§ Mr. Kilfedderasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the time scale for the expenditure of the £2 million allocated to the Belfast areas of need programme.
§ Mr. CarterEach of the projects is to be financed from the £2 million inner city funds allocated to Belfast areas of need in February 1978 is scheduled to be completed by March 1979.
§ Mr. Kilfedderasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the estimated cost of regenerating the inner Belfast city area in order to restore it to the thriving appearance it once enjoyed as the capital of Northern Ireland.
§ Mr. CarterRenewal of Belfast inner city is a continuous process and it is not possible to estimate the total costs involved. However, the Government is wholly committed to the renewal of inner 913W Belfast and large sums of money are being provided. For example, the Housing Executive is now spending at an annual rate of £25 million-£30 million per annum in Belfast city council area, and implementation of the Belfast transportation review will cost over £90 million. A number of complementary programmes are also being carried out by the Department of Commerce which are designed to assist the city's regeneration through the stimulation and retention of new and existing employment opportunities.
§ Mr. Kilfedderasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he will specify the various work undertaken in the Belfast areas of need programme, and the expenditure to date on each, together with anticipated expenditure to completion of these projects.
§ Mr. CarterWorks in the Belfast areas of need (BAN) are spread over a number of separate programmes; the two major programmes alone include a total of more than 100 projects and it has not been practicable to keep detailed information on the progress of each individual project. However, for specific information on the major projects in BAN and on those projects whoich are known to have been completed or to be in the course of construction, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Belfast, South (Mr. Bradford) on 21st April 1978—[Vol. 948, c. 375–76.]
§ Mr. Kilfedderasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what are the statutory bodies contributing to the Belfast areas of need programme.
§ Mr. CarterThe statutory bodies contributing to the Belfast areas of need programme are:
- The Belfast Education and Library Board
- The Eastern Health and Social Services Board
- The Northern Ireland Housing Executive
- Enterprise Ulster
Government Departments and Belfast city council also contribute to the programme.
§ Mr. Kilfedderasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what additional staff are employed by the various statutory bodies that are involved in the Belfast areas of need programme.
914W
§ Mr. CarterThe information is as follows:
Statutory Body Staff currently employed Belfast Education and Library Board 21 Eastern Health and Social Services Board 10 Local Enterprise Development Unit 1 In addition, Belfast city council has employed an extra 22 staff on special clean-up schemes in the Belfast areas of need (BAN) and Enterprise Ulster expects to employ 8–10 staff to increase the level of its activities in the BAN.
The number of staff employed as a result of the various BAN programmes will continue to increase as these programmes develop. In total, it is estimated that the expenditure of the £17.3 million already committed to BAN programmes will create almost 900 permanent jobs over the next five years. About 40 per cent.-45 per cent. of these jobs will be provided by statutory bodies.