Public will be unimpressed with ‘flimsy’ Stormont programme for government - TUV's Gaston
Stormont’s plans for governing Northern Ireland for the next three years has “no commitment to anything of substance” to make a difference to people’s lives, according to North Antrim MLA Timothy Gaston.
The sole TUV member of the Assembly was responding to the much-heralded Programme for Government (PfG) which was finally unveiled on Monday by the First Minister and deputy First Minister.
The four party manifesto for running Stormont departments sets out the Executive’s priorities for the remainder of this term, but many of the pledges are not costed and the parties admit that there is not enough funding available to achieve all their aims.
The TUV MLA told the News Letter: “Having been built up as some great milestone in the life of this Executive, the public will be distinctly unimpressed by this flimsy document. It was particularly ironic that it was published on a day when the Assembly debated the pressures facing the PSNI. The PfG merely observes that policing numbers are at an all-time low.
“While there is a commitment to redevelop Casement Park, Craigavon House – an important part of Northern Ireland’s history – doesn’t merit a mention, four years after there was a commitment to its restoration in the New Decade, New Approach Agreement.
“There is no commitment to anything of substance which would actually make a difference to the day to day lives of ordinary people. The public will be distinctly underwhelmed by this document.”
New Barnett cash from the government will help with some of the priorities – but the four main parties are arguing the way NI is funded needs to fundamentally change if public services are to be sustained and improved.
Changes backed by Sinn Fein and the DUP would mean an even larger amount of public spending per head of population here than in England, as there are additional costs in providing public services in such a small part of the UK.
Stormont minsters will be making their demand to the Treasury again on Thursday – but with the national government saying there is a £20m “black hole” in its finances, a permanent increase in the money spent in NI may not be at top of its agenda.