uuptoday.org

Rev Dr Robert Coulter, the Ulster Unionist Party Assembly member for North Antrim and UUP Stormont Commissioner, has called on the Regional Development Minister to implement traffic measures which will boost tourism in the Glens villages of Waterfoot, Cushendall and Cushendun.

Assemblyman Dr Coulter added: “It is important we have the opportunity to air these important points in the presence of the Regional Development Minister and he needs to visit the area to see the situation for himself.
“There are three areas that should be considered. First, there is tourism. As representatives for North Antrim, we are doing our level best to encourage tourists to visit that beautiful area. It is almost impossible, especially during the summer, for traffic to get through some of these villages.

“Considering the coaches that are now being used, and the number of people who arrive to see the beauty of that lovely route along the coast, it is important to take this issue seriously and to ensure that there is a free flow of traffic through those villages during the summer.

“It is not simply a question of traffic management; it is important to provide areas in which people can park their cars. If we are to increase tourism, this issue must be taken seriously, progressed and examined in its entirety to ensure that those who are breaking the traffic laws are brought to book.

“Secondly, the economics of the area must be considered. People who drive along that route to see the beauty of the road may wish to stop for a meal at one of the hotels. However, because of the traffic problems and congestion, they may turn off to the left to find somewhere else where they can enjoy their meal without worrying about the traffic.

“In connection with the economic issue, people who own shops and businesses, and especially the farming community — who come to the area for the market and to exchange their goods — must also be considered. How on earth are those people supposed to conduct their business if illegal parking on both sides of the road is allowed to continue?

“Thirdly, this problem should not be considered only from the point of view of the three villages to which reference has been made. The issue needs to be addressed with reference to the road from Belfast right through to Ballycastle. When that is taken into account, it will be seen in the context of something far greater.

“I ask the Minister for Regional Development to take on board the fact that regulations have been put in place, but that no follow-up action has been taken, which has led to the continuation of old bad habits.

“I am sure that if the issue is taken seriously, those habits will eventually be broken, because when people are hit in their pockets, they are hit in the most tender part,” said Assemblyman Dr Coulter.

Mr Robin Swann, the Ulster Unionist Party’s Spokesman on Social Economy, Energy and Consumer Affairs, has called on the Stormont Assembly to grant the same rights to Northern Ireland ’s credit unions as enjoyed in the rest of the United Kingdom .

Mr Swann, who is also a senior member of the North Antrim UUP management committee, has joined the call made by the Consumer Council to allow credit unions in Northern Ireland the same UK rights.

He said: “Current legislation prohibits parents in Northern Ireland opening a ‘Child Trust Fund’ in their local credit union.

“The Child Trust Fund is a Government supported fund which provides £250 minimum to all eligible children born on or after 1 September 2002; £500 to children in families with income of/below £14,155 and a further £250 or £500 for children upon reaching seven years old.

“ Northern Ireland has currently the lowest take-up rate of the ‘Child Trust Fund’ option at only 63.3% of those eligible, so this is money which is not being accessed by everyone who is eligible.

“I want to see parents being allowed to invest this money in an institution which they are familiar with, and I trust this could increase the uptake, currently more than 350,000 people in Northern Ireland who are members of a credit union.

“I also support the call to allow the option to have benefit payments made direct into credit union account.

“And I would applaud the work undertaken by the volunteers and staff who operate credit unions across the Province.

“Having been a voluntary teller myself in the past, the dedication of these individuals to our communities should not go unrecognised and deserves all the support we can give,” said Mr Swann.

Fermanagh and South Tyrone MLA Tom Elliott has said that the Draft budget allocation to the Department of Agriculture is going to make 2008 a very hard year for the industry.

The deputy-chair of the agricultural committee said: “Following discussions concerning the amount of money needed to finance the Department of Agriculture, a bid was tabled with the Department of Finance and Personnel for approximately 32 million pounds for resource funding in the coming year. What the department have been allocated is 14.6 million pounds, 17.3 million pounds or almost 60% less than bid for. This fact means that 2008 is not looking great for the agricultural industry and that we have to work extra hard to try and promote our sector because of the lack of funding.”

Figures released showing the bids by the Department of Agriculture to the Department of Finance and Personnel for the next 3 years note that while 2008 is set to be a lean year in terms of funding for the sector, the following years in 2009 and 2010 the situation should improve. Draft proposals indicate that in 2009 the proposed amount given to the industry for resource funding will increase to 25 million pounds and in 2010 rise once again to 37.7 million pounds. However, while Mr Elliott looks forward to these increases he is keeping his mind firmly concentrated on the current situation.

The Ulster Unionist MLA went on to state: “I am happy to see that there will be increases in money made available in the coming years. However, away from the dreams for 2009 and 2010 there is very serious matter arriving over the coming months. The money that has been allocated for 2008 is not even enough to cover the ‘Inescapable Bids’, things that are vital to the maintenance of the sector, and so there will definitely be losses in parts of the industry and a number of families will suffer because of this.

“The amount needed for the ‘Inescapable Bids’ was just over 18 million pounds. The 14.6 million pounds made available comes nowhere close to meeting that. As this is a draft budget I would encourage this Minister for Finance and Personnel, Peter Robinson, to rethink the amount stipulated for the Department of Agriculture this coming year. Agriculture remains one of the largest areas of employment in Northern Ireland and so for it not even to have enough money allocated to maintain a basic standard of upkeep is a recipe for disaster.”

Ulster Unionist MEP Jim Nicholson has said he hopes that the First and Deputy First Minister’s trip this week to the USA is more successful than the duos dealings so far with Europe or with the Prime Minister over securing a financial package for Northern Ireland.

Speaking from Brussels Mr Nicholson said,

“The First and Deputy First Minister’s visit to the US is to be welcomed but my only hope is that more is achieved on this visit than been has achieved so far in their dealings with the Prime Minister on a financial package or with Europe in their efforts to deliver improved European financial support. These two areas still require the First and Deputy First Minister’s attention because as of yet they remain unresolved.

“Northern Ireland will seriously lose out on any extra European funding because the First and Deputy First Minister’s case has not been made forcefully enough by them in Brussels. They still haven’t managed to visit Brussels despite being in office for over 6 months. The financial package promised by the DUP and Sinn Fein has yet to materialise, despite strong assurances that it would. It should not be brushed under the carpet and forgotten about.”

Ulster Unionist Finance spokesman and East Antrim MLA Roy Beggs today called on the DUP to acknowledge that they have not delivered a Billion £ peace dividend for Northern Ireland nor have they secured a meaningful fiscal package following the Prime Minister’s announcement on Monday night that he will not cut the corporation tax to 12.5% in Northern Ireland to stimulate growth in the economy. In a statement Mr Beggs said,

“First the people of Northern Ireland were promised a £1Billion package from Ian Paisley as a pre-condition to devolution. When this was not delivered the DUP smoke and mirrors department shifted to securing a fiscal package with a reduction in corporation tax as a central plank.

The Prime Minister’s announcement yesterday that he will not cut Corporation Tax to 12.5% has nailed yet another false promise from the DUP.

I am calling on the DUP to acknowledge that not only have they failed to deliver on both a financial package and a decent fiscal package, but the problems being faced by all departments in the draft budget have been exacerbated and aggravated by this building up of false expectation.”

Rev Dr Robert Coulter, the Ulster Unionist Party Assembly member for North Antrim and UUP Stormont Commissioner, has revealed that in the past five years Ballymena and Ballymoney had contributed almost £100 million to the Province’s Regional Rates.

And Dr Coulter, who is UUP Health Spokesman, posed the question – what has the constituency gained locally from this money?

The UUP MLA added: “The local domestic and business rate is retained by the councils, but the regional rate goes to Stormont to underwrite the services of the Northern Ireland Departments.

“In the past five years, Ballymena and Ballmoney Council areas have contributed £98.35 million – almost £100 million – to the regional rates. That is £100 million which is going out of this area and I ask another question – just how much are we getting back?

“I am increasingly of the opinion that a proportion of these regional rates should be seen to be spent locally.

“I do not believe that Ballymena and Ballymoney have had £100 million worth of reinvestment from the Ministers of the Northern Ireland Executive and their predecessors, the Direct Rule Ministers. I would take a lot of persuading that this was the case.

“The only way for this to be sorted out would be for an audit to be carried out of the benefits our two council districts have had from central expenditure.

“No doubt we will hear a great deal about travel to work areas and other clap-trap like that. The people I represent want to know more about where their regional rates are being spent and just what the Executive in Stormont is doing with the money which benefits local people here in North Antrim.

“We could not hold the Direct Rule Ministers to account, but we can and will hold the Executive Ministers to account,” said Assemblyman Dr Coulter.

Ulster Unionist Party Finance spokesman and MLA for East Antrim, Roy Beggs Jnr has criticised the proposed allocation of resources in the draft budget during today’s budget debate at the Assembly. Referring to the non realisation of a financial package which had been previously flagged up as a deal breaker for the DUP prior to the re establishment of an Executive in May, Mr Beggs said:

“Sadly we will be faced with difficult choices as we approach the budget bill.

The choices would have been easier if the First Minister’s party had gained the £1b peace dividend that they promised prior to devolution. However after made the promise of new money prior to the election, they quickly forgot about it and went on to talk up the review of taxation in NI.

Having dashed hopes of a major economic package with slight of hand the media focus was switched to “The Varney Review” and the promise of lower corporation tax to kick start our economy.

I cannot help but notice the lack of mention of lower corporation tax from the Finance minister of recent months and can only assume that good news is not expected”

The East Antrim MLA went on to question the percentage increase in the departmental budget of Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness’s joint office.

“Why is the Finance minister proposing to give a much greater increase to the budget of the DUP-Sinn Fein Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister than that given to the Department of Health It is staggering to think that the DUP-Sinn Fein Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister is receiving greater priority than our National Health Service. That this is occurring at a time when health expenditure in the rest of the UK is rising at a significantly greater level will only increase the unacceptable disparity between health care in Northern Ireland and elsewhere in the UK.

It is puzzling that the Draft Programme for Government says that it is giving priority to personal health and well-being and goes on to recognise that a strong economy requires a healthy population.

If this is so, why has OFMDFM received a much greater budget increase than our National Health Service? If the First Minister and Deputy First Minister, and the Finance Minister, had a genuine commitment to our National Health Service it is obvious that they would not have made the choice to pass by the NHS and increase the budget of their favoured department OFMDFM. A budget that gives priority to OFMDFM over the National Health Service is not a budget that puts the needs of Northern Ireland first.”

Ulster Unionist Party Leader Sir Reg Empey, in a no-nonsense statement, today re-iterated the status of both the Draft Budget and Draft Programme for Government, accused the principal parties of exhibiting signs of control freakery and said that the Coalition system at Stormont was not like any other comparable coalition and had a two party cabal that needed to be addressed.

In a statement today, Sir Reg said,

“We are currently engaged in a process where we are discussing drafts - I repeat drafts - of the programme for government and budget. It is an opportunity for MLAs and the general public to openly debate and offer alternative viewpoints. The threats from certain Ministers to attempt to stifle debate by threatening the collapse of the government if these matters are not agreed to their liking reeks of throwing all the toys out of the pram and is a dagger to the heart of the democratic process. MLAs and parties must have the right to discuss and debate these draft proposals.

We are now beginning to see signs of control freakery being exhibited. The UUP regrets Mr Robinson’s thinly veiled threats in his closing remarks yesterday. Mr Robinson implies that there is a four Party coalition at Stormont. The reality is much different. A coalition, by definition, is where the parties of government come together to agree an agenda for implementation. At no time since the 8th May have the leaders of the parties represented in the Executive met to discuss, let alone agree an agenda. The confidentiality requirement means Ministers are inhibited from sharing fully with their parties emerging proposals on policy.

Ulster Unionist Party Ministers have approached their portfolios in a genuine attempt to deliver the best possible service to the people of Northern Ireland and we believe strongly that the only way a coalition can work is by consensus between the parties. This is not the way things are going. On the one hand DUP and Sinn Fein Ministers want to be fireproofed and blameless on sensitive and contentious issues such as health cuts and water charges by insisting on unanimity, while on the other they are getting into a two party cabal and deciding what they want and how to do it. This is a fundamental inconsistency that needs to be addressed. The UUP are currently exploring options of how to address it.”

Speaking today following a One Small Step event in Parliament Buildings, Deputy Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party in the Northern Ireland Assembly Danny Kennedy MLA has voiced his support for the One Small Step campaign. The event was also attended by Ulster Unionist councillors Alex Baird, James McKerrow and Eddie Rea and MLAs Robert Coulter, John McCallister and Alan McFarland.

Mr. Kennedy said, “the vision of the One Small Step campaign of a society ‘where there is equity, respect for diversity and a recognition of our interdependence’ is a blueprint of the values that will build a Northern Ireland for all of us. If Northern Ireland is to have a shared future a respectful relationship between our various political, cultural and religious traditions is needed. Now that the political framework created by the Agreement has been accepted by all parties, it is crucial that a culture of respect is promoted by those in positions of political responsibility. Our children and grandchildren deserve better than a society marked by intolerance or indifference.

“The One Small Step campaign is a powerful reminder, however, that building a shared future is not the sole responsibility of politicians and government – it is a responsibility we all share. Individuals, families, local communities, schools, faith groups, professional organizations can all make important contributions to promoting a culture of respect. We can all take steps towards building a Northern Ireland that is at peace with itself.

“In my comments at the One Small Step event, I referred to the need for ‘a renewed focus on the development of a shared society’. The political progress of the past decade offers us the opportunity to build a shared Northern Ireland. This is now the challenge lying before all of us”.

Ulster Unionist Chief Whip David McNarry MLA today called on the Government to compensate people who have been forced to incur bank charges through changing bank accounts as a result of the massive data protection failure by HM Revenue and Customs.

“If people have to incur bank or other charges as a result of having to change bank details because their personal details have been compromised because of this massive mistake by Government then the Government, which had admitted full responsibility, should have to pay for any costs incurred.”

“Apologies are not enough in such a massive failure to protect the public, leaving 25 million people exposed to potential fraud. People could at least expect any charges they incur making changes to personal data to be paid for. The Inland Revenue would be quick enough to demand payments from the public if they made a mistake.”

“The mechanism to pay already exists in child benefit payments. If the Government even issued a standard payment and this was worked out with the banks, they could pay it across the board to child benefit recipients who have had their personal information compromised by sloppy government procedures.”