POLITICAL PARTIES in Stormont welcomed publication of Sammy Wilson’s draft budget as evidence of positive co-operation among the five-party Executive.
However, both the Ulster Unionists and the SDLP, which both abstained on a vote in the Executive on the budget proposals, said they would use the consultation period to work to improve the draft.
Business organisations also welcomed the budget paper while the trade unions were openly hostile.
SDLP leader Margaret Ritchie said: “We have been calling for that draft budget not for one year but for the next four years because it brings not just political stability but stability to the local economy and people who have suffered immeasurable financial burdens over the last number of months.”
She praised the proposals to boost Executive revenues in the face of the estimated £4 billion cuts over the next four years, but added: “There are areas that are not included such as pupil premium, tuition fees, the whole area to deal with housing provision.”
The Ulster Unionists also said it was adopting a constructively critical approach and would seek amendments to the proposals.
Spokesman David McNarry, a Strangford Assembly member, criticised the late publication of the draft which allowed his party and the SDLP only a few hours to digest it.
“We will be engaging with various sectors and stakeholders to examine the impact of the budget on the wider community,” he said.
“This, however, is not just a budget paper solely based on the distribution of existing resources – this is a comprehensive paper that includes significant strategic policy proposals.
“The detail behind these proposals needs to be published and scrutinised by Assembly committees.”
Alliance spokesman Stephen Farry said his party recognised the proposals contained “a lot of pain for a lot of people” and added: “It is also important that we stress this is more than an ideas paper coming out from the Executive in terms of a paper for consultation. This does have the endorsement of the Executive as, in essence, the road map for the next four years.”
Two of the largest public sector unions were vociferous in their opposition to the plans detailed in Mr Wilson’s paper.
Bumper Graham of the Northern Ireland Public Service Alliance warned: “The people of Northern Ireland don’t want the Executive delivering the Cameron, Clegg, Osborne Christmas present of cuts, attacks and higher taxes.
“What is needed is a robust campaign of joint opposition to these cuts and not Sammy Wilson acting as a combination of Mr Bumble and Ebenezer Scrooge on behalf of the Westminster government.”
He warned: “This draft budget will do untold damage to every community with job losses in the tens of thousands and severe reductions in both the availability and quality of essential public services.”
Patricia McKeown of Unison agreed, and called on Mr Wilson to recognise that “the people who are most in need in this community, the people who have just had welfare cuts and the vulnerable people need the personal social services and social care element of that budget just to keep going”.
Draft budget main points:
- Pay freeze for civil servants earning more than £21,000;
- No water charges for next four years;
- Disposal of Northern Executive assets to yield £540 million;
- Plastic bag levy of 15p to raise £4 million annually;
- £20 million "hardship" fund to help people hit by welfare cuts;
- Contribution from Belfast port of between £35-125 million;
- Review of need for so many quangos;
- Package to assist Presbyterian Mutual Society savers.