Mr. Mickey Brady:

I thank the Minister of State for his presentation. The petition of concern was mentioned. That has been a bone of contention because its original intention was to protect minorities. Unfortunately, during the last debate on same sex marriage it was used to ensure that it did not go through even though, for the first time in the Assembly, there was actually a majority in favour of it. This needs to be addressed. Like Alasdair, I have absolutely no knowledge of the Dunkettle roundabout. I am aware, however, of the concept of the Narrow Water bridge because it is just down the road from my own constituency and it is very dear to the hearts of many people because it would serve a very practical and useful purpose. It is good that it is still on the agenda.

The question of a workable budget was also raised and the Executive is discussing the budget today. Hopefully, it will be sorted out. On criminality and fuel laundering, I represent a constituency in the Six Counties, Newry-Armagh, which is often portrayed in a very negative light. Certainly, there are criminal gangs who operate on both sides of the Border and the provision of a task force would be welcome. Yesterday, I had a meeting with the PSNI area commander and was pleased to hear that there is now much more co-operation between An Garda Síochána and the PSNI. Hopefully that will continue and increase as these gangs seem to be roaming at will, committing crimes such as murder and fuel laundering, which are huge issues in our area. The penalties for fuel laundering in the South are much stiffer and people can be jailed. While a number of fuel laundering plants have been discovered in the North, nobody seems to have been brought to book. There have been very few or no prosecutions to date and nobody has been brought to court. This needs to be addressed. There may be changes to the dye that is used and that may negate the profitability of the activity.

The question of legacy was also raised. There was a report in November 2014 by Nils MuiŽnieks, Commissioner for Human Rights at the Council of Europe. He stated:

The UK government cannot wash its hands of the investigations, including funding of the investigations. These are the most serious human rights violations. Until now there has been virtual impunity for the state actors involved and I think the government has a responsibility to uphold its obligations under the European Convention to fund investigations and to get the results. The issue of impunity is a very, very serious one and the UK government has a responsibility to uphold the rule of law. This is not just an issue of dealing with the past, it has to do with upholding the law in general.

That is a very important point and one which needs to be addressed in a more robust manner. The Minister of State said the Minister for Foreign Affairs was meeting with Ms Theresa Villiers. I have spoken with Theresa Villiers and it is clear the British Government can arbitrarily throw a blanket of security over anything without prior discussion. I am not sure what the stuff that happened 40 years ago has to do with current security issues for the British state and that has to be addressed. The issue of legacy is ongoing and victims' groups to which we have talked would prefer no legislation to bad legislation. The overwhelming feeling among victims' groups and the families is acute disappointment that this issue has not been resolved.

Any commitments or agreements that we, as republicans, have made in any negotiations have been carried out but, unfortunately, that cannot be said of others.