SDLP Foyle MLA Sinead McLaughlin
The Health Inequalities 2024 annual report evidenced that in the Western Trust, the rate of drug misuse in its most deprived areas is almost two and a half times (145%) the Trust average.
The report also found that the gap in life expectancy at birth between the Western Trust and its 20% most deprived areas was 5.0 years for males and 2.7 years for females.
Ms. McLaughlin is proposing legislation that would mandate the whole of government to address regional imbalances.
Said the Foyle MLA: “In 2024, the fact that the postcode of your birth still determines your healthy life expectancy is a failure of government policy over the last two decades to rebalance our economy and ensure everyone has equal opportunities.
“I am pleased that the new Health Minister appears to take a keen interest in this issue.
“However, while I am glad the Department of Health is developing an intervention in this area, I believe more ambition is needed and a more strategic approach could be adopted.
“In my view, addressing this issue is not about limited interventions piloted in some areas as the Minister has indicated, but about how policies, strategies and plans are designed in government and funding allocated to reflect need through a place-based lens.
“I was recently disappointed to learn through a written question that Minister Nesbitt’s officials have had no input into the Sub-Regional Economic Plan being developed by the Department for the Economy.
“We need a coherent and cohesive approach from across government on tackling these imbalances in a way that brings interventions together and aligns our policy approach.
“I was also concerned that the Minister appears to treat tackling higher levels of deprivation and alleviating regional imbalances as separate issues when they are so interlinked.
“In the North West, we have some of the highest levels of disadvantage, yet we are still waiting on the new Emergency Department at our local hospital and too often the addiction crisis in our city and region has gone unchecked.
“This is one of the many reasons that I have proposed legislation to address regional imbalances through binding legislation so government can tilt the balance in favour of places that have been left behind.
“It’s only with a long-term strategic approach that we can make progress on this and finally give equality of opportunity to all our people.”
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