To ask the Minister of Finance to detail (i) the amount of funding sought for the Paramilitary Crime Task Force in 2021/22; (ii) the amount ring-fenced for the Task Force; and (iii) any other funding that is available for the Task Force.

On 30 July 2020, the Executive approved a three year extension of the Tackling Paramilitarism, Criminality and Organised Crime programme. Funding of £13m is available for the Programme in 2021/22. The Executive has provided £8m of funding, with a further £5m being provided by the British Government. From this £13m allocation, the cross Departmental Programme Board has allocated some £5.72m for the Paramilitary Crime Taskforce.

The entire £13m of funding for the Executive’s Tackling Paramilitarism Programme has been ringfenced.

A further £10m of funding has been made available over three years by the NIO for the Communities in Transition project. This project is also part of the wider Tackling Paramilitarism, Criminality and Organised Crime Programme.

Going forward, it is my intention to commission a Budget process in the next few months. This process will look to set Budget allocations for Departments for the 2022-25 period. This Budget process will allow the Executive the opportunity to consider and agree the level of funding to be allocated to the Executive’s Tackling Paramilitarism Programme in these future years.