AGRICULTURE and Rural Development Minister, Michelle O'Neill, was in Enniskillen this afternoon to officially open the Forest Service headquarters.

As part of the decentralisation of civil service jobs across Northern Ireland, over 50 Forest Service posts will now be located in Inishkeen House, based in the Killyhevlin Industrial Estate.

Speaking during her visit, the Minister said: “There are very clear benefits in moving Forest Service's administrative and management functions from Belfast to an area where one-third of all forests lie in the council area, including over 30 public forests.”

Fermanagh and South Tyrone MLA, Phil Flanagan, who attended the opening, said the move was a “hugely positive” step for the local economy.

He said: “The location of Forest Service’s headquarters will be a significant opportunity in the future for public sector jobs that would have been out of reach of Fermanagh citizens, particularly at a senior level where a relocation or a significant commute would have been required.”

However, Mr Flanagan added: “There is a need for further decentralisation of public sector jobs to Fermanagh, not only for those already working within the civil service, but for the hundreds of people in the county struggling to find employment.”