Edwin Poots has welcomed an injection of £33.3m to the Department of Health.

Finance Minister Sammy Wilson announced the allocation today, £19m of which has been provided through the Executive’s Invest to Save scheme.

Health Minister Edwin Poots said: "I welcome today’s announcement of additional funding for my Department. This money will assist us in improving the services delivered across Health and Social Care."

£13m will go towards providing another 15,000 treatments in a range of specialisms including orthopaedics, general surgery, ophthalmology, gynaecology and dermatology and is expected to reduce waiting times.

A further £1.3m will be used to ease car parking at the Ulster Hospital by purchasing the adjacent Tor Bank site.

Minister Poots said: "The implementation of Transforming Your Care is vital for the future sustainability of our health service. This Invest to Save funding is key to advancing reform and to delivering improved health and social care, in line with the finalised way ahead following the current consultation."

"Additional funding will help address backlogs in elective care waiting times across regional specialties. This will ease pressures in many of our hospitals.

"In addition, there will be funding for the implementation of the recommendations from the report into pseudomonas, which will help prevent further incidents."

The Minister concluded saying: "It is my commitment as Minister to ensure that my department and the HSC will do all that is possible to maximise the quality and standards of all services provided to the population.

"The reality is that demand for health services is continuing to rise and the service needs to be able to improve its capacity and become more efficient in the way it delivers services. I will continue to invest any additional funds where improved health and social care services are needed for the people of Northern Ireland."

(IT)