NICVA challenges government on poverty

News release

For immediate use: Thursday 15 July 2004

NICVA challenges government on poverty.

Voluntary and community organisations in Northern Ireland are opposing the proposed anti-poverty strategy launched by the Secretary of State in April.

NICVA is leading a campaign to support an alternative 13-point plan that could make a real difference to the lives of people who actually live in poverty.

News of the new campaign against the government’s consultation document (New TSN – the way forward: towards an anti-poverty strategy), launched by the Secretary of State in April, is given in the latest issue of SCOPE.

“Some parts of the document are acceptable, such as the change of name from Targeting Social Need to an anti-poverty strategy,” said SCOPE editor, Paul McGill. “But these sketchy proposals are not an adequate basis for a sustained attack on poverty.

“We have had 13 years of failure with the TSN policy under both Tory and Labour governments. For example, inequalities in weekly pay are far higher now than they were a decade ago and health inequalities are as wide as ever. We need a new approach that will give confidence that we are really tackling the poverty that affects both children and adults.”

NICVA is asking voluntary and community groups to sign up by 13 September to the 13-point plan as an alternative to the government’s proposals.

The current issue of SCOPE also looks at the strange manner in which Laganside Corporation received £1.2 million to renovate Cotton Court in Belfast’s Waring Street and then gave back £750,000 to the Department for Social Development.

Since SCOPE went to press the DSD has issued a further statement saying: “No EU money was returned. However, Laganside did surrender £750k of the Grant in aid paid from the Department. The money surrendered was returned to DFP and the Department saw no gain from the process.”

This strengthens the suspicion that money from the European Union’s Peace II Fund went into Laganside and a chunk of it came out as money the DFP can spend as it wishes.

Copies of the articles and the editorial are attached. For more information please contact Paul McGill at NICVA, 028 9087 7777, mobile: 0772 1746 805.