The SDLP is "extremely concerned" after it was announced that Dale Farm's £40 million investment in Cookstown has been put on hold due to an insufficient gas and electricity supply.

MLA for Mid Ulster and Chair of the Assembly Enterprise Committee, Patsy McGlone, said the investment would bring jobs to the town as well as provide an "economic boost" to local businesses.

He said: "It's something that we desperately need west of the Bann.

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"Yet executives at Dale Farm have been told that they cannot be provided with the gas and electricity support that they need to make this significant investment happen. That is utterly unacceptable. To add insult to injury, NIE told the company that they should relocate East of the Bann to Ballymena where they could supply more electricity.

"I have visited Dale Farm at their site in Dunman and was impressed by their operation and the employment opportunities they have brought to the district.

"This once again underlines the discrimination that towns in the West face when trying to attract new jobs and businesses. For a utility like NIE to attempt to entice jobs away from Cookstown is disgraceful and I have been in touch with their Managing Director to arrange a meeting to discuss this issue."

(CD/JP)