:00:46. > :00:54.of course, as from the smaller parties on the back benches.
:00:55. > :00:56.So, coming up tonight: She took a little convincing
:00:57. > :00:58.but an independent MLA from East Londonderry will be
:00:59. > :01:02.This is probably the most difficult decision I've ever had in my life
:01:03. > :01:09.It did cause me a lot of anxiety this past week but, as I said,
:01:10. > :01:11.it's not reaching anybody, it's not reaching any
:01:12. > :01:13.of my constituents and, most importantly, it's not reaching
:01:14. > :01:16.anybody in Northern Ireland and I really look forward to it.
:01:17. > :01:18.But as the formalities began, not everyone was enthusiastic
:01:19. > :01:22.Less than two weeks ago, Miss Sugden boasted,
:01:23. > :01:24.in this House, that she was an independent.
:01:25. > :01:38.And the News Letter's Political Correspondent, Sam McBride,
:01:39. > :01:47.is here as we dissect a very eventful start of term at Stormont.
:01:48. > :01:51.We knew the ministerial roles that would be filled today and we knew
:01:52. > :01:54.that the vast majority of them would come from the DUP
:01:55. > :01:57.But the big question was who would fill the problematic
:01:58. > :02:00.Justice Brief after Alliance had turned it down?
:02:01. > :02:03.By the time the Assembly sat, everyone knew the answer to that
:02:04. > :02:05.question, but that didn't stop some lively exchanges
:02:06. > :02:10.Claire has been in this House for several years and we have been
:02:11. > :02:15.We had that conversation with her initially.
:02:16. > :02:16.We have had a number of
:02:17. > :02:21.conversations since then and she has expressed
:02:22. > :02:26.do this job in order to ensure that our society continues to move
:02:27. > :02:30.forward, assist us putting a government together,
:02:31. > :02:34.and she can be assured of the First Minister and my
:02:35. > :02:38.And I have no doubt whatsoever she will enjoy the full
:02:39. > :02:41.support of all of our ministerial colleagues to be appointed in the
:02:42. > :02:45.course of this sitting of the Assembly.
:02:46. > :02:49.She is a very progressive young woman, she obviously is highly
:02:50. > :02:53.political, certainly enjoyed the support
:02:54. > :02:55.of her constituents in the
:02:56. > :02:58.course of the Assembly elections and we have every confidence in her
:02:59. > :03:03.It's a great pleasure to be able to rise and
:03:04. > :03:07.speak in support of the nomination made by the Deputy First Minister of
:03:08. > :03:11.Claire Sugden to be our new minister of justice on what is for many
:03:12. > :03:13.reasons of historic day in the
:03:14. > :03:15.political history of Northern Ireland.
:03:16. > :03:18.I think that Claire's appointment as Justice Minister will
:03:19. > :03:22.symbolise the new generation of leadership that is emerging, not
:03:23. > :03:24.just in this Assembly, not just in the Executive, but right across
:03:25. > :03:29.As the Deputy First Minister has already said,
:03:30. > :03:32.Claire has proven herself in this place since
:03:33. > :03:36.is member for the East Londonderry constituency.
:03:37. > :03:40.Many inside and outside of this chamber have been
:03:41. > :03:44.very impressed by her contributions to debates and the proceedings of
:03:45. > :03:49.She has times been thoughtful, she has been measured
:03:50. > :03:53.and she has always been constructive I think we have all seen that she
:03:54. > :03:57.possesses the skills and abilities to be a very good Minister.
:03:58. > :03:59.The person who said this House of cards
:04:00. > :04:03.is falling and good will come of it only if the jokers at the top come
:04:04. > :04:08.crashing down and do not get up again as our new Justice Minister
:04:09. > :04:14.And to the DUP, I remind them of this,
:04:15. > :04:17.said by the same person in October of 2015:
:04:18. > :04:19.One side of the House, the
:04:20. > :04:22.largest political party, has decided that its
:04:23. > :04:26.dirty inconsistent mess is
:04:27. > :04:30.more important than moving Northern Ireland forward.
:04:31. > :04:43.We are an absolutely no position to support a nomination for somebody
:04:44. > :04:47.We corrupted it once before and we're doing it again now.
:04:48. > :04:50.Our strong view is that the position of Justice
:04:51. > :04:59.disturbing, Mr Speaker, is that even though
:05:00. > :05:00.we have had some evolution on
:05:01. > :05:03.our politics these last few weeks, the opportunity to evolve our
:05:04. > :05:08.politics even further today has been missed.
:05:09. > :05:11.And it's very clear to our electorate, Mr Speaker, that this is
:05:12. > :05:15.a position for which no nationalist need apply.
:05:16. > :05:17.The Deputy First Minister referred to the fact that
:05:18. > :05:21.the post was first offered to Alliance, and it's no secret
:05:22. > :05:23.that we put forward five proposals which we
:05:24. > :05:26.believe would have made this place function better and would have
:05:27. > :05:28.delivered better for the people of Northern Ireland.
:05:29. > :05:30.And those proposals were rejected by the First
:05:31. > :05:35.As is their right, they have sought to look
:05:36. > :05:36.elsewhere and they have now
:05:37. > :05:40.asked Claire Sugden to carry out the job.
:05:41. > :05:41.And that is their right and
:05:42. > :05:44.clearly, there are the numbers in this House to carry that.
:05:45. > :05:45.Though I cannot personally support that
:05:46. > :05:49.nomination, not because I have a fixation with the system, which I
:05:50. > :05:53.don't, but whilst I cannot support that, I would certainly wish Claire
:05:54. > :05:56.well in the task which clearly lies ahead of her.
:05:57. > :06:01.It's no secret that my party did have discussions with the First
:06:02. > :06:04.and Deputy First Minister in relation to the Justice Boost but we
:06:05. > :06:07.were very clear - we would only serve
:06:08. > :06:11.could progress our agenda, if we felt that we
:06:12. > :06:13.could achieve more in
:06:14. > :06:19.But I think the reality was our agenda was very different from that
:06:20. > :06:21.of the DUP and Sinn Fein, which is why I'm
:06:22. > :06:23.delighted that myself and
:06:24. > :06:28.Clare Bailey will be in opposition, will be here to hold those parties
:06:29. > :06:36.And yet today, yet today, for the sake of office, she
:06:37. > :06:41.is willing to become the patsy of the jokers.
:06:42. > :06:46.And that, I think, says a lot about this position - seduced
:06:47. > :06:52.Less than two weeks ago, Miss Sugden boasted in
:06:53. > :06:55.this House that she was an independent!
:06:56. > :07:00.Well, no longer, I'm afraid because today, she has become
:07:01. > :07:09.And whether or not she finds making up the numbers
:07:10. > :07:18.on the dark side as fulfilling as she thinks, time alone will tell.
:07:19. > :07:20.Well, that's how the appointment of the Justice Minister panned out
:07:21. > :07:24.in the Chamber but the cat had been let out of the bag an hour earlier
:07:25. > :07:27.by the First and Deputy First Ministers in Stormont's Great Hall.
:07:28. > :07:32.Martin and I are delighted that Claire has agreed to be the new
:07:33. > :07:37.Justice Minister for the new mandate and we are very much looking forward
:07:38. > :07:43.to working with her and I hope that you will give her the credit that
:07:44. > :07:46.she deserves in terms of stepping forward, taking this huge
:07:47. > :07:49.opportunity to come forward and be the Justice
:07:50. > :07:50.Minister for everyone in
:07:51. > :07:54.It's a huge challenge, of course it is, but I
:07:55. > :07:57.As Martin and Arlene say, this is an opportunity
:07:58. > :08:00.for me, not only for me, but for the people
:08:01. > :08:01.of my constituency and the
:08:02. > :08:05.I am a progressive person, I do look forward to working with my new
:08:06. > :08:08.I will have the support by Executive colleagues.
:08:09. > :08:11.And indeed, moving forward, I would like to see collective
:08:12. > :08:13.responsibility within our government so that Northern Ireland can move
:08:14. > :08:18.This is probably the most difficult decision
:08:19. > :08:20.I've ever had in my life and I've said that before.
:08:21. > :08:39.It did cause me a lot of anxiety this past week.
:08:40. > :08:46.I think David would be really proud with me. I had conversations with
:08:47. > :08:52.his wife and she said David would be proud of me. We have confidence in
:08:53. > :08:56.Claire to do the job. She is a young woman, she is very progressive,
:08:57. > :09:00.Arlene and I have got to know her over the course of recent days and
:09:01. > :09:05.have watched her performance and Assembly of the past couple of years
:09:06. > :09:11.and we are satisfied that she will be able to do this job. She will
:09:12. > :09:16.have our full support and she will have every assistance, from both
:09:17. > :09:21.Arlene and myself. We will have a government in place today and we are
:09:22. > :09:25.determined that it would be a government that gets things done.
:09:26. > :09:29.It's a government that will work together. You will recognise the
:09:30. > :09:31.change in how we operate over the next period of time. It will be a
:09:32. > :09:33.good change. Arlene Foster making big promises
:09:34. > :09:35.for the next five years. I'm joined now by Sam McBride
:09:36. > :09:37.from the News Letter. Sam, there were a few whispers
:09:38. > :09:41.about but it was still a bit of a surprise when we saw
:09:42. > :09:43.Claire Sugden appear with Arlene Foster
:09:44. > :09:55.and Martin McGuinness It was quite official image. Claire
:09:56. > :10:01.Sugden, the only independent in the Chamber, walking out with the two
:10:02. > :10:05.heads of government. On a personal level, is a story, it's
:10:06. > :10:09.extraordinary. He is somebody who for weeks ago was not all guaranteed
:10:10. > :10:16.coming back as an MLA even. She never stood for election before. And
:10:17. > :10:23.suddenly, against anybody's expectations, she is not only
:10:24. > :10:28.backers Stormont the Minister. It's an extraordinary rise. Ten days ago,
:10:29. > :10:31.I raised it with her as a joke and she laughed and said, it's nice to
:10:32. > :10:37.think about that but it won't happen. And all of a sudden, she has
:10:38. > :10:41.been confirmed. Even last week, even when this was floated, I thought of
:10:42. > :10:45.in this way. The DUP and Sinn Fein trying to bargain with the Alliance
:10:46. > :10:50.Party of trying to get them over the line is a bluff. It was not seen as
:10:51. > :10:54.a serious gambit than bringing the Greens, the instance, which should
:10:55. > :10:58.not go anywhere. There has been process of elimination here in that
:10:59. > :11:02.she is the last person standing that she was also well liked, she is
:11:03. > :11:07.respected, she doesn't have a lot of experience but she is capable and.
:11:08. > :11:15.She doesn't have a lot of appearance. She has not got huge
:11:16. > :11:20.experience in the Chamber. She's only 29. Some people might say
:11:21. > :11:25.lacking life experience and it is a very difficult brief. It's massively
:11:26. > :11:30.difficult to not just politically but personally as well. She will now
:11:31. > :11:35.be getting security briefings, she will have cast to take to storm at
:11:36. > :11:40.an extra security even above that of other executive ministers. It's not
:11:41. > :11:46.easy for anyone to take that role in particular but it is an incredible
:11:47. > :11:51.rise and even though she has very little experience, she is respected
:11:52. > :11:55.at the top government. Several of those parties and individuals in
:11:56. > :11:59.opposition were very keen to register their unhappiness at the
:12:00. > :12:03.appointment, perhaps not so much about Claire Sugden but the fact the
:12:04. > :12:11.two parties had brought them into the executive. That is potential
:12:12. > :12:16.banana skin for her. She certainly was very vocal around the time that
:12:17. > :12:20.Martin McGuinness and Peter Robinson were at the head of the executive.
:12:21. > :12:23.She has spoken glowingly about Arlene Foster and I do wonder
:12:24. > :12:25.whether if Peter Robinson would still be here, she would be
:12:26. > :12:27.persuaded to come on board by him. Justice was the big story
:12:28. > :12:30.at Stormont today but there were also seven other seats
:12:31. > :12:32.around the Executive table So when the First and Deputy
:12:33. > :12:36.First Ministers rose to make their nominations everyone
:12:37. > :12:48.was listening intently. Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. I
:12:49. > :12:58.select the Department for the economy and I nominate Simon. We'll
:12:59. > :13:02.Simon confirm he is willing to take up office and affirmed the terms of
:13:03. > :13:06.the Pledge of office? I confirm I am willing to take up the office of
:13:07. > :13:12.Minister for the economy and the terms of pledge of office set out in
:13:13. > :13:18.the Northern Ireland act 1998. I would like to accuse the Department
:13:19. > :13:26.of Finance and appoint Martina is our new Minister for Finance. Will
:13:27. > :13:27.Martine confirm he is willing to take up office and affirmed the
:13:28. > :13:53.terms of the pledge of office? I confirm the terms of the pledge of
:13:54. > :13:57.office set out in the Northern Ireland act. I select the Department
:13:58. > :14:04.for Education and I nominate Peter were. All Peter were confirm he's
:14:05. > :14:09.willing to take up office and affirmed the terms of the pledge of
:14:10. > :14:14.office? I confirm I am willing to take up the office of Minister of
:14:15. > :14:19.education and affirmed the terms of the pledge of office as set out in
:14:20. > :14:26.the Northern Ireland act 1998. Mr Speaker, I am not nominated the
:14:27. > :14:30.executive. I select the Department of infrastructure and I would like
:14:31. > :14:41.to nominate Chris Hassett is the Minister for that department.
:14:42. > :14:49.SPEAKS IRISH. I confirm that I will take up the
:14:50. > :14:54.office and I affirm the pledge of office.
:14:55. > :14:58.I select the Department for agriculture environment and rural
:14:59. > :15:04.affairs and I nominate Michelle McIlveen.
:15:05. > :15:07.We'll Michelle McIlveen confirm that she is willing to take up office?
:15:08. > :15:13.I confirm that I'm willing to take up the office of minister of
:15:14. > :15:17.agriculture the environment and rural affairs and I affirm the
:15:18. > :15:22.pledge of office as set out in Jeddah for in the Northern Ireland
:15:23. > :15:32.act of 1988. I will not be nominating a minister
:15:33. > :15:35.to this executive. Will the member confirmed he is
:15:36. > :15:40.willing to take up office and affirm that terms of the pledge of office?
:15:41. > :15:46.I can confirm that I'm willing to take up the office of minister for
:15:47. > :15:51.communities and I affirm the terms set out in the Northern Ireland act
:15:52. > :15:55.1988. Isolate the Department of Health and
:15:56. > :16:02.nominate Michelle O'Neill as the new minister for health.
:16:03. > :16:06.Will Michelle O'Neill confirmed that she is willing to take up office and
:16:07. > :16:10.affirm the term of the pledge of office?
:16:11. > :16:15.SPEAKS IRISH. I confirm I am willing to take up
:16:16. > :16:20.the office of minister for health and I affirm the pledge set out in
:16:21. > :16:22.the Northern Ireland act 1988. So, we now know who'll be doing
:16:23. > :16:25.what job and joining me is the new Minister for Communities,
:16:26. > :16:28.Paul Givan. A huge brief - from housing
:16:29. > :16:31.and welfare to culture, arts, How will you stay across such
:16:32. > :16:44.a diverse portfolio? I am privileged to be given the
:16:45. > :16:49.opportunity to take on this responsibility and you are right
:16:50. > :16:53.that the brief is fast. It touches on a wide range of issues that
:16:54. > :16:58.connect with people on grassroots levels and I am looking forward to
:16:59. > :17:03.getting out on the ground to engage with people and try to make our
:17:04. > :17:06.society a better place for people to live in.
:17:07. > :17:11.It is often at the end of the list of ministries and has been nicknamed
:17:12. > :17:17.the Ministry of everything else. Do you think it has that feel to it?
:17:18. > :17:24.If you consider this department has a budget of ?7 billion every year.
:17:25. > :17:31.We spent ?90 million every day. That is a department with a huge
:17:32. > :17:39.responsibility. Primarily deals with Social Security. It goes to local
:17:40. > :17:43.government, housing. There is a huge opportunity to get involved and I do
:17:44. > :17:46.feel that you need to be a jack of all trades to try and deliver in
:17:47. > :17:49.terms of the ministerial responsibilities.
:17:50. > :17:54.The danger is that you are a jack of all trades and a master of none. How
:17:55. > :17:58.much do you know about sport and the arts because they are quite discrete
:17:59. > :18:02.areas. There is no doubt that this will be
:18:03. > :18:06.a test of my own ability to try and get on top of these issues. I
:18:07. > :18:10.believe that I will be able to do that and I have had confidence
:18:11. > :18:13.expressed to me by the First Minister who gave me this
:18:14. > :18:16.responsibility. I know there will be an impressive team around me and the
:18:17. > :18:20.department who will help guide me through that but ultimately I want
:18:21. > :18:23.to bring my own stamp to this department. I want to bring forward
:18:24. > :18:28.issues that I believe resonate with the public. There are vast number of
:18:29. > :18:32.areas to get involved in but I am relishing the opportunity to do
:18:33. > :18:36.that. Will you want to be a minister for
:18:37. > :18:39.communities for all communities, for everybody, because there might be
:18:40. > :18:49.some areas you are more comfortable in than others. Will you attend a
:18:50. > :18:57.GAA match, for example? With that cause your problem?
:18:58. > :19:01.I have been looking at some of the invitations and going to a GAA match
:19:02. > :19:05.is something that I will do. It has already been carried out by a member
:19:06. > :19:10.of the DUP. I will consider any invitation based on its own merits
:19:11. > :19:13.before I will take a decision on what I will will not go to.
:19:14. > :19:19.Is there an invitation from the GAA at the moment?
:19:20. > :19:27.There is. It will not be an issue. I will go to an event that GAA will
:19:28. > :19:30.organise. Iraq advisers are sporting organisation and almost jealous of
:19:31. > :19:35.it from within the Nationalists claim it is that it is a grassroots
:19:36. > :19:42.organisation that is at the centre of the community. I recognise the
:19:43. > :19:44.value it brings to our society as a cultural and sporting organisation.
:19:45. > :19:49.Clearly there will be some issues that they still need to address that
:19:50. > :19:51.I am here to be proactive, to engage with people, and won't be barriers
:19:52. > :19:55.put up in front of me by the GAA. As we saw earlier, Mike Nesbitt
:19:56. > :19:58.and Colum Eastwood declined to nominate Ministers
:19:59. > :20:00.to the Executive, so once the d'Hondt process was completed
:20:01. > :20:12.the Speaker turned to The nominating officers of the
:20:13. > :20:20.Ulster Unionist Party and the social do necrotic and Labour Party were
:20:21. > :20:26.entitled to nominate members but declined to do so -- the SDLP. I'll
:20:27. > :20:31.asked them if they choose to be recognised as part of the official
:20:32. > :20:37.opposition. I asked Mike Nesbitt if your party wants to be recognised as
:20:38. > :20:42.part of the official opposition. We do has to be recognised as part
:20:43. > :20:47.of the official opposition and to initiate a new era for the Northern
:20:48. > :20:53.Ireland Assembly. We will not take her seat at the executive table.
:20:54. > :20:58.Should take our seats of their because the First Minister
:20:59. > :21:10.McGuinness should set aside First Minister Foster as they do so
:21:11. > :21:15.comfortably at Stormont Castle. I ask Mr Colum Eastwood is your
:21:16. > :21:20.party choose to be recognised as part of the official opposition?
:21:21. > :21:28.Thank you, Mr Speaker. Yes, we would like to be wrecked as does a member
:21:29. > :21:36.of the opposition. -- like to be recognised. We will hold them to
:21:37. > :21:42.account when we need to. The Ulster Unionist Party and the
:21:43. > :21:44.SDLP will now be recognised as the official opposition.
:21:45. > :21:46.So, it's officially official - we have an Opposition.
:21:47. > :21:50.is whether or not the Ulster Unionists and SDLP
:21:51. > :21:52.will nominate Shadow Ministers to formally keep
:21:53. > :21:54.a close eye on members of the Executive.
:21:55. > :21:56.That will perhaps become clear over the next few weeks.
:21:57. > :21:58.In the meantime, I'm joined by another of today's
:21:59. > :22:00.Ministerial appointments - Chris Hazzard, the Minister
:22:01. > :22:20.Was it a surprise? We were talking about some of the positions and that
:22:21. > :22:24.was one of them. Challenging times ahead but there is a fresh sense of
:22:25. > :22:28.purpose around the executive table and I'm looking forward to getting
:22:29. > :22:32.stuck in. Would you welcome the appointment of
:22:33. > :22:37.a formal Shadow infrastructure minister?
:22:38. > :22:42.Yes, it into something the opposition want to do then fair
:22:43. > :22:45.enough. If we get to the end of this process and have a better sense of
:22:46. > :22:51.government and keeping people held to account then all power to them.
:22:52. > :22:56.It is a young executive, the average age is 38. Is there enough
:22:57. > :22:59.experience around the executive table to grapple with some of the
:23:00. > :23:07.very difficult issues that need to be dealt with?
:23:08. > :23:11.I think so. It is about vision and determination and energy. I think I
:23:12. > :23:17.have those values. I see those across the table. We have seen
:23:18. > :23:22.people like Simon Hamilton who has come in and done a good job so I
:23:23. > :23:25.hope to bring a similar vision and energy to my role.
:23:26. > :23:30.He covered the education brief in the last mandate. How much do nobody
:23:31. > :23:32.issues you will be dealing with in your new department?
:23:33. > :23:39.Bets and pieces. This is the first day. But as an active MLA in my
:23:40. > :23:44.constituency, infrastructure rows with waterways and street lighting.
:23:45. > :23:52.We are dealing with these issues every day. I am accustomed to them.
:23:53. > :23:56.I'm getting to meet members of staff tomorrow to continue those meetings
:23:57. > :24:01.and get into the brief. It is an exciting time and I'm looking
:24:02. > :24:07.forward to the challenge. It is a department that people feel
:24:08. > :24:13.strongly about in terms of street lighting and road-building and a
:24:14. > :24:16.grass being cut. They can make a difference to members of the public.
:24:17. > :24:19.If the grass is not cut and the lights are not working, they can get
:24:20. > :24:26.very cross and their higher is likely to be -- their annoyance is
:24:27. > :24:31.likely to be directed at you. That is why I am elected to make
:24:32. > :24:36.these decisions. It is about loving the sort of society we want to see.
:24:37. > :24:43.And about welding the future we want to see. -- building.
:24:44. > :24:48.You said yourself in your opening comments that this is a new
:24:49. > :24:52.executive with a new purpose. It is also a new relationship between the
:24:53. > :24:58.DUP and Sinn Fein around the executive table with the Justice
:24:59. > :25:02.Minister who is an independent. Will it be a property party call issued,
:25:03. > :25:04.different from what we saw in the last Andy?
:25:05. > :25:08.I would hope so. I think that is what the people elected. I think we
:25:09. > :25:15.have two main parties and people want to see them in control. We saw
:25:16. > :25:19.confidence from Martin and Arlene to say this is the government and this
:25:20. > :25:20.is how we will go forward. Will we see collective
:25:21. > :25:29.responsibility? I think we will.
:25:30. > :25:31.If that happens it is going to be a big change.
:25:32. > :25:34.Once the issue of Ministers had been settled, business turned
:25:35. > :25:39.There was again a great deal of standing up and sitting down.
:25:40. > :25:41.That was until the Ulster Unionists picked economy and nominated
:25:42. > :25:44.After he accepted, it was Arlene Foster's turn to pick
:25:45. > :26:02.I would request an adjournment to consider matters.
:26:03. > :26:09.Can I ask a member how long she would anticipate?
:26:10. > :26:18.Ten minutes. Thank you, Mr Speaker. I name as deputy chair Pam Cameron.
:26:19. > :26:22.As the member who has been nominated willing to take up office for which
:26:23. > :26:27.she has been nominated? Thank you, Mr Speaker. Yes, I am
:26:28. > :26:32.willing to take up office. I call on Martin McGuinness to
:26:33. > :26:45.select and nominate. Finance, my apologies.
:26:46. > :26:53.Thank you, Mr Speaker. I select the economy and...
:26:54. > :26:57.My apologies. It has gone, I'm sorry.
:26:58. > :26:57.Can we have a few minutes adjournment.
:26:58. > :26:59.Martin McGuinness, playing for time in the chamber.
:27:00. > :27:03.Sam, there were a lot of ministers, committee chairs and deputy chairs
:27:04. > :27:09.I suppose we could have expected a few mistakes?
:27:10. > :27:14.But there were moments when people seem slightly lost as if they could
:27:15. > :27:20.not find the script. It is a complex system for
:27:21. > :27:24.allocating ministries and allocating the chairmanships of committees. It
:27:25. > :27:27.is more complex in some ways because of the uncertainty around what the
:27:28. > :27:32.small parties would do but it did leave to a bit of confusion at
:27:33. > :27:38.various points. In reality, a lot of this is sorted out beforehand so
:27:39. > :27:43.part of this is the public face. Let us talk about some of the names
:27:44. > :27:46.included today. Perhaps you were surprised at some of those who find
:27:47. > :27:50.their way to the executive table or committee chairman chips but also
:27:51. > :27:53.some of the casualties. People you would expect to be part of the front
:27:54. > :27:57.line of various parties who are nowhere to be seen.
:27:58. > :28:13.There is a glaring omission on Sinn Fein's benches. The former minister,
:28:14. > :28:18.Michel, who is a woman and they are trying to elect more women. The
:28:19. > :28:28.chair of the finance committee similarly. It is difficult to fathom
:28:29. > :28:34.sometimes how they come up with these things. On the DUP site, a
:28:35. > :28:39.huge loss is Mervyn Storey. Someone with a lot of experience. He was
:28:40. > :28:43.pragmatic and his dealings with other parties and quite well
:28:44. > :28:51.respected I rivals. No position for him whatsoever. But a sharp DUP team
:28:52. > :29:00.overall. Peter Weir is overdue a promotion. It is a competent looking
:29:01. > :29:04.set of DUP ministers. It will be a fascinating five-year
:29:05. > :29:07.mandate if today is anything to go by. Thank you for your comments.
:29:08. > :29:09.Well, that's all we have time for tonight.
:29:10. > :29:12.I'll be back tomorrow night with The View on BBC One
:29:13. > :29:47.Until then, from everyone in the team, goodnight.
:29:48. > :29:50.This programme contains some strong language
:29:51. > :29:54.# Read about the things that happen throughout the world
:29:55. > :29:59.# But don't believe in everything you see or hear