U4D compiles alternative to ‘severely detrimental’ draft budget

The University for Derry (U4D) group puts 13 recommendations to the Northern Ireland Government urging Ministers to row back on infrastructural, capital and current cuts across a range of Departments.

U4D wants health funding to be reevaluated and the proposed cancer centre at Altnagelvin to be fully funded.

The body wants DEL to allocate £8m a year to increase the science, technology, engineering and maths study at Magee by 1,000 students from 2015 and suggests Government Departments be rationalised to achieve efficiencies and stimulate higher education.

It wants the Department of Social Development to spend more on UK city of Culture 2013 and the Ilex urban regeneration company. The Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL) should also allocate more money to the Culture year, the report argues.

Both the Department of Regional Development (DRD) A6 road programme and the Londonderry Coleraine rail upgrade -

which the Sentinel today reveals won’t be started until 2015 and 2014 respectively - should be brought forward say U4D.

The group wants funds for the Foyle/Ebrington co-location scheme to be raised through rationalisation of the school administration system and by rationalising the schools estate to reduce the pool of surplus pupils places throughout Northern Ireland.

The long-awaited Foyle/Ebrington move will receive no funding until 2012 and funding for all capital projects will be limited until 2015 at the earliest.

The local university lobby wants the Department of Environment’s (DoE) proposed spending cuts to be re-evaluated to determine if the changes to the Planning Service will damage the economy in the North West.

Controversially, U4D want “the charging policy proposals for on-street car parking from DRD and the business rates policy regarding out-of-town shopping centres to be examined to ensure they do not discriminate against historic urban retail centres.”

“Increasing business rates for out-of-town shopping centres to the equivalent levels of city centre retailers could generate substantial income for the Executive,” the report adds.

The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (DETI) is also challenged to provide an explanation on how it will in future promote investment in the Londonderry area.

DETI and DSD should also continue to support the social economy whilst DARD “should make available modest financial support to assist with developing the tourism infrastructure in the North West, to improve the use of the River Foyle and to promote boating, walking and angling holidays.”

The report - due to be considered by Derry City Council’s Policy and Resources Committee meeting tomorrow - states: “There is widespread concern that when all departments’ draft Budgets are taken into consideration, the overall impact of the proposals is severely detrimental to the North West.

“This report puts forward proposals that support the objective of rebalancing the Northern Ireland economy to make it more sustainable and to rebalance the regional economy so that the North West becomes self-financing – thereby potentially contributing to the prosperity of Northern Ireland, rather than being a financial burden.

“This report recognises that departments are unlikely to give serious consideration to proposals for additional spending unless equivalent savings are identified.

“Proposals for additional spending are therefore accompanied by suggestions on how that expenditure could be financed.”