Health and education benefit from funding relocation

Finance Minister Ian Pearson has announced plans to relocate some £273 million for public services in Northern Ireland.

The majority of the money will see major improvements in the province's health and education sectors.

Among the allocations, £39 million will go to health, £22 million to education, £32 million to the Department of Regional Development, and £37 million to the Department of Social Development.

Making the announcement today, the Minister said: “Whilst the amounts reallocated today are significant, I must highlight that they represent good housekeeping, in the form of the redeployment of our own resources to areas of need, as opposed to additional funding for Northern Ireland.

“In particular, £60 million arises from anticipated savings later in this financial year. Allocating this money now will maximise the lead time available to departments to ensure full and proper use is made of the allocations this year, and represents part of our overall strategy to reduce the level of slippage in departmental programmes.”

Up to £8.5 million of funding will go to the health service in order to further address waiting lists which have recently reduced for the first time in over three years. A further £3 million will allow measures to be put in place to deal with possible additional pressures over the winter period.

In education, £10 million will go to schools’ delegated budgets enabling a typical primary school to receive £4,000 and a typical post-primary school £15,500.

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