Finance Minister should not have allowed NI to miss out on £1bn Fund

David McNarry MLA, Ulster Unionist Party Spokesperson for Finance and Personnel has criticised the Minister for Finance for allowing Northern Ireland Manufacturers to miss out on a Royal Bank of Scotland fund dedicated to supporting the manufacturing sector in Great Britain.

In a statement Mr. McNarry said:

"It is costing taxpayers in Northern Ireland the same amount to bail out the UK's banks as taxpayers in Great Britain, however, in this instance we are clearly being discriminated against.

"RBS is 84% owned by the taxpayer, it will offer manufacturer's loans between £25,000 and £25m at discounted rates and arrangement fees. However, its subsidiary the Ulster Bank will not receive a share of this fund and therefore manufacturers in Northern Ireland are going to be at a distinct disadvantage compared to their counterparts in Great Britain".

"In August of last year the Ulster Unionist Party called on the Minister for Finance and Personnel to establish a formal mechanism for the Northern Ireland Executive, along with the other devolved regions, to meet regularly with the Treasury on banking policy. The purpose of this strategy was to ensure that such a set of circumstances that now exist between RBS and Ulster Bank could not happen.

The DUP failed to take this advise and we are now in the situation where manufactures in Northern Ireland will be at a competitive disadvantage when they can least afford it.

"The manufacturing sector in Northern is struggling to keep its head above water, it is unacceptable that it is being let down in this way.