NI to get extra £920m after Spending Review

Figures show that total departmental spending in NI will fall in 2021/22

Northern Ireland will get an extra £920m for public services next year as a result of the Spending Review, Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced.

The Treasury said £540m of that is in relation to pandemic spending and £380m is for core departmental spending.

However, the Department of Finance says total departmental spending will grow by only £40m from 2020/21 to 2021/22.

That is because Stormont's budget has been boosted in recent years by one-off payments.

They related to the deal which restored devolution and the DUP's deal with the Conservatives in 2017.

Stormont Finance Minister Conor Murphy described the Spending Review as a "standstill budget" for public services at a time when the executive faced pressures from both Covid-19 and Brexit.

There was "nothing by way of capital" in the announcement which would allow ministers "to invest in economic recovery", he continued.

Conor Murphy said Stormont had been left in a poor position in terms of public sector pay awards

Mr Murphy said there were also "serious implications" for public sector pay awards.

Apart from NHS workers and the low-paid, salaries will be frozen for much of the public sector in England as a result of the review.

"It is wrong to try and divide public sector workers - all public sector workers provide a huge service, this pandemic showed that they are vital in terms of functions," the finance minister explained.

"To put a divide between one group and another is not right."

The finance minister said he would discuss the Spending Review with other executive ministers on Thursday.

'Series of crises'

DUP Treasury Spokesperson Sammy Wilson said it was important that departments, public bodies, businesses and the public receive "certainty about the impact of spending plans".

Speaking in the House of Commons on Wednesday, Mr Sunak said the "economic emergency" caused by Covid-19 has only just begun.

He said the UK economy is expected to shrink by 11.3% this year and not return to its pre-crisis size until the end of 2022 and government borrowing will rise to its highest outside of wartime to deal with the economic impact.

SDLP leader Colum Eastwood described the Spending Review announcement as "bleak".

The Foyle MP said: "There is very little in this spending review that will provide comfort to people or businesses in Northern Ireland preparing for the worst kind of Brexit settlement in a few weeks.

"Whether it's car dealers unsure of the scale of the tax increase they'll be compelled to pay or supply chain operators still waiting on clarification on transport and logistics rules, we are facing a series of crises that need to be resolved."