The Executive is “refusing to fulfil the basic responsibilities of government” by failing to make a decision on welfare reform, according to NI Conservatives’ spokesman, Mark Brotherston.
“The latest part of this saga is an unseemly row about how health services could be affected by the failure to implement welfare reform”, Mark noted. “Meanwhile, the latest Net Fiscal Balance Report shows that public spending in Northern Ireland is almost £10 billion higher than the sum total of taxes raised. Ministers have had a decision to make, which they’ve now ducked for years, about whether they are going to implement welfare reform, like the rest of the UK, or whether they’re going to go their own way and pay to maintain the old system, using large amounts of money that would otherwise be spent on other public services.”
“It’s disappointing to hear parties using health treatment for some of the most vulnerable in our society as a party political football to hide their inability to take the most basic decisions of government. NI Conservatives are clear that welfare reform is necessary, to guarantee fairness for taxpayers, to make sure that work pays and to ensure that benefits reach the people who need them most. The parties at Stormont need to reach a verdict on this immediately, because currently £200 million a year is being lost and the cost will only get higher. Devolution allows Northern Ireland to go its own way, but the business of government is about stepping up and taking these decisions.”