Committee for The Executive Office
Minutes of Proceedings 15 December 2021
Executive Minutes -15 December 2021.pdf (151.9 kb)
Committee for The Executive Office
Minutes of Proceedings
Wednesday 15th December 2021
Meeting Location: Room 30, Parliament Buildings
Present:
Ms Sinéad McLaughlin (Chairperson)
Present via Video Conferencing:
Mr Christopher Stalford
Mr Pat Sheehan MLA
Ms Emma Sheerin MLA
Mr Pádraig Delargy MLA
Ms Diane Dodds MLA
Apologies:
Mr Alex Easton MLA
Mr Trevor Lunn MLA
Mr John Stewart MLA
In Attendance:
Mr Michael Potter (Assembly Clerk)
Ms Sarah-Anne McKinley (Assistant Clerk)
Ms Alison Belshaw (Clerical Supervisor)
Ms Andrienne Magee (Clerical Officer)
The meeting commenced at 2:03pm in open session.
1. Apologies
As above.
2.Chairperson’s Business
The Chairperson updated the Committee that the scheduled meeting of the Inter-Parliamentary Forum due to take place in the House of Lords on Friday 10th December 2021 was cancelled as a precautionary measure due to the rising numbers of Covid-19 infections.
Diane Dodds joined the meeting at 2.16pm.
3. Draft Minutes
Agreed: The Committee agreed the minutes of the meeting held on Wednesday 8th December 2021.
4. Matters Arising
The Chairperson referred the Committee to a summary document compiled of the main issues raised by Stakeholder groups in relation to the Refugee Integration Strategy.
Agreed: The Committee agreed to forward the summary of the main issues raised on the Strategy to the consultation team within the Executive Office.
The Chairperson referred the Committee to a document compiled with a proposed extended list of Stakeholder groups to give evidence to the Committee in relation to the Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy.
Agreed: The Committee agreed to hold a virtual stakeholder event on the Strategy in February 2022.
5. Article 2 of the Ireland/Northern Ireland Protocol - Dedicated Mechanism– Oral Briefing
The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC), Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (ECNI) and Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) joined the meeting at 2.10pm.
- Ms Alyson Kilpatrick Chief Commissioner, Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission
- Ms Geraldine McGahey Chief Commissioner, Equality Commission for Northern Ireland
- Sinéad Gibney Chief Commissioner, Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission
The Commissions briefed the Committee in relation to Article 2 of the Ireland/Northern Ireland Protocol and the dedicated mechanism.
Pat Sheehan left the meeting at 2.50pm
Diane Dodds left the meeting at 3.01pm
The oral evidence was followed by a question and answer session.
The NIHRC agreed to share with the Committee further information on the potential impact on human rights in relation to the UK Government’s Nationality and Borders Bill.
The Chairperson thanked NIHRC, ECNI and IHREC for their attendance.
6. Legacy of the Conflict– Oral Briefing
The Centre for Children's Rights joined the meeting at 3:26pm
- Dr Siobhán McAlister, Senior Lecturer Centre for Children's Rights, Queens University Belfast
- Dr Mary-Louise Corr Lecturer Centre for Children's Rights, Queens University Belfast
Lecturers from the Centre for Children’s Rights briefed the Committee in relation to its report titled ‘It Didn’t End in 1998: Examining the Impacts of Conflict Legacy across Generations.’
The oral evidence was followed by a question and answer session.
The Chairperson thanked the Centre for Children’s Rights for their attendance.
7. Historical Institutional Abuse - Oral Briefing
The Commissioner for Survivors of Institutional Childhood Abuse (COSICA) joined the meeting at 4.03pm.
- Ms Fiona Ryan, Commissioner for Survivors of Institutional Childhood Abuse, COSICA
Pádraig Delargy left the meeting at 4.04pm
The Commissioner briefed the Committee in relation to an official apology for victims and survivors of historical institutional abuse.
The Chairperson thanked the Commissioner for their attendance.
The Chairperson due to lack of quorum had to suspend the meeting as per Standing Order 46(6).
8. Date, Time and Place of the next meeting
The next Committee meeting will be held on Wednesday 12 January 2022 at 2:00pm, in Room 30, Parliament Buildings.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:29pm.
