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06/06/2007
MLAs disagree on building sales
The Assembly finance committee has clashed over plans by the Department of Finance and Personnel to sell off 77 properties.
The property sale, which could cost in the region of £1.5 billion over 20 years, has been criticised by members of the Finance Committee who are concerned that the sell-off could be lucrative for property developers, yet cost the Assembly more money.
Some members of the committee expressed concerns about the Private Finance Initiatives (PFI) where the high profits margins may be made from elements of the contracts that provide the government with tenure agreements.
Around 77 buildings are on the list drawn up for disposal and many are understood to require extensive refurbishment.
Speaking after the meeting Deputy Committee Chairperson, Mervyn Storey, MLA, said:
“This was our first opportunity to question officials on Workplace 2010, including the contract to be awarded which will be in the region of £1.5bn. The contract involves the sale and lease back of publicly owned assets and will tie DFP into a 20/25-year relationship with a private sector company. It is crucial that the Committee has the opportunity to scrutinise this in more depth and we will return to this in the coming weeks.”
Mr Storey added: “The Committee will be further examining progress on developing a government policy on the location of public sector jobs in Northern Ireland.”
(SP/KMcA)
The property sale, which could cost in the region of £1.5 billion over 20 years, has been criticised by members of the Finance Committee who are concerned that the sell-off could be lucrative for property developers, yet cost the Assembly more money.
Some members of the committee expressed concerns about the Private Finance Initiatives (PFI) where the high profits margins may be made from elements of the contracts that provide the government with tenure agreements.
Around 77 buildings are on the list drawn up for disposal and many are understood to require extensive refurbishment.
Speaking after the meeting Deputy Committee Chairperson, Mervyn Storey, MLA, said:
“This was our first opportunity to question officials on Workplace 2010, including the contract to be awarded which will be in the region of £1.5bn. The contract involves the sale and lease back of publicly owned assets and will tie DFP into a 20/25-year relationship with a private sector company. It is crucial that the Committee has the opportunity to scrutinise this in more depth and we will return to this in the coming weeks.”
Mr Storey added: “The Committee will be further examining progress on developing a government policy on the location of public sector jobs in Northern Ireland.”
(SP/KMcA)
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