Chambré Public Affairs

What you need to know Chancellor meets deputy First Minister and Finance Minister in first official visit to Belfast On Tuesday (12 August), Chancellor Rachel Reeves made her first official visit to Belfast, and met with deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly and Finance Minister John O’Dowd. According to BBC News NI, Ms Reeves said there was a “huge opportunity” in Northern Ireland to “grow rich sectors of the economy”. In a statement, the deputy First Minister described the meeting as “constructive”, and …

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What you need to know Infrastructure Minister to appeal A5 decision On Wednesday (6 August), the Department for Infrastructure confirmed that it had served a Notice of Appeal against the court judgement, which blocked construction of the new A5 dual carriageway. According to BBC News, the £1.7bn project was approved by ministers in October 2024, but a judge, Justice McAlinden, ruled in June that the plans breached climate targets under the Climate Change Act. The A5 is a key cross-border route connecting the …

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What you need to know Northern Ireland’s first regional clinical director for elective care to address waiting list announced    On Monday (28 July), Health Minister Mike Nesbitt MLA announced that Professor Mark Taylor, a consultant surgeon and member of the Bengoa panel, will be Northern Ireland’s first Regional Clinical Director for Elective Care. The role is central to “overseeing, leading and supporting” the Department’s plan to reduce hospital waiting lists. It will provide “specialist clinical leadership and advice to the Minister and …

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What you need to know this week Justice Minister launches consultation on criminalisation of deepfakes On Monday (21 July), Justice Minister Naomi Long MLA launched a public consultation on proposals to criminalise the creation and sharing of sexually explicit deepfake images of adults. According to BBC News, a deepfake is an image or video that has been digitally altered using AI to replace the face of one person with the face of another.. Minister Long said the sharing of deepfakes can have “devastating …

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What you need to know Sinn Féin leader criticised by deputy First Minister fo “talking down” NI economy During an interview on Monday (14 July) on Good Morning Britain, Sinn Féin President Mary Lou McDonald TD said Northern Ireland was “not economically viable” as a territory, the Irish News reported. Ms McDonald said that partition had “cut off” the six counties “its natural political, social and economic hinterland”. “For us,” she added, “in economic terms, in social terms, in democratic terms …

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What you need to know Infrastructure Minister still committed to A5 after judge rules that upgrade plans breach Climate Change Act Infrastructure Minister Liz Kimmins said she remains committed to delivering a new A5, after a judicial review ruled that the plans were not in line with the Climate Change Act. According to BBC News, Mr Justice McAlinden ruled that the Department was in breach of Section 52, having failed to produce evidence that upgrading the A5 would be consistent with overall …

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What you need to know Executive condemns ‘racially motivated violence’ as Communities Minister dismisses resignation calls Politicians have condemned violent scenes across several towns in NI this week. As of Friday, 63 PSNI officers have been injured, according to the Police Federation for Northern Ireland. The disorder started in Ballymena on Monday night, following an alleged serious sexual assault in the town, reported on 7 June. On Wednesday (11 June), the Executive issued a joint statement condemning “racially motivated violence”. “While all …

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What you need to know Budget for social housing will only fund half of Programme for Government target Speaking in the Assembly on Monday (2 June), Minister for Communities Gordon Lyons confirmed that the Stormont budget will fund work on only 900-1,000 new social houses this year. The Programme for Government committed to starting work on at least 5,850 new-build social homes by 2027, equating to roughly 2,000 new starts per year. According to BBC News, based on the current budget, …

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What you need to know Health Minister issues Ministerial Direction on health staff pay awards On Thursday (29 May), Health Minister Mike Nesbitt issued a Ministerial Direction to the Department of Finance to release funding for health and social care staff pay awards which were announced last week. In a written statement, Minister Nesbitt said the decision was not “taken lightly” and was taken due to “current significant shortfall in the Health budget”. The Minister stated that including the projected £200 …

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NI politicians react to UK-EU trade deal On Monday (19 May), Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced a new UK-EU agreement affecting food, fishing and security during a summit in London. In an article in Friday’s (23 May) Belfast Telegraph, NI Secretary Hilary Benn MP said it was a “particularly good deal for Northern Ireland”. He said new agreements reached by the UK and EU on agri-food products and plants, which will “eliminate paperwork” and “protect the UK internal market”. He also noted that …

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Legacy issues discussed at British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference    On Thursday (24 April), the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference met at Hillsborough Castle, the first time the meeting has been held in Northern Ireland since 2006. The UK Government was represented by Secretary of State for NI, Hilary Benn MP and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Fleur Anderson MP. The Irish Government was represented by Tánaiste (Deputy Prime Minister) Simon Harris TD and Minister for Justice, Jim O’Callaghan TD. According to BBC News NI, the …

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Starmer urged to drop red lines in EU negotiations  Prime Minister Keir Starmer has been urged to seek closer alignment with the EU to mitigate the impact of Brexit. It comes amid reports that the UK may accept a form of regulatory alignment on of rules on food and agricultural products as part of a revised sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) agreement. According to the News Letter, “any such deal would ease the internal UK trade friction caused by the Irish Sea …

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PM holds talks with FM and dFM to discuss US tariffs   On Friday (11 April), Prime Minister Keir Starmer held a call with political leaders from NI, Scotland, and Wales to discuss the impact of tariffs on UK exports to the United States. US President Donald Trump has imposed a 10% on almost all imports, in addition to 25% tariffs on cars and steel and aluminium products. The First Minister and deputy First Minister both raised concerns about the particular impact of …

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NI politicians criticise welfare reforms NI politicians have strongly criticised the UK Government’s plans to reform the welfare system. Both First Minister Michelle O’Neill MLA and DUP leader Gavin Robinson MP accused the Government of targeting the “sick and the vulnerable” through the changes. Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall said the reforms will save £5bn a year by the end of 2030. These include narrowing the eligibility criteria for the Personal Independence Payment (PIP), a benefit for people who need help …

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Stormont politicians visit US for St Patrick’s Day celebrations Over the past week several MLAs visited the US for St Patrick’s Day celebrations. Economy Minister Dr Caoimhe Archibald MLA was in Boston and New York, alongside Invest NI officials, highlighting Northern Ireland as a “leading location for innovation, investment and international trade”. Meanwhile, at the start of the week the First Minister and deputy First Minister led a business delegation to North Carolina to “showcase the local economy and develop key …

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