Pivotal

"Whilst recognising and celebrating progress, it is impossible to ignore the myriad challenges facing women in NI."
Following International Women's Day, Dervilia Kernaghan from @womensplatformni.bsky.social writes for our guest blog series.
www.pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/piv...

Multi-year budget consultation response Pivotal has responded to the consultation on the proposed draft multi-year budget. The Executive's funding position in 2025-26 is alarming and will put unprecedented pressures on departments' spending...

Pivotal has responded to the consultation on the proposed draft multi-year budget for the NI Executive.

In our response we provide analysis of the unprecedented funding position and make some suggestions about how it can best be handled.

Read here
pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/new...

For Northern Ireland, being a bit better than collapse is not good enough In recent months, the early positivity of the latest version of Stormont has fallen away

"Too much time and energy is wasted today on fuelling political divisions rather than finding solutions. Somehow, ministers must rediscover the spirit of compromise that underpinned the Belfast Agreement."

Ann Watt writes for The Irish Times Common Ground
www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...

'The State of the State' in Northern Ireland Last week saw the publication in Northern Ireland of ‘State of the State 2026’, a UK-wide review by Deloitte and Re:State of how well government is working. The methodology combines a public survey an...

What's the 'State of the State' in Northern Ireland? Read our article that takes a look at the latest report from
@deloitteinsights.bsky.social and @re-state.bsky.social about what the public and senior leaders think about how well government is working here

www.linkedin.com/pulse/state-...

"Mixed tenure is a new way of working for private developers, housing associations and the various government agencies involved." A new guest article on Pivotal Platform from Mark Graham of Co-Ownership. www.pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/piv...

Slugger Event: Two Years Down, One To Go The NI Executive has been back up and running for two years. The next Assembly election is just over a year away. The campaigning is already underway. Given their track record of delivery, we ask whet...

As part of Imagine join Ann Watt @pivotalpolicy.bsky.social Jodie Carson @ulsteruni.bsky.social & Suzanne Breen @belfasttelegraph.co.uk

sluggerotoole.com/2026/02/23/s...

Evidence to the Finance Committee: Multi-year budget Pivotal has provided written evidence to the NI Assembly Finance Committee about the proposed draft multi-year budget. The amount of day-to-day funding available to the Northern Ireland Executive in 2...

What are the challenges facing the NI Executive in managing its budget?

Pivotal has provided oral and written evidence to the NI Assembly Finance Committee about the proposed draft multi-year budget.

Read our evidence and view a clip here
pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/new...

"NI’s woodland creation targets are ambitious, necessary and publicly supported, but they will remain aspirational without the structural changes required to deliver them." John Martin of the Woodland Trust is this week's guest contributor to Pivotal Platform pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/piv...

Supporting carers at work: from good intentions to meaningful action Across the UK, thousands of parents and carers are balancing employment with caring responsibilities. For many of us, work is more than income

"When policymakers and organisations engage directly with carers, through conversations, workshops, or storytelling, the picture becomes richer, more honest, and more grounded in reality"
A new guest article for Pivotal Platform, this week from Ellie Goff.
www.pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/piv...

The five-year Education budget strategy The Education Minister’s draft five-year budget strategy, published last Wednesday, highlights important patterns in education spending and how these needs can be best met in future. It faces up to st...

Read Pivotal's analysis of the Department of Education's five-year budget strategy here: www.linkedin.com/pulse/five-y...

NEW Pivotal tracker report reviews two years of the restored Northern Ireland Executive

Read the report here
www.pivotalpolicy.org/assets/files...

Look out tomorrow morning for Pivotal's new tracker report reviewing the two years since the restoration of the Northern Ireland Executive in February 2024.

Last night our PLDP cohort heard from Suzanne Wylie from NI Chamber about the challenges and opportunities in local government and business, and from our senior researcher James about research skills and research ethics.

An enjoyable and engaging session all round!

"For too long our homelessness response has been focused almost entirely downstream, rescuing people once they are already in crisis." A new guest article for Pivotal Platform, by Cathy Brolly from the Simon Community. www.pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/piv...

"People with MS want to work. Many already do. Many more could continue working for longer with the right support." Naomi McBurney, of the MS Society in Northern Ireland (@mssocietyuk.bsky.social), is this week's guest writer on Pivotal Platform. www.pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/piv...

A group photo of our PLDP cohort in front of a banner stand and a PLDP title slide

The PLDP cohort discussing their policy interests in small groups

A member of the Pivotal team delivering a presentation to the PLDP cohort

A member of the Pivotal team delivering a presentation to the PLDP cohort

Last night we held the first session of our second PLDP cohort!

We discussed the fundamentals of politics and policy in Northern Ireland as well as the topics and issues that inspire them. It is great to be back with a whole new group of dedicated young policy leaders.

A multi-year Budget is an opportunity which cannot be missed by Executive For years, Northern Ireland’s politicians have anticipated the chance to craft a multi-year Budget. It is an opportunity for longer-term planning for public service delivery, investment and reform aft...

Ann Watt writes about the proposed draft multi-year budget in today's Belfast Telegraph - "an opportunity that cannot be missed"

www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/opinion/news...

3. Is boosting funding for public services through greater revenue raising being considered?
4. What vision and strategic aims sit behind the budget allocations? What new ideas are there?
5. What goals will the Executive set for public service transformation over the 3-year period? 3/3

Proposed draft multi-year budget - initial Pivotal analysis Yesterday the Finance Minister published a proposed draft multi-year budget for Northern Ireland Departments for consultation. It sets out proposed resource and capital allocations for the next three ...

1. How will Executive Ministers and departments work collectively towards an agreed budget by the start of the financial year?
2. Will more detailed information about plans be released by depts? Headline numbers only mean very difficult for anyone external to assess impacts 2/3

Proposed draft multi-year budget - initial Pivotal analysis Yesterday the Finance Minister published a proposed draft multi-year budget for Northern Ireland Departments for consultation. It sets out proposed resource and capital allocations for the next three ...

Today the Finance Minister will make an oral statement in the Assembly about his proposed draft multi-year Budget.

You can read Pivotal's initial analysis of the proposed draft Budget here linkedin.com/pulse/propos...

Some areas where it would be good to know more ⬇️ 1/3

"Any policy response that treats online harm as generic will fail to grasp the mechanisms that make it so dangerous for women of faith." This week's guest blog on Pivotal Platform is by Mischa Gerrard, a member of the Faith & VAWG Coalition. www.pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/piv...

NEW Pivotal Briefing looks at the challenges and opportunities facing the Northern Ireland Executive as it considers its upcoming multi-year budget

Read the Briefing here pivotalpolicy.org/assets/files...

👀New Pivotal Briefing on Northern Ireland's multi-year budget coming out on Monday

Joan McEwan from @mariecurieuk.bsky.social in Northern Ireland is today's guest contributor to Pivotal Platform. Discussing the approach needed to ensure "high-quality, integrated palliative care is delivered where and when patients need it most." www.pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/piv...

Pivotal's response to the UK Budget Good news on the two-child limit but Westminster Budget still leaves NI Executive with a tough financial challenge.

Pivotal's response to the UK Budget. www.pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/new...

On World Children's Day, a new guest blog on Pivotal Platform from the NI Commissioner for Children and Young People, @nichildcom.bsky.social, Chris Quinn. www.pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/piv...

Launch of Pivotal report commissioned by NICVA A new Pivotal report, Voluntary and community sector-led approaches to economic inactivity, commissioned by NICVA (the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action) has been launched at Stormont. The...

A new Pivotal report, 'Voluntary and community sector-led approaches to economic inactivity', commissioned by
@NICVA
has been launched at Stormont. Details and a link to the full report here - www.pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/new...

"It’s now time to work together and ensure that NI sets the standard when it comes to protecting workers from the impact of extreme weather events." Susan Fitzgerald, Regional Secretary of @unitetheunion.bsky.social, guest writes for Pivotal Platform. www.pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/piv...

"Arthritis has a massive impact on society and is a leading cause of pain, disability, mental ill-health and inability to work." John McCormick of @arthritisuk.bsky.social is this week's guest contributor to Pivotal Platform. www.pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/piv...

"Focusing too much on what’s happening at the frontier distracts from more meaningful questions for most organisations." Donnacha Kirk, of the Artificial Intelligence Collaboration Centre (AICC), is this week's guest contributor to Pivotal Platform. www.pivotalpolicy.org/our-work/piv...