First Minister Peter Robinson has warned that expected budget cuts by the British government could endanger Northern Ireland's economic recovery.
The Conservative-Liberal Democrats coalition has vowed to cut government spending in a bid to drive down its deficit, which is running at about 11 per cent of national output. Chancellor George Osborne unveiled his first budget in May, under which Northern Ireland will have to make savings of some £128 million.
Mr Osborne will publish a spending statement on October 20th in which further cuts of up to £2 billion for Northern Ireland are expected. Stormont Minister for Finance Sammy Wilson said in June he expects spending will fall by about 25 per cent over the next three financial years.
Mr Robinson said today the cuts would inevitably result in the North's government having to make "very difficult" and "unpopular" decisions.
In a statement released today, the DUP leader said capital expenditure was the "main target" for reductions. He said the prospect of prospect of public sector construction drying up would "ring alarm bells" throughout an "already depressed" construction sector.
Mr Robinson said dealing with the cuts would present the Executive with its "biggest policy challenge to date" and said its main priority must be to keep people in work and put people back to work.
Calling on ministers not to politicise their decisions when making cuts, Mr Robinson said the public will "not quickly forgive" those who put the interests of their parties or departments before the interests of Northern Ireland "as a whole".
"Narrow party political considerations will only result in a compromise which serves political interests but not the public interest," Mr Robinson warned. "With an Assembly election only months away it may be tempting for some to play politics with the difficult decisions that need to be faced in the weeks ahead, but I believe that such cynical opportunism would be transparent to the wider public."
He said the Executive has "demonstrated it can unite" to oppose the threat from dissident republican terrorism and called on it to unite to see Northern Ireland through the present economic challenges.
"Given the scale of the [UK] coalition's cuts, very difficult and unpopular decisions are inevitable but I believe that the Executive is capable of responding to the challenge. Many people will rightly judge the Executive and Assembly on this basis," he said.
