Paul Givan says failed Stormont motion to oust him from office highlights 'hypocrisy' of opponents
Education minister Paul Givan has blasted the “hypocrisy” of his political opponents during a heated Stormont debate on a failed motion to remove him from office.
The DUP MLA slammed rival parties for attempting to place the toughest possible penalty on him over a trip to Israel – citing a long list of what he said were more serious issues during the Assembly’s history.
A People Before Profit no-confidence motion sought to remove Mr Givan from post, and exclude him from holding office as a minister or junior minister for a 12 months.
It had the backing of Sinn Fein, the SDLP and Alliance – who focused on the fact the Department of Education promoted a visit to a school in Jerusalem, branding a press release issued by it political – something rejected by the department and the minister.
The motion failed, as it did not have the required cross-community support, with unionists backing the DUP minister. However, a majority of MLAs backed the bid to remove the minister from office.
Gerry Carroll – who brought the motion – faced sustained criticism from unionist representatives over a social media post on the day Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 2023. The West Belfast MLA had posted on Twitter “Victory to the Palestinian Resistance”.
The education minister slammed other Executive parties for following Mr Carroll’s lead, stating that he had never apologised for the post.
He also questioned what he was being accused of, arguing that he had gone to Israel “on a fact finding mission to hear from the victims of terrorism” – a country “with which the United Kingdom retains full diplomatic relations and an Embassy in Tel Aviv”.
Mr Givan told the chamber: “Are today's trumped up charges truly more serious than the refusal of the IRA to decommission its weapons and to continue to murder people when Sinn Fein remained in government in the early years of devolution?
“Are they more serious than when the police raided Sinn Fein's offices in these very buildings, investigating a suspected spy ring on the back of the IRA's break in at Castlereagh police station and their training of FARC terrorists in Colombia?.
“And remember this, I went to visit children in a school. Sinn Fein's partners in the IRA went to Columbia to teach terrorists how to use car bombs. That is the contrast. That is the truth.”
Taking aim at the First Minister, the Lagan Valley MLA queried if his alleged offence was “more serious than when the then-deputy First Minister brazenly and unapologetically violated the executive's own Covid regulations at the very peak of a global health crisis, undermining public trust and setting a dangerous precedent, at a time when leadership was needed most.
“No exclusion motions then. No outrage, no accountability” he said.
During the debate on Monday afternoon, Sinn Fein’s Pat Sheehan said that the minister should commit to not return to Israel, and that he had lost the support of the majority of MLAs. “Do the right thing, go now minister, you’re an embarrassment” the West Belfast MLA said.
Ulster Unionist deputy leader Robbie Butler said: “This is not about the rule of law. It is about the rule of convenience. The rules apply to others when it suits, never to themselves.
“The Minister of Education’s visit to Israel is a matter currently being reviewed within his department. That assessment will bring the clarity that is needed, and that is the appropriate way for government to handle such questions.
“But until that process concludes, this Assembly should resist the temptation to play judge and jury for the sake of a headline”.
DUP MLA Jonathan Buckley said “today's pantomime confidence vote is nearing its final act” – and accused Sinn Fein of hypocrisy saying “their own military wing took the lives of many innocent babies in this country”.
But Alliance deputy leader Eoin Tennyson said the minister could have apologised, but had instead “doubled down”.
“Successive attempts have been made in recent weeks to disgracefully overlay this debate with sectarianism and prejudice. These aren't orange or green issues people from right across our community are horrified at the disregard for the ministerial code for international law and for human rights.
“It is entirely possible to condemn the terrorism of Hamas on the seventh of October and the genocide which has followed”, he said.
47 MLAs voted for the motion. All nationalists and others who voted, voted for. All unionists who voted, voted against. The motion failed due to a lack of cross-community support.