Ms Patricia McKeown:

The trade union movement has given direct effect to our commitment to a bill of rights for Northern Ireland in several ways over the years. Congress and a range of affiliate unions are members of the very important Human Rights Consortium which has presented extensively to this committee and our colleagues in the consortium are giving evidence here again today. Through our work in the consortium Congress participated in the year long bill of rights forum where we acted as convenor to the working group on social and economic rights on which all political parties participated. We have engaged in training and awareness raising with our membership on the centrality of equality and human rights to the peace process. We participated extensively, primarily as members of the Human Rights Consortium in lobbies of the British, Irish and US governments on the need for full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement and in particular a bill of rights for Northern Ireland and we gave extensive evidence to the recent UK commission.

We are pleased to say that the one strong recommendation on which that commission agreed was that we should have a bill of rights for Northern Ireland. We are aware that the committee has already received extensive evidence from our colleagues in the Human Rights Consortium on its activities in surveying, and polling the people. They demonstrate an 80% buy-in for a bill of rights from the population. On the issue of social and economic rights this rises to over 90%. These rights are of greatest concern to ordinary people, identified by them, the rights to health, housing, education, jobs and an adequate standard of living. These, together with trade union rights, are supported in the same measure by our members in the trade union movement.

Despite the obligation imposed by the Good Friday Agreement and statements in successive programmes for Government we have no framework for equality or human rights-based budgeting. Current decisions on resource allocation are not based on objective need and the historic patterns of discrimination have not changed in the most deprived areas or sections of our society.

It will shock the committee to learn that life expectancy for the most disadvantaged in Northern Ireland has reduced since the Good Friday Agreement 15 years ago. Premature death amongst the long-term unemployed has increased and suicide rates for the long-term unemployed are at record levels. It was very shocking to learn from the press yesterday that the first case of rickets in a child in West Belfast was confirmed, a disease of poverty and inequality which we thought we had eradicated. The committee will be aware of the large body of evidence which indicates that a society with the levels of inequality such as those experienced in Northern Ireland is an unfair and unsafe society. This places everything we have worked for in the peace process in jeopardy. A total of 15 years of political stalling is having the worst possible impact on society. The right to life itself is being jeopardised.

The UK commission has recommended a separate bill of rights for Northern Ireland thus the key excuse given to us by the UK Government for two and a half years is no longer valid. The second excuse given to us by the UK Government is that there is no political consensus in Northern Ireland. There have been issues on the Good Friday Agreement on which there was no political consensus. The pressure was exerted by the signatories to the agreement and a process was engaged in and consensus was reached. The only steps taken by the current British Government has been to write a letter to our political parties in Northern Ireland in 2011. Congress is no longer prepared to accept this level of inaction from Government, given the growing division in our society and the increasing tensions on matters of safety and security. I will hand over to my colleague, Jack O'Connor, to conclude.