Speeches by Eastwood.

“There is a real point there: people who may be in what we would term a Unionist or nationalist party may not really regard themselves as those things. That is a really positive and legitimate challenge. As the hon. Lady herself says, even her party does not fit neatly into boxes, and I certainly know Unionists, in Unio…”

“I thank the hon. and learned Member for making his point. I see where he is coming from. I believe that Brexit was a fundamental act of self-harm. I think it caused damage to relations, and certainly I think that most people in Northern Ireland—Unionist, nationalist or other—regret Brexit. I completely understand where…”

“I rise to speak on clause 62 and schedule 12, and my new clause 1. As we have already heard from the Northern Ireland Benches, this is about listening and recognising Northern Ireland’s unique circumstances. I acknowledge from the outset the deep anxiety and distress caused to many farmers across Northern Ireland, incl…”

“I welcome the actions outlined by the Secretary of State today. Nearly 10 years ago, Molly Rose Russell died as a result of suicide from content she had seen online. In Northern Ireland, one of the world’s most prolific paedophiles operated with ease online. We already know the risks here. Will the Secretary of State m…”

“It has been great to hear the discussion today. So much of it has been positive, and I want the message to go out that Northern Ireland is open for business. I am delighted that there has been such encouragement from everybody, and that tells its own story. The Republic of Ireland is right up against us, and one of the…”

“We did a piece of work with UKHospitality and Hospitality NI before Christmas about a potential pilot for Northern Ireland. I think that is exactly what we need to do; we need to be agile, and we need to be nimbler, as you have said as well, Tim. Supplementary to that, on DBEC, you are absolutely right, Alison, about t…”

“As we have just heard, Northern Ireland is operating under considerable budgetary constraints, and the local growth fund will cause huge damage. What can the Minister do to assure my constituents in Lagan Valley and people across Northern Ireland that he will listen to our concerns and act on them?”

“We are in a world that is extremely uncertain, and our farmers are part of our national security, but we are farming them to death. What does that do for sustainability and our thriving farm agribusinesses?”

“On the hon. Member’s point about the employment of young people, in Northern Ireland we have one of the highest levels—if not the highest level—of youth unemployment and young people not in education, employment or training. Would he agree with me that the Budget absolutely hammers any prospect of young people being em…”

“On the point about what poverty means to our constituents, we are sitting in Northern Ireland with the local growth fund and the Treasury refuses to understand that the way we do things is different. We do not need 70% capital funding; we need it the other way around. That, to me, speaks to some of the substantive moti…”

“Absolutely—”

“I echo many other Members across the House in paying tribute to the Hillsborough families. I represent a constituency in Northern Ireland, but I have to confess that I am a red. We heard of their plight and took that plight on as our own. I cannot see up to the Gallery, but I say to Margaret and everybody else up there…”

“I also pay tribute to those who were on the train, the staff and the first responders, as well as members of the public. Can I ask the Home Secretary to consider the comments made by the right hon. Member for Staffordshire Moorlands (Dame Karen Bradley) about the new methods of radicalisation? The previous Home Secreta…”

“This is a really difficult issue. The Minister spoke about people wanting to come to the UK because they had a dream. I want to be clear: I welcome people who want to come to the UK and live in a way that is reflective of our values, but so often we ask the most of communities who have the least. Does the Minister agre…”

“I want to express my frustration—I think you have done very good job of holding back some of the frustration, Celine, as have David and Martin. If another sector—for want of a better word—came with the huge impact that you have had on social metrics, in a context where Northern Ireland has the highest unemployment rate…”

“That is what I was just going to say, David. This is not even one, two or three years; to my mind, this has been going on since EU exit. I am not going to get into relitigating that, but it is very clear that any funding subsequent to that has not been like for like. It has never been fully replaced and as you said, Ce…”

“Good morning, everyone. We had a discussion earlier with Lord Murphy about future potentials and what things might look like going forward. EU SPS rules will continue to apply to Northern Ireland on a different legal basis from the rest of the UK once the new SPS agreement is in place. How will you then ensure that Nor…”

“I was a member of it; it was awful.”

“The Northern Ireland Business Brexit Working Group was set up by business, for business, so it was reliant on the goodwill and strength of those businesses to set it up—I think that is my point.”

“One thing that stands out to me is that our Heads of Government often do not speak with one voice. That is just a political reality, and it poses some problems moving forward. I am the only person around the table who has previously served on the Democratic Scrutiny Committee, and I raised with Lord Murphy the issue th…”