The future of a higher education campus in west Belfast is under threat after a report questioned its affordability.
Employment and Learning Minister Ms Carmel Hanna has ordered a review of the £70 million sterling Springvale project after being told of difficulties disclosed by the outline business plan.
The review could lead to a scaling down of the plans for an educational village housing 4,500 full-time and part-time students by 2006.
Mrs Hanna said: "I have been made aware of difficulties being experienced by the institutions in completing the outline business case for the campus element of the Springvale Project.
"These difficulties focus on the affordability and long term sustainability of the campus. These are areas of such importance for the overall project that I cannot ignore them."
The Minister said she would want to find out the exact nature of the problems before deciding how to proceed.
The Springvale board was meeting today to discuss the problems thrown up by the outline business plan.
"The two main promoters have other concerns as well as financial concerns. I want to find out just what these concerns are and how we move forward," said the Minister.
"We believe that the campus is still viable but we may have to go to an alternative model."
Plans for the Springvale site, a joint venture between the University of Ulster and the Belfast Institute of Further and Higher Education, were first outlined in the early 1990s.
PA