Paula Bradshaw apologises for 'breach' of Assembly rules over cutting Stormont's live feed
The chair of Stormont’s Executive Office committee has apologised over her decision to put the meeting into private session last week, after TUV MLA Timothy Gaston had attempted to raise a letter of complaint about her handling of previous meetings.
Paula Bradshaw had instructed an Assembly official to cut the cameras – and the meeting was no longer visible to the public.
In a letter sent to committee members, the Alliance MLA said she “would like to apologise” to MLAs for what she described as a “breach” of the Assembly’s rules.
She said: “Standing Order 66 provides that a Committee may resolve to sit in closed session. I acknowledge that moving the Committee into closed session at the meeting, prior to it resolving to do so, was in breach of Standing Orders”.
The correspondence which promoted Ms Bradshaw to cut the meeting off from public view had raised questions over her handling of an evidence session by the First Minister the previous week – and accused her of disrespecting the mandate of North Antrim MLA Timothy Gaston.
Tensions between the Alliance and TUV MLAs have been simmering for weeks, with Ms Bradshaw objecting to Mr Gaston questioning witnesses rather than listening to their “lived experience” and reprimanding him for raising social media posts by another witness giving evidence to the body. The South Belfast MLA has also labelled Mr Gaston’s view on biological sex as “gratuitously offensive”.
Last week, Mr Gaston said a precedent had been set by the Chair the previous week when she raised correspondence relating to his questioning of a witness.
He then proceeded to do likewise and referenced a letter of complaint about the chair.
Paula Bradshaw interjected to say “Can we put this in private session because I’m going to stop you right there”. At this point an official rose to hit a switch on the wall which cut the live feed. The last few seconds of broadcast footage show the chair staring intently at Mr Gaston.
The News Letter has seen a copy of the letter which sparked the incident – and is now being handled by the Assembly’s Standards Commissioner.
It complains that Ms Bradshaw “facilitated the First Minister in answering a question addressed specifically to Junior Minister Reilly which it was impossible for the First Minister to answer”.
The letter from Mr George F.D. Young said the Alliance politician had facilitated in “shielding Junior Minister Reilly” from a question which was clearly in the public interest. It said that “even when it came to the questions he did get to ask the chair actively encouraged at least one not to be answered and demanded that Mr Gaston ‘move on’ when the second clearly hadn’t been answered either” – claiming that “Ms Bradshaw’s approach to Mr Gaston is motivated by barely disguised contempt for his political opinion”.
Paula Bradshaw defended her handling of the evidence session with First Minister Michelle O’Neill. arguing that the committee was under time constraints. The Alliance MLA also asked the Sinn Fein leader to consider returning to the committee to answer further questions.