£1m to pay union reps

THE people spend almost £1m per year paying 28 trade union representatives across Northern Ireland, it has been revealed.

Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) MLA Jim Allister asked Finance Minister Sammy Wilson what was the gross annual cost to the public purse of employing these 28 officials.

He replied: “The gross annual cost to the public purse of employing the 28 trade union representatives is £915,459.

“This figure represents the total of the current annual salary spine points, the employers’ National Insurance Contributions and the employers’ pension contributions of the trade union representatives.”