Local Government Minister Arlene Foster has stressed the importance of central and local governments working together to face the challenges ahead.

The Minister was speaking to the Northern Ireland Local Government Association annual conference. Addressing the Programme for Government's investment strategy she said: "We have a priority to improve the infrastructure in Northern Ireland. I welcome the opportunity to address the local government sector because central and local government here have a challenging time ahead if we are to grow a dynamic and innovative economy," she explained.

"The challenge to deliver improvements in service against a tightening fiscal agenda cannot be met by central government alone – all service providers must work together.

"We must ensure communities feel the benefits of increased prosperity, but we cannot achieve that without protecting and enhancing our environment and natural resources. The environment in which we live will determine to a large extent our well-being and our life experiences. It is not separate from our quality of life. It is intrinsic to it."

LIBRARIES WILL BENEFIT

Arts Minister Edwin Poots MLA, said the £31.6million three year capital programme for libraries will help modernise and improve public library facilities.

The Minister said: "The libraries capital budget for the next three years has more than doubled from £13.37million to £31.6million.

"This will allow a major programme of work to improve the library estate with high quality, fit-for-purpose libraries. The overall spend on libraries will enable the Library Service to improve opening hours, continue to provide free internet access, spend more on books and deliver more services on-line."

The Minister continued: "I am also allocating funding of £750,000 to increase book stocks in libraries before the end of the current financial year. This will help to refresh existing bookstock and make sure that readers have access to quality books in plentiful supply."

IT security campaign

Finance Minister, Rt Hon Peter Robinson MP MLA, helped launch 'makeITsecure', a new campaign to highlight the need for online security.

The campaign addresses issues such as ID theft, phishing, social networking and PC viruses. It offers a timely reminder to exercise caution in an age when some 69% of the Northern Ireland public are regular online shoppers and 60% of children engage in online social networks.

Recognising the positive role of IT in everyday lives, but also highlighting the need for online vigilance, Mr Robinson underlined his support for the 'makeITsecure' campaign. He said: "As we continue with our digital inclusion policy and as broadband usage levels increase it is right we remind people of the huge benefits of the World Wide Web and the Internet," he continued.

"However, we must also draw attention to some of the difficulties that can arise and provide easy and effective steps to protect the citizen's personal information.

"By taking on board the lessons from this campaign, we can all enjoy the undoubted benefits of information technology and more importantly to be able to do so safely."