Judith Cochrane MLA said: “These are very difficult times and I believe that we need to make creating jobs in the private sector one of our top priorities. We need to work to re-balance the economy to address the challenges we currently face.
“The creation of a Green New Deal-style strategy would help create a significant number of jobs in the private sector. More home insulations schemes could help create jobs in the construction sector while also increasing energy efficiency and helping people keep their heating bills as low as possible.
“There are many opportunities for growing our economy through focusing on research and development as regards sustainability and renewable energy. Many jobs could be created in engineering, and research and development and this sector holds much potential for us.
“I believe that we need to take bold and innovative approaches to help re-balance and grow our economy. If we can build our private sector, create more jobs and have a larger tax take, that creates more money to for our public finances and can help bolster our public sector as well.”
ENDS