Debate contribution: Budget 2026-29/2030: Reports

Debate contribution by Miss Jemma Dolan on 11 May 2026.

MLA: Miss Jemma Dolan
Party at the time: Sinn Féin
Date: 11 May 2026
Type: Debate contribution
Business: Committee Business
Heading: Budget 2026-29/2030: Reports
Assembly identifier: Official Report component 5523674

Text

The Committee for Finance and Fiscal Council reports on the draft Budget reiterate the challenging position of our public finances and how the current financial settlement with the Treasury does not meet our needs. Decades of underfunding by the British Government have, in recent years, been exacerbated by austerity measures by successive Tory Governments and now the Labour Government. Over 90% of our public finances comes from the block grant, so it is no surprise that, in its evidence to the Committee, the Nevin Economic Research Institute said that local revenue raising cannot fix the funding gap and that the deficit is a result of policy decisions made by politicians in London who are not elected by the people here. NERI also highlighted the fact that, as a region, we are living with the consequences of Budget choices that are beyond our control. Those choices include spending money on militarisation rather than front-line services, leaving us with less money to spend on our hospitals, schools and roads. As a local Assembly, we have, in recent years, managed to alleviate some of the harms caused by the British Government that worsened existing poverty levels. For example, we introduced welfare mitigation measures. As the reports make clear, however, the finance available to us locally means that we simply cannot mitigate many of the negative spending decisions taken in London. That has been reinforced in recent months by the inflexibility shown by the Treasury on the structure of the local growth fund. Despite strong and repeated representations from locally elected representatives and from the community and voluntary sector about the need for change and the harm that the new model would do to that sector, the Treasury would not move. That funding is, of course, supposed to be the replacement for what was lost by the community and voluntary sector from the EU following Brexit, and it already falls short of what the sector received then. That is another example of this region having to deal with the impact of a decision that was not voted for by the people who live here. NERI and the Fiscal Council also point to the current needs assessment of 124% as not taking into account our structural needs or our historical legacy. I therefore commend the current Finance Minister and his predecessor for their efforts to make the case for a new fiscal framework. To date, that has resulted in an additional £1·3 billion for our public services. All Departments have expressed the view that the draft Budget does not meet their financial requirements, and that is reflected in both reports; indeed, the Fiscal Council has stated that we are at high risk of an overspend. That is why it is crucial that we all support the efforts of the Finance Minister and the wider Executive in their request for additional funding to enable a multi-year Budget to be achieved and for a fiscal framework that goes beyond mere per head comparisons of public spending, which NERI has referred to as being a "blunt instrument". Last week's election results in Scotland and Wales have further shown that the current constitutional framework is cracking at the seams, as people realise that those in London govern in the financial and economic interests of a chosen few in England. Ultimately, until we have constitutional change, our public services will continue to suffer as we try to mitigate decisions made in Westminster.

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

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