The Northern Ireland Secretary has said Stormont will have to engage in “self-help” and look at revenue raising to resolve Northern Ireland’s budget issues.
Sir Chris Bryant urged party leaders to have an “open mind” as the region continues without a set budget.
The powersharing executive has not agreed a budget for the current financial year, with departments operating on contingency budgets since April.
Last week Stormont ministers signed a collective letter to Prime Minister Andy Burnham calling for “a fair funding envelope”, saying the current level of finance from London “does not provide a sufficient basis to fund public services” in the region.
The UK Treasury has stepped in multiple times in the past to provide one-off payments or loans to Stormont to overcome budgetary issues, most recently with a £400 million reserve claim to be repaid over three years.
Revenue-raising measures available to the Executive include domestic water charges, raising property rates, and prescription charges.
Speaking to reporters in Co Londonderry, Sir Chris said: “We can’t just go through this endless process year after year after year of there’s no money, there’s no money – there’s money.
“Let’s put a little bit of money in to get us over the line this year, and of course, it’s crazy that there’s not a budget yet in this financial year.
“I want to make sure that we get to a good place for public services in Northern Ireland, so that they are really delivering for the people of Northern Ireland, and that means that I think the Executive is going to have to do a bit of self-help.
“But I’m here to provide some help as well, and that’s going to be the negotiation that we’re going to be starting in the next few days.
“Yes, some of that self-help has got to look like some revenue raising.
“I’m not going to tell them how they’ve got to do that, but I also want to make sure that it’s not just us sorting out the financial situation this year, but that we’re looking at a multi-year settlement because that provides the kind of security that people need, not only in Stormont but also in all the public services in Northern Ireland.”
Sir Chris was asked how much the UK Government is “prepared to give”, given Stormont ministers’ repeated complaint that Northern Ireland is not funded above its assessed level of need to the same extent as Scotland and Wales.
The Secretary of State said: “I understand the financial pressures that there are in Northern Ireland, and I’m very happy to take them very seriously.
“But I also need all the political parties in Stormont to come into the negotiations with an open mind to make sure that we really deliver for the people of Northern Ireland, and that means not just sorting this year’s financial problem, getting a budget over the line, but also a multi-year settlement and probably a programme for government looking into the future.”
Stormont ministers have called for ‘a fair funding envelope’ (Liam McBurney/PA)