Derry-Strabane City Deal 'could create 6,000 jobs'

The deal was signed off by Secretary of State Hilary Benn at the Guildhall five days after it emerged that his government was threatening to put it on hold

A multi-million pound programme aimed at stimulating the economy in Northern Ireland's north west could create 6,000 jobs, officials said as it was officially signed off by Secretary of State Hilary Benn.

The Derry and Strabane city deal, one of four in Northern Ireland, was reinstated days after it emerged on Friday that the UK government had paused funding ahead of a spending review.

The £300m package involves plans to establish a new museum in Londonderry and open a innovation and data analytics centre as well as redeveloping Strabane town centre.

Benn said it would transform the region, strengthening its digital capabilities and support sustainable economic growth.

The deal was signed at Londonderry's Guildhall on Wednesday

Speaking at Derry’s Guildhall, Benn said: “This deal is going to support many initiatives and create many new opportunities, it is an honour to be signing it on behalf of the UK government."

He paid tribute to the “relentless hard work and dedication” that had brought the deal to fruition.

Derry City and Strabane District Council said the deal signed on Wednesday could create around 6,000 jobs.

The total investment in the Derry and Strabane city deal will be about £300m

City deals are regeneration funding packages worth more than £1.5bn, with about £600m coming from central government.

There are four deals in Northern Ireland: Belfast city region, Derry City and Strabane, Mid South West region and Causeway Coast and Glens.

There continues to be uncertainty around the funding of the Mid South West and Causeway Coast deals.

The NI secretary said they were both at a much less advanced stage than the Belfast and Derry deals, and would be looked at as part of the government's spending review.

"Those two deals are in the spending review, we will will find out more when the chancellor makes her budget statement at the end of October," Benn said.

He added that as Northern Ireland secretary he would be arguing the case for both.

He said the Derry and Strabane deal was "a huge opportunity" for the region.

First Minister Michelle O'Neill told an audience in the Guildhall that the deal was about creating hope and addressing imbalance

Northern Ireland's first and deputy first ministers said the sign-off on the deal for Derry and Strabane was a game changing day for the north west.

First Minister Michelle O'Neill said it was a “fantastic milestone, a fantastic opportunity”.

“We grab it with both hands. We will all redouble our efforts to ensure it delivers the benefits that we all want to achieve,” she said.

Deputy First Minster Emma Little-Pengelly added: “Today is all about this city and region looking forward, looking forward to what I believe is an incredibly bright and optimistic future.

“Today is that catalyst that will bring forth a prosperous future for the region."

She called the confusion over the weekend around the pausing of funding for the deals “disappointing”.

What will the Derry and Strabane growth deal pay for?

Projects planned as part of the £300m budget include:

• Redevelopment of Strabane town centre

• A centre for innovation in data analytics, advanced manufacturing and robotics

• A digital programme to tackle connectivity issues across the region

• Establishment of a DNA (Derry North Atlantic) maritime museum in Derry's Ebrington site

• Regeneration projects for Derry's riverfront, Strand Road and Walled City areas

• The establishment of a School of Medicine and personalised medicine innovation centre at a new site opposite the city's council buildings

Strabane town centre is also set for a regeneration scheme

Stormont's Finance Minister Caoimhe Archibald said the UK government money would fund “cutting edge projects” that would allow the region to compete globally.

The Stormont executive’s contribution, she added, would fund infrastructure, tourism and regeneration projects.

Ms Archibald called the signing a “momentous milestone” and said it was an “excellent start” to redressing regional imbalance in the north west; something that would act as a catalyst “for further opportunities and investments”.

Foyle MP, outgoing Social Democratic and Labour Party leader Colum Eastwood, said the deal turned the page “on a story of underinvestment in our city that has lasted for decades”.

“The city deal won’t transform things overnight but it can, and it must, be a jump start for investment in people, skills, good jobs and better opportunities," he said.

Mayor of Derry and Strabane Lilian Seenoi-Barr said the city deal “provides us with an opportunity to be vibrant and exciting, and to provide us with so much potential for growth and prosperity”.

Chairman of Derry chamber of commerce Greg McCann said the deal would be "truly transformative for Derry and the north west”.

The vice-chancellor of Ulster University (UU) Prof Paul Bartholomew said the funding meant it could now expand its "campus footprint”.

Around £39m of the money will go to UU’s new cognitive analytics and digital robotics innovation centre, with a further £61m going towards its school of medicine and personalised medicine centre.

Leaders letters

On Sunday, two days after the initial announcement that spending was on pause, the finance minister said regeneration funding packages in Derry and Belfast were expected to go ahead - leaving Mid South West and Causeway Coast and Glens under threat.

It emerged on Tuesday that leaders from the five main Stormont parties have written to the chief secretary of the Treasury and the secretary of state asking them to rethink what they said was the “appalling” decision to pause those deals.