:00:29. > :00:32.Welcome to in Stormont Today. It has been an interesting days on the
:00:32. > :00:37.hill as MLAs got their wrists slapped for wasting the First and
:00:37. > :00:41.Deputy First Minister's the time. Having it is time for the Speaker
:00:41. > :00:44.to consider penalising those members who did not turn up. Also,
:00:45. > :00:49.the Agriculture Minister explains the measures taken to combat a
:00:49. > :00:53.deadly trade disease. The Justice Minister response to concerns
:00:53. > :00:57.following the murder of prison officer, David Black. Since I last
:00:57. > :01:00.reported on this matter, a number of changes have been made to the
:01:00. > :01:06.protection scheme and to the processes -- processes for officers
:01:06. > :01:11.are leaving the prison service. joining us to share his sense dinks
:01:12. > :01:15.-- his insights, the journalist Sam Dick bright.
:01:15. > :01:20.-- Sam my pride. Question time at the Assembly is
:01:20. > :01:23.the ideal opportunity for MLAs to hold ministers to account. Today,
:01:24. > :01:29.that session became more about to was not in the chamber rather than
:01:29. > :01:38.he was. The deputy brush Minister - - the Deputy First Minister spoke
:01:38. > :01:41.out against the absent MLAs. Can he say how there has been a slippage
:01:41. > :01:43.in the monitoring compared to other departments, and when that the
:01:44. > :01:50.relevant committee will have insight to the up-to-date
:01:50. > :01:53.information? There is not delay. There is ongoing monitoring of the
:01:53. > :01:58.programme for government targets within the parliament. As I
:01:58. > :02:01.understand it, the delivery plan has been given in its initial form
:02:01. > :02:03.to the committee and I understand that officials are meeting with the
:02:03. > :02:08.that officials are meeting with the that officials are meeting with the
:02:08. > :02:15.committee tomorrow and will provide a more up-to-date delivery plan. As
:02:15. > :02:18.far as the overall assessment of where we stand, I believe that a
:02:18. > :02:23.meeting has been scheduled later today -- later this week to sign
:02:23. > :02:27.off on the copy that will go to all of the department committees,
:02:27. > :02:31.depending on the position of each of the ministers. I'm sure the
:02:31. > :02:36.House is encouraged to hear that the First and Deputy First Minister
:02:36. > :02:39.have received real-time information on the performance against the
:02:39. > :02:44.Government targets. He will be able to confirm in real time terms that
:02:44. > :02:48.used unemployment has risen every month for the past 12 months and is
:02:48. > :02:51.now at a historically high level. - - youth unemployment. Maybe he can
:02:51. > :02:56.tell the House what steps within the programme for government had
:02:56. > :02:59.been taken to address it. I can confirm that around the world youth
:02:59. > :03:03.unemployment has risen very considerably over the last few
:03:03. > :03:09.months. It is a worldwide recession. If there is a global downturn, it
:03:09. > :03:13.has an impact. That is why we have tailored the proposals we have
:03:13. > :03:16.brought in, and they do not know what he is talking to the sky for.
:03:16. > :03:22.If he is looking for divine intervention, I am happy to pray
:03:22. > :03:26.with them. The fact is, we brought forward proposals which recognise
:03:26. > :03:32.that there has been the need to increase skills available so that
:03:32. > :03:36.people would be able to move into jobs when jobs became available. I
:03:36. > :03:41.am convinced that the economic strategy of this Assembly is the
:03:41. > :03:44.right one. I recognise that because of the problems with the downturn,
:03:44. > :03:47.that there are immediate steps that we can take to alleviate some of
:03:47. > :03:52.the hardships that have been felled and that is why we have taken the
:03:52. > :04:02.immediate action of bringing those interventions forward. Far better
:04:02. > :04:06.
:04:06. > :04:09.that people are acting than carping. Question number six. I hope we will
:04:09. > :04:13.come back to the subject of members withdrawing questions without
:04:13. > :04:18.notice being given before we stand. That is to be members during the
:04:18. > :04:22.course of today. Corrals the First Minister what role he and the
:04:22. > :04:29.Deputy First Minister might play if any at Beachy eight conference wed
:04:29. > :04:35.comes to Fermanagh? -- can I ask the First Minister. Like him, I am
:04:35. > :04:44.very glad that eg age will be coming to Northern Ireland, and
:04:44. > :04:47.Fermanagh is the ideal place. -- the G8. Given the beauty of the
:04:47. > :04:51.countryside, I think a landscape lends itself to the atmosphere they
:04:52. > :04:55.would want to create. Of course, Northern Ireland will want to show
:04:55. > :05:01.its -- showcase itself to the world when the attention is on that
:05:01. > :05:07.conference. And we have discussed the issue with the Prime Minister.
:05:07. > :05:11.Of course, there will be a role for Northern Ireland to play. It is
:05:11. > :05:21.possible that some of the G8 leaders may decide to do something
:05:21. > :05:21.
:05:21. > :05:31.outside the conference itself, and we would encourage them to do so.
:05:31. > :05:32.
:05:32. > :05:39.Joe Byrne is not in his place. Tom Eliot, not in his place. David Mack
:05:39. > :05:44.nori is not in his place. We have just witnessed a question-time or
:05:44. > :05:48.where seven questions that were table for a response were not asked.
:05:48. > :05:52.I understand that two were withdrawn but five other members
:05:52. > :05:58.were not present to ask their questions. I think given the amount
:05:58. > :06:02.of effort and time that is Putin to the work in responding to these
:06:02. > :06:06.questions by civil servants, in particular, not to mention the work
:06:06. > :06:10.of the First Minister, who has to stand up along with the Junior
:06:10. > :06:14.Minister in his apartment, and given the workload, being in China
:06:14. > :06:18.and Cardiff and all the other responsibilities that ministers
:06:18. > :06:23.have at that level of government, I have to say I think it is a
:06:23. > :06:29.disgrace that so many members were not present to answer -- and to ask
:06:29. > :06:32.their questions. I figured is time consider penalising those members
:06:32. > :06:39.who did not turn up. -- I figure it who did not turn up. -- I figure it
:06:39. > :06:42.is time. Martin McGuinness not happy. Sam McBride is with me. Not
:06:42. > :06:46.the first time that this has happened but today it was on a
:06:46. > :06:51.scale that we have not seen before. Do you agree? The scale was
:06:51. > :06:59.completely novel and a think, you got a sense in a clip of the chaos
:07:00. > :07:04.behind the Speaker's desk as they called MLA after MLA. And clerk was
:07:04. > :07:08.saying, not in his space, not in his place. It normally, in defence
:07:08. > :07:15.of the MLAs, normally they do not get beyond five or six questions
:07:16. > :07:21.because the ministers give long answers. Also, there is a clear
:07:21. > :07:25.issue here, MLAs are not terribly excited by Question Time. They do
:07:25. > :07:29.not rush to the chamber in the way that they do at the House of
:07:29. > :07:33.Commons. I think that plays a part in it not being a compelling
:07:33. > :07:36.spectacle. But they do not feel they have to be there for it.
:07:36. > :07:40.was a call from the Deputy First Minister for the Speaker to look
:07:40. > :07:44.again at the structure of questions and the way in which MLAs can
:07:45. > :07:49.perhaps be persuaded to be in their seats. That needs to happen quite
:07:49. > :07:53.quickly. I think it needs to happen urgently. Not just for the
:07:53. > :07:55.credibility of the Assembly but I think it would improve the
:07:55. > :07:59.credibility of the Executive if ministers were seen to be being
:07:59. > :08:03.held to account by the Assembly and taking tough questions, topical
:08:03. > :08:07.questions. At the moment, they tabled questions to Matt weeks in
:08:07. > :08:13.advance and issues are often a lot out of date by that stage. It is
:08:13. > :08:15.completely dated at this point. Shortly after as we sh -- shortly
:08:15. > :08:21.afterwards we heard explanations for why some of the MLAs have not
:08:21. > :08:27.been in their places. On a similar subject, can I apologise to the
:08:27. > :08:32.House for my absence during question time. Personally, I accept
:08:32. > :08:38.the rebuke and they do not think it was anybody's place for me to be
:08:38. > :08:43.rebuked. I wanted to make that position clear. I do not think that
:08:43. > :08:51.question 11 would be reached. I was absent with a reason but not an
:08:51. > :08:55.excuse and I trust I will be indulged with a written answer.
:08:55. > :08:58.With regard to the missing members, two Ulster Unionists were not in
:08:58. > :09:02.their place and we would like to point out that they were serving on
:09:02. > :09:05.the at hoc committee on welfare reform. I believe the party took
:09:05. > :09:09.all reasonable steps to inform the business office that they would be
:09:09. > :09:15.absent and as they have requested written answers in lieu of oral
:09:15. > :09:19.questioning, I believe the Deputy First Minister is wrong to allege
:09:19. > :09:23.that the work by officials will be wasted. It will not. The SDLP and
:09:24. > :09:33.Sinn Fein have also sought to explain the whereabouts of absent
:09:33. > :09:41.MLAs but Jim Allister focused his criticism on all end -- 0FN DSM. --
:09:41. > :09:46.OFMDFM. It is rich coming from them. I have a sheaf of questions where
:09:46. > :09:50.it has taken up to 16 months to get an answer. I have other questions
:09:50. > :09:55.outstanding for 14 months. The last people to talk about penalising
:09:55. > :10:01.anyone for failing to be there to ask him or question are those who
:10:01. > :10:06.are serial offenders when it comes to refusing and failing to answer
:10:06. > :10:10.dozens of written questions. Does Jim Allister have a point? To a
:10:10. > :10:15.certain extent, yes. The MLA should have been in their place today,
:10:15. > :10:24.despite whatever reasons they had. But, it has to be said, government
:10:24. > :10:29.departments, in particular OFMDFM have been poor in answering
:10:29. > :10:33.questions, sometimes some of the most difficult questions. Also,
:10:33. > :10:38.Freedom of Information requests, which have previously had to go to
:10:38. > :10:42.court to get the request after 360 days. That is pretty poor by any
:10:42. > :10:47.standard. For now, thank you very much. The agricultural minister
:10:47. > :10:50.reveal today that ash dieback, the tree disease, has been found a day
:10:50. > :10:54.for the six sites here. Emergency legislation to combat it has been
:10:54. > :10:58.co-ordinated on both sides of the border. These images show how it
:10:58. > :11:03.can affect trees. The Minister was asked what else she is doing to
:11:03. > :11:07.prevent the spread. Can the Minister outlined if the court --
:11:07. > :11:15.the co-ordinated approach goes beyond the legislative processes
:11:15. > :11:19.and what other implements are being used, apart from the Actual
:11:19. > :11:21.emergency legislation? Ash dieback emergency legislation? Ash dieback
:11:21. > :11:24.is a very serious disease with is a very serious disease with
:11:24. > :11:28.devastating consequences and another committee is aware of that.
:11:29. > :11:34.I am grateful for the support for the emergency legislation that were
:11:34. > :11:38.brought forward. It is important that we take a proactive approach
:11:38. > :11:43.with regard to this. In this instance, we have co-ordinated
:11:43. > :11:49.legislation on both occasions, but I'm also regularly in contact with
:11:49. > :11:52.the Minister responsible for this area of work. We are regularly in
:11:52. > :11:56.contact every day on the phone. Officials are continuing engagement
:11:56. > :12:03.and they have another meeting this evening. I think it is important
:12:03. > :12:09.that we continue to work together. By way of an update, we have had
:12:09. > :12:14.five recently planted premises confirmed to have cases. There are
:12:14. > :12:18.another number of sites currently being filed up -- followed up as
:12:18. > :12:23.part of this exercise. We have destroyed 4500 saplings, which
:12:23. > :12:29.shows you the scale to date of the work we are involved in. As part of
:12:29. > :12:34.the exercise, six premises have been confirmed to have the fungus,
:12:34. > :12:39.bringing the number of positive confirmations to 11 across the
:12:39. > :12:43.counties of Antrim and Derry and Down. I want to stress that these
:12:43. > :12:48.are all recently planted sites, so they are relatively young. We will
:12:48. > :12:52.continue that engagement and I will continue to engage with my
:12:52. > :12:56.colleagues in Britain because they are obviously in a worse situation
:12:56. > :13:00.than we currently are. We will have to continue all of that ordination
:13:00. > :13:09.as we make our way through this path, and see where it develops in
:13:09. > :13:14.Was there any discussion at your meeting about possible compensation
:13:15. > :13:20.to those people who have suffered all will suffer in the future?
:13:20. > :13:24.Compensation was not an area that was discussed. As I said, this is a
:13:24. > :13:30.very serious disease and something that we are very much involved at
:13:30. > :13:36.this moment in time in a process of ratification. We are fortunate in
:13:36. > :13:42.that today, the confirmed sites have all come from one import of
:13:42. > :13:45.plants. However, at this stage, I cannot say that that will be the
:13:45. > :13:49.case going forward so compensation is not something I am concerned
:13:49. > :13:53.with at this moment in time. I am concerned with eradicating the
:13:53. > :13:58.disease, we keep the disease out and minimise the impact it has on
:13:58. > :14:02.industry. He will be aware from presentations in the culture
:14:02. > :14:06.committee on the devastating impact this can have, not just in people
:14:06. > :14:10.involved in forestry but other industries.
:14:10. > :14:13.The introduction of plain packaging for cigarettes and how it might
:14:13. > :14:19.help tobacco smugglers was put to the Justice Minister during
:14:19. > :14:22.Question Time this afternoon. First, though, with the recent murder of
:14:22. > :14:27.David black by dissident republicans on their minds, MLAs
:14:27. > :14:31.focused on the security of prison officers. My department in the
:14:31. > :14:34.Prison Service or regard the safety and security of prison staff as a
:14:34. > :14:38.high priority. The director-general has therefore already arranged for
:14:38. > :14:43.all prison staff to be issued with advice on personal security and a
:14:43. > :14:50.reminder of the need for vigilance, both on and off duty. My department
:14:50. > :14:54.on the Prison Service will continue to work closely with the British
:14:54. > :14:58.authorities -- appropriate authorities. I have met with
:14:58. > :15:02.colleagues to discuss the current security situation and discuss what
:15:03. > :15:06.measures are in place to protect prison staff. Since I last reported
:15:06. > :15:10.to the Assembly on this matter, several changes have been made to
:15:10. > :15:13.the Prison Service protection scheme and to the process for
:15:13. > :15:16.officers leaving the prison service who wish to apply to have a
:15:16. > :15:21.personal protection weapon. However, I trust members will agree that it
:15:22. > :15:28.is not in the best interest of prison staff to discuss individual
:15:28. > :15:32.details all the changes made to. A number of meetings have now taken
:15:32. > :15:35.place between the PSNI and prison service senior managers and I'm
:15:35. > :15:40.confident that appropriate and up- to-date advice on personal security
:15:40. > :15:44.will continue to be provided to staff. I can also confirmed that a
:15:44. > :15:49.watch with an in-built camera and recording facility was found on a
:15:49. > :15:53.prisoner during a routine search at a prison on 18th October this year.
:15:53. > :16:00.The prisoner concerned was charged under prison rules. Can the
:16:00. > :16:05.Minister, without going in to find still, assure us that in regard to
:16:05. > :16:11.firearm licensing, past delays will no longer be an issue in terms of
:16:11. > :16:16.issuing and granting personal protection weapons? I thank him for
:16:16. > :16:20.that point. I have received assurances from the PSNI about
:16:20. > :16:24.speeding up the issue of the application for approval for
:16:24. > :16:26.personal protection weapons for those retiring from the prison
:16:26. > :16:35.service, and it will be done within the timescale of the notice
:16:35. > :16:41.individuals will have on leaving. Could I ask the Minister, in his
:16:41. > :16:45.review, touching upon the serious issue of security, as he reviewed
:16:45. > :16:50.the arrangements for home security in respect to prison officers,
:16:50. > :16:54.particularly in respect of those who were removed from behind
:16:54. > :17:00.security scheme in terms of being told that it was their own
:17:00. > :17:04.responsibility to pay for and maintain such facilities. --
:17:04. > :17:11.removed from the home security scheme. Will heave reinstate that
:17:11. > :17:16.scheme so that members might have the comfort of some security at
:17:16. > :17:19.home? I have previously advised the house but I am happy to repeat
:17:19. > :17:24.today that the protection scheme for officers' Homes has been re-
:17:24. > :17:29.examined in recent weeks and it has been decided that where equipment
:17:29. > :17:32.is being supplied, it will continue to be maintained, contrary to the
:17:32. > :17:38.position best short time ago, so I believe the issue is already being
:17:38. > :17:41.addressed. I am sure the whole house will find it disturbing that
:17:41. > :17:46.one in five packets of cigarettes sold and Northern Ireland castles
:17:46. > :17:49.to the eagerly and these are not subject to controls or regulations.
:17:49. > :17:54.Treasury cannot collect any tax from them. The minister will be
:17:54. > :17:57.aware that there is the push nationally and locally by some to
:17:57. > :18:01.introduce plain packaging for tobacco products and health grounds
:18:01. > :18:06.but would he share my concern that one of the unintended consequences
:18:06. > :18:09.of this could be that it makes it much easier for criminal gangs
:18:09. > :18:14.organisations to produce and distribute counterfeit tobacco
:18:14. > :18:23.across Northern Ireland? I must dress that the issue of plain
:18:23. > :18:28.packaging for tobacco is an issue for a colleague and I did not wish
:18:29. > :18:33.to interfere. I saw at an event went for business groups last week
:18:33. > :18:37.that the quality of printing on counterfeit goods is sufficiently
:18:37. > :18:41.good that I am not sure it is a significant deterrent at this stage.
:18:41. > :18:45.The could ask him directly, please, in his capacity as chair of the
:18:45. > :18:47.organised crime Task Force, to confirm which paramilitary groups
:18:47. > :18:56.he believes are involved in the Sale and distribution of
:18:56. > :19:00.counterfeit cigarettes and other illicit material? I do not suspect
:19:00. > :19:04.he expects that I have access to all the available intelligence in
:19:04. > :19:09.the detail which he perhaps asked the question. It is her, however,
:19:09. > :19:12.certainly the case that there are a number of gangs involved in tobacco
:19:12. > :19:16.smuggling and counterfeit cigarette production who have links with
:19:16. > :19:22.paramilitary groups, both republican and loyalist and it is
:19:22. > :19:31.clearly an issue of concern to the society that level of ongoing
:19:31. > :19:34.criminality. The Justice Minister. Funding is always a big issue up
:19:34. > :19:38.here but today, MLAs were reaching out beyond Westminster to Europe.
:19:38. > :19:42.Sinn Fein called for the Regional Development Minister to work with
:19:42. > :19:47.the Irish government to advance the so called Prix identified projects
:19:47. > :19:51.list for inclusion in the next round of EU funding.
:19:51. > :19:58.European fund in the past has paid dividends and advantages to the
:19:58. > :20:05.island of Ireland, particularly the South. Only for this European fund,
:20:05. > :20:12.I do not think that the state would have been as competitive as it has
:20:12. > :20:21.been. I know that there has been a downturn in the economy there but I
:20:21. > :20:28.think if people all states... I think it needs to deal with its
:20:28. > :20:37.infrastructure across the region. It is important to identify that
:20:37. > :20:43.funding now because Ireland will become president in January and we
:20:43. > :20:49.hope that the decision is made and agreed during that period. But as
:20:49. > :20:54.somebody who travelled to Europe, to Brussels, as part of a committee
:20:54. > :20:58.- and other members can confirm this - there are difficulties with
:20:58. > :21:03.in Europe, having a vision of where Ireland is situated. They actually
:21:03. > :21:07.thought that we were connected to the mainland of Europe. We had to
:21:07. > :21:14.take out a map and show them that the blue stripe between us was
:21:14. > :21:20.water. These were the people who were making the decisions as to the
:21:20. > :21:26.next funding. Yet again, this motion farcically comes before this
:21:26. > :21:30.House at a most unsatisfactory time. The list still does not include any
:21:30. > :21:35.actual projects in Northern Ireland and they are only indicative
:21:35. > :21:40.projects. Until regulations are settled, there will not be any
:21:40. > :21:47.definitive list with actual projects. It will probably not come
:21:47. > :21:54.to the house as a surprise that I have a different take on this
:21:54. > :22:02.nation than maybe most of those who who have spoken today. Regional
:22:02. > :22:10.funding in the EU is something which we are citizens of the UK
:22:10. > :22:15.should examine very carefully because the reality is that it is
:22:15. > :22:20.our own money that we are looking to recover park. When that funding
:22:20. > :22:26.comes back, it is not Europe's money. It is not money that
:22:26. > :22:31.somebody else has given to subsidise the United Kingdom. Far
:22:31. > :22:37.from that, it is our own money being returned. But being returned
:22:37. > :22:43.with all sorts of constraint upon it. And then we are supposed to be
:22:43. > :22:51.great for and to speak about the largesse of the European Union for
:22:51. > :22:59.being so graciously to give us back some of our own money. The projects
:22:59. > :23:03.list does not really identify any specific projects. It refers to the
:23:03. > :23:08.upgrading of the network on a pre- identified section from Dublin to
:23:08. > :23:14.Belfast. In addition, I would wish to see opportunities for road
:23:14. > :23:19.projects to be included on the list but I must Cathy at this by stating
:23:19. > :23:29.that until there is more clarity around national and regional
:23:29. > :23:30.
:23:30. > :23:33.capital budgets -- I must qualify this. A disability campaigner has
:23:33. > :23:40.predicted that the introduction of welfare reforms will be
:23:40. > :23:47.excruciating for disabled people. Michael Wilson of Disability Action
:23:47. > :23:53.gave evidence to the OFMDFM committee. -- Monica Wilson. There
:23:53. > :23:57.are a couple of areas. One is, there's no focus on older people
:23:57. > :24:02.with disabilities, and they comprise a large percentage and
:24:02. > :24:09.there is a direct correlation between age and disability. So we
:24:09. > :24:15.think, although it may be presumed, we would rather see it as a more
:24:15. > :24:20.formal approach and the massively important thing is that there is no
:24:20. > :24:28.action plan. So if there is no action plan, there is no action, in
:24:28. > :24:32.my opinion. There is no action plan? There is no action plan.
:24:32. > :24:37.two-year strategy hardly seems worth the effort. I accept your
:24:37. > :24:45.concern, don't stop the process. But for victims and survivors of
:24:46. > :24:52.conflict, there is a ten-year strategy. Is there anything to stop
:24:52. > :24:55.saying, we will plan to run this longer than 2015? The walls that
:24:55. > :25:01.are between government departments are very difficult for stop for
:25:01. > :25:06.example, the health and social care "transforming your care" document,
:25:06. > :25:09.which is the Labour strategy on community care, most disabled
:25:09. > :25:15.people already live in the community and to not have a good
:25:15. > :25:18.service. So if the Health and Social Care Board is to ring of
:25:18. > :25:23.physical and sensory disability strategy, there is the autism
:25:23. > :25:30.strategy, there is a lot that needs to be joined up. They wrap pieces
:25:30. > :25:38.in all of them that could make an action plan but at gathering is
:25:38. > :25:43.OFMDFM's job, I pity him, -- I presume, and I think it would take
:25:43. > :25:49.a reasonable amount of resources and this piece of work within
:25:49. > :25:53.OFMDFM needs to be much better resourced. The strategy, even when
:25:53. > :25:58.you get it, sits high above the ground and without smart targets
:25:58. > :26:01.and an action plan, you do not actually achieve anything. And how
:26:02. > :26:07.long will it take to compile an action plan, up when we are moving
:26:07. > :26:16.into the second year? How long would it take you to devise an
:26:16. > :26:20.action plan? Based on this? It would take to months' hard work.
:26:20. > :26:27.your opening presentation committee said the environment is getting
:26:27. > :26:31.worse for disabled people. Can you expand on that? We have been having
:26:31. > :26:34.meetings. I will give you an example of a person. We have been
:26:34. > :26:41.having meetings around Northern Ireland trying to support disabled
:26:41. > :26:45.people and explain what the changes that are coming in are and when
:26:45. > :26:48.they are coming in. At one meeting, a man was they who that not slept
:26:48. > :26:53.for two nights because he was worried about losing his benefit
:26:53. > :27:00.and that is not unusual. Our information advice service is
:27:00. > :27:06.getting about 20% increase only on welfare reform. The issues around
:27:06. > :27:10.welfare reform are many and complex and disabled people are not saying,
:27:10. > :27:19."don't adapt it, and, but saying that this is the wrong way to go by
:27:19. > :27:24.just cutting people off." For example, if there was a check on me,
:27:24. > :27:29.I did not be entitled to anything because I used a wheelchair. We
:27:29. > :27:34.need to address the issues that make people like this. A 20% cut
:27:34. > :27:38.will be excruciating for disabled people. If you look at the housing
:27:38. > :27:43.issue, we have managed to get it changed from the spare room issue
:27:43. > :27:52.so that a wheelchair user can have a care whether but, for example, if
:27:52. > :27:57.you are alone -- a lone parent, you need someone coming for the weekend.
:27:57. > :28:00.I understand the purpose but I do not think the purposes as preached.
:28:00. > :28:06.But I think it is going to be disastrous because it is going to
:28:06. > :28:13.put lots of resource needed in the existing services that are not able
:28:13. > :28:16.to cope at present. We are going to have a disaster by next year.
:28:16. > :28:21.Monica Wilson from Disability Action. A final thought, Sam, on
:28:21. > :28:25.the subject of committees. A man who has been in the headlines a lot
:28:25. > :28:29.recently, the Attorney General John Larkin, appeared before the just as
:28:29. > :28:33.committed but we could not hear what he was having to say. It was
:28:33. > :28:36.quite unusual. It happens quite often in councils were able send
:28:36. > :28:40.out the press and members of the public to say they want to hear
:28:40. > :28:45.something in private. It is not so common instalment and that has a