Statement by TUV leader Jim Allister:-
“The First Ministers announcement of a consultation on an Investment Strategy betokens the abject failure and dysfunctionalism which has hallmarked this Executive.
“This is an Executive which has limped towards its demise without ever producing and agreeing a Programme for Government, hasn’t even agreed the content of its draft Budget (which should link to the programme for Government) and now after the 2011 Investment Strategy has reached its end date, decides it had better consult on a new one! This should have been happening in the years before the current strategy lapsed.
“Little wonder the Fiscal Council recently commented adversely on these issues.
“Such is the dysfunctionalism of the Executive Office that it didn’t even respond to the Finance Department in the initial budget exercise requesting departments to set out their priorities and pressures!
“So, there is not much credibility in Mr Givan and Ms O’Neill preening themselves about consulting on an belated Investment Strategy when at every turn they have failed to deliver.
“All of this again underscores the unworkability of mandatory coalition and having a government in which no one has to be agreed about anything before entering government.
“Northern Ireland deserves better than this farce that calls itself government.”