Business

PLATFORM: SDLP’s four principles for economic recovery

The SDLP's economic recovery paper is seeking a big increase in apprenticeships and a rise in the number of student places in universities
The SDLP's economic recovery paper is seeking a big increase in apprenticeships and a rise in the number of student places in universities The SDLP's economic recovery paper is seeking a big increase in apprenticeships and a rise in the number of student places in universities

CORONAVIRUS and Brexit mean the future will be different from the past. The challenge is to shape the future of our society and economy, to prevent permanent damage and to create a better future.

This week the SDLP has launched its 'Four Principles for Economic Recovery' paper, reflecting our ambition for a fairer society, with new opportunities.

We are calling for a new deal for young people, recognising that Covid-19 will particularly affect young adults and also children still at school, for as we've seen from the exams debacle, if we are not careful the existing barriers and divisions within our society based on wealth and class will be widened as a result of this crisis.

We are also demanding more support for young adults to enable them to improve their skills to cope and thrive. This means a big increase in apprenticeships and a permanent rise in the number of student places in our universities. This will not just help today’s students obtain well paid and productive work in the future, but also boost the economy for the benefit of all of us.

The SDLP is also calling for a 'new localism', recognising that it was our local shops, locally-owned, that helped us to get through the first wave of the pandemic. We need to re-establish our roots in our local communities, supporting local businesses, just as they have supported us. We want to use this opportunity to improve the places in which we live and work, including through a big boost for childcare provision and early years learning.

We also need to strengthen our communities in other ways. Connectivity in Northern Ireland is not good enough, nor are our connections and economic linkages with the Republic. We all know that we need more investment in our roads and rail lines, to help us move about quicker and with more efficiency.

Just as importantly, we need better broadband connections. It is unacceptable that thousands of homes are without high quality broadband. This holds back our children and students from learning online and prevents some of our most vulnerable citizens from accessing services over the internet.

But to positively reshape Northern Ireland, we also need to give our institutions new powers to take the actions that are needed. This must include new ways to raise money that enable us to phase out our reliance on business rates, which are a terrible burden on many city and town centre shops. We have to be determined to do things differently in the future.

Throughout its 50-year history the SDLP been the party willing to bring forward exciting new policies, capable of taking our society forward. We want to see progress and development, creating more jobs that lead to a more productive, higher skilled and more satisfied society, geared towards social justice and a sustainable economy. Our Four Principles for Economic Recovery would produce exactly this.

Sinéad McLaughlin MLA is the SDLP's economy spokesperson