QPANI welcomes additional £20 million for roads

Association calls for concerted effort to see additional funds converted into work on the ground

THE Quarry Products Association Northern Ireland (QPANI) has welcomed the re-allocation of Executive funds announced in the January monitoring round. In particular the Association has welcomed the £20 million additional funding for roads maintenance and other road improvements in the province.

QPANI regional director Gordon Best (pictured) said: ‘The announcement is a real boost for our members. The additional funding allocations will see both direct and indirect benefits for construction material suppliers across Northern Ireland.

‘We share the Minister’s optimism about the impending economic recovery. There are undoubted signs that our economy, and particularly the local construction industry, is recovering after five years of decline.

This additional stimulus is good for the whole economy and we must now see a concerted effort to ensure that these additional funds convert to work on the ground as quickly as possible and create sustainable employment and significant economic benefit across Northern Ireland.’

QPANI has also highlighted national statistics that show the resurfacing of roads delivers almost 20 times the value for money than the reactive patching of potholes, and that in the longer term better maintained roads reduce the levels of insurance claims directed against the Roads Service.