Debate contribution: Public Sector: Late Payments

Debate contribution by Ms Sinéad McLaughlin on 10 September 2024.

MLA

Ms Sinéad McLaughlin

Party at the time

Social Democratic and Labour Party

Date

10 September 2024

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

Public Sector: Late Payments

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4517806

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I add my congratulations to you, Mr Crawford, on making your maiden speech in the House. We will hopefully hear from you many more times during the mandate. The issue of late payments to small businesses is important. It has been said many times that our small businesses are the lifeblood of our economy and the backbone of our high streets. In Derry and across the North, small businesses generate wealth. They keep our towns and cities moving by providing crucial employment and opportunities and driving economic progress. We are a small business economy, and today is a chance to reaffirm that. Those businesses have faced enormous challenges in the past few years. From the uncertainty of Brexit to the shock of COVID and the cost-of-doing-business crisis, they have weathered the perfect storm in recent years. We also know that businesses, in the midst of all those challenges, face issues that have gone unaddressed for far too long, including late payments. The Federation of Small Businesses has outlined the scale of that challenge in recent years, and Neil and his team have told us about small businesses that have been impacted by late payments: businesses that have run into cash flow difficulties; businesses that have been pushed into taking on debt; and businesses that have been put out of business altogether. I am familiar with all those issues. As a previous CEO of the Chamber of Commerce in Derry, I positively campaign to support good payment practices from business to business and to highlight the importance of responsible and sustainable payment practices in the public sector. Unfortunately, we have never been able to achieve the ambition of eradicating late payments. I have seen first-hand the huge toll of late payments on those who run small businesses from the impact of significant stress and worry about loss of livelihoods. It is not just a pressing issue for the economy but a real mental health challenge for dedicated entrepreneurs who should be able to focus on running their businesses free from that stress. It literally keeps people awake at night and overcomes them, not allowing them to be innovative and creative in their business, because they are consumed by where their payments are coming from. The problem is by no means unique to Northern Ireland, but we should be absolutely clear that there is no excuse for the scale of late payments that we see in our economy. As the FSB has argued, while it may be more difficult to solve the issue in the private sector, it is totally unacceptable for government to pay so late. From Departments to health and social care trusts and, indeed, councils, throughout public service, there is simply too much evidence of payments not being made on time. Other Members have outlined the scale and depth of the impact of that. In 2021-22, almost a quarter of a million invoices were not paid on time, inside the public-sector legal requirement of 30 days. While specific data for Northern Ireland is limited, data from across the UK suggests that the entire economy could be boosted by about £2·5 billion every year if small businesses were promptly paid. I hope that the Executive can, at long last, tackle the challenge for the benefit of our small businesses and, indeed, the economy. I would fully support the Executive's introducing legislation at the earliest opportunity, and I would be supportive of a private Member's Bill as outlined by David Honeyford. We need to support our small businesses on the issue, and, like many others, I call on the Executive to do so. I would also like to see public bodies produce plans on how they will meet the legal obligations placed on them. That is the very least that we can do and that businesses deserve. Today is a chance for us to make that case and call on the Executive to make the changes that are needed.

658 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:02 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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