Stormont Opposition leader challenges SF Finance Minister to ‘open the books’

The leader of the Stormont Opposition has challenged the Finance Minister to “open the books” to allow the costing of alternative proposals.

Matthew O’Toole made the point that costings are provided in the Irish Parliament where John O’Dowd’s party make up the Opposition.

Mr O’Toole said the Stormont Opposition has formally written to Mr O’Dowd to ask him to facilitate his civil servants providing costings for their alternative Budget ideas.

He said with the Executive’s first multi-year budget in more than a decade coming before the end of the year, it is critical to ensure the most rigorous possible scrutiny of Executive plans and Opposition alternatives.

He said the current lack of openness limits the Opposition’s ability to provide detailed policy costings.

“This proposal should be a no-brainer for the Finance Minister and First Minister,” he said.

“Their party enjoys access to official costings from civil servants in Dublin to provide detailed alternative budget documents and other proposals.

“It’s time for them to open the books in the north and let the Opposition here have the same rights as the Opposition in Dublin.”

Mr O’Toole added that Sinn Fein ministers have “regularly challenged the SDLP Opposition to provide more detail on our alternatives”, claiming they have “ignored the many detailed and constructive proposals we have released in the past 20 months – often much more detailed than those of the Executive itself”.

“So, they should have no issue in offering the SDLP Opposition the same access to official costings that Sinn Fein and other Opposition parties in the Dail enjoy,” he said.

“Our role as official Opposition has proven to be a step change in improving accountability in the north.

“Standards of decision-making and policy debate are woeful at Stormont, but it doesn’t have to be this way.

“As the official Opposition, we are working to demand better for our people and access to the same support and official costing as in the south is an obvious step towards improving our politics.

“I trust the Finance Minister and Executive parties will agree it speedily, and in advance of the multi-year budget later this year.”

The Department of Finance has been approached for a response.