Economy Minister Gordon Lyons has confirmed that the High Street Voucher Scheme brought almost 1.4 million shoppers on to Northern Ireland's high streets where they made over 3.7 million transactions.
The pre-paid Spend Local cards worth £100 were issued late last year to help businesses bounce back from set-backs caused by the coronavirus lockdown.
Mr Lyons has published new data on the scheme, run by the Department for the Economy, including the uptake and use of the Spend Local cards along with a breakdown of spending and transactions by local government district and by postcode area.
Read more: NI High Street voucher: Economy Minister releases new data on spending scheme
He said that the scheme injected at least £136.6million into the local economy, leading to an improved level of consumer confidence and increased levels of public spending.
He described the scheme as "a huge success", which achieved exactly what it set out to do - bringing shoppers back on to the High Street and supporting the local retail, hospitality and service sectors to start their journey of recovery from the devastating impact of the pandemic.
How were the cards were spent and where?
Of the 1,399,051 cards issued, 1,393,043 were activated (99.6%).
In total, 3,714,828 transactions were made, with £136,611,929 spent in total.
That left £2,692,371 of unspent cash on the activated cards.
But that money is not lost as it will either be reallocated by the Department for the Economy or returned to central coffers.
Early analysis shows that the benefits of the scheme were enjoyed in all parts of Northern Ireland.
The Belfast area saw most transactions made, with almost 870,000 occurring in the city (23.4%) compared to a low of 179,243 (4.8%) in Fermanagh and Omagh.
More than £27million was spent in Belfast, more than £12million in Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon while more than £10million was spent in each of the following local council areas – Newry, Mourne and Down; Derry and Strabane; Antrim and Newtownabbey; Lisburn and Castlereagh; and Ards and North Down.
In Mid and East Antrim, the figure was more than £9million.
In Causeway Coast and Glens and in Mid Ulster, more than £8million was spent, while the figure for Fermanagh and Omagh was just over £7.5million.
Key Points
At 27 January 2022:
- 1,399,051 NI residents were issued with a Spend Local card
- 1,393,043 (99.6%) Spend Local cards were activated
- total spend on Spend Local cards was £136.6m
Transactions by Local Government District
Belfast 869,934 (23.4%)
Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon 325,538 (8.8%)
Antrim and Newtownabbey 302,346 (8.1%)
Ards and North Down 296,202 (8.0%)
Lisburn and Castlereagh 278,393 (7.5%)
Derry City and Strabane 272,249 (7.3%)
Newry, Mourne and Down 261,868 (7.0%)
Mid and East Antrim 241,206 (6.5%)
Causeway Coast and Glens 224,388 (6.0%)
Mid Ulster 190,975 (5.1%)
Fermanagh and Omagh 179,243 (4.8%)
Unknown* 272,486 (7.3%)
Total: Northern Ireland 3,714,828 (100%)
*272,486 (7.3%) transaction locations do not have a corresponding postcode in the postcode directory.
Spend by Local Government District
Belfast £27,623,647 (20.2%)
Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon £12,736,406 (9.3%)
Newry, Mourne and Down £10,607,892 (7.8%)
Antrim and Newtownabbey £10,374,516 (7.6%)
Lisburn and Castlereagh £10,301,486 (7.5%)
Ards and North Down £10,261,342 (7.5%)
Derry City and Strabane £10,238,031 (7.5%)
Mid and East Antrim £9,312,169 (6.8%)
Causeway Coast and Glens £8,938,166 (6.5%)
Mid Ulster £8,120,166 (5.9%)
Fermanagh and Omagh £7,524,086 (5.5%)
Unknown* £10,574,023 (7.7%)
Total: Northern Ireland £136,611,929 (100%)
* The transaction locations of £10,574,023 (7.7%) spend do not have a corresponding postcode in the postcode directory.
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