SINN FÉIN has called for consensus politics in Northern Ireland and proposed a series of measures including a significant reduction in Assembly members’ salaries to try to deal with the economic problems facing the North.
In a separate development, DUP Minister for Finance Sammy Wilson warned ahead of next week’s spending review by British chancellor George Osborne that politicians, trade unions and other interest groups who grandstand on a “fight the cuts” platform are deluding themselves.
Launching the party’s There is a Better Way document at Stormont yesterday, Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams urged a consensus approach to addressing the demand for a £2 billion reduction in the North’s budget over the next four years.
“Sinn Féin wants to build a consensus to protect jobs, public services and the most vulnerable from the planned Tory cuts,” he said.
It was wrong to state that the cuts were inevitable, said Mr Adams. “Sinn Féin believes that the Tory approach of trying to cut a way out of the recession is deeply flawed and must be opposed. There is an alternative,” he said.
The document sets out proposals including a 15 per cent reduction in the annual £43,000 salaries of Assembly members.
Mr Adams said the proposals would yield £1.9 billion in combined savings and new revenue with a cut in MLA salaries contributing £7.5 million over four years.
The proposals include: a phone mast tax which the party said would generate £160 million over four years; the four main Northern Ireland banks to create a £400 million bond to assist economic development; allowing the North’s Housing Executive the power to borrow £250 million to fund social housing; reforming local government to save £400 million over 20 years; a levy on plastic bags, abolishing “unnecessary” quangos and a pay freeze for higher-paid public sector workers.
Mr Adams said there should be an alliance between parties, trade unions, communities and business to oppose the cuts Mr Osborne is to announce next Wednesday.
“Sinn Féin’s proposals are about tackling waste, saving money, raising revenue and investing this to create jobs, build infrastructure and protect public services. They will bring in almost £1.9 billion in combined savings and new revenue,” he said.
DUP First Minister Peter Robinson said some of the proposals were economically “off the wall” but that there were other elements worthy of consideration.
SDLP leader Margaret Ritchie said the proposals were “heavy on slogans but light on substance”.
Alliance MLA Stephen Farry welcomed the Sinn Féin document but said he was bemused as to why Sinn Féin was leading on “small, populist issues rather than examining big-ticket, high-cost areas”.
Mr Wilson meanwhile told an audience from the voluntary and community sector of his determination to ensure that “difficult yet necessary decisions” on the budget are taken early.
“Delay leads only to poor decisions and worse outcomes for the most vulnerable. Those who grandstand on a ‘fight the cuts’ agenda are not only deluding themselves but are committing a far worse crime in that they are playing politics with vulnerable people’s lives,” he said.