Mr. Paul Maskey:

Yes. Youth unemployment is higher in disadvantaged areas and communities that suffered greatly in the conflict and the lead-up to the Good Friday Agreement. I would like to explore what joint work has been done for areas with high unemployment rates, including Derry, Strabane and my own constituency of west Belfast. North Belfast is another area with high unemployment and high youth unemployment rates. Are specific works going on in those areas? In my own constituency, for example, educational attainment has increased, which is a good sign. That is because disadvantaged areas were specifically targeted with resources. Unfortunately, I cannot say that for the Department for Employment and Learning because I do not see exactly what different approaches are being taken. It would be good to try to explore that matter. It is not a criticism, just a question.

I attended an event recently in Belfast City Hall for the Belfast Works project. It is a first-class project which is supported by the Northern Ireland Department for Employment and Learning. Within six months of its initiation 339 jobs have been created, which is a welcome sign. The big problem moving into next year is that funding for Local Employment Intermediary Service, LEMIS, projects is reliant on matched funding, which is a serious issue for many of the organisations that work on that scheme. I would like to get some thoughts from Ms Croskery on some of those issues.