Minister lays out response to report
THE merger of Employment and Enterprise functions into an all embracing Department of the Economy is just one of the measures being considered in the wake of the Barnett Report, Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster has said.
Along with giving greater autonomy to jobs agency Invest Northern Ireland, Mrs Foster published her thoughts on the Independent Review of Economic Policy, (IREP) report released in a hail of publicity late last year.
Mrs Foster's action plan in response to the review also includes initiatives to: cut bureaucracy within Invest NI and DETI; ensure Invest NI offers support to a broader client base; and provide more government backing for research and development projects.
The existing Economic Development Forum, a government advisory body made up of business, trade union, academic and community and voluntary sector representatives, is being replaced with a new smaller unit.
Mrs Foster said the DETI/DEL departmental merger would require political agreement among her executive colleagues.
Acknowledging that such approval may take time, she said she was recommending that a ministerial sub-committee is set up in the interim to examine economic issues.
"It is imperative that we work to reduce the number of government departments in Northern Ireland and the report makes a strong case for bringing together the responsibilities of DETI and DEL," she told fellow MLAs.
"I have asked Executive colleagues to consider the creation of a new Department of the Economy, as part of the planned review of strand one institutions.
"I recognise, as did the Review Panel, that getting agreement and implementing new structures will take some time, which is why I am advocating the interim steps suggested by the panel to improve the structures that are currently in place.
"Central to this is the establishment of an Executive sub-committee to prioritise cross-departmental action on the economy."
The IREP was headed up by University of Ulster academic Professor Richard Barnett.
Mrs Foster said she was setting up a steering group to implement the recommendations that she has decided to take forward.
"I am determined to drive forward this action plan with a view to promoting economic development for Northern Ireland," she added.
Invest NI chairman Stephen Kingon welcomed the minister's statement as did Prof Barnett and several of the business organisations within the Province.
"In developing a new economic strategy, it will be vital that policy is aligned with outputs which most effectively support economic development," said Mr Kingon.
Terence Brannigan, Chairman of the CBI in Northern Ireland said the Minister appealed for speed.
"Our economy remains fragile and, if we are to consolidate and hasten this recovery we must be more agile, significantly reducing the lag between discussions, decisions and actions."
Joanne Stuart, Chairman of the Institute of Directors, similarly, said: "We do not have the comfort of time – recovery is tentative and building a more prosperous, private-sector led economy needs to start now."
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Tuesday 14 February 2012
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