In short

A round-up of today’s other stories in brief

NI Secretary warns of public sector dominating economy

Northern Ireland’s public sector-dominated economy “is unsustainable and simply has to change”, the Northern Secretary has warned, as emotions run high in the North over planned British government public expenditure cuts.

The Confederation of British Industry in the North believes that by "putting the brakes on existing costs", restructuring, and better management, the North's Executive could save more than a billion euro in five years.

Speaking at a CBI event in Northern Ireland last night, Northern Secretary Owen Paterson appeared to support the CBI's assertion that it was time for tough decisions.

Call for strategy on entrepreneurship

A national entrepreneurship strategy should be introduced by the Government in consultation with the business community, according to a new report by the Institute of Certified Public Accountants in Ireland.
The report, launched yesterday by Minister for Enterprise Batt O'Keeffe, also calls for the tax and social welfare treatment of self-employed people to be brought into line with that of employees.

Appointment of Nyberg confirmed

The appointment of Peter Nyberg to lead the commission of investigation into the banking sector has been confirmed by the Minister for Finance.

Mr Nyberg, a former Finnish senior civil servant, has been engaged in preparatory work over the last few months, and will commence substantive work on the commission within the next few days. A report will be completed within six months, the Department of Finance said yesterday.