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Business leaders and owners of 407 firms across Northern Ireland have penned an open letter to the First and Deputy First Minister, calling for the reopening of the economy.

In it they share fears that thousands of jobs will be lost as a result of ongoing coronavirus restrictions.

While the business leaders say they appreciate the immense task of dealing with the pandemic, and admit they are not health experts, they do say they have "deeply held concerns about the potential profound and long-lasting impact that ongoing restrictions on our economy are having not just on the economy and our businesses but the wellbeing and livelihoods of our staff".

The letter reads:

Dear First Minister and deputy First Minister

Open Letter from Business Owners and Leaders on Reopening the Economy

We are a collection of 407 business leaders and owners from across our region who collectively employ thousands of people in a range of sectors of our local economy. Our hope in writing to you is to give you a sense of the fears we share for thousands of jobs and the future of our economy.

Many of us have seen our businesses closed completely or severely restricted in their operations for the majority of the past year. We are acutely aware that those closures and restrictions have been introduced as the Executive has grappled with the unprecedented challenge presented by the coronavirus pandemic. Equally, we appreciate that the task that you and your Ministerial colleagues have in guiding our society through this crisis is immense.

None of us are health experts. We are employers and entrepreneurs. We would not presume to offer the Executive medical advice, but our collective experience means that we can speak with some authority on our deeply held concerns about the potential profound and long-lasting impact that ongoing restrictions on our economy are having not just on the economy and our businesses but the wellbeing and livelihoods of our staff.