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Commenting on the problems affecting the Northern Ireland Events Company, Ulster Unionist Culture, Arts and Leisure spokesman and Strangford MLA David McNarry said in a statement,

“The reasons for such a substantial deficit in the events company must be placed in the public domain as a matter of urgency. The Executive must also demonstrate its duty of responsibility to ensure that the repercussions arising from the company’s insolvent position does not result in local supply creditors or those awaiting grant payments losing out.

This is a matter of honour and accordingly I call on the Executive to give the DCAL Minister the authority to clear the air on payments to such creditors and to such bodies awaiting grants.”

Ulster Unionist Deputy Leader Danny Kennedy said he was disappointed at the DUPs reaction to a UUP motion aimed at strengthening and reinforcing ties between Edinburgh, Cardiff, London and Belfast.

In a statement Mr Kennedy said,

“It is disappointing, to say the least, that the DUP has responded negatively to my Party’s motion on a Royal Commission to strengthen the Union. Since 1998, the Constitution of the United Kingdom has experienced quite unprecedented reform through the creation of devolved institutions in Belfast, Cardiff and Edinburgh. Nearly a decade on, it is surely reasonable to ask for a Royal Commission to review how the devolved administrations are working with Westminster as the sovereign Parliament.

“While there are nationalist minorities in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, each of these regions have unionist majorities – with little evidence that this is likely to change. I am, therefore, at a loss to know why Sammy Wilson has talked up the chances of nationalism winning a referendum in Northern Ireland when such a prospect belongs to the realm of political fantasy. I trust that, despite the somewhat ill-tempered nature of its initial response, the DUP is not seriously suggesting that it will vote against a motion aimed at strengthening the relationship between Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh and London.

“The purpose of a Royal Commission on the Union is to ensure that devolution does what was promised – strengthen the bonds of co-operation and common purpose between the regions of the United Kingdom. While nationalists throughout the Kingdom obviously have a different aspiration, the Belfast Agreement declares that the wish of the people of Northern Ireland ‘freely exercised and legitimate, is to maintain the Union’. Our motion seeks to ensure that the devolved arrangements throughout the United Kingdom and their relationship with the Westminster Parliament reflect that democratic choice”.

Danny Kennedy MLA, Deputy Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party, wants an investigation into top civil servant and public sector pay levels, pay rises and bonuses in Northern Ireland. His call comes after a report from the Taxpayer’s Alliance in the UK revealed that the highest earners in the public sector have seen their pay rise by six times the rate of inflation and more than three times the national average.

“The top 300 bosses in the state sector in the UK saw their salaries increase by 12.8% last year, boosting their pay to an average £237,564. Seventeen earned more than £500,000 per year. This is alarming given the fact that their job security is considerably in excess of high paid private sector bosses. I want to find out what the real situation is here in Northern Ireland for public sector pay.”

“With the failure of Finance Minister Peter Robinson to negotiate a financial package for Northern Ireland, we cannot afford to underwrite inflated public sector boss pay raises and bonuses. We need to get value for money and I am not sure we are getting it. The UK figures certainly alarmed me.”

“There will have to be clarity about the performance of public sector ‘fat-cat’ bosses who earn so highly. There are 10 top civil servants of this UK fat cat rich list complied by the Taxpayer’s Alliance. So we need to find out exactly how well they are performing. There needs to be specific measures of performance set against these payments. In many parts of the public sector things are not improving and people are asking where the money is going?”

Ulster Unionist Member of the European Parliament Jim Nicholson MEP said today that over the years the PEACE Programme in Northern Ireland has made a significant contribution to moving Northern Ireland forward.

Mr Nicholson was speaking after a public hearing, in the European Parliament’s Regional Affairs Committee on the PEACE Programme, to assess the work it has carried out since its inception and prospects for the future.

Last week the SEUPB made the first call for applications under the new PEACE III and INTERREG IVA Programmes for 2007 – 2013.

Speaking after the hearing Mr Nicholson said,

“I think it is important to recognise the contribution the PEACE Programme has made in moving Northern Ireland forward. It is easy to find faults with or criticise many of the projects but the truth of the matter is that because of the PEACE Programmes, thousands have had an opportunity to become involved in and be part of a process of reconciliation in the Province.

“It is very unfortunate that Barbara de Brun was unable to present her report on the PEACE Programme at this time. It would have been a good time to have had her report debated.

“The PEACE Programme must now move on to deliver projects which are sustainable and which have the ability to stand alone when European support ultimately disappears. Northern Ireland has come a long way since the start of PEACE in 1995 but still has some distance to travel and it must not be presumed that all Northern Ireland’s problems have disappeared. We still need and require the type of support that the PEACE programme provides.”

Ulster Unionist Assembly member David McClarty is calling for interested agencies to form a regional job creation initiative aim the North West which in an effort to bring new investment to the area.

The East Londonderry MLA was commenting following news of 70 more job losses with the closure in January of electronics firm Huco Lightronics in Limavady.

Mr. McClarty said: “Despite being told a review of operations was underway last year nothing can prepare people for the devastating news that they no longer have a job and this is something that is becoming all too familiar in the area.

“I sympathise with the staff involved who have been working under a cloud for some time as concerns were aired about the future of the company which has given employment to people for 18 years.

“We are continuing to witness an erosion in employment opportunities for those living in the region and it is time that there was a co-ordinated response.

“The North West hinterland outside Londonderry seems to be almost becoming an industrial wasteland with businesses closing and fewer openings.

“Large towns such as Limavady and Coleraine and suffering and many more people are being forced to travel greater distances to obtain employment.

“Re-training in new skills is obviously an option for some of those who are out of work but the overriding concern is that there are less openings for the existing workforce, let alone school leavers.

“Job creation is an area which must be placed even higher on everyone’s priorities. We have all been trying to make progress on this issue in a variety of ways. Maybe the best way to succeed is to come together on a wider scale and make a concerted pitch to the relevant agencies.

“The Government must identify that there is a real problem so far as employment here is concerned. Coleraine and Limavady are feeling the down draft and things must change dramatically before it is too late.”

Ulster Unionist MLA, Tom Elliott, has voiced his concern that DRD Minister, Conor Murphy, has offered nothing new to Fermanagh with regards road infrastructure and finance.

In a statement Mr. Elliott said: “Following the re-establishment of the Northern Ireland Assembly most people in the West of the Province, and in particular Fermanagh, were hopeful that an injection of finance would be provided to improve the road infrastructure.

“Unfortunately this has not happened and following the visit of Minister Conor Murphy to the county and his meeting with council members it appears that Fermanagh is going to remain in the wilderness with respect to roads investment in the near future.

The Fermanagh and South Tyrone assemblyman continued by comparing the level of investment granted to towns in neighbouring Tyrone to that offered to Fermanagh in recent years.

Tom continued: “Looking to towns such as Strabane and Omagh where numerous bypasses and other considerable works have been permitted we can see a huge disparity in roads investment opening up. Fermanagh is in need of real and tangible strategic investment in roads if it is to be able to cope with the growing traffic pressures.

“This is particularly necessary for Enniskillen due to its central position in the county where the bottlenecks and restrictions to traffic flow are impeding tourism and business throughout the region.”

In conclusion Tom added: “After meeting with the Minister it is evident once more that the much fabled financial package did not amount to what we were led to believe, the future financial prosperity of Northern Ireland depends heavily on a modern road network, it will underpin much of the progress that we all recognise is required, yet what is on offer for Fermanagh falls short of the mark.”

Ulster Unionist MLA for East Londonderry David McClarty speaking in the Assembly today during a debate on the closure of the Seagate plant in Limavady called on the DETI Minister to give special attention to the North West Area

In a speech Mr McClarty said,

“The afternoon of 29th October 2007 was a black day for the Limavady and Northern Ireland economy, when the employees at Seagate’s Limavady plant were informed that they were to lose their jobs.

This was truly devastating news for Northern Ireland’s economic ambitions, and has led to considerable concern for the economic future of Limavady and the surrounding North West region. Unfortunately the news got worse for an already beleaguered Limavady community when Huco Lightronics, an electronic firm, announced its intention to close in January 2008, with a loss of 70 jobs.

The economic consequences for Limavady and the North West continue to be of serious concern. It is estimated that unemployment could double in the area. Furthermore, it is also reported that these latest redundancies could mean that

So what do we need to see happen in terms of a governmental response?

I know already that the work of assisting the Seagate workforce to re-engage with the labour-market, having regard for their skills profile and geographical location, is already underway. This is extremely important. The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment, along with Invest NI, and the Department of Employment and Learning must work diligently to find alternative employment for the Seagate employees who want to remain economically active.

These workers are extremely talented and must be given every opportunity to avail of retraining and educational programmes to enable them to remain in employment. In addition to this, I would be grateful if the Minister could inform the House if there are any renewed plans, as a result of the Seagate job losses, to highlight and promote the north-west region of Northern Ireland as a prime location for investment at the Investment Conference being hosted by the Executive in the spring of next year.

I believe that the North West must be given special attention by DETI, and I look forward to the Minister’s response on this point.

I want to see this Assembly and the Executive act now, so that we can offer a future of hope and economic prosperity for this already beleaguered and fraught community.”

Ulster Unionist MLA Tom Elliott has said that figures relesed showing departmental underspend in nearly all parts of the Executive is very worrying for the people of Northern Ireland.

Mr Elliott said: “As a member of the committee of the First and Deputy first Ministers office I was able to attain figures showing the underspend by all departments within the Stormont Executive for 2006-2007. There are many depressing statistics. For example, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) had a gross underspend of £5,714,000 for that year. This included falls in the amount invested in Rural Development which underspent by 24.3% or £431,000 and Environment and Renewable Energy which underspent by 84.1% or £837,000. I do not want to be over critical of the department as areas such as the River Agency saw an increase in spending, but with other parts of the rural community losing out it is a very worrying time.”

Across each of the departments underspending has become a major issue. The biggest fall in percentage was experienced by that of the Office of First and deputy First Ministers which saw an underspend of 36.5% or £842,000 overall.

However, more worrying some individual areas within departments suffered monumental losses including that of the Driver and Vehicle Testing Agency within the Department of the Environment, which saw a huge underspend of 54.4%.

The Fermanagh and South Tyrone representative went on to say: “The issue of underspending is certainly one that needs to be studied closely at as it effects every department. Realistically I understand that not each departmental area is not going to receive the same funding every year. What the biggest problem here is, is that there are so many areas within each department that are suffering from underspend that services to the people of Northern Ireland can not avoid been effected. MLA’s are elected to work for the people and so it is our duty to make sure the underspending is tackled so that the people of Northern Ireland receive the best services possible.”

Rev Dr Robert Coulter, the Ulster Unionist Party Assembly member for North Antrim and UUP Stormont Commissioner, has said he has received assurances from the First Minister that Rathlin Island could have a future tidal electricity generating facility.

Assemblyman Dr Coulter received his assurance in a verbal reply from the First Minister during oral questions at Stormont.

The UUP MLA said: “I put specific questions to the First Minister - will he indicate whether there has been any progress on furthering a tidal electricity generation facility near Rathlin Island, which the Sustainable Development Commission claims will produce 10% of Northern Ireland’s energy needs? Does he think that it will damage in any way the tourist potential of that great tourist area?

“In his response, the First Minister assured me there should be such a supply of electricity to Rathlin Island.

“This would be substantial progress for the island since 1970 because then, there were no public toilets on Rathlin, and no new houses had been built during a 40-year period. I was exceptionally heartened to hear the First Minister state he would like to see a tidal supply of electricity bringing light and power to the island,” said Assemblyman Dr Coulter.

The First Minister’s assurances to Dr Coulter have also been welcomed by Mr Robin Swann, the UUP’s Energy Spokesman and a senior member of the North Antrim UUP management committee.

Ulster Unionist Party Leader and East Belfast MLA Sir Reg Empey today expressed his total delight that the Connswater Community Greenway has been awarded £23.5 Million to transform the banks of the Connswater River into what Sir Reg has described as a mini-Laganside by the National Lottery Big Lottery Fund.

In a statement Sir Reg said,

“I am totally delighted that the Connswater Community Greenway is receiving the £23 Million. This is a project that I have been involved in championing since its inception a couple of years ago.

We can do much better than the stinking mess that the Connswater River currently is. At present it is full of junk, shopping trolleys and in the summer it stinks to high heaven and I have long been advocating a Laganside style development along the banks of the Connswater.

The River, thanks to the vision of the Greenway project, whose efforts today were given the ultimate accolade by receiving this huge cash boost by the Big Lottery Fund, will now be utterly transformed.

I would like congratulate the staff at the project and all of those involved at local community group level. It was this community effort that no doubt swung things in their favour, coupled with the cross party support from local representatives and Belfast City Council.”