UK urged to boost Northern Ireland funding as budget gap looms

Stormont Finance Minister John O'Dowd said it is “decision time” for the UK government to provide proper funding for Northern Ireland. With departments operating on contingency budgets since April, the Executive will have only 95 % of last year’s allocation after a statutory deadline, prompting fears of service cuts.

O'Dowd noted that newly appointed Secretary of State Sir Chris Bryant and Chancellor John Healey are aware of the crisis and urged them to act, arguing that Scotland and Wales receive “fairer funding settlements” worth billions of pounds more than Northern Ireland. He called on the Treasury to avoid imposing additional revenue‑raising measures and to allocate sufficient resources to sustain public services and the regional economy.