£205k lawyer has task ahead

Foyle MLA Colum Eastwood was speaking in the wake of the Assembly’s approval of the Programme for Government and the Investment Strategy.

He pointed out that the legislative output of the Stormont assembly, since its election in May of last year, was less than half of that proposed and enacted in the Scottish Parliament.

The Office of First Minister and Deputy First Minister are currently recruiting for a First Legislative Counsel on a potential salary of £205,000.

Said Mr Eastwood: “The current output of legislation is half that currently being produced and enacted in the Scottish parliament.

“OFMDFM are currently advertising for a First Legislative Counsel on a potential salary of £205,000. It appears an exorbitant amount, particularly given our current economic climate.

“We will wait expectantly to see if a raft of innovative legislation is produced when the position is filled.”

He said Stormont’s jobs should not be simply restricted to “doling out monies from Westminster’s block grant.”

“A progressive stream of legislation is in essence a clear statement that Stormont has confidence in its own ability to govern the North’s affairs,” he said.

“If the Programme for Government has any hope of substantively delivering for the people of the North, then producing a legacy of robust, agreed legislation must be central to its ambition,” he added.