Brown's debt mountain hurting Northern Ireland

MEP Jim Nicholson has warned of the likely impact of Northern Ireland's mountain of personal debt - now over £1billion - on families and businesses.

Mr. Nicholson said, "It is disturbing that credit card debt in Northern Ireland has now exceeded £1billion. This mountain of personal debt has profound implications for families and businesses in Northern Ireland. At a time of job losses and pay cuts, credit card debts could push many families into severe financial hardship. The threats of home repossession and the impact on the mental health of families will also unfortunately hang over many.

"The economic impact on Northern Ireland plc of this mountain of personal debt is also a matter for concern. While spending on the basis of this credit may have contributed to our regional economy at the time, paying off the debt and the interest payments takes money out of the Northern Ireland economy.

"Under Gordon Brown and Labour, personal debt has soared to record levels in the UK. We have experienced a boom dangerously fuelled by personal debt - and the boom has now become a painful crash. Northern Ireland has been caught up in Gordon Brown's recession as much as any other part of the United Kingdom.

"While addressing the mountain of personal debt will require a change of government at Westminster, in the mean-time the Northern Ireland Executive must ensure that debt counselling and financial advice services are properly funded to deal with this situation".