Over 1,000 new Northern Ireland jobs within DfC set to generate £35million per year
The roles will be delivered in four locations across Northern Ireland, including 595 in Belfast, 270 in Londonderry, 116 in Ballymena and 27 in Ballykelly
More than 1,000 new jobs are set to be created in the Department for Communities as part of an expansion in service delivery for the Department for Work and Pensions.
The roles in benefit delivery will be located in four existing DfC sites across Northern Ireland and are expected to bring additional inward investment of around £35m per year.
Communities minister Gordon Lyons made the jobs announcement during a visit to DfC offices by DWP minister Andrew Western.
The expansion will build on an existing agreement with DWP for the delivery of child maintenance and benefit services in Great Britain with the majority of the additional jobs permanent, full-time posts.
Gordon Lyons said: "The creation of 1,000 new jobs is a massive boost for the local economy and is testament to the quality of service being delivered by my department.
"At present, over 3,600 people within DfC are currently engaged in delivering services for DWP. This vital work is delivered out of sites in Belfast, Londonderry, Ballykelly and Ballymena.
"On a daily basis they are making an invaluable contribution supporting citizens across Britain to access welfare, pensions and child maintenance services."
Andrew Western added: "I was delighted to visit Northern Ireland for the first time as a DWP Minister to see the positive impact the DfC teams are delivering on the ground.
"Bringing 1,000 new service delivery jobs to these four areas of Northern Ireland will be invaluable to the local economy through providing more jobs for people and in delivering a key service for our customers."
Welcoming an announcement DUP MLA Gary Middleton, said, “This is a hugely welcome announcement that will not just see 1,000 new jobs but they are spread across Northern Ireland with 40% of them being based outside Belfast.
It is a demonstration of the Minister’s commitment to regional balance and to the wider North West region. The jobs announced in Londonderry are in addition to those already located at Lisahally where services for DWP are being delivered. These bring significant benefits to the local economy with salaries of around £150million per year coming in to Northern Ireland as a whole.”