First Minister: Hilary Benn’s ‘disgraceful’ approach failing NI voluntary sector

Michelle O’Neill has admonished the Northern Ireland Secretary’s “disgraceful” approach to replacing EU funding schemes for community groups in Northern Ireland.

The First Minister said Hilary Benn has “taken this funding off these groups”, and that the Government’s new framework “isn’t good enough”.

Ms O’Neill was speaking after an event for International Women’s Day where she met with representatives from community and voluntary groups such as Women’s Aid working to tackle gendered violence in Northern Ireland.

In 2023, EU funding to charities and community groups in Northern Ireland from its European Social Fund (ESF) was ended because of Brexit.

It was replaced by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF), which will in turn be replaced by the Local Growth Fund next year.

That new fund has a 70/30 capital-to-revenue split, resulting in funding cuts to the voluntary and community sector, prompting the Executive to write to UK Communities Secretary Steve Reed calling for “a more favourable resource allocation”.

On Wednesday, Mr Benn said: “If the Executive thinks that these programmes are really important … it is open to the Executive to put some money in alongside the money that the Government is putting in.”

Ms O’Neill told the Press Association the Northern Ireland Secretary’s approach was “quite disgraceful”.

She said: “So Brexit happened against our wishes – a lot of the funding these groups got was through European funding. The British Government promised that they would replace like with like. They have not. They have failed.

“But you see these same equivalent groups in England? They are all getting the same funding that they were getting. They’re getting the same capital and resource split in their funding.

“But they took a policy decision in London that has caused detriment to the groups, some of which I’ve just spoken to now, where people are being laid off, people are leaving because they don’t have any job security and these are people, they’re doing really, really good work on the ground.

“So for now, my focus remains on challenging Hilary Benn back and the British Government back, just today, I’ve actually put this to him directly.

“Their approach isn’t good enough. They have taken this funding off these groups. They need to replace that funding, because I want these groups to succeed.

“I can absolutely honestly say it with my hand on my heart that a lot of the community and voluntary groups out there that are doing starting work the departments couldn’t do the work that these people are doing, because they go above and beyond, and I’m so proud of the work that we have in our community and voluntary sector.

“So for now, our focus remains on pushing back on the British Government for them to do the right thing.

“Why are groups in England getting a different treatment to the groups that are here? We want the same, and we want fairness for our groups so we continue to make that case.”

A UK government spokesperson said the Local Growth Fund “will support the delivery of long-term infrastructure to boost economic growth across the UK.”

“For economic inactivity programme funding, The UK Government and the Northern Ireland Executive have worked together to confirm a way forward that provides organisations with the clarity they need to plan for this year,” they said.

“We continue to work with the Executive and the sector to reach the best outcome possible by the time the Local Growth Fund begins delivery on 1 April.”