Marshalled List of Amendments - 21 November 2016

17 November 2016

Opposition Business

Item 3: Order Paper 30/16-21 – Monday 21 November 2016

Motion: Impact of Draft Strategic Area Plan on Rural Schools

That this Assembly, noting the failure of the attempt at area based planning for schools in the previous mandate, expresses its concern at the proposals contained in Providing Pathways Draft Strategic Area Plan for School Provision 2017-2020; believes that schools in rural areas will be most at risk from the proposals; calls on the Minister of Education to detail what rural proofing measures were undertaken during the development of the proposed Area Plan; and further calls on the Minister to introduce legislation for a statutory presumption against the closure of rural schools similar to the protections already in place in England and Scotland.

[Mrs S Overend]
[Mr C McGrath]
[Mrs R Barton]
[Mr D McCrossan]

The Speaker has selected the following Amendments for debate:

Amendment 1

Leave out all after ‘Assembly;’ and insert:

‘notes the publication of the Education Authority’s Providing Pathways Draft Strategic Area Plan for School Provision 2017-2020; acknowledges the concerns that there will be over the proposals, particularly in rural areas; believes that every pupil, regardless of whether they live in a rural or an urban area, should have access to quality education in a viable and sustainable school, contributing to achieving the draft Programme for Government outcome to give our children and young people the best start in life; believes that the best way to achieve this is through an effective area planning process involving managing authorities and sectoral support bodies; acknowledges sensitivities around the provision of the schools estate, in both rural and other areas; and calls on the Minister of Education to bring forward a strategic small schools initiative to ensure accessibility to a quality education, particularly for isolated communities.’

[Lord Morrow]
[Mr P Logan]
[Ms C Lockhart]

Amendment 2

Leave out all after ‘mandate,’ and insert:

‘calls on the Minister for Education to ensure that the findings of the Chief Inspector of the Education and Training Inspectorate’s report are taken into consideration and applied when looking at the sustainability of rural schools and that a proper, efficient and effective consultation with local rural communities is completed prior to any decision being taken to close or merge smaller rural schools.’

[Ms K Armstrong]
[Mr C Lyttle]

Motion: Poverty and Deprivation (Revised Wording)

That this Assembly expresses its concern that according to the Department for Communities, around 376,000 or 21 per cent of people in Northern Ireland live in relative income poverty, before housing costs; notes that in June 2015 the High Court found that the Executive had breached a legal duty by failing to adopt an identifiable strategy setting out how it proposed to tackle poverty, social exclusion and patterns of deprivation based on objective need; further notes that the Programme for Government consultation document published in October 2016 refers to a new Social Strategy in relation to these matters; and calls on the Minister for Communities to publish an overarching strategy and long-term plan, including budget allocations, which outlines specific targets and timelines to reduce poverty and deprivation and tackle social exclusion and ensures the application of resources based on neutral criteria that measure deprivation, irrespective of community background or other affiliation.

[Mr A Attwood]
[Mr A Allen]
[Ms N Mallon]
[Mr M Nesbitt]

The Speaker has selected the following Amendment for debate:

Amendment 1

Leave out all after ‘Assembly’:

‘notes the latest edition of the Northern Ireland Poverty Bulletin detailing the levels of poverty across Northern Ireland; further notes that Section 28E of the Northern Ireland Act (1998) was the subject of a judicial review in June 2015; and welcomes the Executive’s commitment, as outlined in the recent Programme for Government consultation document, to publish a new Social Strategy that aims to improve the lives of those in poverty through a range of specific interventions that will tackle poverty, social exclusion and deprivation on the basis of the objective need.’

[Mr J Bell]
[Mr C Stalford]
[Mr A McQuillan]