Nisra may have to scale back work due to budget problems

The Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (Nisra) has warned it may have to delay, suspend, or scale back some of its work due to budget problems.

Public services in NI have to find cuts due to a squeezed Stormont budget.

Nisra says its budget for this year has been cut by 14.3%.

Its cost-cutting proposals include reducing the level of detail it provides on key economic data including quarterly economic output.

The quarterly output report, known as the NI Composite Economic Index (NICEI), is the headline measurement of the short-term performance of the Northern Ireland economy.

Nisra has proposed that the NICEI will be reduced to headline results only with detailed analysis and economic commentary removed.

The report will be reduced from 19 pages to approximately five pages.

Similar proposals have been made to reduce the level of analysis in the quarterly statistics for manufacturing, services, construction and employment.

A separate retail sales report would be suspended and the details folded into the general services report.

Quarterly statistics for port traffic and air travel would be reduced to annual publications.

Some of the more obscure reports, such as the annual coal statistics, would be ended entirely.