemingly successful Olympics 2012 heralded what was other time
:16:44. > :16:49.considered a new dawn for disabled sports. The reality on the ground is
:16:50. > :17:00.less tangible. The committee led with disabled athletes in
:17:01. > :17:02.Jordanstown. -- met with. Like all elite athletes, disabled or
:17:03. > :17:07.otherwise, they are the exception rather than the rule. Many more
:17:08. > :17:10.stories exist of what is lacking. So is there enough being done to
:17:11. > :17:13.facilitate those with disabilities who want to participate in sport?
:17:14. > :17:24.Joining me now is Kevin O'Neill from Disability Sports NI. How would you
:17:25. > :17:29.characterise the current state of sporting facilities? It is mixed. A
:17:30. > :17:44.lot of our modern facilities are very good. The issue is they are not
:17:45. > :17:52.designed for wheelchair users. If you go down to clubs, provision
:17:53. > :17:56.ranges from quite limited to poor. If you were advising the Minister,
:17:57. > :18:01.what would your advice be? It would be to improve across-the-board. The
:18:02. > :18:12.most important issue is we need access to sporting opportunities.
:18:13. > :18:18.One of the key reasons for a lack of participation if the opportunities.
:18:19. > :18:21.One of the statistics was that 20% of people in Northern Ireland are
:18:22. > :18:30.classified with a disability. Is there demand in that sector for
:18:31. > :18:36.better facilities? We noticed that after 2012 was a marked increase in
:18:37. > :18:44.people participating in sport. People want to participate in
:18:45. > :18:46.recreational activities. There is definitely a demand. The issue at
:18:47. > :18:53.the moment is the supplier isn't there. How concerned would you be
:18:54. > :19:04.that MLAs are merely paying lip service to this issue? The issue for
:19:05. > :19:09.us is that there is political will. We have no doubt there is political
:19:10. > :19:12.support. It is how we can form the support to grassroots opportunities
:19:13. > :19:17.on the ground. We are about to launch a strategic plan for the next
:19:18. > :19:22.period. We hope to get support for that. I am sure we will. Let's see
:19:23. > :19:28.what happens. Can you give me some of the details? It is
:19:29. > :19:36.across-the-board facilities. Coaching? In general, we need our
:19:37. > :19:43.coaches to be more inclusive of people with disabilities. The key
:19:44. > :19:50.issue in most areas of Northern Ireland, there is nothing for you
:19:51. > :19:56.fully. We want more grassroots opportunities on the ground. In a
:19:57. > :20:02.word, will the fact there are going to be these local authorities and
:20:03. > :20:07.opportunity? It is easier to have a conversation with 11 authorities
:20:08. > :20:11.than 26. Sport NI have improved things dramatically in recent years
:20:12. > :20:14.but we need to keep the momentum going. Thank you.
:20:15. > :20:18.Our MLAs looked beyond our borders today to discuss the plight of 33
:20:19. > :20:21.Christians condemned to death in North Korea. The DUP motion called
:20:22. > :20:24.on the Westminster government to use its influence to secure greater
:20:25. > :20:33.freedom of religious belief and worship throughout the world. I have
:20:34. > :20:38.said that we have relatively limited powers in this field. Foreign
:20:39. > :20:45.affairs is an entirely reserved matter at Westminster. We have no
:20:46. > :20:49.direct input into these issues. But I think we can use our influence as
:20:50. > :20:54.an integral part of the UK to bring pressure on the Department of
:20:55. > :20:57.foreign affairs who do all it can through the UN and through
:20:58. > :21:05.international diplomacy to try and bring some relief to the torture and
:21:06. > :21:10.ill-treatment of all those Christians in this renegade state.
:21:11. > :21:16.It is not right to threaten the execution of Christians in North
:21:17. > :21:20.Korea, burned churches in need, to massacre Christians in Sudan or
:21:21. > :21:25.Pakistan, or to burn people out of their homes because of their
:21:26. > :21:31.religion. It is not acceptable in this day and age. During the Crimean
:21:32. > :21:39.annexation recently, three Catholic priests were questioned and abused
:21:40. > :21:44.by pro-Russian forces. Given that we want freedom for all religions and
:21:45. > :21:48.given that the DUP are standing up for religious belief, I await with
:21:49. > :21:56.great extirpation their condemnation of anti-Catholicism, where it
:21:57. > :21:59.occurs, challenging... I won't give way... Challenging the Orange order
:22:00. > :22:06.when he steps out of line. Maybe they will no longer stay silent on
:22:07. > :22:10.the more recent behaviour against Christians at St Patrick 's Chapel
:22:11. > :22:15.in Belfast. In countries like China, there have been far too many
:22:16. > :22:22.incidents of denials of human rights, including rights in regard
:22:23. > :22:31.to freedom of worship. We in the West very readily do business. As an
:22:32. > :22:39.MEP, I often raised issues like this with the foreign affairs
:22:40. > :22:43.Commissioner. There always was an empathy but one always got the
:22:44. > :22:51.impression that it was tempered by their desire not to upset the trade
:22:52. > :22:56.opportunities. We would ask from this House today that a very strong
:22:57. > :23:01.message goes to our government that this assembly a pause of the
:23:02. > :23:09.persecution of Christians in North Korea, and right across the world. I
:23:10. > :23:17.also welcome the fact that his colleague, also a minister in the
:23:18. > :23:23.FCO, in his response to a member asking a question, said he takes the
:23:24. > :23:29.opportunities to go and visit Christian communities, whether they
:23:30. > :23:35.are in Egypt or Algeria, and I think that is a changeable way of --
:23:36. > :23:39.tangible way of showing support to Christians who may feel under threat
:23:40. > :23:46.or might be prosecuted by authorities. When I been on trade
:23:47. > :23:50.missions, I have taken the opportunity to visit Christian
:23:51. > :23:57.communities, just to say to them that we are supporting them. -- when
:23:58. > :24:00.I have been. Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster,
:24:01. > :24:03.speaking in that debate from the back benches. Education Minister
:24:04. > :24:06.John O'Dowd also faced questions today and the agenda was dominated
:24:07. > :24:09.by his proposals for the future of the Common Funding Formula. Ulster
:24:10. > :24:24.Unionist Robin Swann asked the question. On 13 March, after
:24:25. > :24:29.consideration, I announced my final decision on changes to the common
:24:30. > :24:32.funding scheme. I maintain this was a genuine consultation. I was
:24:33. > :24:36.delighted with the level of response we have seen and I have listened to
:24:37. > :24:46.the views from all who took the time to respond. I have made a number of
:24:47. > :24:51.proposals. I want to insure that resources remain. No school will
:24:52. > :24:59.receive less funding this year than it would have done if I had made no
:25:00. > :25:06.changes to the Budget or formula. There is a fund available for these
:25:07. > :25:11.schools whose budgets... Schools have received notification of the
:25:12. > :25:22.delegated Budget for the coming year. I thank him for his answer and
:25:23. > :25:31.recognising that the first former didn't work. Does he recognise that
:25:32. > :25:38.a transition makes it hard for principles to Budget into the
:25:39. > :25:44.future? It is the nature of the Budget system. I don't know the
:25:45. > :25:50.Department for education but not Budget, so I can't make any
:25:51. > :25:54.commitment under the guise of education beyond the current
:25:55. > :25:58.financial year. I can assure the honourable member that I will
:25:59. > :26:02.endeavour to secure whatever funding I can for the provision of education
:26:03. > :26:06.going into the future. I will take a serious look at the transition from
:26:07. > :26:09.going into the future for those groups may have lost funds as a
:26:10. > :26:13.result of the changes I have made. Members will recall that I was not
:26:14. > :26:26.satisfied that the exiting scheme was fit for purpose. I set out with
:26:27. > :26:31.an objective which remains. As I said in response to the original
:26:32. > :26:41.question, I have taken on concerns raised, but the objective remains.
:26:42. > :26:49.Schools have received money. I have also committed to putting in place
:26:50. > :26:54.tracking to make sure the money spent to reduce educational
:26:55. > :26:57.underachievement for all pupils. Now back to Alex Kane with his
:26:58. > :27:01.five-month -- with his final fours today's proceedings. That debate
:27:02. > :27:12.today on the persecution of Christians. Do you think would it
:27:13. > :27:16.was appropriate for the -- it was appropriate for the Northern Ireland
:27:17. > :27:25.assembly to delve into that issue? It was not. To spend an hour on a
:27:26. > :27:28.motion like that which doesn't make the blindest bit of difference to
:27:29. > :27:34.anybody, any constituent in Northern Ireland, it does a disservice to the
:27:35. > :27:43.people. They would argue they are putting pressure on the West must
:27:44. > :27:46.the government ahead of its debate. They are putting pressure but MPs
:27:47. > :27:51.can do the debate there. They talk about Christianity across the
:27:52. > :27:57.world, but no matter what the issue in Northern Ireland, it always comes
:27:58. > :28:10.back to the dreary steeples -- stable.
:28:11. > :28:16.He has no choice now. If he doesn't stand, the DUP are going to mock
:28:17. > :28:26.him. They are going to say, oh, Jim, what of the -- is the point of
:28:27. > :28:31.taking this on? He needs to be the one who provides the trickle down.
:28:32. > :28:35.They are not getting it anywhere else. They are not getting it in
:28:36. > :28:39.their own right. The party keep telling us an announcement on this
:28:40. > :28:45.issue is imminent. Have you heard any news? They have said April the
:28:46. > :28:49.3rd. We have to leave it there. That's all we have time for tonight.
:28:50. > :28:50.Mark Carruthers will be back with The View on Thursday night at 10:35
:28:51. > :29:23.on BBC One. Goodnight. At 11:20, British forces were sent
:29:24. > :29:28.the fateful telegram