SDLP Foyle MLA Sinéad McLaughlin has said there is much more work left to do to reform Invest NI, following the publication of the organisation’s end of year results which revealed that every £1 of Invest NI assistance offered last year will contribute towards £7 of investment in the economy.
Said the Foyle MLA: “I was proud to play a role in securing the recent Independent Review of Invest NI, which revealed the true scale of failure in our regional development agency, including its failure to properly spread opportunity and investment throughout Northern Ireland.
“When the review’s report was released, it was clear to everyone that a huge job of work would be needed to turn the organisation around and no one expected results overnight.
“Nevertheless, it is now over six months since the review’s findings and we are still awaiting the publication of a comprehensive action plan which is jointly agreed between the organisation and the Department to implement the report’s many recommendations.
“While these figures do show the huge contribution of investment and assistance that has been made in the North’s economy as a whole by the organisation, they also paint a picture which is all too familiar when it comes to the specific interventions that have still not yet been delivered in our city and region.
“Altough it is welcome that many of the jobs created by companies with assistance from Invest NI are based outside Belfast, there is clearly much more that needs to be done if the organisation is to be proven fit for purpose.
“These figures show that Derry City & Strabane received 6% of offers and almost 13% of all new jobs.
“That is a far cry from the recommendations from our local Chamber of Commerce, who are rightly calling for 50% of new jobs to be located in the North West City region if we are to truly realise the ambition of our city as the fourth largest city on the island.
“Most notably, we need to see Invest NI adopt sub-regional targets, not just for job creation but also for job quality and a range of other metrics, as well as the relocation of senior FDI and sectoral staff and an enhanced focus on cross-border collaboration.
“Until targets are established, it is impossible to measure the success of the organisation in addressing the effect of decades of chronic neglect that have characterised the approach to our economy in the North West.
“I will be raising these points in my submission to the Department’s Place10X consultation that is currently underway and will continue to hold the Department and Invest NI responsible for progress.”
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