All options to deal with financial pressures within Northern Ireland’s justice system have now been exhausted, Naomi Long has told MLAs.
The Justice Minister said there is no scope for her department to absorb any further pressures, adding that, unless additional funding is obtained, “extremely difficult decisions” on prioritisation will continue to be made.
Ms Long’s department is responsible for resourcing the justice system in Northern Ireland, including the PSNI, courts and prisons.
However, the minister has repeatedly raised concerns about the financial pressures facing the department.
Providing an update to MLAs on Tuesday, Ms Long said her department is currently facing “inescapable stabilisation pressures” of £48 million as well as “exceptional pressures” of £227 million.
She said: “These costs are not affordable within my department’s budget under any circumstance.
“While my department has been proactive in taking action in recent years to ensure we live within budget, we are now at the point where all options have been fully exhausted.
“Given the severity of the financial position and the demand-led nature of justice expenditure, there is really no scope for my department to absorb the remaining pressures.
“I will continue to work with Executive colleagues to ensure that necessary funding for my department is achieved in the October monitoring round.”
Justice Minister Naomi Long updated MLAs on funding pressures in her department (Liam McBurney/PA)
Ms Long told the Assembly her department has been proactive in attempting to live within budget, including reducing stabilisation pressures to £48 million from £86 million in June.
But she said: “This has not been achieved without adverse impact on the justice system.
“Particularly, but not solely, with the PSNI in terms of the recruitment of police officers.
“We are also having to manage significant pressures within legal aid and the department’s payment policy is currently the matter of judicial review.
“In the absence of sufficient additional funding being allocated to my department, extremely difficult decisions on prioritisation and service provision will continue to be required.”
DUP MLA Deborah Erskine asked the minister about her priorities within the current budget, pointing out that 42 females have been murdered in Northern Ireland in eight years.
Ms Long said there has to be an Executive-wide approach to dealing with femicide, including changing how RSE (relationship and sexuality education) is taught in schools.
She added: “It is something that will require cross-departmental co-operation in terms of changing attitudes to women and girls in society.
“By the time people come through the Department (of Justice), where we have actually made changes to the law around domestic abuse, around stalking and around sexual offences, the truth is they are already victims and it is essentially too late to protect them from harm.
“Protection from harm means moving upstream.
“That means working with the Department of Health, as I do on the domestic violence and sexual abuse strategy, and there is money allocated to that, and also working with TEO (The Executive Office) to ensure that the violence against women and girls strategy can be fully implemented in a way that is complementary to the domestic and sexual abuse strategy.”