Ulster Unionist Economy Spokesperson, Sandra Overend, has commented on the PwC Economic Outlook Report which states that 11,000 jobs have been lost in the private sector over the last 2 years. The report also sets out that the local economy will shrink a further 0.4% this year.

The Mid Ulster MLA said:

‘This is more bad news following the recent Northern Bank report which downgraded expected growth forecasts in 2012 from 0.3% to 0.1%. Although it may come as no great surprise that the retail and construction sectors were hit most severely in terms of job losses, we must continue to work to mitigate the impact of these job losses. There is much work to be done.’

‘Clearly, the DETI Minister must respond by upping her performance. I am calling on the Minister to outline exactly where we are in relation to the Programme for Government target of supporting the promotion of 13,300 jobs from 2011-2013. The PwC report shows that the scale of the challenge in job creation. We must also have a more ambitious export strategy than what is currently contained within the Economic Strategy if local businesses are to break into new and emerging markets.’

‘We have had the unique opportunity to capitalise on the various events throughout 2012’s  ‘Our time, Our Place’ initiative and the opening of the Titanic, the MAC and the Causeway Visitors centre are just some examples of that. However, despite the target of increasing visitor numbers to 3.47 million in 2012, DETI’s own figures for January to March of this year showed a 13% drop in oversees tourists compared to the same period last year. This is a terrible result and we need to have an overarching tourism strategy in place which sets a clear direction of travel for all government departments in order to improve performance.’

‘The devolution of Corporation Tax has been characterised by delay and indecision thus far with Finance Minister Sammy Wilson focusing his attention on attacking the Secretary of State as opposed to delivering the devolution of this important economic lever. Businesses across Northern Ireland await an outcome which could substantially boost Foreign Direct Investment and help rebalance the economy.’