Statement by TUV leader Jim Allister:
“Having asked the Assembly Commission about the cost of the Irish/English interpretation service introduced following an Assembly vote in June 2021, I have established that the cost of the same to the public purse has been £117,075.41. Remarkably, this expenditure has been run up while the Assembly hasn’t even been sitting for more than a year!
“The Assembly employs three members of staff – one permanent and two agency – to translate speeches in Irish into English in an Assembly where everyone adequately speaks English and which doesn’t currently operate. The permanent member of staff earns £39,243.11 while the cost of agency staff up to 13th January 2023 was £77,832.30.
“While people find their personal finances under ever increasing pressure it is scandalous that such significant sums of money are being spent on a service which wouldn’t be needed even if the Assembly were to be sitting.
“I have no doubt that there will be many in Northern Ireland who will see this as yet further evidence that we would simply be better off without the Assembly at all.”
Note to editors
Mr Allister’s question and the response from the Commission were as follows:
To ask the Assembly Commission (i) whether there are permanent or time limited contracts for the Irish/English interpretation service; (ii) whether the service is provided and paid on a usage basis; (iii) whether retainer fees are paid for the service; and (iv) what the cost of the service has been to date.
(AQW 5367/22-27)
In the Office of the Official Report (Hansard):
(i) Three members of staff support the Assembly’s direction to the
Assembly Commission to provide simultaneous and passive interpretation of Assembly business in Irish, where there is appropriate demand. One member of Assembly Commission staff (permanently employed) and two members of temporary agency staff support the delivery of this service.
(ii) The service is not provided or paid for on a usage basis.
(iii) Retainer fees are not paid for the service.
(iv) The total cost to the Assembly Commission for the permanent member
of staff, up to 31 December 2022, was £39,243.11. The total cost to the Assembly Commission for the agency staff, up to 13 January 2023, was £77,832.30.