BIPA Committee at Stormont for Evidence on Travellers and the Roma Population

From the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly

On Monday 3 March 2014 the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly (BIPA) meets in the Northern Ireland Assembly to take evidence on the provision of services to Roma and Travellers across Britain and Ireland and the relationship between Roma and Travellers and other local communities. The Committee visited Dublin to take evidence in January and will visit England later this year.

The inquiry aims to share good practice across the jurisdictions involved, looking at relations between local authorities, Governments, local community and Travellers and the Roma population.

The Committee is considering:

Access to health and education services for Travellers and the Roma;
Provision of housing, and provision of temporary and permanent sites; and
Interactions between other local communities and Roma and Travellers


Media and the public are welcome to attend any and all of the evidence.

In Room 29, Northern Ireland Assembly, the Committee will take evidence from local community groups, Government and Assembly departments and agencies :

9.00am Community perspective:

South Belfast Round Table (Denise Wright)
Lower Ormeau Residents Action Group (Ann Marie White, Project coordinator Creating Cohesive Community)
Police Service of Northern Ireland (Maura Muldoon, Head of Policing with the Community Branch)



9.45am

An Munia Tober (Ms Pauline McCarry Project Health Manager with Traveller community )
Bryson Intercultural (Ms Sorina Toma Roma Health Liaison Officer)
Mediation NI (Denis Long, Roma Community Development Coordinator)
Romanian Roma Community Assoc of NI (Nicolae Nicola, Chair)


10.45am

NI Housing Executive (Connor Smith, Travellers Project Team and Mary McDonnell, Principal Officer)
Department for Social Development (Stephen Martin, Deputy Director, Jason McAnulty)

11.30am

Belfast Health and Social Care Trust Traveller Health Strategy Board (Stephen Long, Community Development Officer and Bryan Nelson, Senior Manager Health Improvement)
Department of Health (Heather Stevens, Director of Service Delivery and Stephen Galway, Head of Primary Care Medical Services)

12.15pm:

Barnardo's Tuar Ceatha (Joan McGovern, Pamela Kirk)
Department of Education (Julie Humphries)
Southern Education and Library Board (Kieran Shields)
Northern Ireland Equality Commission (Michael Wardlow, Commissioner and Paul Noonan, Senior Policy Officer)


In the afternoon the Committee will visit Monagh Road in West Belfast, and other Traveller sites. Please contact Jessica on 07917 488 489 for more information and possible photo and interview opportunities.


Notes:

For more information or bids please contact Jessica bridgespalmerj@parliamnet.uk / (+44) 7917 488 489