THE LEADERS of the Stormont Executive are seeking fresh assurances from the Irish and British governments that they will stand by funding commitments to Northern Ireland.
First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness said what they called the “fledgling institutions” at Stormont required Dublin to stick with commitments to underpin significant infrastructure programmes, especially road building. They also said Downing Street had to fund the planned devolution of policing and justice, estimated to cost more than £700 million (€780 million).
Mr Robinson said he and Mr McGuinness “did a deal to get devolution up and running”.
He said the British government had given a financial commitment and the devolved Executive should be able to count on that allocation being delivered. “On that basis we should be able to hold on to the allocations that we need,” Mr Robinson said. “There is no sense in Northern Ireland’s Assembly having responsibility for policing and justice and not having the resources to do the job.”
The Irish Government has already approved a series of road improvement schemes which form part of a general upgrading of provision throughout Ireland as a whole.
“What we have to do is to continue to make the argument that all-Ireland infrastructure is of vital importance,” Mr McGuinness said.
The First Minister and Deputy First Minister are also to convene a new Cross-Sectoral Advisory Forum comprising the main social partners and representatives from NGOs, voluntary and community sectors.
The forum will be convened in late April and will help Ministers formulate policy, especially in relation to the economy “throughout the duration of this crisis” and possibly longer, Mr Robinson said.
The two men, who are finalising a 10-day visit to the US, culminating in a meeting with President Barack Obama on St Patrick’s Day, believe the economy will dominate their work in the future.
Speaking to The Irish Times Mr Robinson said Northern Ireland’s ability to withstand the severe economic downturn was “better than surrounding economies”.
