A Derry councillor has questioned why job creation numbers in Belfast compared to Derry and Strabane in the last financial year had such disparity.
It comes after new figures released by Invest NI’s Corporate Information Team revealed that for every one job created in Derry and Strabane, 25 were created in Belfast.
It sparked an angry reaction from SDLP councillor Rory Farrell who said the gulf in numbers between the two cities was "getting beyond ridiculous".
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In total, Derry and Strabane had 67 jobs created in 2021/22, while in Belfast, Invest NI supported the creation of 1,657 jobs.
Speaking at a Council Business and Culture committee, Cllr Farrell added: "In the last financial year across Derry & Strabane, Invest NI supported the creation of 67 jobs. And if we look at Belfast City Council, they supported the creation of 1,657 jobs.
"So for every job Invest NI supported in Derry and Strabane, it has supported 25 in Belfast.
"If we look at the 11 councils across the north, Derry and Strabane is the third lowest. Only Mid & East Antrim and Ards and North Down have lower job creation figures.
"And if we look at the 3,000 jobs that were created across the north last year, only two per cent were in our council area - so 98 percent of that total went elsewhere. So, it's getting beyond ridiculous at this stage.
"Invest NI needed to come to the Business and Culture committee to tell us what it is going to do to support job creation, to support local businesses and to pump investment into this city and district because what they are doing now clearly is not working.”
Meanwhile, in a statement to MyDerry, a spokesperson for Invest NI refuted the claims. They said: "Our support is demand-led and depends on businesses bringing forward growth projects.
"In the last five years, we have supported over 320 businesses in the Derry City and Strabane DC area, helping secure nearly 1,800 new jobs and over £232m investment in the region’s economy.
"Northern Ireland is a relatively small place and evidence indicates that many businesses draw their workforce from areas beyond constituency and council area boundaries.
"Over the last 5 years, almost 73 per cent of the offers we made were to businesses outside Belfast, or to projects that have the potential to impact on multiple locations throughout Northern Ireland. 60 per cent of total investment, company and Invest NI support combined, and nearly 57 per cent of new jobs were also outside Belfast."
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