Legislation? What’s that?

THERE now follows a political statement on behalf of the Exasperated Party…

The Exasperated Party hereby calls on the Executive and MLAs to get their collective fingers out of their nether regions and do some work…

Of course, we neither endorse nor condone the statements of the Exasperated Party, but has anyone noticed how much Assembly Plenary time is taken up by Private Member’s Business? It is quite a lot.

While there are 90 minutes approximately given over to ministers answering questions once a week, plus the regular bun fights between green and orange, the vast majority of time so far has been taken up by Private Member’s Business.

Now each MLA has no doubt important, nay vital, issues to bring to the chamber; but a sense of proportion may be called for urgently here.

Legislation can take a long time to be drafted. When it drafted it has to go to an Assembly committee to scrutinise and take external evidence on it. After this, and a few other hurdles it can go on and become the law of the land. (For all you Constitutional lawyers out there with green pens at the ready we know it is more complex than that – put the pens away and look up satire in your dictionary.)

And then on Tuesday, we heard why one piece of legislation is hitting the buffers. Sammy ‘never a dull moment’ Wilson said “the party opposite” could not get their heads around the proposed legislation. (For those watching in black and white he meant Sinn Féin).

Sinn Fein, of course claim that Sammy should have equality proofed said legislation…
And, so it goes on…