§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much has been spent on Northern Ireland since Good Friday 1998; how much has been spent on victims of violence; and how this money is being used to help such victims in Northern Ireland. [53691]
§ Mr. BrowneThe amount of money spent on Northern Ireland since 1 April 1998 (figures available for full financial years only) by the Northern Ireland Office (N10) and Northern Ireland Block:
£million NIO DEL1 NI block AME2 WW3 1998–99 975 4,687 3,534 16 1999–20004 1,026 4,914 3,631 37 2000–014 1,138 5,249 4,965 39 2001–025 1,177 6,002 5,670 60 1Departmental Expenditure Limit 2Annually Managed Expenditure 3Welfare to Work 4Devolution began in December 1999 and was suspended between February and May 2000, with the result that in 1999–2000 £4,221,000 for the Northern Ireland Assembly was included in the NIO totals and 2000–01 £1,733,000 for NI Assembly was included in the NIO totals. 5Please note that final figures are not yet available for NIO2014;therefore, those given are provisional only. Provisional outturn figures are not yet available for the NI block, however the information shown is the "Final Plan Figurework" as at February monitoring. 6Now contained within DEL The amount spent on victims of violence generally is not held centrally and could be provided only at 596W disproportionate cost. However, since 1998, Government have committed over £18.25 million to support victims of the troubles, funding a number of initiatives including:
£700,000 for a family trauma centre in Belfast which provides therapeutic service addressing the psychological needs of families and young people.
£300,000 for an educational bursary pilot scheme2014;for individuals whose education vas directly affected by the troubles, 350 people received awards.
£4 million to the Northern Ireland Memorial Fund with a commitment of a further £1 million for 2003–04.
The fund has put in place a number of schemes including:
The small grants scheme
The chronic pain management scheme
The respite break scheme
The wheelchair assessment scheme
The amputee assessment scheme
The education and training scheme.
£225,000 initially for a victim support grants scheme to assist community groups and voluntary organisations to take forward recommendations in the Bloomfield report; and more recently a further £750,000 to extend this small grants scheme.
£6.1 million core funding for groups who support victims of the troubles.
£500,000 for initiatives in Great Britain including £250,000 for The Legacy Project. This project aims to identify and meet the needs of victims of the troubles living in Great Britain.
£1.5 million over the next three years for the development of the Northern Ireland Centre for Trauma and Transformation.
£1.5 million over the next two years to the devolved Administration's Strategy Implementation Fund to help NI Departments fulfil their commitment to addressing victims' needs.
Other initiatives for victims2014;EU money
The Northern Ireland Office was responsible for the management of funding to ( among other projects) victims groups under measure 4.6 of the EU Special Support Programme for Peace and Reconciliation (Peace I). Victims groups received £2.8 million under this measure. In the main funding has been used to provide training and development officers and counselling services to victims and their families.
Peace II moneys are administered by the devolved Administration. It contains a specific measure for victims with funding of approximately £6.67 million, targeted mainly at retraining and re-employment.
Criminal compensation for victims
Since April 1998 to end of March 2002, £87.65 million has been spent in compensation for criminal damage and £193.50 million on criminal injuries. It is not possible to break these figures down into troubles-related and other crime.
Separate support for security force victims
Government have established a Police Fund which aims to bring additional assistance to police officers and their families directly affected as a result of terrorism. From this fund £4.2 million was paid in a tax free, lump sum payment to police widows, widowed prior to November 1983, as a direct result of terrorism.
The Government have funded the Police Rehabilitation and Retraining Trust (PRRT) to a total of £8.1 million (£4.5 million allocated for three-year-period in March 1999 and £3.6 million allocated for further two years, 2002–04). The PRRT was conceived to provide assistance 597W aimed at the rehabilitation of ex-officers who were injured on duty and retraining for those leaving or expected to leave the force.
Government have made available more than £1 million to the George Cross Foundation to mark the sacrifices and honour the achievement of the RUC. (The George Cross Foundation has taken on responsibility for the establishment of a Garden of Remembrance and a new RUC museum.)