Wilson Meets With NI Manufacturing

The Minister listened carefully to the group presentation on the effect of the economic downturn on the manufacturing sector and their proposal for an immediate rates holiday for manufacturers to sustain businesses and jobs during this difficult period.

Minister Wilson said that he was sympathetic towards the industry's problems at this difficult time and pointed to a number of measures already being taken by his department to help industry:

The Minister said: "Devolution has made a real difference to this key sector by holding onto industrial de-rating, which provides factories in NI with a 70% rates reduction compared to manufacturers in the rest of the UK and compared to other business sectors here.

"The regional rates freeze is also unique in the UK, providing an additional saving to all business ratepayers worth £8million this year.

"In addition I am pressing my Executive colleagues to introduce a Small Business Rate Relief Scheme in 2010, costing another £8 million, which will help many of our smaller firms, including those in the manufacturing sector.

"There are acute financial pressures on many parts of business and government at this time.

"There is a need to balance what is required in revenue to keep essential services financed properly with what is affordable through blanket rate concessions.

"If a rates holiday were to be implemented it would result in the Executive being forced to raise additional revenue elsewhere or cutting back on services, directly affecting the budgets of other departments.

"The Executive will continue to give economic policy and sustaining enterprise as its key objective. However, this is a time of belts tightening all round and so far as public expenditure is concerned we have no more notches left.

"That is not to say that manufacturing does not require the full support of government and I, along with my Executive Colleagues, will continue to work closely with business in weathering the downturn and help create the right conditions for recovery to enable all sectors of business to flourish.

"I am not convinced, however, that a rates holiday this year for manufacturers would be in the best economic interests of Northern Ireland given the extremely tight public expenditure position we find ourselves in.

"Nor does it present a simple and easy solution to the problems facing industry here. We have to turn our attention to making the best use of our scarce resources and I look to the lead of other departments to help our struggling manufacturing sector, in a more targeted and therefore more effective and sustainable way; such as DETI's recently launched £15million Short Term Aid Scheme and the DEL initiative on skills development."