The Northern Ireland Exeuctive’s new Programme for Government has set out a number of targets including treating an additional 70,000 patients and building more than 5,000 new social homes.
The 100 page document which has been seen by Belfast Live includes details of a number of strategies that the Executive hope to deliver by the end of this mandate in 2027.
The document sets out three key missions on people, planet and prosperity with nine policy areas that ministers will prioritise.
In the forward to the document, First Minister Michelle O’Neill and deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly say: “This Programme for Government is all about tackling those big issues.
“Working with our colleagues in the Executive, we have agreed a set of ambitious priorities which will make real improvements across society both today and in the years ahead.
“We know there are challenges. We are working in a reduced mandate and there is not enough funding to meet the needs of people here. Our public finances and services are under pressure.”
Here are the nine key policy areas that ministers will focus on:
Deliver More Affordable, Accessible, High-Quality Early Learning and Childcare
By the end of this mandate, The Executive have pledged to have a comprehensive agreed Early Learning and Childcare Strategy in place, delivering improved outcomes for children and parents.
This year, they will:
Make sure that the parents of 13,500 eligible children have benefited from a 15% childcare subsidy. Complete a scoping exercise of the business support needs of the early years and childcare sector. Provide enhanced funding for existing early years and childcare schemes to better support children facing disadvantage and those with additional needs.Currently, families where both parents (or a lone parent) are working and earning at least the National Minimum Wage for an average of 16 hours per week, can access 20% contribution towards their childcare costs under the Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) scheme. The new Northern Ireland Scheme will pay a subsidy directly to providers to enable them to provide a 15% discount on childcare fees charged for eligible children. Parents can then claim the 20% TFC reduction on their residual bill.
Cutting health waiting times
Last year the DoH delivered 263,000 assessments, treatments and diagnostics with funding allocated to tackling waiting lists.
The Programme for Government says: “It will not be possible to reduce our lengthy waiting times within the funding currently available.”
The PfG says that by 2027, With Executive support, they will invest up to £135m a year to reduce waiting lists by treating an additional 70,000 patients and, a further £80m a year, to increase elective care capacity through expansion of elective care centres and mega clinics to remove the demand/capacity gap that causes waiting lists to grow.
This year, the Executive:
have a target of having invested £76m to limit further deterioration of cancer and time critical waiting lists. This will allow over 250,000 assessments, diagnostics and treatments appointments for patients with suspected cancer or with life, limb or sight threatening conditions. Have commenced the development of a refreshed approach to improving health and addressing health inequalities.Better Support for Children and Young People with Special Educational Needs
By the end of this mandate, the Executive will have a comprehensive Executive agreed SEN Reform Agenda and Delivery Plan in place, delivering improved outcomes for children with SEN, their families and the education workforce who support them.
This year, the Executive will:
Establish an Executive agreed SEN Reform Agenda and Delivery Plan which sets out the actions required to transform the education system for children and young people with special educational needs.
Ending violence against women and girls
By the end of this mandate, a minimum of 100,000 programme participants will have been engaged, there will have been three awareness raising campaigns, and our society will have significantly increased understanding and awareness of issues and will know how to take action to prevent violence against women and girls.
This year, the Executive will:
Launch the Power-to-Change campaign with partners in Justice and PSNI to challenge unacceptable attitudes and reduce harmful behaviours of men and boys
Deliver TEO EVAWG funding through councils to provide investment in grassroots communities from January 2025 onwards
Establish four key-sectoral working groups by Spring 2025, to improve outcomes for women and girls in education, workplaces, social and night time settings.
Provide More Social, Affordable and Sustainable Housing
By the end of this mandate, the Executive will have started work on at least 5,850 new build social homes.
This year, they will:
Deliver 847 shared ownership homes.
Launch the Loan to Acquire Move on Accommodation (LAMA) fund of £10 million, helping homeless charities purchase properties as a route into housing for those who cannot afford access to permanent social housing or private rented accommodation.
Complete a public consultation and publish an Executive agreed Fuel Poverty Strategy.
Safer communities
By the end of this mandate, the Executive will have progressed a Speeding Up Justice Programme and have an Executive agreed approach to reducing offending and reoffending, contributing to delivering improved outcomes for those who engage with the justice system.
This year, they will:
Explore options for expanding the use of Out of Courts Disposals including Community Resolution Notices to speed up the time taken to dispose of those cases, and help to reduce pressure on Courts and other justice agencies.
Develop a robust business case that will seek to stabilise, and begin to grow, police officer numbers.
Secure Executive agreement for an extension of the Tackling Paramilitarism Programme until March 2027.
Protecting Lough Neagh and the Environment
By 2027, the Executive will deliver the actions in the Lough Neagh Report and Action Plan, including education, regulation, enforcement, incentivisation, all underpinned by science as per targets set out in the Report and Action Plan.
This year, they will:
Establish robust accountability mechanisms to allow monitoring and reporting of progress on the Environmental Improvement Plan for Northern Ireland and consult on a draft Climate Action Plan and publish the third NI Climate Change Adaptation Programme.
Complete a review of Environmental Governance and following receipt of the findings of the independent panel, DAERA will present a proposed way forward to the Executive for consideration and agreement.
Implement an effective Sanitary & Phytosanitary (SPS) regime across NI and deliver official controls on behalf of the Food Standards Agency (FSA), to protect public health, animal health & welfare, plant health and to support trade and agri-food supply chain sustainability
Grow a Globally Competitive and Sustainable Economy
By the end of this mandate, the Executive wiill have supported industry to increase renewable electricity capacity by 40% and considered an Employment Rights Bill for introduction in the Assembly.
This year, they will:
Support delivery of the 80% renewable electricity by 2030 target, within the Climate Change Act, by publishing a final design of a Renewable Electricity Support Scheme.
Promote and protect the rights of all workers by consulting on proposals for a new Employment Bill and beginning to draft the legislation.
Work towards expanding the campus at Magee up to 10,000 students as set out within New Decade New Approach, by working with the Magee Taskforce, and partners, to publish and begin to deliver on an Executive agreed action plan.
The Economy Minister and Invest NI will have undertaken at least three overseas trade missions to promote NI’s market access position to potential overseas investors and importers.
Reform and Transformation of Public Services
By 2027, through the Transformation Fund, the Executive will have successfully delivered a range of service improvements across the Executive’s priority areas and commenced digital transformation.
This year, they will:
Establish a Delivery Unit to drive reform and transformation across government and wider public services.
Address the significant opportunities in emerging technologies such as AI, and better leverage the powers of digital and data, by establishing the Office of AI and Digital. The new Office will sit alongside the Office of Science and Technology and work with the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) and other data and digital leaders across the NICS, to advise the Executive.
Have an agreed budget sustainability plan and engaged with HMT, aiming to agree a detailed methodology for calculating NI’s relative funding per head.
Other things that get a brief mention in the document include investing in our water infrastructure and making progress on the redevelopment of Casement Park.
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