Budget (No. 3) Act (Northern Ireland) 2020

Issue of sum out of the Consolidated Fund for the year ending 31 March 2021 and appropriation of that sum

1.—(1) The Department of Finance may issue out of the Consolidated Fund and apply to the service of the year ending 31 March 2021 the sum of £4,757,631,000.

(2) That sum is appropriated for the purposes specified in Schedule 1.

Power of the Department of Finance to borrow

2.—(1) The Department of Finance may borrow on the credit of the sum specified in section 1 any sum or sums not exceeding in total £2,378,816,000.

(2) Any money so borrowed must be repaid, with any interest due on it, out of the Consolidated Fund not later than 31 March 2021.

Use of resources (other than accruing resources) in the year ending 31 March 2021

3.—(1) For the purposes of section 6(1) of the 2001 Act, this section authorises the use of resources in the year ending 31 March 2021 by the persons mentioned in subsection (3) to the amount of £4,791,050,000.

(2) In that year, resources may be used by a person mentioned in that subsection for the purposes specified in relation to that person in column 1 of Schedule 2 up to the amounts specified in the corresponding entries in column 2 of that Schedule.

(3) The persons are—

(a) the Northern Ireland departments;

(b) the Food Standards Agency;

(c) the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission;

(d) the Northern Ireland Audit Office;

(e) the Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation;

(f) the Northern Ireland Public Services Ombudsman;

(g) the Public Prosecution Service for Northern Ireland.

(4) In subsections (1) and (2), “resources” does not include accruing resources within the meaning of section 8(1) of the 2001 Act.

Limit on use of certain accruing resources in the year ending 31 March 2021

4.—(1) For the purposes of section 8(1) of the 2001 Act, this section sets the relevant limits on the accruing resources that may be directed to be used for certain purposes in the year ending 31 March 2021 in addition to resources authorised by this Act or any other statutory provision to be used for those purposes in that year.

(2) In that year, accruing resources not exceeding the amount specified in column 3 of Schedule 2 may be directed to be used for the purposes specified in the corresponding entries in column 1 of that Schedule.

Cash excesses for the year ending 31 March 2017

5.—(1) The Department of Finance may issue out of the Consolidated Fund and apply to the service of the year ending 31 March 2017 the sum of £112,618,000.

(2) That sum is appropriated for the purposes specified in Schedule 3.

Resource excesses for the year ending 31 March 2017

6.—(1) For the purposes of section 6(1) of the 2001 Act, this section authorises the use of resources in the year ending 31 March 2017 by the persons mentioned in subsection (3) to the amount of £183,290,000 in the year ending 31 March 2017.

(2) In that year, resources may be used by a person mentioned in that subsection for the purposes specified in relation to that person in column 1 of Schedule 4 up to the amounts specified in the corresponding entries in column 2 of that Schedule.

(3) The persons are—

(a) the Department for the Economy;

(b) the Department of Education;

(c) the Department of Health;

(d) the Department for Infrastructure;

(e) the Executive Office;

(f) the Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation;

(g) the Public Prosecution Service for Northern Ireland.

(4) In subsections (1) and (2), “resources” does not include accruing resources within the meaning of section 8(1) of the 2001 Act.

(5) The resources authorised by this section are additional to any resources or accruing resources authorised by or under any other statutory provision to be used for those purposes in that year.

Repeal of spent provisions

7.  The statutory provisions mentioned in Schedule 5 are repealed to the extent specified in the second column of that Schedule.

Interpretation

8.  In this Act—

“the 2001 Act” means the Government Resources and Accounts Act (Northern Ireland) 2001;

“statutory provision” has the same meaning as in section 1(f) of the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954.

Short title

9.  This Act may be cited as the Budget (No. 3) Act (Northern Ireland) 2020.