Rathlin Island

Speech by David Ford MLA delivered to Northern Ireland Assembly on Tue 4th Oct 2011

"Mr Deputy Speaker, you will see that I am speaking from the Back Benches, as I am happy to say that the Department of Justice has no direct involvement with Rathlin, although last year, not long after the House elected me as Minister of Justice, I arrived on Rathlin to discover that I had just missed the annual Rathlin meeting of Moyle District Policing Partnership. It was a fairly short meeting, and that says a fair bit about Rathlin.

"Mervyn Storey started, and others joined in, with a description of the physical beauties of the island. Members covered almost everything except for the golden hare and the seals. Other Members then discussed the social aspects of the island, and almost everything was covered except for the model yacht racing, which is fine if you get a nice summer's evening at Ushet lough, but not great otherwise.

"As Members know, I do not represent North Antrim, but I have visited the island a few times, and I live only a few miles south of Robin Swann, so I think that I can get in on the act. However, I have visited the island on two occasions when I have been in the company of Ministers. Once was, I think, three years ago when the then Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety visited to discuss the nursing issue. Indeed, I think that that was the occasion when Robin Swann was paying his apprenticeship visit to the island as the understudy to Bob Coulter. The second time was to see Arlene Foster, as Minister of the Environment, open the new facilities at the west light for the RSPB. It is clear that there has been a degree of Executive engagement, and, indeed, the current Minister for Regional Development has played his part in that, so we should acknowledge that there has been some recognition, and there have certainly been improvements in recent years.

"Yet, there is still the issue that that six-mile stretch of water leaves Rathlin cut off from basic services that the vast majority of people in Northern Ireland expect. I have crossed that stretch of water on the Canna, on the Rathlin Express and on a variety of rigid inflatable boats (RIBs), including that of the late Johnny Curry, and I join in the tributes that have been paid to him today. In what was probably my briefest visit, on a fairly bleak February day a few years ago, the Portrush lifeboat was stranded on the harbour wall. If that does not emphasise the isolation that can apply to a place such as Rathlin in bad weather, nothing will.

"Improvements have been made to the ferry services, although they have not been without some problems. We have seen the provision of mains electricity and the enhancement of water services on the island, yet, at times, those things have gone wrong. I find it somewhat disappointing that, when mains electricity was put to the island, there was a cable that would more than cater for the needs of the island but which would not meet the potential need for the development of renewables on the island. It is clear that that is one way in which sustainable jobs could be provided.

"There is absolutely no doubt that some incredibly good work has been done by the people of Rathlin, particularly through the Rathlin Development and Community Association. It is good to know that David Quinney Mee is here to hear the debate and report back to the islanders about it. Yet, there is still much more to be done to build on that volunteering spirit, the sort of spirit that sees Northern Ireland's only combined fire station and coastguard station. Indeed, it is described as the only volunteer fire crew as opposed to a retained fire crew. All of that is an example of how people on the island have had to develop their own resilience, yet, as we seek to provide modern services, we have to maintain the social fabric that has provided that sort of culture and ensure that we also provide the up-to-date 21st century services that every citizen has a right to expect. I am not sure that we have got that completely right yet.

"David McIlveen talked about the development plan, and, if that were done, it would address things. Mervyn Storey talked about joined-up government, and Rathlin is a clear case of where a small community needs that to happen more and better than it has happened in every part of Northern Ireland.

"One key area that has not been touched on is planning. You cannot meet the needs of a specific community such as Rathlin by applying the same kinds of policies that need to be applied in the rest of rural Northern Ireland to protect the environment and maintain the social fabric at the same time. Sustainable development has a strong environmental factor and a strong social factor, but it requires appropriate and sustainable economic development to be balanced with it.

"Robin Swann highlighted the issue of the new social housing, and that is fine provided it gets planning approval and goes ahead. However, there are clearly examples where development of local indigenous business has not proceeded in recent years because of planning matters."

[Mr Storey, DUP MLA from North Antrim intervened: "I thank the Member for giving way. I want to go back to the point that I made about joined-up government. Islanders tell me that, prior to meetings of the forum, there is always a wave of activity from all the Departments because every Department feels that it has to get everything up to date for the meeting. However, as soon as the meeting is over, it seems as though the waves calm again. We need a consistency of approach to the issues of the island, and the Member would do well to look at that."]

David Ford continued: "I take Mr Storey's point. There is a real need to ensure, as is often the case when ensuring joined-up government in every aspect of our work, that we do not just see a hive of activity when a meeting is coming up and then allow things to lapse for the next 12 weeks until the next quarterly meeting. I have no doubt that, given the enthusiasm that the current Minister has shown by his recent trip to the island, he will ensure that that will not be the case, and I have no doubt that the Members for North Antrim will ensure that he lives up to that challenge in the future.

"As Mervyn Storey has mentioned over recent weeks, including in press releases, there is a suggestion that the Executive should be invited to hold a meeting on Rathlin. If I could don my ministerial hat briefly, I will say that, to some extent, that would be a waste of a good day on Rathlin. If I were given the opportunity of sitting at Ushet or Mill Bay watching the seals or, at the right time of the year, heading out to the West Light viewpoint to study kittiwakes and puffins, or sitting in the Manor House around an Executive table, I know what I would prefer." [Laughter.]