Independent unionist Claire Sugden is to align with mostly nationalist MLAs in supporting a no-confidence vote in DUP minister Paul Givan.
The East Derry representative believes the education minister “blurred the lines between who and what he was representing” by asking his officials to publicise a visit to a school in East Jerusalem during last week’s Israeli government-sponsored “fact-finding mission” to the Middle East.
“I believe that was wrong,” the former justice minister said.
Assembly speaker Edwin Poots confirmed on Tuesday that the petition submitted by People Before Profit’s Gerry Carroll calling for a vote of no confidence in Mr Givan had received the necessary 30 signatures.
The debate and vote has been scheduled for next Monday November 10.
Currently absent from Stormont due to a bout of flu, Ms Sugden posted her thoughts on the controversy on Facebook.
But it’s not just the under-fire education minister she took issue with, arguing that she doesn’t have confidence “in any government minister, because all I see is a toxic executive failing to deliver”.
“They seem to be fighting amongst themselves to somehow appease their own voters rather than doing the job of governing for everyone,” she said.
The assembly’s sole independent unionist said she has no issue with Mr Givan travelling to Israel as a private citizen, arguing “that is his free will and right”.
Paul Givan defends his trip to Israel in the assembky
“I do, however, have an issue with Paul Givan, minister of education, representing Northern Ireland, the Executive, and even the UK on that trip when it appears he had no authority to do so,” she said.
“He did that when he used his departmental platform to publicise his visit. He blurred the lines between who and what he was representing and I believe that was wrong.”
Ms Sugden, who served as justice minister for ten months up to March 2017, said holding ministerial office was a “privilege” that should be “exercised with care, humility and respect for the limits of your authority and who you are representing”.
“Does this alone warrant a motion of no confidence? For me, probably not. I would have been content if the minister had acknowledged his mistake and apologised for using his department to promote his trip,” she said.
“But he refuses and next week, because of this motion, I will be asked whether I have confidence in him, as minister of education.
“Honestly, I don’t. I don’t have confidence in any government minister, because all I see is a toxic Executive failing to deliver for the people of NI.
“They seem to be fighting amongst themselves to somehow appease their own voters rather than doing the job of governing for everyone.”
The East Derry MLA accused the regional administration of “failure to deliver or fix our desperately declining public services”.
“So when asked, it would be very difficult for me as a backbench MLA to say I have confidence in him or indeed any of his executive colleagues,” she said.
“While this issue plays out, cancer patients are waiting months for hospital appointments, women and children are being abused, working parents are struggling to pay for childcare, those with special educational needs are being left behind, schools are crumbling, minorities attacked, older people are being made homeless… I could go on. This is what we should be fixing.”
She described the Assembly debate and the proposed no-confidence motion in Mr Givan as “performative” and points out that it would only be effective with cross-community support.
“It feels so hypocritical that ministers in the same Executive have signed this petition knowing full well it will change nothing,” she said.
“Those ministers will call for his resignation and then days later sit beside him at the Executive table as if nothing had happened. It’s theatre and we are all fed up.”
DUP MP Gregory Campbell said Ms Sugden was “out of touch” with a majority of unionist people in her constituency.
He claimed Mr Givan was the subject of a “political witch hunt” and said there was “absolutely nothing improper” about the education minister’s visit to Israel or his decision to visit a school in illegally-occupied East Jerusalem.
“For Claire Sugden to allow herself to be drawn into Gerry Carroll’s grandstanding, with Sinn Féin and Alliance eagerly following his lead, gives a very bad message to the unionist people of East Londonderry.”