What do people in NI want to see in the Budget?

Stormont ministers will find out later how much extra money they will have to spend as a result of the Westminster Budget.

More money could help lead to a deal on the Stormont budget which is still not agreed, seven months into the financial year.

Chancellor John Healey is unlikely to deliver everything the Northern Ireland parties say they need.

The government has offered an additional £525m this year but the parties say they need about £1.5bn to produce a workable financial plan.

On Wednesday Stormont's Finance Minister John O'Dowd said there was a duty on the government to "fairly fund this place".

The Sinn Féin MLA said he wanted to see a "fair and sustainable settlement, the money currently on the table is not sufficient for us to be able to move forward, pay our public sector workers and sustain public services and grow our economy.

"I await the chancellor's announcements and I hope he does now meet the needs of this society."

Last week, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader Gavin Robinson said it "wouldn't be realistic" to think the gap would be entirely closed by the chancellor but that it could be made "more manageable".

Government sources have played down the prospect of the Budget providing a transformational amount of money.

BBC News NI spoke to a number of people about what they would like to see.

Christina Taylor, who owns Shed Bistro in south Belfast and employs about 30 staff, said that another rise in the minimum wage would mean higher prices for customers.

"The raise last year meant that every guest would need to spend £4.50 more to cover that," she said.

"That's so much money and people can't afford that.

"Raising the minimum wage isn't the answer to the cost of living because it goes in a circle and no one is better off.

"Everyone is still struggling and it's not sustainable for anyone."

Taylor added that there "needs to be support for households or else eating out will be a thing of the past".

She said she had noticed that people were not eating out as often, with the exception of special occasions.

"The cost of living affects us so much, more than Covid - eating out for people is now a luxury and it shouldn't be."

She echoed calls from business groups like Hospitality Ulster, which want to see a reduction in VAT.

"We really need to see a VAT reduction," she said.

"Comparing ourselves to the South (Republic of Ireland) at 9% and Europe at 10% and we're sitting at 20%, it's not sustainable.

"Something needs to happen to change that."

Derek Moore cares for his parents Margaret and Douglas in Greysteel, County Londonderry.

He would like to see help with heating costs and for carers in Northern Ireland.

Social security is devolved, so any changes announced in the Westminster Budget would not automatically apply in Northern Ireland, as legislation would have to pass through the Stormont assembly.

Moore said he could not get his parents "out and about" as much as he would like to "because the cost of living has made it much harder".

"You also have to look at shopping and what things you can save money on," he added.

"You also don't turn the heating on as much as you would like, you have to go down the coal route and make sure it's cosy and warm for them.

"You have to make sure that one room is really warm, and close doors."

His mother is registered blind and his father had a stroke and a heart attack earlier this year.

He works full-time and his parents have carers who visit four times a day.

"It puts a lot of pressure on you that affects things like your social life, being able to go out and enjoy meals," he said.

Ahead of the Budget, BBC News NI also gauged the views of the public at a family event in Slieve Gullion Forest Park, near Newry.

The Harrison family lives in Craigavon.

Leanne Harrison said the price of groceries was "crazy" and she had her "fingers were crossed" for VAT cuts.

Tim Hanna said families were "feeling the pinch" and tax breaks on hospitality and fuel duty would be helpful.

"I know the hospitality sector is particularly hard hit, the price of a pint seems to keep going up and up, seems to deter people," he added.

Rozlyn Sheridan, of the Sheridan Stage School in Newry, was hoping for a boost to the arts sector.

"In my own business in the arts, we are paddling our own boats and trying to survive in an industry that sometimes isn't valued within our society, within our government" she said.

"The arts brings so much to a community and gives so much value to people's mental health."

Stormont gets a population-based share of additional spending allocated to public services in England.

The chancellor traditionally announces the headline amount during the Budget speech.

Later in the day, Stormont's Department of Finance will make its own calculations of when that money can be spent and what it can be spent on.

Stormont is already due to receive a small amount of money for spending this year, as a result of measures announced shortly after Andy Burnham became prime minister.

For example, his decision to freeze bus fares in England is likely to be worth about £10m to £15m to Stormont this financial year.

However, most of what Healey allocates on Wednesday is likely to be for next year.

Healey is expected to focus on "breathing space" measures to help households with the cost of living.

However he said "breathing space today must go hand-in-hand with building for the future".

He said the Budget would provide targeted support for businesses and self-employed people, and "start the long-term action needed to get energy costs down for good".

He added that it would include backing businesses and entrepreneurs, investing in the technologies that drive future growth, and building more homes.

On Tuesday, it emerged that a rise in the minimum wage is expected to be announced in the Budget but 18-to-20 year-olds are set to see lower increases than in previous years.

The government also announced a number of measures, including removing import taxes on some food and ending the so-called cliff-edge for those receiving carer's allowance payments.

Any help Healey announces with energy bills is unlikely to apply directly in Northern Ireland as it has a separate energy market with different regulations from the rest of the UK.

Instead there would be money for Stormont to set up its own support schemes.

Households in Northern Ireland have received a £63 reduction in electricity bills this month.

It is the local outworking of two schemes which apply in Great Britain.