Politicians against office closures

Politicians against office closures

23 November 2016

SOUTH Down MLAs Colin McGrath and Caitriona Ruane have called for social security offices in Ballynahinch and Newcastle to remain open.

Both spoke during a recent adjournment debate in Stormont and last week met with staff members and community representatives who staged a protest outside Stormont against the proposed closures.

Mr McGrath believes the Northern Ireland Executive parties should use their influence to prevent the closure of the offices, describing plans to axe them as an “attack on those who live in rural areas.”

He has also called for a full equality impact assessment to be completed on the controversial proposal and believes such an assessment would highlight “discrimination against rural communities.” The MLA is also concerned there is discrimination against the workforce given that over 85 of the affected staff are female. 

“These two issues underscore the need for an equality impact assessment,” declared Mr McGrath. “While the Department for Communities is attempting to justify the closure of the offices and moving to new IT-based systems, it is overlooking the fact that many on benefits cannot afford broadband access and some may not even know how to use such systems. 

“Recent aspirations by our Executive to move to IT based systems and replacing face-to-face contact from the Civil Service does appear to be developing a new type of IT discrimination,” he declared.

Mr McGrath added: “Ministers using private offices with superfast broadband access must remember that not everybody in the North has access to such speeds. We have two parties in our executive and I would urge both of them to do what they can to prevent these closures from progressing.”

Ms Ruane said Newcastle and Ballynahinch have a wide rural catchment area and are the closest social security offices for a lot of people in South Down. 

“Closing these offices would have a major detrimental effect on the people who need them most,” she continued. “The provision of services in rural areas will always cost more than in large urban areas and therefore value for money must be considered in the context of the rural and economic impact.”

Ms Ruane believes the additional travelling involved to get to another social security office will be impossible for many people on benefits as the cost to travel from one town to another will “eat up a significant amount of a person’s benefits.”

She added: “This could be the cost of a week’s worth of electricity or fuel in some cases and I hope Communities Minister Paul Givan listens to the people of South Down and that both of these offices remain open to serve the people of Newcastle, Ballynahinch and surrounding areas.”