Over ten years has passed since the UK Climate Change Act was passed and there is still no Northern Ireland specific Climate Change legislation. Northern Ireland is lagging behind, urgent and ambitious action is now required. As proposed in the cross-party Private Members Bill, we demand that a Northern Ireland Climate Act must include: - an overarching target to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions in Northern Ireland by 2045 - interim emissions reduction targets - a duty on government to bring forward a Climate Action Plan with sectoral targets and relevant policies/programmes and clear carbon budgets for each sector (to be laid before the NI Assembly within three years) - a duty on government to establish an independent monitoring and oversight body

Violence cannot be seen as a series of isolated incidents - but part of a bigger societal problem. It's enabled by our policing and legal system; how our children are educated about consent; the way women are silenced in politics, public life and workplaces; how women are portrayed in the media; the silence of too many men; and how all this is made worse for many women living with with racism and hate.

No matter who we are or what we look like, we all deserve to live our lives without fear. But the handful of extremists who were behind the violence and hate in Belfast City Centre on Saturday have destroyed people’s livelihoods and left our Muslim neighbours terrified. They do not represent us, or the huge majority of people in Belfast, across Northern Ireland and beyond. We offer our support and respect and stand firmly with the Muslim community across Belfast and beyond, and all others impacted by racist hate on our streets.

Since July 2020, families of 96,000 children eligible for free school meals have received £27 per child each fortnight during school holidays. These families are those who are forced to struggle the most as the cost of living surges. It is vital that this payment continues.

With the impending uncertainty of Brexit and following a commitment from the Irish Government to stand up for the rights of citizens in the North, opening a passport office would improve infrastructure, service delivery, investment and confidence. 2017 saw over 82,000 passport applications come from the North alone. The call to open an office is supported by a broad range of community organisations, political parties and media outlets, and would go some way in meeting the growing demand for passport applications and renewals from the Six Counties.

Substance misuse accounted for 3000 deaths in 2021 in Northern Ireland - a 60% increase from the previous 10 years. It is young adults who are at the highest risk of substance misuse related death. A Treatment Centre has been opened in Scotland who have taken a person-centred approach - which has been praised as international best practice. We need to do the same here.

John O'Dowd blaming the British government and "competing work interests" for not being able to pedestrianise a popular street for night-life is as embarrassing as it is ridiculous. On the same day as he announced the decision to put the pedestrianisation of Hill Street on hold, his department started work on repaving the Sydenham by-pass at the cost of £3.8 million.  Why is Minister O'Dowd prioritising roads over people? It's time for him to pedestrianise Hill Street now!

40% of people in Northern Ireland get their drinking water from Lough Neagh. The blue-green algae outbreak - otherwise known as cyanobacteria is releasing toxins which are killing wildlife and fish, and is harmful to humans. The Lough is dying from decades of neglect and pollution and we must act urgently to save it.

Libraries are vital public services for our communities to come together and learn in NI. However, funding has been cut in real terms by almost £20 million pounds over the past decade. The financial situation is so dire that there is no budget to buy books and libraries have had to reduce opening hours. It's time for the government to fund our libraries properly!

All children can learn. All children have a right to an education and we need to stand up for some of the most vulnerable children in our community who are being denied an education.

Books and other media with LGBTQ+ themes are extremely important for young people who may be struggling to understand their own identity, as it gives them role models to look up to and allows them an opportunity to see people like them in the stories they enjoy! Book bans, like the one being pushed by prominent Unionist politicians including MP Carla Lockhart are also incredibly discriminatory and hypocritical [1] - representation of non- heterosexual relationships should no more be banned from Libraries than heterosexual/cis gender relationships. A child will not become gay or be "transed" by reading a book with a gay or trans character included. We must not allow bigoted bad actors to import American culture war nonsense to Northern Ireland. [1] https://www.newsletter.co.uk/education/dup-mp-carla-lockhart-calls-for-the-immediate-re[…]ildrens-books-from-northern-irish-public-libraries-4562485

The news is full of the horrendous incident at Belfast Pride when a group made abhorrent comments about and to the LGBTQIA community. In 2022, Belfast City Council was reported to be bringing bye-laws forward to counter this, but nothing has come forward yet. This needs to be acted on immediately.