Devolution of NI Corporation Tax Discussed by Ministers

A number of thorny issues including the potential devolution of corporation tax were discussed by ministers, attempting to re-balance Northern Ireland’s economy away from an over-reliance on the public sector.

Ministers from the UK government and Northern Ireland held their second meeting, following its inaugural gathering in December 2011, of the Ministerial Working Group on Rebalancing the Northern Ireland Economy.

Treasury secretary David Gauke, who chaired the meeting, said: ‘I am pleased that real progress is being made in exploring the key issues. We have a joint commitment with the Northern Ireland Executive to rebalance the Northern Ireland economy and these discussions are vital as we consider how best to achieve this.

‘The potential devolution of corporation tax raises a number of difficult issues, but we have made significant steps in building a shared understanding of these in advance of a decision in the summer.’

NI secretary Owen Paterson said: ‘The potential costs to the NI block grant are a key aspect of this work. This is a complex issue and much work remains to be done, but I'm confident that we are some way along the road which will allow the government to take a decision later in the year.’