Northern Ireland Assembly, 2 July 2012

389 contributions from 76 members. The official report.

Committee Business

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

Before we proceed, I inform Members that I have been notified by the Sinn Féin nominating officer of a number of changes of Committee Chairpersons and Deputy Chairpersons. Ms Michaela Boyle has replaced Mr Paul Maskey as Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee; Mr Daithí McKay has replaced Mr Conor Murphy as Chairperson of the Committee for Finance and Personnel; Mr Seán Lynch has replaced Mr Pat Doherty as Deputy Chairperson of the Committee for Regional Development; and Mr Phil Flanagan has replaced Mr Daithí McKay as Deputy Chairperson of the Committee for Enterprise, Trade and Investment. The nominations have all been accepted by the relevant Members.

I am satisfied that the requirements of Standing Orders have been met and, therefore, confirm that the appointments take effect from today, Monday 2 July 2012.

Assembly Business

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

Mr Seán Lynch has sought leave to present a public petition in accordance with Standing Order 22. The Member will have up to three minutes to speak.

Sean Lynch (Sinn Féin, Fermanagh and South Tyrone)

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. I present a petition of over 6,000 signatures collected by Fermanagh Townland Heritage Group, which is a non-political, cross-community group established to retain Fermanagh townlands in everyday usage as an essential component of the address system. The 6,000 signatures represent over 10% of the Fermanagh population, and more will be added in the coming months. The petition represents a huge effort by a small group of people dedicated to our shared heritage and culture.

The petition calls for the restoration of townlands in the first line of an address. I understand that that is a matter of making a minor adjustment to the Pointer database. I further understand that the change is supported by Fermanagh District Council. The council will be in contact with the Minister after the summer break to inform him of that, and I encourage the Minister to look positively at the request.

The second part of the petition requests that the Minister and the Assembly amend article 11 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Order 1995 to allow for the numbering of individual properties in townlands. That would provide precise identification for any individual property. The inclusion of the road name in the second line of the address provides an additional aid to locations for those not familiar with an area.

Townlands are an ancient Gaelic method of land division dating back to pre-Norman times. They were there long before parishes and counties came into existence. The first recorded evidence of townlands can be found in church records from before the 12th century, but it is believed that many have been in existence for over 1,000 years.

The townlands campaign is not against change. It wants a robust address system based on townlands, but one that incorporates postcodes and house numbers to ensure efficient and effective post delivery. Minister Attwood can make a historic decision. After thousands of years, he can be the person who eventually legitimises Fermanagh townlands as a legal form of address.

Mr Lynch moved forward and laid the petition on the Table.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

I will forward the petition to the Minister of the Environment and to the Chairperson of the Committee for the Environment for information.

Kieran McCarthy (Alliance, Strangford)

On a point of order, Mr Speaker.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

Is it a bogus point of order? [Laughter.]

Kieran McCarthy (Alliance, Strangford)

No, no; absolutely not.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

Let us hear the point of order.

Kieran McCarthy (Alliance, Strangford)

It is about townlands. I want to advise —

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

Order. I know where the Member is going, and it is certainly not a point of order. Let us move on.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

As with similar motions, this will be treated as a business motion. Therefore, there will be no debate.

Resolved:

That this Assembly nominates Mr Stewart Dickson to be a substitute member of the Regional Chamber of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe with effect from October 2012. — [Mr Weir.]

Executive Committee Business

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

I beg to move

That Standing Orders 10(2) to 10(4) be suspended for Monday 2 July 2012.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

Before I put the Question, I remind Members that the motion requires cross-community support.

Question put and agreed to.

Resolved (with cross-community support):

That Standing Orders 10(2) to 10(4) be suspended for Monday 2 July 2012.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

As the motion has been agreed, today’s sitting may go beyond 7.00 pm, if required.

Ministerial Statements

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

In accordance with the requirements of the Northern Ireland Act 1998, I wish to make the following report on the eighteenth summit meeting of the British-Irish Council, which was held in Stirling Castle, Scotland, on 22 June. All Executive Ministers who attended the summit have agreed that I should make this statement to the Assembly on their behalf.

The Scottish Government hosted the summit, and the heads of delegations were welcomed by the First Minister of Scotland, the Rt Hon Alex Salmond MSP. The UK Government were led by the Secretary of State for Scotland, the Rt Hon Michael Moore MP. The Irish Government were led by the Taoiseach, Enda Kenny TD, and the Welsh Government by the First Minister, the Rt Hon Carwyn Jones AM. The Chief Minister, Senator Ian Gorst, represented the Government of Jersey, and the Chief Minister, Deputy Peter Harwood, the Government of Guernsey. Finally, the Isle of Man Government delegation was led by the Chief Minister, the Hon Allan Bell MHK. In addition to the deputy First Minister and me, the Northern Ireland Executive delegation included the Minister of the Environment. A full list of participants is attached to the statement that has been provided to Members.

The summit again underlined the British-Irish Council’s unique and important role in promoting and developing links between its member Administrations and in providing a forum for consultation and co-operation on east-west issues. Member Administrations continue to consult, discuss and exchange information with each other on a wide range of matters of mutual interest. All parties at the summit welcomed the opportunity it provided to engage directly with their counterparts on issues of significant common interest and concern. The summit discussed the economic situation across each jurisdiction. The delegations each outlined the challenges they are facing and the actions they are taking in response to what is, despite some variations across the jurisdictions, a common picture of economic uncertainty.

The Council exchanged views and examined early progress on the various initiatives aimed at helping young people into employment in each member Administration. That was also discussed at the previous summit in Dublin. In order to sustain and develop that important work, the Council agreed to commission and consider at its next summit in Wales specific proposals to develop further its work on youth unemployment or employment.

The Council reviewed in detail the work undertaken by the British-Irish Council marine energy work stream and welcomed the progress on advancing marine energy co-operation since the issue was last discussed in 2010. It noted the excellent progress that has been made in negotiations with the European Commission since 2010 and endorsed the formalisation of the EU-wide partnership for marine renewables through the establishment of an ocean energy ERA-NET collaborative action between member states and the Commission. The Council also considered how the issue of marine energy could be progressed at European level during Ireland’s presidency of the European Union in the first half of 2013.

The Council noted progress outlined in the update reports, which were provided by each of the eleven BIC work sectors. They are set out in the communiqué. The Council had a brief exchange on the possibility of collaboration on the issue of creative industries within the British-Irish Council. Heads of Administrations asked the secretariat to prepare a scoping paper in time for the next summit on the potential benefit of BIC member Administrations co-operating in that area.

Finally, the Council noted the secretariat’s progress since its establishment in Edinburgh on 4 January 2012 and endorsed the secretariat’s business plan. At the conclusion of the meeting, the Council noted that the next BIC summit in November 2012 will be hosted by the Welsh Government.

Mike Nesbitt (UUP, Strangford)

I thank the First Minister for his update. Given, as he said, that the BIC is an opportunity to engage directly with counterparts on issues of significant common interest and concern, and given the potentially devastating impact of welfare reform on the nations and regions of the UK, why was there no discussion on that key issue?

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

Welfare reform was discussed at the joint ministerial council meeting between the member Administrations. Obviously, it would not be a matter for the Guernsey, Jersey and Isle of Man Governments. However, as the Member stood on a manifesto along with the Tory MPs who voted welfare reform through the House of Commons, we know what side he would have been on.

Gregory Campbell (DUP, East Londonderry)

The First Minister indicated that the economic outlook of the various countries was discussed. Can he give us an update on the progress, such as it is, in relation to corporation tax being devolved?

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

We referred to the issue of corporation tax during the course of the meeting, and we continue to take every opportunity we can to indicate how important it is to the Northern Ireland Administration that we rebalance our economy in Northern Ireland. It is one of the key issues for this Administration. We have pressed the case, not only at joint ministerial council and BIC meetings, but at a meeting of the working group dealing with corporation tax, which was held during the week. During the course of that meeting, we could not reach agreement with the Treasury and NIO Ministers on all of the issues, but we were able to agree on a considerable number of the working arrangements, should corporation tax be devolved and tax-setting powers be given to the Northern Ireland Administration. There are outstanding issues to be settled, particularly in relation to the cost of the Northern Ireland block.

Caitriona Ruane (Sinn Féin, South Down)

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. Gabhaim buíochas leis an Chéad Aire as a ráiteas go dtí seo. I thank the First Minister for his statement. Was there any discussion on the banking situation? I note that this has been a particularly difficult week for people who have accounts in various banks. I would appreciate an update on that.

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

There were discussions on banking, but they related to issues that occurred earlier than the problems faced by Ulster Bank and, indeed, RBS, customers elsewhere in the UK. I agree with the Member: it is inexplicable to many of us how it can take so long to resolve this issue and why it takes longer to resolve in Northern Ireland than elsewhere. Meanwhile, people are being refused easy access to their funds, and, in some cases, if they are out of the country, they cannot access them at all. I implore the Ulster Bank to put the necessary resources in place to get this matter finished within hours, rather than taking further days to do so.

Colum Eastwood (Social Democratic and Labour Party, Foyle)

I thank the First Minister for his statement. Can he give us any more detail about whether anything about alleviating youth unemployment can be learned from other jurisdictions?

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

I will be very careful here. First, in relative terms — I underline the phrase “in relative terms” — the Northern Ireland situation is not as dire as that elsewhere in the United Kingdom or the Republic of Ireland. We have lower levels of unemployment and youth unemployment, although, for the deputy First Minister and I and the Minister who has responsibility for education and learning, those are still unacceptably high.

As First Minister, I always avoid stealing the thunder of Ministers who are about to make statements, and I understand that Minister Farry will be making a statement later on a strategy dealing with youth unemployment. That strategy is based on early interventions and looks at building up a covenant between the Government, the employer and the individual.

Chris Lyttle (Alliance, Belfast East)

I thank the First Minister for his statement. Will he elaborate on the nature of the discussions about potential collaboration in the creative industries?

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

We were very pleased to take part in discussions on that issue, and we agreed that we would deal with it as a major focus of our next BIC summit in Wales. As everyone knows, the creative industries have become increasingly important in Northern Ireland. It is a significant growth sector, not only with the film industry coming to or television series being produced in Northern Ireland but with the spin-off of that, particularly Project Kelvin. That allows people to create music in Northern Ireland and to have it on the west coast of America or, indeed, New York, in an instant. That means that we have opened up the possibilities for people in the creative industries in Northern Ireland globally.

We also have people at the forefront of app design, which is a growing area in the creative industries. So, there is massive potential for us. If we believe that we can create some partnerships and working arrangements with other Administrations that will be to our benefit, we will be happy to do that. Of course, one of the key factors has been the indication that the Chancellor gave about tax on major television productions. That had been a tax break for the film industry, but, with it being a tax break for television, it should allow us to be much more competitive in bringing companies to Northern Ireland.

George Robinson (DUP, East Londonderry)

Can the First Minister give the House an update on the establishment of the BIC secretariat?

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

As I indicated in the statement, the secretariat officially went live on 4 January. Scotland won the bid and is taking it forward enthusiastically. It is good to see Scotland looking to the long term with its British heritage in taking the British-Irish Council secretariat forward.

We have six members of staff in place already. The UK Government and the Irish Government have put in senior officials to head up the office. The three devolved Administrations have placed a policy officer in the secretariat, so Northern Ireland has a policy officer seconded to it. In the medium term, we expect that the other three territories will provide us with a further member of staff.

Oliver McMullan (Sinn Féin, East Antrim)

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. I thank the First Minister for his statement. Can he give us some more detail and an update on marine renewables?

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

I have to say that that is not an area of departmental activity in OFMDFM. However, I found the discussion of the possibilities to be vastly encouraging. I think that everybody knew that we had the wind and waves around our shores. At the moment, that is probably one of the more costly forms of renewable energy. Nonetheless, it is important and will play its part in our realising our legal requirements under UK legislation and our PFG targets.

As far as Northern Ireland is concerned, we are receiving bids at present for a 600 megawatt offshore licence. There is also 200 megawatt activity off Rathlin Island. So, there are real possibilities there. Our ultimate goal is to get in the range of 40% of our energy from renewables by 2020. That requires us to increase the amount from that source from about 1,400 megawatts to something in the region of 1,800 megawatts. That is a challenge for us. The Executive have set very clear goals for that in the Programme for Government, and they intend to meet them.

Jim Wells (DUP, South Down)

Can the First Minister give his assessment of the strengths of the economy in Northern Ireland compared with other BIC members?

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

We have very different economies in the BIC. We listened to some of the small islands lamenting the fact that they have 1·5% to 2% unemployment. You can understand that, in the kinds of arrangements they have, it is a very different problem to tackle. Compared with England, Scotland and Wales, we have a lower level of unemployment. We also have a lower level of youth unemployment, but we have a much higher level of economically inactive people, and, in that sector, you will find that almost 50% of young people are economically inactive. That is unacceptable. However, it is acceptable in one set of circumstances: Northern Ireland has a higher level of young people who are students than elsewhere in the United Kingdom.

We have to look at the causes of economic inactivity. The Minister for Employment and Learning will start to drill into that area when he deals with young unemployment issues. The Executive are looking at other initiatives to try to reduce economic inactivity in Northern Ireland and to ensure that people are skilled up, educated and are able to take jobs that become available.

Danny Kinahan (UUP, South Antrim)

I thank the First Minister for his report. When discussing the issue of helping young people into employment, did the Council discuss civic deeds, as the Germans and the Swiss call it, through which the young, serving their state for a year, get a sense of pride and learn their place. It is also a good way of getting people into employment.

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

It was not discussed at the summit, though I have had discussions on those issues with the Minister of State, who is looking to bring a particular project to Northern Ireland. So there are possibilities. I think that it is a good start in life. Making a contribution to society is better than remaining at home and watching television or sleeping in bed for half the day. The Minister for Employment and Learning will certainly look at that. However, given his responsibilities, he is looking more at ensuring that people are trained up and get the day-to-day experience of working life in order to take them off the economically inactive register.

Sean Lynch (Sinn Féin, Fermanagh and South Tyrone)

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire as a ráiteas. I thank the Minister for his statement. As regards youth employment, he said: “That was also discussed at a previous summit in Dublin.”

Can the Minister give an update on that?

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

The discussion in Dublin set the ball rolling. Certainly, it was the Taoiseach’s view that, having discussed the subject in Dublin, albeit more in the margins of a general discussion about the economy, we should not simply drop it but should take it forward to Scotland and have a more detailed discussion there. When we got to Scotland, the discussion was of sufficient merit and there was sufficient interest around the table that we decided to charge officials with bringing forward recommendations to our meeting in Wales. So, there has been a steady progression since Dublin of the merits of having a joint and combined approach and of learning the lessons from each other’s Administrations as to how we can assist in this area.

Tom Buchanan (DUP, West Tyrone)

I, too, thank the First Minister for his statement. I know that this has been touched on by Chris Lyttle, but will the Minister again elaborate on what benefits will be derived for Northern Ireland through greater collaboration on the issue of the creative industries within the BIC?

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

The benefits for Northern Ireland of growing the creative industries can be best seen in HBO’s series, which is moving forward at the Paint Hall — I think that it is now renamed Titanic Studios. The Executive constructed a second studio to take away some of the pressure that was building up in that area. That has created something in the region of 700 jobs. If we can build up and use further locations — many of the locations are outdoor — it gives us an excellent opportunity to take people who have a creative bent and use their skills and talents in a way that best suits the economy as a whole.

Sometimes, when we look at the creative industries, we think of entertainment more than anything else, but it is a key factor in our economy. When HBO comes, it spends tens of millions of pounds in our economy. It employs people and takes services from within our economy, so it is all very supportive of the Executive’s overall main priority, which is to build and rebalance the economy in Northern Ireland.

As far as the benefits of collaboration are concerned, the one thing that any of us who have been involved in politics realise is that, the more you speak to other people who are doing the same kind of things as you but maybe in a slightly different way, the more you learn lessons that you can build into your own modus operandi. That can help us to do things better, and sometimes at a lower cost.

Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice, North Antrim)

The communiqué refers to ongoing work that needs to be undertaken: “to achieve greater integration of wholesale British Electricity Trading and Transmission Arrangements (BETTA) ... with the Single Electricity Market (SEM) ... to realise the full benefits of interconnection”.

Is that an acknowledgement that all is not as well in the functioning of the SEM as it should be, and what action needs to be taken to achieve better integration between the wholesale British arrangements and the single electricity market?

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

It is an acknowledgment that, as in every form of life, including the Member’s own, everyone can do better.

Phil Flanagan (Sinn Féin, Fermanagh and South Tyrone)

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. I thank the First Minister for his statement. He touched on the issue of youth employment and unemployment and has referred to the fact that the Employment and Learning Minister will make a statement to the House later. Was the issue of emigration arising out of youth unemployment touched on? If so, was there any discussion of the long-term social impact that it will have?

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

There can, of course, be emigration outside the islands to other parts of the world, but there is also the movement of young people within the United Kingdom. Our young people, particularly after we have taken them through education and, in many cases, higher and further education, are a massive resource and one that we are very keen to ensure is not lost to the Northern Ireland economy. That is why the Minister will make his statement with the support of his Executive colleagues. It is to ensure that we have people who not only have the skills to take up a job in Northern Ireland but who recognise that they should see their future here, as opposed to elsewhere in the world.

David McClarty (Independent, East Londonderry)

I thank the First Minister for his statement. Will he advise the House if he has experienced any opposition from any of the constituent members of the BIC, namely England, Scotland or Wales, to our application for a reduction in corporation tax?

Peter Robinson (DUP, Belfast East)

At a political level, I have not experienced any opposition. I think there is a concern that one of the devolved Administrations will be enthusiastic for Northern Ireland to get that power because they want to get it for themselves, and that might have an overall impact on the decision that will be taken by the Cabinet. However, the Treasury Minister, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and the people who we have met from the UK Government have been supportive and are looking at moving forward in a positive way. The First Ministers of Wales and Scotland are both enthusiastic that Northern Ireland should be able to move forward.

It is to the benefit of everybody that we are able to pay our way in the world and that we are less of a burden on the UK Treasury. All that the Northern Ireland Administration need to be sure of is that the cost that there will be to our block grant, because of the Azores ruling, is not such that it sets back the public sector functions that we have to carry out and that need to be carried out at the front level of service. If there is a reduction in our block grant, that will clearly have an impact elsewhere. The money has to come from somewhere. Someone has to do with less. We have to be sure that the boost that we will get to our economy from having corporation tax lowered will be better than the fall that might take place from any loss that might occur as a result of a reduction in spending.

Stephen Farry (Alliance, North Down)

This statement is on the launch of a new programme to help unemployed young people into the world of work, and some other measures to address those people who fall into the not in education, employment or training (NEET) category.

Members will recall that, in March of this year, the Executive approved my policy proposals targeted at 18- to 24-year-old unemployed young people, and, at the end of May, also endorsed the NEETs strategy — Pathways to Success. I have been in discussions with the Finance Minister over the resourcing of those new measures, and I am pleased that a business plan covering this and the next two financial years has been agreed. I warmly welcome the decision of the Executive to agree to the Finance Minister’s recommendation of £5·8 million of funding in the June monitoring round to fully cover those costs during this financial year. The Executive are making the investment in the future of our young people, and, therefore, our economy, a key priority.

We should be clear on the scale of the task ahead and the reasons why we must act. Youth unemployment is a major and growing issue across these islands, elsewhere in Europe and further afield. At present, in Northern Ireland, there are around 20,000 unemployed 18- to 24-year-olds. Those young people who are unemployed but actively seeking work are only one aspect of those falling within the NEET category. There are also those who are economically inactive and are not engaged in education or training. Overall, the number of young people aged 16 to 24 who fall within the NEET category is around 46,000. Whatever way you look at it, in absolute terms, it presents a major challenge.

The raw numbers do not, of course, capture the personal impact of the ongoing difficult economic conditions on young people. Many young people find themselves unemployed, despite their education and training. Those are people who would have otherwise expected to be in work today if it was not for the economic downturn and reduced opportunities. Some simply need the chance to gain experience. It is a catch-22 position for those young people: they cannot secure a job without experience, but they cannot get experience without a job. If we do not intervene, there is a real risk that the current generation of young unemployed people may become the long-term unemployed of the future. The costs of that in terms of impact on public finances and lost economic opportunities will be considerable. That is a risk that we are not prepared to take.

There is also a wider economic case for additional measures that link new interventions to the future skills needs of the economy. That is a vital step in preparing for the upturn in the economy.

One of the few assets that we have is the skills of our workforce. We need to develop those skills, as they can help to create the employment opportunities required to rebuild and rebalance the economy in line with the Northern Ireland economic strategy. If we miss that opportunity, we risk losing some of the added value already provided by our existing investment in education and training, as some skills that our workforce already has will go stale. Those are long-term effects that will be difficult to reverse. Measures are therefore needed to help young people to compete on a more equal basis with older, more experienced workers in a difficult labour market.

That having been said, it is important to recognise the difference between that type of youth unemployment and the issue of those young people who are NEET and facing obstacles to re-engagement. They require much more intensive support and more tailored interventions to overcome their barriers. The overall aspiration of the NEET strategy document, ‘Pathways to Success’, is:

“by 2020, every young person will not only have an opportunity to access education, training or other preparation for employment but, to the extent that they are able, also avail of that opportunity.”

The strategy aims to deliver a three-tier package of measures to prevent young people falling into the NEET category in the first place; to help young people in the 16 to 18 age group, especially those facing barriers; and to assist unemployed young people aged 18 to 24 more generally.

I will start with new initiatives specifically for 16- to 18-year-olds. Although it is clear that the current DEL and DE provision is comprehensive and that the overall level of activity is demand-led, current provision may not fully meet the needs of some of our most vulnerable young people. Although much of what follows is intended to be additional to the existing provision, many programmes and strategies, such as essential skills provision, the Training for Success programme and courses at further education colleges, are also highly relevant, in addition to the role played by the Careers Service.

The additional measures include a community-based access programme that will engage and mentor young people using community and voluntary sector organisations; a new training allowance for 16- and 17-year-olds participating in existing programmes funded by the European social fund; an innovation fund to test new approaches, based on sound evidence aimed at piloting a range of other approaches to re-engaging those young people in the NEET category; and a new community family support programme that will focus on the needs of the most disadvantaged families to enable young people to re-engage with education, training or employment. We will invest £1·8 million in those initiatives in 2012-13, and £3·6 million and £4·6 million respectively in the following two financial years.

I will now outline the proposals for 18- to 24-year-olds. Overall, the proposal for the 18 to 24 unemployed age group aims to deliver up to 6,000 work experience, training and job opportunities annually by March 2015. The proposal comprises several elements. The first is enhanced support through improved diagnosis of skills needs and additional adviser time from both the Employment Service and the Careers Service. That is complemented by immediate additional referral and support for young people who have barriers to participation. Initially, 1,000 short two- to eight-week work experience placements, designed to ensure early engagement with the labour market, will be available. That will rise to 3,000 placements annually by March 2013. The cost of that element will be £200,000 in 2012-13, rising to £400,000 and £600,000 respectively in 2013-14 and 2014-15.

Four hundred training places will be offered, coupled with additional sector-based work experience of between six and nine months in sectors that have the potential to help rebuild and rebalance the economy. The number of such training places will rise to 1,800 by 2014-15. While in training, young people will receive a training allowance of £100 a week. That will cost £1·1 million in 2012-13, rising to £5·3 million in 2013-14 and £6·4 million in 2014-15.

A total of 800 employer subsidies of £5,750 a year will be provided in sectors that have the potential to help to rebuild and rebalance the economy, provided employers agree to facilitate and enable further skills development. The number of employer subsidies will rise to 1,200 in 2014-15. The costs will be £2·3 million in 2012-13, rising to £5·75 million in 2013-14 and £6·9 million in 2014-15. My Department will also invest £400,000 in direct employer engagement this year, rising to £1·1 million in 2014-15. That will provide for marketing and developing a cadre of staff to manage employer engagement and participation in the various strands of the initiative.

That brings the total cost of the package of proposals for both age groups to £5·8 million in 2012-13, rising to £15·6 million in 2013-14 and £19·6 million in 2014-15. That is a major investment at an enhanced level relative to our neighbouring jurisdictions. Under devolution, the Northern Ireland Executive and my Department are doing more than any other region of the UK to assist our young people.

Members will note the strong employer emphasis in the initiative. There is a very sound evidence base for such an approach, locally and internationally. However, the success of the 18-24 initiative in particular will depend on the commitment of a large number of employers.

My Department is putting in place a strategic approach to engage employers in the private and the social economy sectors to secure the necessary work placements, training placements and, potentially, job opportunities and apprenticeships. Initially, we will target major indigenous employers and seek to recruit high-profile champions from key sectors to help to secure commitment to the initiative. The approach will be to ensure that a range of businesses and sectors are seen as equal partners with government in securing workforce development and economic growth.

I have had informal discussions with employer representative bodies to gauge the level of commitment, including but not limited to, the Confederation of British Industry, the Federation of Small Businesses, the Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce, Manufacturing Northern Ireland, the Construction Employers Federation, the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action (NICVA) and the Bryson Charitable Group. Those discussions indicated that there is genuine interest in supporting the initiative, and a number of companies have signed up to offer different elements of the package. The public sector must also play a role; therefore, a variety of work placements will be sought in key parts of the public sector, such as health, education and local government. In discussions about the package, Executive colleagues have signalled their commitment to ensuring that their Departments and arm’s-length bodies contribute to the initiative. Continuous communication and liaison between participating young people, participating employers and the employment service will be necessary to ensure that the right levels of quality and commitment are being maintained by all the parties involved.

Now that the resources are available, my Department will commence the initiative and will build its capacity to deliver over the coming months. The formal engagement of employers and clients will now begin. There will be a challenge to continuously improve the quality and range of opportunities that are available.

The focus of the whole initiative is on ensuring that young people who are currently unemployed are provided, at the earliest possible stage, with the skills to gain jobs, to compete for jobs that are created in the future and to retain employment and progress in jobs. The focus is also on reducing the short-term employment development cycle that many face. This is not only beneficial for the individual economically and socially but benefits society as a whole.

Basil McCrea (UUP, Lagan Valley)

It would, perhaps, be churlish not to welcome the proposals. However, I would like the Minister to address some issues, because, in light of the challenges faced by our young people, there is a danger of me being somewhat underwhelmed by what he has proposed. He highlighted the fact that there are 20,000 unemployed 18- to 24-year-olds and 46,000 NEETs overall. However, we appear to be looking for places for only 6,000 of them, which seems to be a drop in the ocean. The Minister stated that his Department and the Executive have done more for youth than any other part of the United Kingdom. Is the £1 billion that was allocated by the coalition Government the unhypothecated money that will come to us, or is it additional money?

Towards the end of the Minister’s statement, he mentioned the public sector. Given that people routinely talk to us about the public sector accounting for 65% of our economy, should it not be incumbent on our public sector to do more to give jobs to those with learning or other disabilities and NEETs? It is not enough simply to tag that on at the end of his statement.

Finally, I hope that the Minister will look at a more overarching approach to the issue. Surely we need to find a way to encourage our young people to make choices earlier in their careers so that employment prospects are available to them rather than putting on a sticking plaster when things go wrong.

Stephen Farry (Alliance, North Down)

I think that I detected a welcome from the Committee Chair, so I thank him for that. I am somewhat disappointed that he is “underwhelmed” and regards the initiative as a “drop in the ocean”. This is a substantial investment in the future of our young people. It is worth stressing that, in direct comparison, this region is doing more than any other UK jurisdiction. The scale of what we are doing in Northern Ireland, relative to our population, dwarfs what is happening elsewhere. Furthermore, we are taking the opportunity to build in a skills premium, so there is clear evidence of wider strategic thinking.

The Chair referred to the Barnett consequentials that arose from the youth contract in Great Britain last November. As he knows, it is important that we stress that those resources come to us unhypothecated, and the Executive determine how they will be distributed. It is worth stressing again that the investment — I quoted the figures that we agreed with DFP in our business case — is of a greater scale than the Barnett consequentials that accrue to Northern Ireland from the youth contract. That is further evidence that we are doing more in Northern Ireland on the issue than are any of our neighbours.

The public sector is a key element. We obviously want to rebalance our economy and to have a more even split between the public and private sectors. However, I am impressed by the willingness of public sector bodies to engage. Of course, we have wider programmes that are based on trying to ensure that we unlock everyone’s potential and that those who face the barriers of a mental, physical or learning disability are able to access employment. A lot of good work is happening.

The statement is, of course, on youth unemployment and the resourcing of initiatives that we are taking forward. We recently published the NEETs strategy for Northern Ireland, which is a key objective of my Department. We also have a full suite of programmes that addresses the needs of young people. The Chair highlighted careers, and I appreciate the fact that the Committee wants to look at that area, for which policy has been in place for a number of years and responsibility is held jointly with the Department of Education. We need to consider that as we look to the future to ensure, in particular, that it provides enough accurate labour market information and engages people at an early stage.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

I remind Members that a Chairman is set a level of latitude that is not available to other Members, so it is one question per Member.

Tom Buchanan (DUP, West Tyrone)

I thank the Minister for his statement. I welcome the strong employer emphasis for 18- to 24-year-olds in the initiative. Will the Minister tell the House what targets are in place to measure and monitor the success of 18- to 24-year-olds finding full-time employment? We do not want a short-term fix. We want something in place that will really deliver in getting our 18- to 24-year-olds into full-time employment.

Stephen Farry (Alliance, North Down)

I thank the Deputy Chairperson for his comments and his general welcome. He is quite right to stress the critical importance of employers in the programme: it will not happen without the co-operation of employers. I have been impressed by the attitude of employers who recognise the opportunities that may come to their business from taking on a young person. At present, a lot of them are caught in a trap where they are unwilling to take the risk because of the costs associated with doing so. Hopefully, the employer subsidy, which we are offering at a very attractive level, will make the difference when it comes to employers taking people on.

The Member is also right about the importance of measuring outcomes in that regard. We have existing programmes, such as Steps to Work, and we need to see a step change in the number of sustainable jobs from them. Intensive working with young people, particularly on their employability skills, will make that crucial difference and deliver improved outcomes.

Phil Flanagan (Sinn Féin, Fermanagh and South Tyrone)

Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I thank the Minister for bringing this long and quite detailed statement to the House, and I welcome it. It has been very good to see the Minister trying to create a legacy in the short time he has been in the Department. Who knows how much longer he will be in it?

The creation of any kind of facility whereby young people have access to meaningful training and employment is very welcome, but we have to question whether there is any point unless there are proper jobs for them at the end of it. Does the Minister agree that the next step has to be the publication by the Executive of an overarching job-creation strategy that puts tackling youth unemployment and long-term unemployment at its core?

Stephen Farry (Alliance, North Down)

I thank Mr Flanagan for his general welcome. It is worth stressing that the Executive have a comprehensive strategy in the form of the Northern Ireland economic strategy. There are two themes in that strategy: the rebalancing and the rebuilding of the economy. There is a recognition that, particularly in the short to medium term, there has to be a very strong emphasis on job creation. Jobs targets are set out in the Programme for Government. The Member, among others, will be acutely aware of the potential job opportunities that will come from a lower level of corporation tax, and it is important that we plan ahead for that.

He is right to ask what that means in the context of the demand not being there. A lot is happening to try to create that demand, and it is important that we are able to match our supply of skills with demand, and that is built into this initiative. Also, the Department’s skills strategy highlights the need for a much more general upskilling of the population. All the projections show that people will need higher-level skills in the future and that there will be fewer opportunities for those with low or no qualifications. Already, even if you drill down into the unemployment figures for young people, there is a very clear differential between those who have a higher level of qualifications and those who do not. There is almost a 2:1 advantage, which is strong confirmation that it is worthwhile for a young person to engage in training. If they do so, whether it is training through an apprenticeship or through further or higher education, their job prospects, even in these difficult times, are enhanced.

Joe Byrne (Social Democratic and Labour Party, West Tyrone)

I generally welcome the statement from the Minister. At least it is something positive on tackling youth unemployment. Given that there are 46,000 unemployed people in the 16- to 24-year-old category, in the 18- to 24-year-old category, what about those who are graduating this week in civil engineering, quantity surveying and building cost estimation? What chances do they have of getting a work placement in the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development or bodies such as the water service, Roads Service or the Rivers Agency, where there is a very big shortage in design staff?

Stephen Farry (Alliance, North Down)

I thank Mr Byrne for his comments. It is important to clarify that 20,000 of 18- to 24-year-olds claim jobseeker’s allowance. When we talk about the wider NEETs category, 16- to 24-year-olds, we are talking about 46,000, but not all of those are claiming jobseeker’s and, therefore, classified as actively seeking work.

I hope that there are job prospects for people who are graduating. The detail of that lies in the hands of my ministerial colleagues. However, it is worth reiterating that there is a general commitment across all Departments and public agencies to look at work placements. I have no doubt that those Ministers will take note of what Mr Byrne said.

Chris Lyttle (Alliance, Belfast East)

I welcome this multimillion-pound investment in employment and training for young people, which we must make a priority for the Assembly. I welcome in particular the additional training allowance for young people on pre-vocational schemes. The Committee for Employment and Learning has done a lot of work to lobby the Minister on that issue, and it is a welcome inclusion in the programme.

Why is it so important to take specific actions to address youth unemployment, rather than unemployment overall?

Stephen Farry (Alliance, North Down)

I thank Mr Lyttle for his question and his comments. He is right to say that we have been lobbied considerably on the training allowance by the Committee and a number of community and voluntary groups, and we have listened to those comments.

There was a desire, at one stage, that we would seek to extend education maintenance allowance (EMA) to capture that, and, at the time, I tried to caution that, perhaps, there were other ways to address the anomaly that exists in the system for those who are participating under the European social fund schemes. This training allowance is the response that allows us to take that forward.

We are, of course, addressing the issue of the wider unemployed population as a whole, and we will shortly move to a new employment programme for Northern Ireland, but there are very strong reasons why we want to concentrate a degree of our resources on addressing the needs of young people.

Some 28% of jobseeker’s allowance claimants come from the 18 to 24-year-old category. That six-year cohort of the overall adult population accounts for almost 30% of those who are seeking work. There is a real concentration of unemployment among young people. Our profile in Northern Ireland is at the extreme end of the spectrum in that regard, so there are some very strong public policy rationales behind investing in young people at the scale that we are. We want to avoid a situation where we have a lost generation of young people, not just for their sake but for the health of our economy.

David McIlveen (DUP, North Antrim)

I thank the Minister for his statement. How do youth unemployment figures in Northern Ireland compare with those in England, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland? Perhaps he would offer some reflection on and analysis of those figures.

Stephen Farry (Alliance, North Down)

I thank Mr McIlveen for his question. The figures in Northern Ireland, by and large, reflect the trends that we are seeing elsewhere in these islands. It is worth stressing the point that, in common with our neighbouring jurisdictions and in contrast to some other European countries, we have a real concentration of unemployment among young people, which is why we need to act.

The formal unemployment figures are only one part of that equation. The First Minister reflected on that in his response to the BIC summit. We have issues with regard to those people who are in the NEET category, in that our figures are some of the highest in the UK, if not the highest. We also have the much wider issue of economic inactivity in Northern Ireland, for which we also have the highest figures. My Department, in conjunction with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (DETI), is commencing work on a new strategy for dealing with economic inactivity, which we hope to issue for consultation in the autumn of this year.

Sammy Douglas (DUP, Belfast East)

I welcome the Minister’s statement. During a recent visit to Harland and Wolff in East Belfast, it was clear to me that there was quite a number of opportunities for young people. However, there seems to be a disconnection between DEL and companies such as Harland and Wolff. Bearing in mind the current strategy, what difference will the new strategy make in ensuring that those young people will have opportunities to take advantage of the initiatives that the Minister has outlined?

Stephen Farry (Alliance, North Down)

I thank Mr Douglas for his comments. If there are any particular issues with employers, my officials will take note of that. In every challenge there is an opportunity, and we will ensure that that is followed up.

The strategy aims to make a real difference by giving people the work experience and the employability skills that are so important in the ever increasingly competitive labour market. We have young people who have availed themselves of education and training and those who are extremely willing to engage in work. It is not a situation in which we are trying to force into work young people who would otherwise be sitting at home actively being lazy. There are people who really want to get into work but do not have the opportunities. Owing to the lack of experience, they are caught in a catch-22 situation in which they are not able to compete on equal terms with some older, more experienced workers, because they lack experience and employability skills. The intervention is designed to break that vicious circle.

It is also worth stressing that employers may be reluctant to take a chance by taking on a young person. They may be fearful of the cost implications and wonder whether they can afford it. Hopefully, the employer subsidy will create an incentive for employers to take on that young person. More often than not, we will find that employers realise that that young person adds to the bottom line of the business and gives a real added value. Moreover, after the subsidy is withdrawn, I hope that the company will come to the conclusion that it wants to keep on that young person and support him or her fully.

Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice, North Antrim)

On the delivery of these aspirations, which are all very good, what part, if any, does the application of sanction play for young people who perhaps start on a project, a placement or a training exercise and then drop out? Do they simply revert to benefits, or is there any inducement to ensure that they continue to attain the essential skills that they will need?

Stephen Farry (Alliance, North Down)

I thank Mr Allister for his question, which creates a good opportunity to address the controversial issue of sanctions. We have exemptions through work experience regulations that allow young people to remain in receipt of jobseeker’s allowance while engaging in the work experience initiatives. Sanctions are a massive distraction to that. We had the debate in England and Wales earlier this year, and employers clearly said that sanctions were becoming a distraction. Where sanctions are available under Steps to Work, they are applied in an extremely small minority: in less than 2%, and those are the most extreme cases. We do not propose do deploy sanctions to the initiatives that I announced today, except for a situation in which a young person engages in gross misconduct in the workplace. That clearly is unacceptable.

That goes back to the point that I made to Mr Douglas a few moments ago. We do not perceive the need to force people into work experience or to stay in work experience. We have a very good deal in resource terms, and we will be able to deal with a lot of young people. I fully expect that there will be great hunger and demand from young people who are out of work, realise the importance of getting into work and want to engage in work experience. We are talking about meaningful work experience for people, not about slave labour and exploitation by companies. It is about something that is good for the young person’s opportunities and good for businesses. Through partnership, it will be a great success for Northern Ireland and the economy.

Fra McCann (Sinn Féin, Belfast West)

Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I welcome the Minister’s statement. I have a number of concerns about the roll-out of the scheme, not least over ensuring that there is no exploitation of young people.

Thousands of people have been sanctioned through DEL or DHSSPS, so I ask you to check the figures that you have been given, Minister. The important thing is to ensure that companies that take in young people provide meaningful employment and that the young people obtain the level of skills required to ensure that they can go into employment or an apprenticeship. Some of the stuff in the past has not given kids essential skills.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

Could we have a question shortly, please?

Fra McCann (Sinn Féin, Belfast West)

How can you guarantee that kids will not be exploited?

Stephen Farry (Alliance, North Down)

I detected several questions there; it was a very creative effort. I answered the question about sanctions in response to Mr Allister. To be clear: sanctions are a distraction and a non-issue in relation to this initiative.

As regards Steps to Work, those are the figures. It would be only in the smallest subsection of cases that sanctions would ever be considered. We are not trying to force people into these opportunities. There is hunger out there for the opportunities to be taken forward. Progression is a key element. We are trying to get people onto the ladder. We want people to move onwards and upwards into different types of employment and further training.

The staff of the employment service will monitor exploitation very closely. It is a partnership with business. In the very rare circumstance of a company exploiting young people, we will intervene, remove those young people, look for other experiences for them and not use that company again. It is worth stressing that I do not see that being the situation. Both the companies that I have spoken to and young people want this to work.

Pat Ramsey (Social Democratic and Labour Party, Foyle)

I thank the Minister and welcome the statement. I commend him for being able to draw down £6 million in June monitoring. Well done. I welcome, in particular, the Include Youth training allowance, which will hopefully satisfy those on the family support programmes.

The Minister will be aware that, when the Committee carried out the NEETs inquiry, there was clear evidence that Scotland and Wales were doing it much better. Can you assure the House that there is full buy-in from Departments? Would it not be better to have a NEETs-dedicated unit that reflects all Departments to meet the targets that the Minister hopes to meet?

Stephen Farry (Alliance, North Down)

I thank Mr Ramsey for his questions and comments. He focused on NEETs, and it is worth stressing a number of points in that regard. First, when I took over as Minister for Employment and Learning, there was not a dedicated budget for NEETs. We had a commitment to produce a strategy, which, at that stage, was viewed as a better presentation of the existing work that Departments were doing. Over the past year, we have taken that forward and created a number of new initiatives, whether through my Department or those of my ministerial colleagues. We have now created a budget based on the June monitoring round and agreed the wider business case with the Department of Finance and Personnel.

Delivery will be key in taking forward the NEETs strategy. My Department is happy to provide the lead in that regard, as we did in the drawing up of the strategy. However, the implementation will be placed within a wider Executive framework. The Member will be aware of the Delivering Social Change framework that is emerging through OFMDFM and through which a number of strategies are being run to ensure that we have proper co-ordination and buy-in from Ministers. That is an appropriate vehicle to take forward the NEETs strategy and should preserve the already good buy-in to the strategy from Ministers.

Barry McElduff (Sinn Féin, West Tyrone)

Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. Cuirim fáilte roimh ráiteas an Aire, agus is maith an rud go bhfuil sé inár measc inniu. I thank the Minister for his statement. However, I will point out that, in government, there appears to be a kind of myopia about youth emigration. The problem of youth emigration, which is having a detrimental impact, particularly on the vitality of rural communities, is not referred to anywhere in the statement. Does the Minister’s Department have any idea of the scale of or the figures around youth emigration, particularly from rural communities? What is the Executive’s and DEL’s overall strategy to stem the tide of youth emigration?

Stephen Farry (Alliance, North Down)

I thank Mr McElduff for his questions. It is difficult to achieve an accurate figure for inward and outward migration. Those figures are not necessarily maintained under devolution, and, of course, within the framework on these islands, we have freedom of movement for young people. That said, I recognise it as an issue, and, ultimately, what we are doing on youth unemployment, NEETs, extra provision in further education, freezing tuition fees and investing in our local universities is about trying to maximise the number of our young people who will stay in Northern Ireland and build their careers here. While we may not have mentioned the words directly, everything that we are doing is about investing in the future of our young people, investing in this region and asking them to make their careers here.

Anna Lo (Alliance, Belfast South)

Like others, I very much welcome the Minister’s statement and commend him on his great commitment to helping young people to gain employment and work experience. In Great Britain, there is the youth contract, which has various programmes. How different are his proposed measures from those in the rest of the UK?

Stephen Farry (Alliance, North Down)

I thank my colleague for her comments. It is worth stressing that we have learned lessons from others’ experiences, whether in Great Britain or in the South of Ireland, and what they have done to assist young people. Of course, this issue is fully devolved to Northern Ireland, and we take our own decisions locally. It is worth reiterating that we propose to spend more on youth unemployment relative to all other jurisdictions on these islands. This is a bigger-scale intervention, and, as an Executive, we are making it a bigger priority than our colleagues are. That is a clear sign and benefit of devolution.

The second core element on which we are different from our neighbours is that we are building in a heavy skills premium, and we have a clear economic strategy in which we have identified the need to grow our economy. We have also, through my Department, identified the priority skill areas for the future of the economy, and we are trying to concentrate work experience opportunities in those key strategic areas so that we give young people the opportunity and so that we build, in a proper fashion, for the future economy of Northern Ireland.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

That concludes questions to the Minister for Employment and Learning.

Basil McCrea (UUP, Lagan Valley)

On a point of order, Mr Deputy Speaker. Will you explain to me, perhaps through the Speaker’s Office, whether the decision to call Members who have not been in the Chamber is a Speaker’s ruling or a Business Committee ruling? We are already considerably ahead of our schedule — some 30 minutes ahead — and it is difficult for people to be here on time for the next bit of business. I understand that, if the statement is made on time, it is only right and proper that you do not call people if they are not here for it. However, we need to look at that situation again if we are going to be so far away from our indicative timings.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

As the Member quite rightly points out, they are indicative timings, and all Members of this Assembly should realise that. It is the Speaker’s ruling, and it is custom and practice to call first Members who are in for the full statement. After that, those Members who were in for part of the statement were called.

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. Ba mhaith liom ráiteas a dhéanamh leis an Tionól. I want to make a statement to the Assembly on the outcome of the consultation on the early years strategy, the 0-6 strategy, and to indicate the approach that I intend to take to move that important work forward.

Investment in early intervention and early years makes sense. That is clear. There is growing evidence that demonstrates the importance of effective early interventions. We are learning more about the importance of brain development in the early years and the impact that positive early life experiences can have on overall outcomes. While there is widespread agreement on the need for increased early years intervention and support, there is less consensus on how that might be achieved. I am keen to proceed quickly to finalise an early years strategy, and that will provide a clear platform for the development of future provision and will complement the existing policies that are already raising educational standards. Enough time has been spent debating and considering the issues, and the time has now come to decide the strategic approach to be adopted.

It is vital that we continue to build on the positive actions that we are undertaking already. In May, I announced additional funding of £13·1 million for early years services over the next three years. That will expand Sure Start services from the current coverage of 20% to cover the 25% most disadvantaged wards in the North. In addition, it will increase the availability of preschool places and will help to close the gap in funding between statutory nursery provision and that in the community, voluntary and private sectors. That will mean that my Department’s investment in early years services for 2012-13 will be £84 million. That compares with £73 million when the draft strategy was launched in 2010.

Over recent years, real progress has been made on the ground. For example, between 2006-07 and 2011-12, the number of children in funded preschool provision increased by over 2,000 and the number of statutory nursery settings increased from 307 to 319, resulting in over 400 more places, and over 1,800 additional funded preschool places have been made available in the voluntary and private sector. Sure Start funding has more than doubled from £9·3 million to £22·5 million, and the Sure Start developmental programme for two- to three-year-olds, which was first introduced in 2007, will be delivered to over 1,600 children in their penultimate preschool year in 2012-13. We should recognise, too, the improvements that have been achieved in the quality of provision in our preschool settings as indicated by ETI inspections and the chief inspector’s reports. Those improvements have resulted from the clear focus that has been placed on early years since 2007.

The draft early years strategy was originally launched for public consultation in June 2010. Such was the interest in it that the closing date for the consultation was extended to January 2011. We received almost 2,000 responses from a wide cross section of interests. I welcome the focus that has been placed on the early years and the genuine appreciation that there was among respondents of the importance of those years to a child’s development. We have had an opportunity to reflect on the views that were submitted, and decisions now have to be made about how to proceed.

As a next step, today I am publishing an analysis of the consultation responses, highlighting the key issues and priorities that have been raised. I have to report that, although most respondents agreed that the strategy needed further work, there was not one clear, collective view on the best way forward. At a strategic level, some respondents, particularly the larger organisations, were supportive of the vision and aims but thought that integrated early years services needed cross-departmental support and should perhaps be centrally driven. Some respondents wanted us to concentrate on improving the early education system before embarking on a wider agenda. They wanted us to deal with issues in preschool provision and to prioritise the implementation of the 2006 review of preschool education. There were calls for more work with parents and families, as well as for greater recognition of the requirements of children with special needs and disabilities. The need for more outreach to families that are at risk of exclusion was also raised.

In the light of the varying views that were emerging, I considered some fundamental issues before deciding how to proceed. I believe that it is clear that the focus of a revised strategy must be on the child and their needs. We must also reflect the Programme for Government priorities that recognise the importance of providing a year’s free preschool education for every child. The progress on early years that I outlined provides a solid platform for the development of future work. I want to consolidate and build on the positive improvements to preschool education that we have delivered already. We acknowledge the need to intervene early in many children’s lives to ensure that they do not start school already at risk of falling behind their peers. However, it does not fall to one single Department to do that; other Departments also have a role in giving young children the best possible experience. I recognise the importance of a more joined-up and co-ordinated approach to early years. To that end, I will proceed with a two-stranded approach to the early years issue.

The first strand will be the development of a revised strategy with a clear focus on early education and learning. I want to focus on what the Department of Education can do to ensure that young children are prepared, supported and encouraged to learn. By finalising an early years education strategy, I will complete a suite of educational policies that will drive educational reform, raise standards overall and close the gap between the highest and lowest achievers.

However, education does not begin and end at the school or preschool gates. Children learn first and foremost from their parents or carers. In striving to make improvements and enhance early education, the role and support of young children’s parents and carers is key. To support the work of teachers and early years practitioners, this autumn I will be launching an advertising campaign aimed at raising the value that local communities place on education. Education can be the route out of poverty, but only if parents, families and communities value it and are encouraged and enabled to support their children to get everything they can from it. If parents who aspire to a better future for their children do not realise the importance of good education, much of this work will be in vain.

The strategy will be outward-looking. It will require close partnership with other Departments, particularly the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety, to ensure that early years services are delivered effectively. I have held meetings with Minister Poots to identify areas of common interest and ensure that both Departments are working together effectively in the development of relevant policies.

Early support for children can make a difference. It helps develop good emotional well-being and resilience, and addresses special educational needs. I have asked my officials to engage with a range of key stakeholders, including the early years stakeholder advisory group, so that I can make final decisions about how the proposals can best be taken forward. These discussions will take place over the coming months, after which I will finalise my proposals by November.

I turn now to the second strand that I intend taking forward. In parallel with the development of an early education and learning strategy, I want to target early years support for those living in disadvantaged areas. The evidence of the impact of disadvantage on education outcomes is clear. School leavers who are entitled to free school meals consistently attain poorer education outcomes than those who are not. This is why I intend to engage with my ministerial colleagues to explore the potential for enhanced co-operation around early years intervention. It may well be that the new Delivering Social Change framework can offer a vehicle to target additional support to those with young children living in disadvantaged areas. The Delivering Social Change framework was included in the Programme for Government and is intended to co-ordinate the efforts of different Departments to tackle poverty and social exclusion. I plan to explore the potential of this group to bring together the efforts of a number of Departments to achieve enhanced collaboration and improve the delivery of early years services in areas of disadvantage. Through this mechanism, Ministers could work in a co-ordinated way to tackle some of the most fundamental and intractable problems in our community.

To conclude, the development of an early years strategy has proved a complex and challenging exercise, with conflicting views from many different stakeholders. The approach I have outlined today will build on the excellent progress made in recent years, not just in early years support and education but in the improvement of education attainment at all levels of our system. As with the review of special educational needs and inclusion, I am willing to listen and respond to the views that are expressed through the consultation. However, the time has come for me to indicate clearly the approach that I intend to take. To begin with, I intend to ensure that we have a clear focus on early education and intervention, and on what the Department of Education can do in partnership with other Executive Departments. This early years strategy will provide a solid platform for the provision of relevant services. Building on this, I will explore the potential of the Delivering Social Change framework to harness the work of different Government Departments and to target support and resources for early years services in areas of greatest need.

I will ensure that at the heart of all this work will be the aim of enhancing the quality of early education for our youngest children and their families. I am committed to ensuring the best educational early learning experience for all our children. Go raibh míle maith agat.

Mervyn Storey (DUP, North Antrim)

First of all, I thank the Minister for the pre-briefing that he gave to the Deputy Chair and me prior to the statement being made to the House.

It is with some degree of dismay that we come to the House today, many months and indeed years after the publication of a policy by the Department in relation to early years. To say that the process to date has been shambolic would be an understatement. What confidence can the Minister ensure will now be instilled in those providers who are paying attention to this announcement today that the Department that has brought us to the state that we are in at the moment will be able to deliver a clear, coherent vision and policy for preschool education, and that it will not be as it has been in the past?

In relation to the early years stakeholder advisory group, will the Minister explain to the House today how he intends to ensure that that group, which has not to date engaged with the primary-school sector that will ultimately be either advantaged or disadvantaged by whatever policy is set in train and set in place, will involve and listen to and engage with that sector?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

I thank the Member for his question. Ideally, we would like to be further on in the debate over a strategy than we are. However, the consultation responses show that, even among the 2,000 respondents, there was little and, in places, no agreement on the way forward, which is regrettable. I accept the responsibility: politicians and Ministers are elected to make decisions. I have outlined today the consultation responses, and I am making them available to the Committee, other Members and the public to study. Over the period ahead, my Department and I will engage closely with key stakeholders on the way forward.

However, we have not been standing still. As I said in my statement, it is worth noting that we are now spending £84 million on preschool services. When the consultation was launched, we were spending £73 million. There are 2,000 more children in preschool education today than there were two years ago. I have expanded Sure Start from 20% of the most deprived areas to cover 25% of the most deprived areas. Almost 2,000 children will enter the two- to three-year programme for Sure Start this year. Sure Start touches the lives of almost 34,000 children annually. Progress is being made in early years, but I accept that we need to move towards a strategy, and we need to have a firm strategy, not only from my Department but between Executive colleagues and their respective Departments.

The Member commented on the early years strategy group and its connections with primary schools. I will take what he said on board and investigate it further. It seems logical that both sections will engage with each other, and I certainly take that comment on board as our deliberations continue.

Michaela Boyle (Sinn Féin, West Tyrone)

Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I thank the Minister for his statement. Does he agree that Sure Start and the voluntary and private nursery sector are moving on with the provision of preschool places and ensuring that our children get the best possible start in life? Does he also agree that it should not just be the Health and Education Departments involved? All other Departments need to be on board in pursuing the strategy. The Minister is keen, but how keen are the other Departments?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

I thank the Member for her question. Significant developments have been made in Sure Start and early years provision over the past number of years. Standards, particularly in the community, voluntary and private sectors, are rising. I made a significant investment in them in the early part of this year. I accept that investment is required. However, I also accept that there is responsibility on the bodies themselves to ensure that standards continue to rise. The Education and Training Inspectorate will play a crucial and central role in ensuring that standards improve in all sectors of our education system.

How do I go forward with my Executive colleagues? I sit on a number of cross-departmental subcommittees. On each, the focus and discussion often centres on early years provision. Whether I am partaking in bilaterals or plenary meetings with my Executive colleagues, they accept that, in general, all Departments have a responsibility to ensure that we make investments in early years. I mean not simply investments in early years education but investments in all areas of a child’s early development, because that is where the real results are proven to begin. Be it a child’s emotional development and well-being, how it bonds with its parents and its family, and how it develops with others, studies show that those are the crucial years in the brain development of a child. We are engaged in discussions with my Executive colleagues that will have positive outcomes.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

I remind Members that we are aiming for one question per Member.

Danny Kinahan (UUP, South Antrim)

Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. I hope that you are not aiming that at me.

I thank the Minister for his statement and for his briefing beforehand. I am concerned about the fact that the Minister said that responsibility does not fall to “one single Department”. We seem to be setting ourselves up for excuses in the future. Are we going to see one lead Department in time? Will we see a strategy from the Health Minister that fits to this Minister’s strategy, with actions and timelines, by November?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

I assure the Member that that line is not there to offer excuses for my Department, or any other Department, not delivering on its early years commitment. It is just stating a fact. As I said to the Member who asked the previous question, the Department is around the table. I accept that, unless we get it right at early years, we are allowing difficulties to develop, not only for the individual child but for society as well. If we can get the early years right, the child’s educational development will prosper, the child’s health will improve and the child’s interaction with their family and community will be much improved. That child will be less likely, as a young adult, to end up in the justice system.

From a purely selfish, financial point of view, the right thing to do is invest in early years. From a moral point of view, the right thing to do is invest in early years to improve a child’s life. I assure the Member that I am pleased with the engagement from my Executive colleagues on early years. I am more than pleased with my engagement with the Health Minister on early years. In the intervening period between now and November, I intend to intensify those discussions with my Executive colleagues.

Seán Rogers (Social Democratic and Labour Party, South Down)

Minister, thank you for your statement. I particularly welcome your words that we are moving towards a strategy. Like other Members, my concern is that every year it takes to get this strategy is five years in a young person’s life. Parents, like schools, play a key role in early years education. Are there any plans to increase the provision of parenting programmes, such as the type of work that is currently being piloted by Sure Start and is happening in some of our nursery schools?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

I reassure the Member that, as we have been developing the strategy, we have not been standing still. I emphasise the list of developments and improvements that have taken place, as outlined in my statement, and the significant financial investment we have made in early years provision over the past number of years. The Member mentioned Sure Start. He will be aware that, several weeks ago, I announced to the House that I have expanded Sure Start’s coverage from the top 20% of most deprived wards to the top 25%. We will monitor that programme as it rolls out. If the financial availability is there in the future, we will look at expanding that even further. At the moment, we want to concentrate on the most deprived wards.

Engagement around parenting is clearly an area that we want to see expanded and developed. Sure Start touches on those matters. A number of schools already use their extended schools funding for parental engagement, which I encourage. I will examine that further under any early years strategy.

Trevor Lunn (Alliance, Lagan Valley)

The figures that jump off the page at me are the 400 extra places in statutory nursery settings and the 1,800 extra places in the voluntary and private sector. Given the evidence that outcomes are better in the statutory sector, does the Minister have any plans to redress that balance over the years or improve the qualification levels of those teaching our children in the voluntary sector?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

I intend to continue to focus on the community and voluntary sector. Previous inspection reports for that sector are mixed, but they have been improving. I take heart from the most recent Education and Training Inspectorate report on those facilities. It is clear that the vast majority of facilities provide an excellent service to our young people, but there are areas of concern.

Recently, I made a significant investment in the community and voluntary sector. I accepted that the sector’s work was somewhat limited by the finances available. I accepted that there was a requirement for further investment, and I made that investment. However, with that investment, I expect to see markedly improved outcomes for all young people coming out of the community and voluntary sector. There are examples in the statutory sector I can point to where inspection reports are not glowing. There are many examples I can point to where the reports are glowing. Across sectors, we are improving all the time in the delivery of our educational services. However, I do take the Member’s point. Those concerns have been raised previously, but I believe that we have a strategy in place to correct them.

Paul Givan (DUP, Lagan Valley)

I thank the Minister for his statement. Locally, the Resurgam trust in Lisburn has carried out excellent work in our working-class estates to identify the need that exists for early intervention. So we are ready to go on the co-ordination strand, which was the second strand that he touched on. We have a document, and if he does not already have it, I will send it to him. It highlights the issue of the Department of Education, the Health Department and the Justice Department working together. When will Ministers and Departments co-ordinate and recognise that upfront investment and a long-term output will be required? Ultimately, that will not be delivered for a long time, and it will require Ministers to make big decisions.

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

I welcome the fact that your area in Lisburn is ready to go. If you want to send me a copy of the document, I am more than happy to go through it. I see a number of elements at play. In the Programme for Government, the delivering social change element may be the umbrella under which a number of Departments will be able to work together and finance initiatives. Recently, I have been in correspondence with a number of my Executive colleagues, and I have sought their views on an early intervention fund. I do not want to go into more detail on that, because, in fairness to my Executive colleagues, the letter was sent only in the past number of days, and I want to give them a chance to study it and to make their views known to me. There is the potential for a combined early intervention fund in a number of neighbourhoods, which will assist young people.

I emphasise again that I am confident that there is a view among Executive colleagues that early intervention and investment in early years represent the way forward, first and foremost, to improve young people’s lives and, in the long run, to save the Government millions of pounds. If we get it right at early years stage, a young person has a better chance of succeeding in life.

Steven Agnew (Green, North Down)

I thank the Minister for coming to the House with the statement. When the draft strategy was launched, it was the 0-6 early years strategy. At that time, my concern with the strategy sitting in the Department of Education was that some two-year-old children come into contact with DE, but most children do not come into contact with the Minister’s Department until they are three, four or even five years of age. The Minister mentions close partnerships with other Departments, including the Department of Health. Will the Minister guarantee that it will be a 0-6 strategy and that it will not only be a close partnership but a joint strategy with the Department of Health? One strategy for children aged nought to two, nought to three, or whatever, in the Department of Health and a separate DE strategy would not be acceptable to me, my party or, I believe, the children’s sector.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

May we have a question, please?

Steven Agnew (Green, North Down)

Will the Minister guarantee that there will be genuine collaborative working, rather than two separate strategies?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

It is important that Departments have common cause, which is to ensure that there is early intervention for young people to improve their lives. I believe that a 0-6 strategy is still achievable; in fact, it will probably be more achievable in the future than it has been in the past. My discussions with my Executive colleagues thus far have been very positive, and I will continue to work towards a 0-6 strategy. However, I have responsibility for young people from the age of three onwards. Other Departments, to varying degrees, have responsibility for children aged nought to three. I also fund the Sure Start programme, which is delivered by the Department of Health, and there is a good working relationship on how that is rolled out. However, I do not believe that the issue is about Departments protecting territory or budgets. We must ensure that we deliver on the existing co-operation and that we formalise a strategy on the way forward, which is a common cause across the Executive table.

Michelle McIlveen (DUP, Strangford)

Given the diversity of the early years sector, how will the Minister ensure that there will be equity in the way in which the various sectors delivering early years provision are assessed by the inspectorate?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

Regardless of the setting that the inspectorate goes into, it has common inspection themes. The inspectorate wants to ensure that there are age-appropriate educational opportunities for young people in early years. There is, therefore, no inspection process for a statutory setting, and there is no separate inspection process for a community and voluntary setting. The inspection process ensures that an age-appropriate curriculum is being delivered in those settings and that proper standards are being adhered to. Sectoral interests have been a difficulty in agreeing the strategy.

As a Minister, I will move forward and listen to the different sectors, but I will make decisions on what I believe to be right for the sector and for early years. That will not always please everyone, but I will make those decisions based on information and consultation and then we will move forward. The responsibility of Ministers is to listen and then make decisions, and that is what I intend to do.

Sandra Overend (UUP, Mid Ulster)

We are touching on the same sort of question that I want to ask. How does the Minister propose to measure the success of his strategy? Will there be specific targets that can be measured and monitored at varying stages, or shall we have to wait until a child reaches the end of their education within your responsibility to find out how successful that child has been?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

The ultimate test of how successful a strategy will be is when the child reaches young adulthood. Our Government are involved in many programmes of work, and it may take 10 to 15 years before we know the outcomes of them. However, we are working on an evidence base, which I believe is thorough and robust, so we can move forward.

In respect of measurements in the strategy, my main focus at the moment is getting the strategy. I will build in measures and outcomes within that and will report back to the Assembly. However, my focus at the moment is to get the strategy down on paper, get it agreed and move forward with that, and we can build in measures in regard to outcomes, etc.

Phil Flanagan (Sinn Féin, Fermanagh and South Tyrone)

Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I thank the Minister for his statement and commend him on the proactive approach he has taken to early years to date. The Minister and the Committee will be well aware of the criticism that came in following the publication of the earlier consultation. The Minister and the Committee were very keen to listen to those consultation responses, to take them on board and to ensure that a proper strategy was put in place that reflected the views of everybody. Have we genuinely learned anything from that process and from those responses? Does the potential exist for us to move forward with a joined-up strategy that enjoys the support of stakeholders and gets the buy-in from other Departments?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

Consultations by Departments are often treated with scepticism by the public and in the sectors. This shows that consultations have an influence on government. I could have come into the Chamber today and ignored the consultation responses and announced a policy that I believe to be the right way forward. However, I am here today saying to Members and to the general public that we accept that the consultation responses are largely critical of the strategy set out, though there is no agreed way forward or common theme on the way forward from the consultation responses, and we want to take a short time to engage again with the stakeholders, the Education Committee and my Executive colleagues and then produce a firm strategy on the way forward. That is a clear indication that we have listened and are prepared to listen to move forward.

The key objective is to ensure that we have a strategy that is deliverable, makes a difference in people’s lives and makes a difference in our society. As I said to one of the Members who spoke previously, the role of a Minister is to make decisions. I will listen again in the short time ahead and then I will make a decision on the best way forward.

Dolores Kelly (Social Democratic and Labour Party, Upper Bann)

Two years on from when the strategy was first launched, we are now hearing a response to the consultations. Does the Minister agree that that is shambolic, appalling and that it is a dog’s dinner? One wonders whether there was a strategy to begin with. How did he and his predecessor get the strategy so badly wrong in the first instance? Can he put some meat on the bones in respect of the time frame for November and in respect of an action plan?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

I await the SDLP’s response in the coming months. I have no doubt that the SDLP has an early years strategy sitting waiting to be wheeled out into the public domain to tell all the sectors how we will proceed. Having listened to the Member’s question, I can say it seems her party knows how it should be done. Therefore, I will listen to the SDLP. I will study — [Interruption.]

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

Order, please. I encourage the Minister and the Member to address their remarks through the Chair.

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

I will study with interest the SDLP’s early years strategy. I will take on board the elements of it that are workable and will go forward in a collective and agreeable manner.

David Ford (Alliance, South Antrim)

On 13 September 2011, I announced the publication of the final report of the access to justice review and invited views on its 159 conclusions and recommendations. I have considered the responses very carefully, and I am today publishing my formal response to the review, together with a departmental action plan, setting out the 38 reforms that I propose to take forward in the life of this Assembly. The projects set out in the plan cover more than 100 of the 159 recommendations in the final report of the access to justice review. The plan will be a living document, and further reforms may be added to it if I conclude that they are necessary and that it is feasible for my Department to deliver results within a meaningful timescale.

When I was elected Justice Minister, I said that my goal is to create a better justice system for everyone: for victims of crime; for those who seek redress through civil law or who need the assistance of the legal system to resolve family or other disputes; for those called to give evidence; and for those who face prosecution as a defendant. The access to justice review has made a very significant contribution to my thinking about how to achieve that goal, and I am grateful to all who made submissions to the review team and who provided comments as part of the public consultation.

Today, I want to set out the programme of work that I will take forward. I have set three strategic objectives in the departmental action plan: improving access to justice; bringing legal aid expenditure within budget; and improving governance and accountability. Although each of those three objectives is important, I want to stress the particular importance that I attach to the first: improving access to justice. It is, perhaps, inevitable that coverage of my statement today will focus on the aspects that are aimed at bringing expenditure within budget. However, the access to justice review was about much more than that, and so is my response. Indeed, half of the 38 projects in the programme are aimed at improving access to justice. That reflects my desire to see real and lasting improvement in the justice system and to ensure that the justice system plays its full part in creating a fair and just society. It is also an indicator of just how much work will be needed to achieve that.

Another 12 projects are aimed at the second objective of bringing legal aid within budget. The high cost of legal aid has been one of the most common complaints that I have received from members of the public and from MLAs on behalf of their constituents. Few would deny that certain aspects of the arrangements for the provision of legal aid here have been too generous. The challenge that faces all of us who are committed to access to justice is to maintain and improve such access but to do so on a real value-for-money basis. I am determined that we will not go down the path being followed elsewhere, with budgets cut by reducing the scope of support for those who genuinely need assistance in accessing justice. Rather, we — elected representatives, the legal profession, and voluntary and community organisations — must work together to develop and deliver reforms that are effective and affordable.

The reform programme set out in the action plan also includes seven projects that are intended to improve governance and accountability. That is another area where there has been significant public concern, as well as critical reports by the Northern Ireland Audit Office and the Public Accounts Committee. The Justice Committee has also expressed its concern about accountability for legal aid expenditure. Addressing issues of accountability and ensuring that proper measures are in place to protect against fraud has to be a priority, and the plan reflects that. I am confident that my proposed reforms, and other improvements in governance already under way, will address the problem. However, if more work is required, it will be taken forward as quickly as possible.

When I published the final report of the review last year, I said that consultation would not hold up work to deliver necessary reforms, and it has not. I have already acted on some of the review recommendations, and work has begun on 25 of the 38 projects listed in the departmental action plan. Indeed, work on some of the review recommendations has been completed. For example, the review commented on the need for tight and precise criteria for decisions on how many counsel should be funded in cases in the Crown Court, and new, tighter criteria were introduced in April 2012. Experience to date suggests that the new rules will save £2 million each year, more than originally anticipated.

The review recommended the introduction of a new power for the Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission to recover money from convicted defendants where it becomes clear that they can afford to pay for their own defence. Since I became Justice Minister, Members and constituents have raised with me a number of high-profile cases where convicted defendants had received legal aid but it subsequently became clear that they were well able to pay the fees for their defence teams. I am pleased to tell the Assembly that I have made new rules to allow costs to be recovered in such cases, and they were laid before the Assembly this morning. The rules, which will introduce recovery of defence costs orders, will come into force in the autumn after the start of the new legal term.

In other areas, good progress is being made. I accepted the review recommendations that my Department should seek to develop partnerships with the voluntary and advice sectors and that we should make more use of pilot projects. A pilot project to help people facing court action for housing repossession or eviction from rented accommodation, by way of grant-funding for the Housing Rights Service, is now under way. In addition to providing funding, we have also found a way of expanding that service to the whole of Northern Ireland, to areas where it was not previously available, and that is now being rolled out.

Work has also begun on developing an alternative approach to what are known as “money damages cases”. The review recommended that such cases, which include claims for such things as injury from tripping, should be removed from the scope of legal aid once an alternative approach had been developed. The Legal Services Commission has been working for some months, in discussion with the legal profession and representatives of the insurance industry, to develop alternative arrangements, and good progress has been made. That is the kind of constructive engagement that I want to see replicated across the wider programme of work.

Other projects in the programme have the potential to bring yet further improvements to the justice system. The provision of early legal advice is very important in ensuring that both criminal and civil cases progress quickly and get the right result. The current system for funding early advice, known as the “green form scheme”, is regarded by all — including the legal profession — as administratively time-consuming yet providing poor financial control. The plan includes a project to review the green form system and to develop a better approach. That should be widely welcomed.

I have also commissioned a mapping exercise to explore the current use of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms in the justice system. As I have said on many occasions, I believe that there is scope for better use of such approaches, both to avoid time-consuming and expensive court proceedings and, where appropriate, to support proceedings. The mapping exercise will begin work in that area.

I will also commission a review of the legal needs of young people. Although my Department gathers and considers a wide range of information about legal needs and experiences, it does not at present have sufficient understanding of the legal needs of young people and children, and I do not believe that we should assume that they have the same needs as adults in the justice system. I am, therefore, commissioning research to ensure that the Department’s policy development can be properly informed in respect of the needs of children and young people.

Turning to my second strategic objective, that of bringing legal aid within budget, Members are aware that there has been significant public criticism of the high cost of legal aid, and that the Northern Ireland Audit Office has been critical of the extent to which expenditure has exceeded the available budget. Since taking up office, I have made significant improvements to legal aid, but more needs to be done. Although I have brought through reforms that will save £20 million a year, that is not enough to bring legal aid expenditure within the annual budget, which will be reduced to £75 million by 2014-15. The progress made in relation to criminal legal aid must now extend to civil legal aid, and the plan includes 12 projects that will make further savings of more than £8 million a year when fully implemented. I am confident that we can make enough progress on those reforms to bring legal aid within budget by 2014-15.

There will be a comprehensive review of remuneration for legal representatives in civil legal aid, with a view to putting in place more accountability, as has already been done for criminal legal aid. I estimate that that work will deliver savings of some £4m a year. Work on that has begun. A review of the arrangements for funding legal representation in civil cases is already under way, and I plan to bring forward proposals for new criteria — again drawing on the criminal legal aid work — in the autumn. That project is expected to save some £3 million a year. A comprehensive review of legal aid fees in magistrates’ courts is well advanced, and I plan to publish proposals for consultation in the autumn. A review of fees in the Crown Court will commence in January next year.

I have also commissioned work to consider the introduction of a fixed means test for criminal legal aid, and to review the existing means test for civil legal aid. In developing proposals, I will consider carefully any impact on access to justice, to ensure that legal aid remains available for those who really need it. That work is under way, and I plan to publish proposals by next year. Taken together, I am confident that all the projects that focus on legal aid expenditure should bring legal aid within budget by 2014-15, and will ensure that it remains within budget thereafter.

My third and final strategic objective is the improvement of governance and accountability where there has been criticism by the Northern Ireland Audit Office, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and the Justice Committee. Members have also raised that individually, through correspondence and Assembly questions. Seven projects in the plan aim to address that. They include the introduction of a compulsory registration scheme, whereby those legal practitioners wishing to undertake work funded by legal aid must sign up to agreed standards, and improvements in the internal management information and IT systems operated by the Legal Services Commission.

The potential for fraud in legal aid has been a particular concern, as highlighted recently by the Comptroller and Auditor General in his report on the Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission’s 2010-11 accounts. The action plan includes two projects that relate directly to the PAC and auditor’s concerns, with one project specifically to address the issue of potential fraud. Accountability is a critically important issue for all Departments, and I will commission further work if required to ensure that proper accountability for legal aid is put in place and maintained.

I have today set out my reform programme in some detail. I believe that it can deliver real improvement in the justice system, in a meaningful timescale. I will work with the judiciary, the voluntary sector, legal profession, other Departments and statutory agencies to ensure that it does so.

Paul Givan (DUP, Lagan Valley)

I thank the Minister for his statement. We will seek to support most of the recommendations when they come to the Committee. The Justice Committee has had a particular interest in legal aid and access to justice, not least because of the vast sums of public money involved and the concerns that many members have, given the repeated reports highlighting the abuse of the system that has taken place within the legal aid budget. There are a number of areas in which we welcome changes, not least on the two counsel matter and the fact that that will now achieve £2 million more than anticipated. The Committee initially hesitated about the approach the Department was taking on that and, together, people listened, and we found an approach that has now yielded a much better outcome for the taxpayer.

I ask the Minister why we are still paying for delay within the criminal justice system, in that there is still a different fee applied when a case is contested. That has been dealt with in Scotland, and has resulted in a 40% increase in the amount of earlier guilty pleas being issued at arraignment. Will the Minister give an undertaking to address the different fee structures that — some would suggest — currently incentivise the legal profession to contest a case, when the evidence in Scotland suggests that a composite fee would result in earlier guilty pleas?

David Ford (Alliance, South Antrim)

I thank the Chair for his positive words and, indeed, for the constructive engagement that the Department has had with the Committee as a whole on those issues. I should make one point. When he referred to the savings around two counsel being around £2 million more than anticipated, I fear that he did not include a comma. The correct phrase is: “£2 million each year, more than originally anticipated.”

In relation to his reference to paying for delay, unfortunately, at the moment, there are still cases going through the courts for which the fees were set under the previous arrangements. Obviously, those fees will reduce as more cases set under the new arrangements that were agreed last year for criminal work come through, and as we continue to work on civil legal aid.

The Member raises an entirely valid point about the experience in Scotland. We hope that we will have a project completed during next year for both the Magistrate’s Court and the Crown Court, although work on the Crown Court will potentially not be completed until early 2014, but the work being done next year will look at the benefits of a single fee. I do not necessarily agree with the suggestion that lawyers might see advantages in cases being run to considerable length, although that case was put fairly forcibly when I met the Committee. The key thing is to see that we get the best possible value for money and those who are going to plead guilty anyway should have no disincentive from doing so at the earliest possible opportunity.

Tom Elliott (UUP, Fermanagh and South Tyrone)

I note that the Minister mentioned a couple of times the issue of potential fraud within the system. Is he actually suggesting that there was fraud, or maybe still is fraud, within that legal aid system? Also, the Minister notes that there were 159 conclusions and recommendations, of which 100 are covered in the 38 reforms.

What were the 59 that were not covered, and are any of them significant?

David Ford (Alliance, South Antrim)

I thank Mr Elliott for those questions, although I fear Members might complain if I were to go through them all. There were slightly fewer than 59 remaining, as over 100 recommendations are being taken forward. The simple reality is that this was an extremely large piece of work. It was a very complex report, and a lot flowed from it. Even a Department as efficient as the Department of Justice is incapable of dealing with everything all at once. The key issue was to see that the priorities were established and that things were moving very rapidly. As I said, a number of issues have already been covered completely.

On his substantive point, not being an auditor, I am not in a position to say whether fraud happened. However, Mr Elliott and others from the Committee will be aware that the potential for fraud has been highlighted by the Audit Office and the PAC. The Justice Committee has taken quite a close interest in that. It is more important that we close down any potential for fraud than for me to suggest that I know exactly what was happening when I do not have that information.

Stewart Dickson (Alliance, East Antrim)

I thank the Minister for his statement, which is very welcome. As a member of the Justice Committee, I agree with what the Chair said: you will certainly get our support in bringing forward these reforms.

I refer to the work with the voluntary sector and the comments that the Minister made, for example, with regard to grant funding for the Housing Rights Service. What other areas of the voluntary and community sector does the Minister see as valuable areas for co-operation?

David Ford (Alliance, South Antrim)

The key point that I highlighted was the good work being done by the Housing Rights Service in helping people avoid repossession through the advice that it provided, initially in the Royal Courts of Justice at Laganside, and which we are now in a position to roll out across other courts in Northern Ireland. I am sure that those of us who do not represent areas within the Belfast Court division appreciate the importance of seeing that such services are made available as well as they can be in every part of Northern Ireland. That was an example where advice that was provided informally — although unfortunately at the last minute in that case — had quite a positive outcome in that it avoided housing repossessions and helped people make arrangements with their creditors, whether mortgage companies or landlords.

Without being able to give any details of other projects, it is an example that we are seeking to replicate. There is undoubtedly a lot of good work being done by some local advice centres, by CAB and others, where sound legal advice is being provided that helps people to avoid problems and gives them access to justice without needing to end up in courts. That is the kind of work I am keen to encourage.

Peter Weir (DUP, North Down)

Will the Minister expand a bit more on the alternative approach that is being taken in money dispute matters? Are there any opportunities for the application of an alternative approach to look at the hearing-loss claims, for example?

David Ford (Alliance, South Antrim)

The problem with having a document with 38 detailed reforms is that, when someone asks you a question like that, it can be quite difficult to find the particular point.

I am not sure that it would be possible to make any significant changes to the way the hearing-loss claims are currently being handled, given that a number of those are already under way. However, clearly, they are an example of where a lot of money has been expended on legal fees rather than necessarily being to the benefit of those who suffered loss. The important thing in an alternative to money damages is to find an appropriate way of removing from the scope of legal aid for court adjudications such cases that result from, for example, negligence or tripping over pavements, which afflicts DRD. We need to look at whether there are insurance-based options or conditional fee options. There are a variety of possibilities for dealing with such cases and the potential to save £1 million a year from the legal aid budget. I cannot give much detail because that project is at an early stage, although the research is under way, but I hope to come back to the Committee during the course of the next year with information.

Sydney Anderson (DUP, Upper Bann)

I, too, thank the Minister for his statement. He referred to alternative dispute resolution mechanisms. I accept that particular route has merit from various points of view, but will he assure the House today that there will be built-in safeguards for victims in that type of resolution and that it will not result in the criminals getting off lightly?

David Ford (Alliance, South Antrim)

I can certainly assure Mr Anderson that that is the case. Youth conferencing demonstrates how such mechanisms do not result in young people getting off lightly, as they are forced to face up to the consequences of their actions through, potentially, direct reparation and direct confrontation with the victims or representatives of the community. Those examples show how ADR can be positive in that field.

We must also consider civil disputes, particularly those that involve family matters. An adversarial court system may exacerbate poor family relationships, as opposed to seeking a way of mediation or another form of ADR that would assist with the process. If I may go back to my past career, I think that we have moved on from the days when one solicitor represented two parents and another solicitor represented the former health and social services board or, as is now the case, a health and social care trust. A number of QCs could be involved in such cases. The danger is that, the more lawyers you bring in, the more they have to justify their fees by advocating their client’s case, rather than seeking the kind of informal, quiet resolution that can often be brought about through a mediation process to much better effect for the family concerned.

Sean Lynch (Sinn Féin, Fermanagh and South Tyrone)

Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire as a ráiteas. Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, and I thank the Minister for his statement. The Minister said that he has: “commissioned a mapping exercise to explore the current use of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms” .

Has he included restorative initiatives in that mapping exercise?

David Ford (Alliance, South Antrim)

I thank Mr Lynch for his question. I certainly think that restorative approaches are a key part of alternative dispute resolution. As I said in answer to the previous question, youth conferencing is one very important aspect of that, and I think that we need to look at potentially extending it.

Patsy McGlone (Social Democratic and Labour Party, Mid Ulster)

Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire as a chuid freagraí go nuige. Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, and I thank the Minister for his responses to date. The Minister referred, rightly, to the potential for legal aid fraud to be a particular concern, and members of the Justice Committee shared that concern. The Minister also referred to an action plan that includes: “two projects which relate directly to the PAC and auditors’ concerns, with one project specifically to address the issue of potential fraud.”

Will the Minister please elaborate on the detail of that?

David Ford (Alliance, South Antrim)

I thank Mr McGlone for that question. It may be that elaboration will require more detailed discussions with the Committee in the autumn. It is clear from the Audit Office report that there are problems with the accounting mechanisms that the Legal Services Commission has the legal authority to carry through. It simply does not have the full powers that may be required to, for example, inspect the books of solicitors and counsel.

It is key that we look, first, at the voluntary register of those who are engaged in legal aid purposes and, secondly, at the potential for taking legal powers to enter offices and inspect books. There is clearly a concern that the potential for fraud is quite significant. In the interests of those lawyers who claim properly, it is vital that we ensure that anyone who might be tempted to do otherwise is checked up on fully.

Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice, North Antrim)

I declare an interest as a member of the legal profession. I encourage the Minister by saying that any self-respecting lawyer will have no difficulty with his pursuit of fraud. However, I want to come to a different matter. The Minister has set his eye on bringing the reforms that were made to criminal legal aid to civil legal aid. Does that include attacking the granting of two counsel to plaintiffs, who will, very often, face two counsel that are paid for by insurance companies? Is he satisfied that the important matter of equality of arms will be retained in the pursuit of justice, or are we looking for justice on the cheap, with the result that it may suffer?

David Ford (Alliance, South Antrim)

I thank Mr Allister for his encouragement in ensuring that all lawyers are living up to the high standards that we expect. He may not have heard the early part of the statement, but, as others will recall, in the two years that I have been Minister, I have made clear and always referred to my desire to ensure that we maintain access to justice and that we do not go down the line of other jurisdictions by reducing the areas in which legal aid can be applied. That said, there are difficult choices. We have also seen circumstances in the past where, in criminal matters, two counsel may have been funded for the defence and only one for the prosecution. That is hardly equality of arms either. There are difficulties in getting the balance in all these matters, but I believe that the road that we are on will ensure that we maintain proper access to justice while recognising that it comes at a cost that must be weighed against the cost of every other part of the Department’s budget.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

That concludes questions to the Minister of Justice. I propose, by leave, to suspend the sitting until Question Time at 2.30 pm. The statement from the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety will be made immediately after the question for urgent oral answer to the Minister for Regional Development.

The sitting was suspended at 2.11 pm.

On resuming (Mr Speaker in the Chair) —

Assembly Business

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

Before we move to Question Time, I have been informed by the Chief Electoral Officer of the return of a number of new Assembly Members. Ms Megan Fearon has been returned for the Newry and Armagh constituency to fill the vacancy resulting from the resignation of Conor Murphy. Mr Declan McAleer has been returned for the West Tyrone constituency to fill the vacancy resulting from the resignation of Mr Pat Doherty. Ms Rosaleen McCorley has been returned for the West Belfast constituency to fill the vacancy resulting from the resignation of Paul Maskey. Ms Bronwyn McGahan has been returned for the Fermanagh and South Tyrone constituency to fill the vacancy resulting from the resignation of Ms Michelle Gildernew. I hope that I have pronounced all those names reasonably well.

Each of them signed the Roll of Membership in my office earlier today and entered their designations. They have all now taken their seats, and I wish them well for the future.

Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister

Alex Easton (DUP, North Down)

1. asked the First Minister and deputy First Minister when the screening for the social investment fund will be operational. (AQO 2283/11-15)

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

The social investment fund received Executive approval on 17 May 2012. That approval finalised many of the operational decisions of the fund. It also brought with it the priority of getting moneys on the ground as quickly as possible. The first step in doing that is to establish the steering groups within the social investment zones. Each zone will have one steering group, and each steering group will be comprised of a maximum of 14 representatives from the community, voluntary, statutory, political and business sectors.

Nominations for the community voluntary representatives opened on 11 June 2012 and closed on 29 June 2012. During the application period, officials held a series of public information seminars on the nomination process, and all the information was made available on the OFMDFM website. Events were held in each of the nine zones and were well attended, which indicated the level of interest in steering group representation and the fund in general. The First Minister and I will consider all community voluntary nominations received. We anticipate being in a position to inform successful candidates by August. Once the structures are in place, we will commission the area planning process to identify objective need within each of the social investment zones.

Alex Easton (DUP, North Down)

I thank the deputy First Minister for his answer. If communities identify issues such as mental health issues, educational underachievement and substance abuse as key, priority areas, could such schemes and interventions be used as part of any plans for the investment zones?

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

We have made it clear from the very beginning that we see engagement with the community as very important. This is us responding to the needs of the community and the issues that they identify as priorities for them. All the subjects that you raised could be matters for consideration with the steering group.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

I remind Members that, if they are trying to get in for a supplementary, they need to continue to rise in their place.

Chris Lyttle (Alliance, Belfast East)

I thank the deputy First Minister for his response. How does he respond to the concerns expressed that some community groups have had as little as three working days between the final information session and the deadline for nomination to the steering groups?

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

The nomination process was conducted in a fashion that allowed people in communities to be very much engaged. If there is a difficulty around the time span that was used, that will have to be considered. However, the appointments to the steering group were very important to ensure that we were moving forward decisively. We recognise that it is important to deal with these matters in a way that ensures that enough time is given to communities so that they can put forward representatives who will deal with the issues that are of concern to them. Given the level of engagement and discussion over not just a matter of days or weeks but many months, many local communities have had ample time to consider how they will be represented on the groups. We are satisfied that the meetings, which were very well attended, reached a proper outcome because of the amount of time that people had to nominate.

Caitriona Ruane (Sinn Féin, South Down)

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. Gabhaim buíochas leis an LeasChéad Aire as a fhreagraí ar na ceisteanna go dtí seo. Has any consideration been given to amending the boundaries of the zones to allow for areas that are naturally working together on common themes?

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

I have referred to that a number of times in the Assembly. The boundaries for the investment zones generated a major part of the feedback received, and the issues were raised at the consultation events and in written responses.

We have sought to make the boundaries compatible with the local areas to ensure that there are direct linkages with ongoing work in areas, and we have had representations from some areas, such as Belfast, for which we took account of work that has taken place but does not fit easily within the Assembly boundaries for the four zones. Our officials are looking at how we can best address the issue to ensure that areas that already work collectively can continue to do so. Every now and again, issues around the designations of the zones and their geographical spread will crop up, but I am certain that officials will approach all that with considerable flexibility.

Mark Durkan (Social Democratic and Labour Party, Foyle)

I thank the deputy First Minister for his answers so far. Will he give detail on the criteria to fill the membership of the zonal steering groups of the social investment fund?

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

A community and voluntary nomination process has been followed very diligently. The formation of the steering groups is under way, and nominations for the community and voluntary positions have just been closed. The next stage of the process is for the First Minister and I to select from the applications received, and that will be completed by August this year. Political representatives will be selected using the d’Hondt process. Statutory representatives, with the exception of the one council representative, will be determined once the priorities of the strategic plan have been identified and may work on a rotating basis. Business representatives will be identified by the steering groups and can come from large-scale business in the zone, smaller business enterprises or representative bodies, as the steering group deems appropriate. Support for the fund has also been registered by trade unions, and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, the umbrella organisation for unions in Ireland that represents some 750,000 workers, responded to the consultation and wrote separately to the First Minister and I endorsing the ethos of community involvement and decision-making in local areas.

George Robinson (DUP, East Londonderry)

2. asked the First Minister and deputy First Minister to outline the progress made in drawing down EU funding. (AQO 2284/11-15)

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

The Executive intend to increase the drawdown of competitive EU moneys by 20% over the period to 2015, and that target will bring around £52·8 million of additional EU funding to the region. In 2011-12, year 1 of the target, £15·8 million was secured, which was an increase of £4·8 million over the 2010-11 baseline of £11 million. That represents an excellent start to the Executive’s Programme for Government commitment, and we expect further success this year.

In year 1, we also undertook substantial capacity-building, and four desk officers are now located in our Brussels office to provide dedicated support to Departments on identifying funding opportunities. In March, junior Ministers led a highly successful Brussels engagement programme, involving over 50 meetings, to make the Executive’s voice heard at a time when the European Commission is preparing the next generation of EU funding programmes for 2014 to 2020. Departments are influencing negotiations on key funding sources for this period, such as the Connecting Europe Facility and Horizon 2020, which are potentially worth €50 billion and €80 billion respectively.

A few weeks ago, the First Minister and I met the European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science, Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, to press upon her the need for Horizon 2020 to be more accessible to our SMEs. During our discussion, the Commissioner advised us that our total drawdown from the seventh framework programme to date had increased from €36 million to €43 million, which is more excellent news.

George Robinson (DUP, East Londonderry)

Does the deputy First Minister agree that EU funding helps to release much-needed funding for Northern Ireland’s departmental budgets, particularly given the present harsh economic times?

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

Yes, I absolutely agree. We have been very focused in the meetings that the First Minister and I have been involved in with Máire Geoghegan-Quinn over a period. We have identified that much more work can be done by our Departments. Quite an amount of work is being done, and the opportunities are clearly there.

Providing a context for funding drawdown is essential. Benchmarking is the only way in which the Executive and Assembly can assess our true performance on realising new and additional EU moneys. We know that our absolute performance in year 1 of our target period has been good. We have delivered a significant increase in our drawdown. On a relative basis, however, the picture is still unclear. So, for the year ahead, which is year 2, we will place greater emphasis on comparing our relative drawdown with the best performing regions in Europe. The statistical basis for comparison has yet to be agreed, but we will be looking to measure such things as drawdown on a per capita basis by EU funding programmes, using that to determine our performance against other devolved Administrations, the South and comparable regions in the EU.

It is vital that all our Departments are involved. I can report, as the First Minister has said previously, that all our Departments are very energised and knowledgeable about what needs to be done. The extra resources that we are putting into Brussels and our office there will be of great assistance.

Mickey Brady (Sinn Féin, Newry and Armagh)

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. The Minister may have covered some of this subject in his answer. Will he outline the Executive’s European priorities for 2012-13?

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

We published our European priorities for 2012-13 on 28 May. Our European priorities were developed to align closely with the Europe 2020 strategy, the European Commission’s legislative and work programme for 2012 and our own Programme for Government. Innovation and technology is one of our four main European priorities. Supporting SMEs, increasing R&D and promoting creative industry and STEM initiatives are all identified as key objectives for the year. We continue to work actively to increase our engagement in European networks, policies and funding programmes. Every Department was involved in drafting the Executive’s European priorities and carries responsibility for their delivery.

The First Minister and I will continue to use every opportunity to influence the Commission and ensure that future EU funding programmes remain responsive to the needs of our region. A key consideration for this year will be to continue to monitor and influence, where possible, negotiations on key policies such as regional aid, the Connecting Europe Facility and the new EU funding programmes for 2014-2020.

Sandra Overend (UUP, Mid Ulster)

As regards cohesion funding, the deputy First Minister will know that the Executive suggested alternatives to GDP as the determining factor for defining whether Northern Ireland is classified as a less developed, transition or more developed region. What were those alternatives? What was the response from Europe?

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

We are making it absolutely clear that we recognise the challenges we face in relation to the changing face of Europe and even to the changing priorities that Europe itself is laying down. From our perspective, we hope for a Peace IV programme, and it is important that we focus on the need for that, given that there has been much speculation that, when it comes to an end, Peace III could be the end of a programme that has been very much involved in cohesion, particularly in border areas.

I think the fact that we have gained the support of both the British Government and the Irish Government, as well as the representations made by the First Minister and me to Europe, means we can have a reasonable expectation that that programme will continue. We are always looking at other ways in which we can draw down support from Europe, and of course we have working parties under the Barroso task force consistently looking at new ways to ensure that we get the best result from our connections with the European Union.

Francie Molloy (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

3. asked the First Minister and deputy First Minister for an update on the Delivering Social Change framework. (AQO 2285/11-15)

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

Mr Speaker, with your permission, I will ask junior Minister McCann to answer this question.

Jennifer McCann (Sinn Féin, Belfast West)

For some time now, Departments have been working hard to tackle poverty and social exclusion. However, all too often, these efforts have not delivered the step change that is necessary. Genuine efforts have been fragmented and dispersed over too many strategies, action plans and targets, and, at times, Departments have focused on their core issues without seeing the benefits of greater collaboration. The Executive agreed that we needed to find new ways to ensure effective cross-departmental working to tackle poverty and deprivation. We needed a framework for action that complemented the much larger social and economic policies that operate in this area, provided streamlined governance with clear lines of accountability, and focused on delivering actions that add real value and achieve measurable improvements.

Delivering Social Change is a framework designed to support joined-up working in government and to reflect the leadership that has already been demonstrated on the ground. The framework is being laid by junior Minister Bell and me through the Executive ministerial subcommittees on children and young people, and poverty and social inclusion. The intention is that, once a year, the First Minister and the deputy First Minister will also chair this subcommittee. The Executive subcommittees are being supported by a programme board chaired by junior Minister Bell and me, with key Departments represented by key officials. To date, the programme board has met twice on a formal basis and has had a number of workshops. Its early work is focused on the identification of short-, medium- and long-term strategic actions that will help the Executive meet their Programme for Government commitments around tackling poverty, social inclusion and improving the life chances of children and young people. It is hoped that proposals with regard to initial priorities and actions under the framework will be presented to the First Minister and deputy First Minister for agreement by the end of the summer.

Francie Molloy (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

I thank the junior Minister for her response. Can she give an assessment of how Delivering Social Change is going to assist with the integration of policy across the Departments?

Jennifer McCann (Sinn Féin, Belfast West)

A key element of the Delivering Social Change framework is the policy project, which has a role in integrating policy more effectively. This means that we will not have all the multiple plans addressing the same issues in the same ways. We will have one strategic framework — our plan — and if more plans are required to fulfil statutory or other commitments, they will draw on the overarching plan. It has been very clear that we need to move away from the fragmented and dispersed policies. This is important because it will support a more joined-up approach and ensure that there is not an overemphasis on policies and strategies at the cost of delivery. It will also avoid duplication, whereby multiple planning documents address the same issues.

The emerging thinking from the strategic discussions to date has identified two key products that need to be developed. They are the Delivering Social Change framework document, which will identify the major issues together with recommendations as to how to address these, and the other one, a children and young person early actions document, which will provide details of initial actions or flagship services and produce early impacts.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

Robin Swann. I take it the Member certainly wants to ask a supplementary question.

Robin Swann (UUP, North Antrim)

Yes.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

He needs to rise properly in his place.

Robin Swann (UUP, North Antrim)

Now, come on. Mr Speaker, are you going to allow that sort of heightism in here? Come on.

Gregory Campbell (DUP, East Londonderry)

It is time for new material here.

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

Allow the Member to ask —

Mike Nesbitt (UUP, Strangford)

Sit down, Speaker.

Robin Swann (UUP, North Antrim)

Thank you very much, Mr Speaker — I think.

Can the junior Minister explain further how the Delivering Social Change framework will work alongside the Programme for Government, the economic strategy and, as was mentioned earlier, in even more detail, the social investment fund?

Jennifer McCann (Sinn Féin, Belfast West)

Up to now, our work relating to children and young people has been guided by a range of strategies, action plans and conventions, such as the children and young people’s strategy, the play implementation plan and the Child Poverty Act. We are still fully committed to them, but they now need to be taken forward through the Delivering Social Change framework. We are trying to move away from action plans with long lists of existing activities towards smaller numbers of cross-cutting and strategic objectives that can really make a difference and are additional to existing work across government.

Achieving sustained social improvement for children and young people with a reduction in intergenerational poverty means that Ministers will work more closely together in the context of a longer-term view, which encompasses the next comprehensive spending review and Programme for Government period and the years beyond. That includes work to improve income and keep down household costs. In practical terms, we will have a Delivering Social Change framework that will take in the social investment fund and the other policies that are key to reducing poverty.

Seán Rogers (Social Democratic and Labour Party, South Down)

I thank the junior Minister for her answers so far. With reference to social change, will she give the reaction to the recent Equality Commission survey on discriminatory attitudes?

Jennifer McCann (Sinn Féin, Belfast West)

I do not have those details with me. I will write to the member if there are some things that I can explain further. The outcomes associated with the Delivering Social Change framework are a sustained reduction in poverty and an improvement in children and young people’s health. We need to have that equality of opportunity for all our children, and that cannot happen until we reduce poverty and ensure that the life chances of all children are the same.

Steven Agnew (Green, North Down)

I congratulate the junior Minister on her appointment. With regard to delivering social change, I welcome the efforts made to co-ordinate cross-departmental working. However, we have heard today from the Education Minister, or at least got a hint from him, about the trouble that he has had in getting a truly cross-departmental strategy —

William Hay (Speaker, Foyle)

Could the Member come to his question?

Steven Agnew (Green, North Down)

— for the early years strategy. Will the Delivering Social Change framework ensure that we do not have single Departments dealing with cross-departmental issues?

Jennifer McCann (Sinn Féin, Belfast West)

I thank the Member for his congratulations. We have already stated the outcomes associated with the Delivering Social Change framework, such as the reduction in poverty and associated issues right across all ages. Also included in that is the improvement in children and young people’s health, wellbeing and life opportunities. The Delivering Social Change framework is the Executive’s new delivery framework for social policy and our approach to reducing poverty and tackling social exclusion. Therefore, it will deliver services in a more integrated and holistic way, as the Member said, because, in the end, that will have the greatest impact on the lives of children and young people — the lives that we are trying to change.

Mike Nesbitt (UUP, Strangford)

4. asked the First Minister and deputy First Minister for their assessment of the work of the Commissioner for Public Appointments. (AQO 2286/11-15)

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

In 1995, the first report of the Westminster Committee on Standards in Public Life, which was chaired by Lord Nolan, recommended that there should be an independent commissioner for public appointments. That recommendation was accepted and current public appointment policy requires that there be a commissioner for public appointments. The office of Commissioner for Public Appointments was subsequently created by the Commissioner for Public Appointments Order 1995. That order sets out the commissioner’s main functions, which include publishing a code of practice that sets out the process for making ministerial public appointments, auditing departmental public appointment processes to establish whether the code of practice is being observed, and investigating complaints. The commissioner also publishes an annual report that provides information on the work of his office. The current commissioner is Mr John Keanie, who was appointed by the First Minister and me and took up office on 1 August 2011.

The commissioner has an important role to play in enhancing and sustaining public confidence in the appointments process by holding Ministers and their Departments to account. He operates independently of government, sets standards for Departments to follow by publishing a code of practice, audits departmental appointment processes to check whether his code of practice has been followed, and investigates individual complaints and publishes his findings in an annual report. The commissioner provides an effective and credible external scrutiny role, which I am sure that everyone welcomes.

Mike Nesbitt (UUP, Strangford)

I thank the deputy First Minister. Will he outline what further actions his Department may be considering on foot of the Fair Employment Tribunal finding against the former Minister for Regional Development, Conor Murphy, to guard against further discrimination in public appointments on the grounds of religious belief?

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

I am aware that the Fair Employment Tribunal found against the Department for Regional Development in a case involving the appointment of the chair of NI Water. The Department for Regional Development is considering the tribunal’s judgement. It will, I am sure, wish to consider all the available options, including an appeal. The tribunal judgement raises a range of serious issues. The implications of the decision on public appointment procedures will be fully considered by all concerned. Any changes to the Commissioner for Public Appointment’s code of practice arising out of the case are a matter for the commissioner.

Gregory Campbell (DUP, East Londonderry)

The day after that handshake last week, the deputy First Minister talked about the history of nationalist inequality in Northern Ireland and that, for 40 years of his life, he was addressing that inequality. Is the inequality in appointments via the then Sinn Féin Minister Conor Murphy that was reported last week the change that he was talking about?

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

No. As someone from a community that was long discriminated against until these institutions were established, it is certainly not in my interests, or in the interests of anybody associated with me, to be involved in discriminating against anyone. I understand that, as a result of the ruling last week by the Fair Employment Tribunal, a number of people associated with whatever decision was made at the time are considering legal advice. At this stage, it is too soon to say what the outcome will be. However, I would be very surprised if there is not a very vigorous challenge to the decision.

Fra McCann (Sinn Féin, Belfast West)

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. Will the Minister outline how OFMDFM public appointments are regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments?

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

Ministerial public appointments to the following OFMDFM public bodies are regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments: the Commissioner for Children and Young People; the Commission for Victims and Survivors; the Commissioner for Older People; the Ilex Urban Regeneration Company; the Strategic Investment Board; the Maze/Long Kesh Development Corporation; and the Northern Ireland Judicial Appointments Commission. The Police Ombudsman is appointed by the First Minister and me, although the ombudsman’s office is sponsored by the Department of Justice. That appointment is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. Although most public appointments are regulated by the commissioner, appointments to a tribunal are not. As a result, appointments to the Planning Appeals Commission, such as the recent appointment by the First Minister and me of a new chief commissioner, are not regulated by the commissioner.

John Dallat (Social Democratic and Labour Party, East Londonderry)

Does the Minister agree that the manner in which public appointments are made can be a beacon of light for the future or a dark cloud of what happened in the distant past? Will the Minister ensure that, at all times, public appointments are beyond question?

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

Yes, absolutely. I have no difficulty with the Member’s final remark. It is important, particularly against the backdrop of a new dispensation here, that all of us are rigorous in defending everyone’s rights. Discrimination must be banished to the dustbin of history. If lessons are to be learned from individual cases, as opposed to the general situation that existed for far too long, it is in all our interests to ensure that those lessons are learned as we go forward. However, given that in all likelihood people are considering their options in relation to last week’s finding, it is much too soon to say.

Leslie Cree (UUP, North Down)

5. asked the First Minister and deputy First Minister why there was a delay in laying the annual child poverty report before the Assembly. (AQO 2287/11-15)

Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin, Mid Ulster)

With your permission, Mr Speaker, I will ask junior Minister Jennifer McCann to answer the question.

Jennifer McCann (Sinn Féin, Belfast West)

The Executive agreed the first annual report required by the Child Poverty Act 2010 on 31 May of this year. The report was laid before the Assembly on 6 June 2012 under a written ministerial statement from the First Minister and deputy First Minister. Since publishing the child poverty strategy in March 2011, we have started to develop a poverty outcomes model that would reflect the separate inputs of all Departments. Junior Ministers sought to progress work to deliver the child poverty strategy on the basis of the approach recommended by the outcomes model. Ministers also developed the delivering social change framework, which I spoke about earlier, to deliver a sustained reduction in poverty and associated issues across all ages, and an improvement in children’s and young people’s health, well-being and life opportunities, thereby breaking the long-term cycle of multigenerational problems.

In the first year of delivering the child poverty strategy, progress has been made in developing that programme framework. Political agreement, administrative structures and a monitoring framework have been developed, and they will enhance the capacity of Departments to deliver on their commitments and to measure more accurately progress overall and the distinct contributions of individual Departments. Set in the context of the other work that was ongoing, the drafting of the first annual report was, regrettably, delayed.

Education

Ross Hussey (UUP, West Tyrone)

1. asked the Minister of Education how he will ensure during the summer period that schools and their staff are kept adequately informed on progress with area planning. (AQO 2298/11-15)

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

Last September, I commissioned the boards and the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools (CCMS) to draw up plans for a network of viable and sustainable schools in their areas. I asked for plans for primary, post-primary and special schools. I now have the post-primary draft area plans, and those will be published for public consultation on Thursday 5 July 2012. I understand that the boards wrote to all schools before the end of the summer term to inform them of the commencement of the consultation. That will run for a full 16 weeks until 26 October, as it has been extended to take account of the school summer holidays.

The boards will be making an online facility available from September to complement the normal channels for response. The area planning consultation offers an opportunity to reshape our education system for the future, and I encourage as many people as possible to respond.

It is important that the plans are considered from the perspective of all young people in an area and not focused on individual schools. I will want to be assured that the plans provide viable and sustainable schools, access to high quality education, and proposals that will enhance the curriculum offered for young people.

Following the consultation, boards will analyse the responses and submit revised plans to me for consideration in November. I anticipate that I will be in a position to approve the plans by the end of the year. As I have constantly stated, the interests of young people will be the primary focus throughout the process.

Ross Hussey (UUP, West Tyrone)

I thank the Minister for his answer. What communication plan will the Minister put in place to ensure that all interested parties are kept properly informed of all stages of the area planning consultations?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

As I said, the plans will be going out to consultation from the end of this week. Boards were to inform schools of that process before schools broke up for the summer. I appreciate that it is over the summer holidays, but, alas, government cannot close down over the summer, and the Department of Education has to deliver a rigorous work programme, which requires us to ensure that we achieve a sustainable and viable schools estate. The plans will be out over the summer months for fairness to stakeholders. That will give them time for reflection and to study the plans. In September and October, those bodies will have an opportunity to come together in a more formal setting and discuss and debate the plans. They can do it over the summer, if they so wish. The education boards will be available to schools and other stakeholders, if further clarification is required over the summer months.

Phil Flanagan (Sinn Féin, Fermanagh and South Tyrone)

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. What is the Minister’s assessment of how the managing authorities have complied with the reference, in the terms of reference, to the area planning process on assessing the potential for cross-border models? At this stage, does the Minister know whether any of the proposals that are coming out in the consultation on Thursday include any cross-border proposals, such as a cross-border area learning community?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

I do not wish to make an assessment of plans that are just going out to public consultation this week. However, I would encourage border communities especially to involve themselves in the consultation process. If there are opportunities for cross-border working and cross-border planning that have not been included in area plans, there is an opportunity for elected representatives, community groups, schools and stakeholders to make those views known. When the plans come back to me after the public consultation, I will study them against the consultation responses and the terms of reference to ensure that all has been adhered to and that views have been taken on board. However, we are handing this over to the communities for their views on area plans to be heard. There are clearly opportunities for cross-border work along border communities.

Joe Byrne (Social Democratic and Labour Party, West Tyrone)

Does the Minister agree that, when two primary schools agree to come together into a single school, as has happened in Omagh with the former CBS Primary School and Loreto Convent Primary School, it is very important that all services and systems help to enable sites to be adapted or changed? Does the Minister support the efforts being made to try to improve the buildings of those two schools at the moment?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

I am aware that West Tyrone representatives met departmental officials this afternoon on that very subject. I will await a report from my departmental officials on the matter and then take whatever action requires to be taken.

The Member will be aware that, as part of my capital bills announcement last week, I announced a £4 million enhancement programme available to schools. It is targeted at schools that are amalgamating, coming together or enhancing services to schools in their communities, and that will come on stream from 2013 onwards. However, I will study the details that have come out of today’s meeting and report back to Members collectively.

Chris Lyttle (Alliance, Belfast East)

Will the Minister give his assessment of how education and library boards have complied with the terms of reference guidance to explore shared education solutions? What is his understanding of the meaning of “shared education”?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

As I said to a previous contributor, I will await the public consultation on the reports. When my officials report back to me, I will examine them through the prism of the terms of reference and the consultation responses to ensure that views have been taken on board and the terms of reference have been met. Those documents are now the education and library boards’, and they are going out to public consultation under their remit. My responsibility is to ratify them at the end of the process if I am satisfied with them.

I was asked what my definition of “shared education” is. I hope to be in a position to announce in the near future membership of the ministerial advisory group, which was committed to under the Programme for Government. I have set aside terms of reference for that body, and I want it to examine the potential for shared education. I want the body to challenge the Assembly, individual Members, the sectors and the Minister over shared education and for it to ensure that we can exploit the full potential of shared education. Let it bring forward the conversation, instead of the Minister standing up in the Assembly before the group has even had a chance to meet to decide what shared education will mean.

Dolores Kelly (Social Democratic and Labour Party, Upper Bann)

2. asked the Minister of Education how he intends to create more employment opportunities for newly qualified teachers. (AQO 2299/11-15)

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

I am keen to ensure that newly qualified teachers are afforded every opportunity to obtain full-time positions. The number and type of vacancies for which newly qualified teachers may be eligible to apply is primarily influenced by decisions made by schools on the basis of the funding that they receive under the local management of schools (LMS) common funding formula arrangements.

Data from the General Teaching Council in January 2012 shows that 70% of teachers who graduated here in 2007 have gained a permanent or a significant temporary teaching post; that is, employment for one term or more. My Department has taken measures to ensure employment opportunities for newly qualified teachers, including reducing intakes to courses of initial teacher education by almost 32% since 2004-05 and discouraging the re-employment of prematurely retired teachers through provision of employer guidance and changes to pay, premature retirement, and LMS funding arrangements.

Dolores Kelly (Social Democratic and Labour Party, Upper Bann)

I am interested in the Minister’s definition of “permanent employment”. He said that 70% of teachers have been employed for one term or more, and that equates to a permanent position. I do not think any bank lender would equate that to being the case. Will the Minister assure us that teachers who get employment will have their needs met for their professional development in their early years, post-qualifying?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

I do not think that this is the time to be taking advice from any of the banks, given some of their practices.

What I said was that data from the General Teaching Council in January 2012 show that 70% of teachers who graduated in 2007 have gained a permanent or a significant temporary teaching post, meaning that they have been in employment for one term or more. Clearly, we want to ensure that young and older people who go through teacher training achieve employment in teaching. However, we are dealing with one of the worst economic downturns in modern history. That is reflected in my budget, in the schools budget and in the opportunity that graduates and postgraduates in all fields have to gain employment in their respective areas. However, I am continuing to examine ways and means of ensuring that we have teaching personnel in our schools.

I am looking at how we train our teachers. As part of that, I am also looking at how to give our newly qualified teachers access to the workplace. I note that the Scottish Government’s report into the provision of one year’s training for newly qualified teachers has been completed and has gone back to the Scottish Executive. I believe that it was recommended that the course that they have in place should continue. It is estimated that that would cost the Executive here between £10 million and £17 million a year, but I will study the report to see what, if anything, we can learn from it.

Michaela Boyle (Sinn Féin, West Tyrone)

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. As a result of the recent changes that he introduced to their terms, how successful has the Minister been in reducing the number of retired teachers re-entering employment?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

We have made it significantly less attractive for retired teachers to come back into the workforce, given that their pay rates have been reduced. We have also emphasised the need for boards of governors to take on board the view, expressed in the Assembly and by the public, that newly qualified teachers should be given the opportunity, through substitute teacher and other cover, to increase their employability by making their CV more attractive. We have been successful, but, at the end of the day, boards of governors are the employing authorities in schools. They make the decisions about who they will employ and who they will take on board even on a temporary basis. My role is to set policy. As I said, I have made it more difficult and less attractive for retired teachers to return. I encourage boards of governors to take on board the views of the House and the public.

Tom Elliott (UUP, Fermanagh and South Tyrone)

Given what the Minister said, is he content with the number of teacher training places that are being funded through local universities and colleges?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

I have recently made my views on teacher requirements for the next year known to the Minister for Employment and Learning. There has been a reduction of 63, and that affects our universities. I am content that we have made the right decision at this time. I am aware that the Minister for Employment and Learning is to bring forward a review of the viability and sustainability of our teaching training programmes, and I await the outcome of that before making any further decisions.

Sammy Douglas (DUP, Belfast East)

3. asked the Minister of Education what plans he has to allow some of the oversubscribed primary schools in East Belfast to expand. (AQO 2300/11-15)

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

In the current school year, five of the 19 primary schools in East Belfast were oversubscribed with first-preference applications in year 1, and 6 children remain unplaced. However, all the schools have spare spaces available in years 2 and 7.

Last September, I commissioned the boards and CCMS to draw up plans for a network of viable and sustainable schools in their areas. I asked for plans for primary, post-primary and special schools. The planning process will enable the needs of each sector in a given area to be assessed. I am content for those plans to allow popular, oversubscribed schools to grow further. However, pupil numbers in any area are finite. The expansion of numbers in one school will inevitably result in a reduction in others, and planning must take account of that. I have received the boards’ plans for primary schools. My Department will consider them and will work with the boards, CCMS and the integrated sector to progress them.

Sammy Douglas (DUP, Belfast East)

I thank the Minister for his comprehensive response. Does he agree that, given the potential increase in population in East Belfast as a result of the Titanic Quarter and other such proposals, there will be an increase in the number of children looking for places at schools there? Can he outline the timescale for the process that he mentioned?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

For clarity, my last comments should have ended with the words “integrated and Irish-medium sectors”. We brought forward the plans to garner local knowledge about population growth, the sustainability of schools and the spread of schools that is required in an area.

There is an opportunity for the community and political representatives of East Belfast to make their views known in the post-primary sector. The primary school area plans will go out to consultation later this year, and my Department has received them. We are currently studying them, and then we will return them to the boards and ask them to send them out to consultation. So, that is an ideal opportunity for community and political representatives of East Belfast and other areas to make their views known. I think that that is a better way of planning than my Department simply stipulating the number of schools required in an area and how many children should be in each school. Let us hear the voices of communities on those things.

Danny Kinahan (UUP, South Antrim)

In looking at the numbers of primary schools for the future, will the Minister review the Bain numbers and go for fewer, particularly in rural areas?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

No. I have no plans to review the Bain numbers. We have the sustainable schools policy, which is a product of the Bain report. It has been out to consultation and has been adopted by the Department. It is in place, and I think it is still a viable document.

This is not a numbers game; I have always said that. Others in the House and the media have sometimes referred to this as a numbers game. There are six criteria against which schools will be judged in regard to sustainability for the future, and that is how we intend to move forward. There will always be circumstances, especially in rural communities, where school enrolments will be well below the number indicated in the sustainable schools policy. However, when we match them against the other five criteria, it will be clear whether that school should remain and operate in the future.

Alex Maskey (Sinn Féin, Belfast South)

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. The Minister has already referred to this in a previous answer, but will he elaborate on the opportunity for the other schools in the wider community of east Belfast to participate and make their views known in the planning process for the future?

John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin, Upper Bann)

We will set out the example of the post-primary consultation at the end of this month, and, as I have said, I accept that that is happening over the summer months. However, we cannot close down government for two months. The Department of Education and others have to keep working through a rigorous work programme. The primary school area plans are with my Department at the moment. We are going through them and making a number of checks on them to ensure that issues are clear, that there is a common theme and that they will be understandable to the public once they go out to consultation. We will send them back to the boards and ask the boards to put them out to consultation. At that stage, as with any other public consultation, the community and its political representatives should make their voices heard — and pupils and parents should make their voices heard too. I urge everyone to involve themselves in the debate, not simply about individual schools or the schools closest to them but about the future provision of schools in an area. It is not the quantity of schools in the area that matters but their quality. That is what will ensure the quality of education for our young people going into the future.

Conall McDevitt (Social Democratic and Labour Party, Belfast South)

I am sure that the Minister agrees that a school that is consistently oversubscribed over a period of time is a school that, by definition, is meeting the demands of its communities. Will he, therefore, definitively outline whether he is willing to review the admissions policy for schools that are consistently oversubscribed over a period of time?