Stormont’s health committee will convene later with departmental officials, including the department’s permanent secretary, following a request from the committee’s chair, Sinn Féin MLA Philip McGuigan.
He said it is “essential” Butler can make decisions “based on expert advice and patient outcomes rather than the narrow electoral and constituency interests of his party leader”.
The DUP’s health spokesperson Diane Dodds said: “Patients will judge this minister not by announcements or strategies, but by whether access to healthcare actually improves.”
SDLP health spokesperson Colin McGrath said Butler is “taking on one of the toughest jobs in the executive and there will be very little time for him to find his feet”.
Analysis – New minister faces enormous challenges:
Until now, Butler has probably been best known by some for twice considering running for the leadership of his party, only to withdraw from it at the last minute.
His name was being flouted as a possible successor as soon as Nesbitt resigned on Tuesday night, and on this occasion he has chosen to take up the call.
As a former firefighter-turned-politician he may have experience in putting out fires, but doing so in one of the most difficult Stormont departments will be new territory for him.
While he’s been an MLA since 2016, he has never held a ministerial job before.
As an effective caretaker minister in the seven months left of the assembly term before the next election, he will have to quickly get to grips with a massive in-tray.
He will also face questions about how he intends to manage relations with the party leader Burrows, given the events of this week.
One Ulster Unionist source said while the job was only for a matter of months, other parties could “set a target on his back” and make life difficult for him.
His decision to step into the job may help further boost his Lagan Valley profile in the run-up to next May’s assembly poll, which is shaping up to be an interesting constituency battle.
But being health minister is hard enough when you have experience of the brief and a budget to work with.
Butler at the moment has neither of those.
