Lord Caine (Con)

My Lords, I am very grateful to the noble Baroness. We too condemn unreservedly the appalling acts of racist thuggery in Ballymena, for which there can be not a single shred of justification. There is nothing remotely British about wrapping oneself in the union flag and attacking migrants, forcing people from their homes and scapegoating entire communities anywhere in the United Kingdom. Like the noble Baroness, I commend the bravery and resolve of the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the other emergency services, which have our unstinting support. Our thoughts are with the more than 30 officers who have been injured. Can the noble Baroness tell the House what conversations the Secretary of State has had with the Justice Minister over levels of support for the PSNI, and what contingencies are in place for additional resources should the violence be sustained over a period or spread elsewhere? One of the most effective deterrents is for offenders to be dealt with quickly and effectively through the courts. Given that we still have some cases pending from the disorder last summer, what conversations are taking place about the need significantly to speed up the operation of the criminal justice system in Northern Ireland?