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Stormont ministers give details on £39m growth fund

John CampbellEconomics and business editor, BBC News NI
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The Local Growth Fund consists of almost £12m in day-to-day spending and £27.4m for infrastructure

Stormont's ministers have given details of how a controversial £39m economic growth fund will be spent.

The Local Growth Fund (LGF) is a UK government scheme which replaces money which previously came to Northern Ireland from the EU.

The government has changed the focus of the fund away from the day-to-day operations of voluntary groups and towards infrastructure spending.

The Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action (Nicva) says that is leading to significant redundancies across the sector.

'Tangible benefits'

The LGF consists of almost £12m in day-to-day spending and £27.4m for infrastructure of capital projects.

That £27.4m is being spent via Stormont departments, with the biggest allocation of £13m going to the Department for the Economy.

Economy Minister Caoimhe Archibald said it would be used for projects that target innovation, business start-ups and social enterprises.

That includes £7.1m for Invest NI to help businesses with innovation projects and to undertake early-stage design work for its Mandeville industrial estate in Craigavon.

Other allocations include:

  • £7m to the Department for Communities for projects including town centre renewal and regenerating vacant properties
  • £3.8m to the Department of Agriculture to support innovation and sustainability in agriculture
  • £3.2m to the Department for Infrastructure for investment in transport and connectivity improvements

Finance Minister John O'Dowd said the money would deliver "tangible benefits" but that "the entire handling by the British government on this fund put us in a position which was far from ideal".

He said he would continue to argue that in future "priorities should be determined by locally elected ministers, not Westminster".

East Londonderry assembly member Claire Sugden said while the capital investment was welcome, it did not replace the funding community organisations have lost.

"Resource funding pays the staff who support vulnerable people, run employability programmes, tackle isolation and help families through difficult circumstances," she said.

"Without it, services may be reduced, experienced staff could be lost and people will have fewer places to turn for help."