Budget 'carve up' condemned

AN Executive decision to allocate just £10 million to the department of Social Development out of the £284million available for redistribution under the June Monitoring Round has been condemned.
By The Newsroom
Published 27th Jul 2010, 11:35 BST
Updated 10th Aug 2010, 21:51 BST

SDLP Upper Bann MLA Dolores Kelly said: “This is an early introduction to the ‘carve-up’ approach to decision making that seems to characterise this Executive. This is why Alex Attwood was the only Executive Minister to record opposition to the Sinn Fein /DUP plan.

“In this monitoring round, the Social Development Minister contributed 110million of his Urban Regeneration budget into DFP coffers - 110million into a total pot of 284million. He asked for less than 32m of it to be returned so that some kind of urban regeneration programme could be sustained this year and to meet ongoing contractual commitments.

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"But despite making very strong arguments about the contribution urban regeneration makes to job creation, and as key strategy out of recession, reasonable requests have been ignored.

“DSD has been allocated a derisory 10 million out of 284million – so the result of the monitoring round is a net reduction in DSD’s resources of 100million. Again we are seeing a repeat of a four-Party Executive being run for the benefit of two parties."

She added: “This Monitoring Round is a slap in the face for the many businesses in Upper Bann and people who work hard to create jobs in the town centre. It will cause real hardship in our town and community. It augurs very badly for the setting of the next four year budget which will have to be agreed in the autumn."

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