Ulster Unionist MLA Basil McCrea has today talked about youth unemployment as the major challenge for The Executive. The Lagan Valley MLA said;

"Northern Ireland has yet to see the impact of the cuts in public finance which are in the pipeline.  Public sector agencies will respond to the cuts with voluntary redundancies and a freeze on recruitment.  The figures, bad as they are now, will only get worse and the burden will fall disproportionately on our young people.

The failure of the executive to allocate the funds necessary to meet the existing demand, already significantly higher than last year, indicates that the executive have  yet to grasp the seriousness of the situation.

 Failure to provide our young people with the opportunities to gain experience and the skills necessary will condemn them to a very bleak future. Not only will this be a tragedy in personal terms but it will put huge pressure on our social cohesion and the peace process itself.

 The Committee for Employment and Learning was aware of the pressure on the DEL budget and has demanded a complete breakdown in departmental expenditure to understand the impact of the shortfall in funding. 

 The decision on student fees will have a profound effect on our ability to offer places to our young people in University and College.  Increased unemployment will lead to a significant increase in demand for courses and opportunities to gain experience. We are not in a position to satisfy this demand.  We should be acting now.

 If the executive is convinced that the economy is of singular importance, it must also realise that the skills of our people, particularly our young people are the biggest factor in economic development and invest accordingly. 

 I have no doubt that the matter will be discussed in detail by the committee when it returns after recess."