The Northern Ireland secretary, Julian Smith, has pledged major investment to alleviate problems in the region’s struggling public services as part of efforts to get the power-sharing agreement over the line. But he has declined to confirm the sums involved until a deal is done.
The New Decade, New Approach deal promises “positive changes in areas that impact greatly on people’s lives such as the economy, overcrowded hospitals, struggling schools, housing stress, welfare concerns and mental health”.
Here’s what is in the Stormont executive’s in-tray:
NHS
Staff pressures and waiting lists are the most immediate priority. Northern Ireland has the worst waiting lists of anywhere in the UK, but the nurses’ strike will be the number one focus for the new health minister, Robin Swann. He will meet unions this week to try to end the strike.
Implementing the 10-year health plan set out in the Bengoa report is also a pressing priority. The plan emerged from a government-backed panel in 2016 and has never been taken forward because of the collapse of the assembly. It already has cross-party agreement.
Education
A long-running teachers’ pay dispute will be another priority, but the deal also calls for a fundamental review of the way education is run. In July last year Simon Hoare, the chair of the Northern Ireland affairs select committee, said a lack of investment was having a devastating impact on schools. The region has had the highest school spending cuts per pupil in the UK over the past decade. Special needs education is under strain. The same committee also heard that Northern Irish schools were relying on charities to deliver essential services for children with mental health problems.
Justice
The deal promises to increase police numbers to 7,500 and commits to speed up the criminal justice system and address the findings of recent reports published by the Criminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland.
Housing and welfare payments
Investment and upkeep of social housing and the removal of the threat of the bedroom tax are priorities. The deal’s plan of action promises to stop the reclassification of housing associations as public sector bodies and “enhance investment” in social housing.
It also promises to tackle the maintenance backlog in the 86,000 homes owned by the region’s housing authority. The deal also includes the extension of Stormont-funded mitigation payments for 34,000 social households that could be adversely affected by the bedroom tax from April.
Brexit
While the new deal heralds new long-term budgeting for the region, the pressing interest will be job creation and protecting businesses from any impact from Brexit.
First up is the staffing of the all-important Brexit working advisory group and the specialised committee, which will oversee the detail and implementation of the Northern Ireland protocol. An Institute for Government report on Monday warned that it would be almost impossible to get a special customs systems in place before the end of the proposed transition period on 31 December. The power-sharing deal promises that “representatives from the executive will be invited to be part of the UK delegation” on these committees.
The Brexit deal gives Northern Ireland a unique opportunity to attract UK firms that want to retain access to the single market, but with no Stormont, there has been no cross-community cohesive leadership on the issue in the last three years.
The economy
Boris Johnson has predicted “an incredible time” for Northern Ireland now that the region has a functioning power-sharing government again.
A goal of the executive, or cabinet, will be “to develop a regionally balanced economy with opportunities for all” and the delivery of essential infrastructure projects, including a key bottleneck offering motorway access at the York Street Interchange in Belfast and City Deals for the Belfast Region and Derry/Londonderry.
The Irish government has also made financial pledges within the agreement to honour commitments to part-fund some north/south projects, such as the A5 dual carriageway and a redevelopment of the Ulster canal system.
