Angered traders in a town badly hit by flooding have criticised Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris, saying a £15m help fund is not enough.

He visited Downpatrick in County Down after announcing the financial support.

But business owners whose premises were ruined expressed anger that he did not meet them and he left through a back door as they gathered to speak to him.

Businessman Bartley Murphy said: “My life, my pension is down the tubes, is sitting in skips now,” he said.

“If he [Chris Heaton-Harris] wants Irish manners he will get them now. I am angry and cross and I am not afraid to vent my anger.”

Mr Heaton-Harris had earlier made the announcement about the funding in Newry, one of several areas in Northern Ireland badly hit by recent heavy rainfall.

He said the money would “help with clean-up costs and support businesses to resume trading”.

“I can only imagine how people must be feeling,” he said.

Newry Chamber of Commerce said it was estimated about £37m would be needed to repair the damage across the Newry, Mourne and Down District Council area.

Its president Julie Gibbons also said more help was needed.

“[The £15m] is no where near enough but it’s a good start,” she told BBC News NI.

“It’s more than was rumoured and what was expected.”

After meeting Mr Heaton-Harris on Wednesday, she said: “We had two hours of positive engagement – he was empathetic and supportive so this is a start.

“It will give those worst affected the confidence to get back trading.”

This month’s flooding was described as “an exceptional natural event” by Stormont’s Department for Infrastructure.

Ms Gibbons said representatives and businesses in Newry would “keep pushing” for more help but hoped the funding would be made available quickly.

Representing local shopkeepers, Newry Business Improvement District managing director Eamonn Connolly welcomed the funding but said “it won’t go far enough”.

Some businesses were in “survival mode” with damages up to £1m, he said.

Newry businesses initially pitched for £40m across the council district but even that “doesn’t fully cover the extent of the losses”, he added.

“Every day we do the clean up we discover more latent damage and we haven’t yet reached anywhere near the full extent of that.

“At the minute [traders are] in survival mode and many have to make big decisions as to whether they actually can reopen so this is a very welcome start.

“What it means in real terms we don’t yet know.”

Sinn Féin’s MP Chris Hazzard said that the funding was “simply not good enough” given the scale of the damage.

“It’s extremely disappointing to be frank about it,” he said.

“Speaking with local businesses here in Downpatrick this evening, they’re absolutely shell shocked that, despite the warm words from the secretary of state, we’re not seeing the relative action that we need.”

SDLP MLA Colin McGrath said the UK government must quickly outline the criteria for application and how the emergency fund would be allocated.

“This is a sign that things are now moving in the right direction,” he said.

Mr Heaton-Harris was critical of the fact that a non-functioning Stormont executive delayed financial support getting to flood-hit businesses and homes.

“Ministers could have made decisions a lot quicker because there wouldn’t be much of a debate with the UK government because the money would be sat in Stormont for provision by Stormont ministers,” he said.

The £15m is being made available by switching some of Stormont’s infrastructure budget into day-to-day spending.

However the devolved administrations – including Scotland and Wales – require the UK government’s permission to make that sort of switch.

That means that even if a Stormont executive had been in place it would have still required a negotiation to spend the money in this way.

Mr Hazzard said that the reallocation of funds was “robbing Peter to pay Paul”.

He added: “This is recycled capital monies from local government departments that are already under severe pressure.”

Mr Heaton-Harris said the money was “pretty much available now” but that it would be up to the councils and the Northern Ireland Civil Service to manage the roll-out.

Asked if the amount from the government would be enough for each affected business, he said it would be used primarily for clean-up costs and “getting them back and trading”.

“What I’ve heard [from businesses]… they’ve got all sorts of very big issues that are short-term, medium-term and long-term but I’d like to think that this is a statement of support if nothing less for those businesses.”