This week at the Assembly - 18 June

Monday

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE BUSINESS

• Consideration Stage – Welfare Reform Bill (NIA 1/07) [Minister for Social Development]
• Consideration Stage – Budget Bill (NIA 3/07) [Minister of Finance and Personnel]

COMMITTEE BUSINESS

Motion - Committee Membership - Committee for Culture, Arts and Leisure

Proposed: That Mr Ken Robinson replace Mr David Burnside as a member of the Committee for Culture, Arts and Leisure. [Mr D McNarry]

QUESTION TIME

4.1 Enterprise, Trade and Investment

4.2 Employment and Learning

4.3 Education

PRIVATE MEMBERS’ BUSINESS

Motion - Pay Parity for Further Education Lecturers

Proposed: That this Assembly supports the campaign of Further Education lecturers for pay parity with teachers in schools; and calls for an end to Further Education lecturers’ pay levels being decided by the Government’s public sector pay policy. [Mr P Butler] [Mr M Brady]

Culture, Arts and Leisure Committtee (Room 52 at 1.45pm)

Tuesday

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE BUSINESS

• Second Stage - Libraries Bill (NIA 5/07) [Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure]
• Second Stage - Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill (NIA 2/07) [Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety]
• Further Consideration Stage - Welfare Reform Bill (NIA 1/07) [Minister for Social Development]
• Further Consideration Stage - Budget Bill (NIA 3/07) [Minister of Finance and Personnel]

PRIVATE MEMBERS’ BUSINESS

Motion - Teacher Induction Year

Proposed: That this Assembly notes that, following the McCrone Report: ‘A Teaching Profession for the 21st Century’, a teacher induction scheme guarantees a one-year teaching post to every student graduating from a Scottish university with a teaching qualification; and calls upon the Minister of Education to liaise with the Scottish Executive on this matter, with a view to a similar scheme being introduced for teachers who train in Northern Ireland.

[Mr A Ross] [Miss M McIlveen]

Motion - Classroom Assistants’ Dispute

Proposed: That this Assembly calls on the Minister of Education to take immediate action to settle the issue of job evaluation for classroom assistants, by giving approval to the Education and Library Boards to put an equitable offer to the representative Trades’ Unions.

[Mr D Bradley]

ADJOURNMENT

• Car Parking Problems at Daisy Hill Hospital, Newry. [Mr D Kennedy]

COMMITTEE BUSINESS

Business Committee (Room 106 at 1.00pm)

Enterprise, Trade and Investment Committee (Room 135 at 2.00pm)

Agriculture and Rural Development Committee (Room 144 at 2.00pm)

Wednesday

COMMITTEE BUSINESS

Committee For Regional Development (Room 144 at 10.00am)

• Meeting will open in Public Session

ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION:

• Oral Briefing from Stakeholders on Water Review.
• Department for Regional Development Draft Disability Action Plan.

Briefings by:

Economic Research Institute of Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland Environmental Link, Help the Aged and Age Concern, Ulster Farmers Union, Goretti Horgan, School of Policy Studies University of Ulster, CBI, and Disability Action.

Rural Community Network, Advice Northern Ireland, Citizens Advice Bureau, and Northern Ireland Anti-Poverty Network.

Officials on the Department’s draft Disability Action Plan.

Finance and Personnel Committee (Room 152 at 10.00am)

Employment and Learning Committee (Room 135 at 10.30am)

• 10:45am: CBI Northern Ireland. In attendance will be Declan Billington, CBI NI Chairman (M. D. of John Thompson & Sons), Michael Graham, Managing Director, John Graham (Dromore) Ltd, Dr Ian Graham, Chief Executive, Momentum and Nigel Smyth, Director, CBI Northern Ireland.
• 11:30am: Departmental Budgetary Briefing. In attendance will be Gregg McConnell, Deputy Secretary, DEL and Trevor Connolly, Assistant Secretary, Finance & European Division, DEL.
• 12:15pm: Departmental briefing on DEL linkages with the Departments of Education and Enterprise Trade and Investment. In attendance will be Catherine Bell, Deputy Secretary, DEL.

Committee on Standards and Privileges (Room 135 at 2.00pm)

Committee For The Office Of The First Minister And Deputy First Minister * (Senate Chamber at 2.00pm)

• 2008/09 Programme for Government – Executive’s emerging priorities - First Minister and Deputy First Minister
• 2008/09 Programme for Government/Budget/Investment Strategy – OFMDFM’s position - First Minister and Deputy First Minister
• EU Gender – Goods and Services Directive

*The Assembly approved a motion on 12 June 2007 to change the name of the committee from Committee of the Centre to Committee for the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister.

Thursday

COMMITTEE BUSINESS

Environment Committee (Room 144 at 10.30am)

• Taxis Bill
• Budget Briefing
• Briefing on Planning Processes and Policies
• SL1 – Draft Local Government Pension Scheme (Amendment No 2) Regulations ( Northern Ireland) 2007
• SL1 – Road Transport (Working Time) Regulations ( Northern Ireland) 2005
• SL1 – European Regulation (EC) No. 561/2006 on Drivers’ Hours
• SL1 – Increase to the number of multiple-choice questions for the driver theory test and associated fees
• SL1 – Motor Vehicles (construction and Use) Regulations ( Northern Ireland) 1999
• SL1 – The Conservation (Natural Habitats, etc)(Amendment) Regulations 2007
• SL1 – Fixed Penalty Order – Article 57 (2) of the Road Traffic Offenders (NI) Order 1996 (specification of road traffic offences as fixed penalty offences)
• SL1 – Fixed Penalty Order – Article 59 (a) of the Road Traffic Offenders (NI) Order 1996 (level of fixed penalties)

Culture, Arts and Leisure Committee (Room 152 at 10.30am)

• Finalise Terms of Reference for inquiry
• Agree Draft Public Notice for the Libraries Bill
• Comprehensive Spending Review

In attendance - Edwin Poots Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure, Paul Sweeney (Permanent Secretary) DCAL, Michelle Estler Departmental liaison officer DCAL, Deirdre Lundy Acting Head of Finance Branch DCAL

• Briefing from the Ulster Council of the GAA

Danny Murphy Provincial Secretary, Dr. Eugene Young Director of Coaching and Games Development, Aileen Tohill Development Officer

• Briefing from Ulster Rugby

Social Development Committee (Room 135 at 11.00am)

• DSD Business Plan 2006/07 - End of Year Position Report
• 11.00 am - Proposed Pensions Bill

Briefing by DSD officials - John O’Neill Director Social Security Policy & Legislation Division, Gerry McCann Social Security Policy & Legislation Division

• 11.30 am - Strategic Business Review of the Social Security Agency

Briefing by DSD officials - Bryan Davis Chief Executive, Social Security Agency, Colum Boyle Director of Business Development, John O’Neill Corporate Projects

Public Accounts Committee (Room 144 at 2.00pm)

• Briefing on the Northern Ireland Audit Office Report ‘Outpatients: Missed Appointments and Cancelled Clinics'
• Issues from oral evidence session on the Northern Ireland Audit Office Report ‘Springvale Educational Village Project’
• Consideration of Draft Committee Report ‘The Upgrade of the Belfast to Bangor Railway Line’

Health, Social Services and Public Safety Committee (Senate Chamber at 2.30pm)

Friday

COMMITTEE BUSINESS

Education Committee (Room 135 at 10.30am)