This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-20491878

The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 2 Version 3
Stormont faces £262m penalty in pensions split Stormont faces £262m penalty in pensions split
(35 minutes later)
By Martina Purdy BBC NI Political CorrespondentBy Martina Purdy BBC NI Political Correspondent
The finance minister Sammy Wilson has told the Assembly that the cost of delaying pension reform legislation for a year totals £262m. Finance Minister Sammy Wilson has told the Assembly that the cost of delaying pension reform legislation for a year totals £262m.
"The scale of the £260m cost is simply too much for us to manage and would seriously impact on the delivery of public services here," he said.
Stormont faces a penalty after the executive split on how to deal with the reform of public sector pensions.Stormont faces a penalty after the executive split on how to deal with the reform of public sector pensions.
Mr Wilson said this sum could be equal to 8,000 full-time nurses. Mr Wilson said the best way forward was speedy legislation at Stormont.
He said the best way forward was speedy legislation at Stormont to minimise the financial penalty and meet the deadline for reform of April 2015. This would minimise the financial penalty and meet the deadline for reform of April 2015.
Mr Wilson said he was disappointed that his Executive colleagues had not accepted his recommendation that the best way to proceed and avoid delay is to give Westminster the consent to legislate the issue on behalf of Northern Ireland public sector workers.Mr Wilson said he was disappointed that his Executive colleagues had not accepted his recommendation that the best way to proceed and avoid delay is to give Westminster the consent to legislate the issue on behalf of Northern Ireland public sector workers.
Career averageCareer average
The cost of delay, he said, is more than the entire budget of the department of trade, enterprise and industry. The cost of delay, he said, is more than the entire budget of the Department of Trade, Enterprise and Industry.
Last week, Mr Wilson told the executive the reforms needed to be passed on a UK-wide basis. He said the sum of £262m - which is what the delay would cost the NI Executive - would be equal to 8,000 full-time nurses.
He said this was to avoid breaking parity with the rest of the UK and incurring penalties. Last week, Mr Wilson told the executive the reforms needed to be passed on a UK-wide basis. He said this was to avoid breaking parity with the rest of the UK and incurring penalties.
The reforms include cost savings of 7% and would see public sector workers collecting pensions based on career average rather than final salary.The reforms include cost savings of 7% and would see public sector workers collecting pensions based on career average rather than final salary.
Following contacts with Danny Alexander, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Mr Wilson recommended that the executive agree to let Westminster take the lead and include Northern Ireland in its legislation which is already before Parliament.Following contacts with Danny Alexander, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Mr Wilson recommended that the executive agree to let Westminster take the lead and include Northern Ireland in its legislation which is already before Parliament.
But nationalist ministers refused to agree that there was not time for separate legislation at the assembly to allow MLAs to scrutinise the reform.But nationalist ministers refused to agree that there was not time for separate legislation at the assembly to allow MLAs to scrutinise the reform.
It is understood Mr Wilson warned that having the primary legislation go to the assembly rather than Westminster would mean a delay until January 2016 and a bill that the executive can ill-afford to pay. A vote was taken later in which a majority of ministers backed Mr Wilson. These included unionist ministers along with Alliance. However, nationalist ministers blocked his proposal, by insisting the vote be taken on a cross-community basis.
The SDLP minister Alex Attwood refused to agree to giving Westminster consent to legislate. Speaking after Mr Wilson addressed the assembly on Monday, Ulster Unionist Leslie Cree said his party supported the implementation of the Pensions Bill.
Sinn Fein ministers then asked for and received an adjournment of last week's executive meeting. "We would ultimately have liked to have seen it already passed through a legislative consent motion, given that the Executive agreed it on 8 March 2012," he said.
Sources say this prompted a quip from the First Minister, Peter Robinson, about the SDLP setting policy for Sinn Fein - echoing comments he made in a speech last month. "The insistence of Sinn Fein and the SDLP to hold up this piece of legislation is typical of the hypocrisy in the assembly and we may now face a delay past the date which the Bill will be implemented in the rest of the UK, with financial consequences for Northern Ireland."
But a Sinn Fein source insisted that both Martin McGuinness and John O'Dowd had made clear their opposition to Mr Wilson's proposals before Mr Attwood objected at the executive table. Trevor Lunn, Alliance Party, said: "The place to oppose these plans was at Westminster where our MP Naomi Long voted against it. We are now constrained to meet a set timetable and we will face a large financial penalty if we delay it."
The source also added that Sinn Fein had been consistent on this issue before the finance minister brought it to the executive.
After the adjournment, a vote was taken in which a majority of ministers backed Mr Wilson. These included unionist ministers along with Alliance.
However, nationalist ministers blocked his proposal, by insisting the vote be taken on a cross-community basis.