QPANI Welcome Finance Ministers Statement On Road Funding

QPANI-Logo-(Dark)The Quarry Products Association of Northern Ireland have welcomed the re-allocation of Executive funds announced in the October monitoring round, in particular the £20 million additional funding to roads maintenance and other road improvements.

The funding includes:

  • Additional £1.5 million towards commencement of the Magherafelt bypass project
  • £5.0 million to DSD to fund additional investment in the co-ownership scheme
  • £5.0 million for the DSD “Affordable Homes Loan Fund’
  • £8.1 million in 2014/2015 which will allow the commencement of work on the A26 Glarryford Road scheme where an additional 8km of dual carriageway will be built, improving access and road safety on that key route
  • Additional £15 million for the Rural Development Programme and Agri-food Strategy Board; and a further £10 million of Financial Transactions funding committed to the Agri-Food Loan scheme for next year that will have indirect benefits for construction materials suppliers as farmers invest in land drainage and farm improvements
  • £16.1 million to DCAL to address a significant pressure next year in respect of the regional stadium construction programme
  • £11.8 million allocated to DEL. to fund a new faculty block at University of Ulster Coleraine and redevelopment at Queen’s University

QPANI Regional Director, Gordon Best, said: “The announcement by the Finance Minister is a real boost for our members. The additional funding allocations of over £90 million for the projects listed above will see both direct and indirect benefits for construction material suppliers across Northern Ireland. We share the Ministers optimism about the impending economic recovery. There are undoubted signs that our economy, and particularly the local construction industry, is recovering after five years of decline. This additional stimulus is good for the whole economy and we must now see a concerted effort to ensure that these additional funds convert to work on the ground as quickly as possible and create sustainable employment and significant economic benefit across Northern Ireland.”