Mr Speaker / Deputy Speaker

The motion put before the House today is of the utmost importance.  Oral health in Northern Ireland is at its worst standard ever, it is currently ranked as being the poorest in the United Kingdom. This shows a worrying trend in our oral care, every other nation is improving their oral health and Northern Ireland is not showing any improvement.

Mr Speaker / Deputy Speaker 

I rise today to oppose this motion being brought before the Assembly today.  As a member of the Employment and Learning Committee, this issue has come before the Committee and a great deal of concern has been expressed by the members. 

Ladies and Gentlemen I would like to thank you for the invitation to speak today.  As an elected representative the regeneration of East Belfast is at the top of my priorities and I hope to see East Belfast as the most desirable place to live and work in Northern Ireland.

Mr Speaker / Deputy Speaker

 In rising to support this motion I welcome this report.  I would like to thank the Chair, Ms Ramsey, for her diligence in bringing this report forward, the Deputy Chair, my colleague Jimmy Spratt the member for South Belfast and Mr Rab McConaghy and his team for the excellent work they have done in compiling the report. In my available short time I would like to stress just three points.

a)       the background to Training for Success

b)       the role of the department and industry in taking the report forward

c)       building on the report

I beg to move “That the Assembly expresses its concern and deep disappointment at the planned closure of, and service changes to, certain local Post Offices; approves the report of the Ad Hoc Committee set up to consider, and make proposals for, partnerships that could enhance the economic case for viable local postal services; and agrees that it should be submitted to the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform as a report of the Northern Ireland Assembly.” 

 

Mr Speaker

  

In supporting this motion I do so having spent the majority of my business career in the development of job specific training programmes, vocational qualification and academic qualifications at the level of foundation degrees.

 

 

Mr Speaker / Deputy Speaker

  

In giving my support to this motion I am mindful that the Minister is already aware of the concerns of many in the business community on this matter and he confirmed in the Chamber in response to a question on Monday 18 June 2007,

   

“I will do everything in my power to advance the agenda of deregulation, streamlining bureaucracy, simplifying form filling, reducing information requests to businesses.”
This is a welcome statement from Minister Dodds.

 

Today is a significant milestone in the development of the DUP as a political Party.  Our political enemies had thought that when Dr Paisley stepped down the Party would fall apart.  However, today's events with the election of a Leader and a Deputy Leader (designate) now in place the future of the Party is now assured.

Mr Speaker

 I rise to support the motion. It should be the priority of all local politicians to support the personal development of the most vulnerable in our society regardless of background, physical or mental need, age or gender.

Mr Deputy Speaker I want to thank the Business Committee for recognising the importance of this matter and allowing this debate to take place. And I want to express my gratitude to the staff and members of the East Belfast Partnership Board who have done so much to help raise the need for this project to be delivered and especially those who are the volunteer members of the Board. I will come to this aspect a little later.