Tackling inequality: the gateway to a shared future in Northern Ireland

The moral compass at the heart of Ed Miliband’s vision for the future of our country is a passionate commitment to tackling inequality. The widening gulf between the rich and the poor means too many people across the UK are still denied the chance to have better lives.

Nowhere is the need to tackle falling living standards, stagnant wages and diminishing life chances more evident than in Northern Ireland. Falling wages here have seen a typical employee receive the lowest gross weekly earnings of any UK region. Northern Ireland continues to have the highest claimant count and inactivity rate in the UK.

Such inequality is damaging in any society but in Northern Ireland it is also the breeding ground for paramilitaries and political extremists. The evidence suggests that people who have experienced conflict find it much harder to escape from poverty. From increased suicide rates to rises in welfare dependency, child poverty to falling male life expectancy, people in areas where the conflict was most intense are still suffering, even 16 years on from the Good Friday Agreement.

The current all-party talks facilitated by the UK and Irish Governments are rightly focused on the budget, welfare cuts and reform, the past, parades and flags.

Yet there are a significant number of people who have seen no peace dividend, have been left behind and have little hope for the future. Too many, in all communities, see themselves as losers not winners from the changes we have seen since the end of the Troubles.

One of Labour’s proudest achievements is helping to negotiate the peace process in Northern Ireland. For us to build on this legacy we must now move forward with a far greater focus on economic inequality, worklessness and intergenerational deprivation in all communities.

Earlier today I launched the Heenan-Anderson Commission, co-chaired by the highly respected Professor Deirdre Heenan and Colin Anderson OBE. Supported by a panel of experts, this economic commission will identify solutions to a range of issues impeding progress in Northern Ireland.

Our ambitions are high. The Heenan-Anderson commission will examine the implications of a rebalanced economy, and consider how to attract global companies and grow small and medium sized businesses. It will cover areas such as early childhood development, educational attainment, skills, business startups and jobs of the future.

The Commission will identify an agenda for change rooted in fairness and responsibility, bringing together the public and private sectors, civil society and local communities in a shared mission.

We will use the findings to consider how the economic pact between the Westminster Government and Northern Ireland Executive can be developed to create a more equal society.

Northern Ireland has made remarkable progress in recent years, thanks to a peace process lauded around the world. First and deputy First Ministers, Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness, deserve credit in particular for their shared successes in attracting major inward investment.

However, the next stage of Northern Ireland’s journey from conflict to a shared future must be a relentless focus on a more equal society on all levels. To build on Labour’s legacy in Northern Ireland, we must develop a society where everyone feels they have a stake in a better future.

Ivan Lewis is the MP for Bury South and is the Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary