Debate contribution: Review of Environmental Governance in Northern Ireland

Debate contribution by Mr Andrew Muir on 19 November 2024.

MLA

Mr Andrew Muir

Party at the time

Alliance Party

Date

19 November 2024

Type

Debate contribution (made as a minister)

Business

Ministerial Statement

Heading

Review of Environmental Governance in Northern Ireland

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4665779

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Thank you, Mr Speaker, for the opportunity to make a statement to the Assembly on my plans to review environmental governance in Northern Ireland. Environmental governance is about ensuring that the decisions we make about how we protect and enhance our natural and marine environment are effective. They could be decisions on policy and regulation or on resourcing. Crucially, it is also about accountability: making sure that there is proper scrutiny and oversight of those decisions and accountability for the outcomes achieved as a result of their implementation. I am very conscious of the level of interest from Members and the wider public in how we address the increase in the environmental challenges that we face. People care deeply about our natural environment. They worry about the degradation of sites of environmental significance and about biodiversity loss, and they want to see greater protection for our environment and greater accountability. The blue-green algae blooms that appeared in the summer and last year at Lough Neagh generated real concern and had a real impact, including on those who live along or earn their livelihood on the lough and its connected waterways. They have also been a wake-up call for us all. There has been a realisation that, for generations, we have not been good custodians of our environment and that that needs to change. The environmental challenges that we face are complex and cannot be addressed in isolation by any one organisation. That is why we are absolutely committed to working with a wide range of voluntary advocate groups and industry representatives to address the challenges and ensure that we protect the environment for everyone who lives here. The implementation of the now-agreed environmental improvement plan (EIP), the Lough Neagh action plan and other policies that my Department is taking forward will make a difference, but there are no quick fixes. Undoubtedly, more could be done with more resources, and I will continue to make the case for investment in our environment. Today, however, is about oversight and accountability. It is about the steps that I am taking to highlight the need for tighter governance and to ensure that we understand the best model by which that can be secured. Strengthening environmental governance has been and continues to be a key priority of mine since taking up ministerial office in the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs. Like Lough Neagh, it is a complex issue that will not be fixed overnight. Optimal structures and processes need to be in place to enable positive environmental outcomes to be achieved. Prior to the UK leaving the EU, the majority of environmental policy development and implementation in DAERA was linked to transposing a wide range of EU directives into domestic legislation. The Environment Act 2021 brought in a range of environmental measures, including a new legal framework for environmental governance and accountability. Those included the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) functioning here, the preparation and publication of a statement on environmental principles and the obligation to produce an environmental improvement plan. Any proposals to improve environmental governance therefore need to be set in the context of that changed regulatory landscape. I will say a little shortly about the component parts of the current landscape, but, first, I will say something about the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA). NIEA is an agency of my Department. It has its own chief executive and accounting officer and has operational flexibility to operate within the legislative and policy parameters that exist, but it is certainly not independent; in fact, it has no separate legislative basis, and the powers and functions that it carries are carried in the name of the Department. That is the reality; it is not a criticism. It is really important that I make it clear that the many calls for a different environmental governance regime and, indeed, my desire to see one are absolutely no reflection on the dedication and commitment that I see every day in the staff of NIEA. They are public servants who continue to work tirelessly to protect and enhance our natural environment whilst regulating the activities that can adversely affect it. NIEA staff are firmly at the front line of many current, high-profile environmental issues, working to address the ongoing threats to nature and water quality from a range of factors, including climate change, the pollution of our freshwater environment and the continued decline of our biodiversity. Their jobs are demanding and often challenging, and they frequently involve working out of hours and in difficult and sometimes dangerous situations. Any changes that we decide, in time, to introduce to strengthen environmental governance will build on the foundations laid by NIEA staff. I thank them for their commitment and dedication to our environment. I now turn to the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP). From 2022, we have also seen the extension of the role of the Office for Environmental Protection to include Northern Ireland. As Members will know, the OEP provides an environmental oversight function previously undertaken by the European Commission. It is tasked with holding government to account for the proper implementation of environmental law and has recently issued a number of reports to do exactly that, including one just today. It is important to recognise, however, that taking action against individuals or private businesses remains the responsibility of the NIEA and other enforcement agencies. Section 50 of the Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 requires the Executive Office to establish an independent office to be known as the Northern Ireland Climate Commissioner (NICC). The commissioner's functions are:

"to oversee and report on the operations"

of the Act. When the commissioner's office is established, we will need to work with it to understand the governance role that it might play in our environment and how it will interact with the work of the OEP. I will explain the background to the creation of an independent environmental protection agency (IEPA). The environmental governance landscape is already complex, and there are a range of options for how it could be improved. That could include the creation of an independent environmental protection agency. Members will be aware of a number of reviews that were carried out in the past on the need for an independent environmental protection agency. The most recent was a 2015 consultation led by the Department of the Environment that sought views from the public and from organisations. The overall response rate of 37 to the 2015 consultation was relatively low, but 26 — 70% — of the respondents were in favour of an independent agency being created. Much has changed since the 2015 consultation, including the formation of DAERA on 8 May 2016, when the Department of the Environment's functions were largely transferred to that Department. More importantly, perhaps, public understanding of and opinion on environmental issues has changed substantially as a result of increased concerns about environmental degradation and climate change. For a variety of reasons, not least the absence of Ministers and the Assembly, competing priorities and resourcing constraints, there has been little movement on establishing an independent environmental protection agency. That has led to growing concerns and frustrations among a number of groups that feel that more needs to be done. I accept that. I am therefore committed to bringing forward proposals for improving environmental governance in Northern Ireland. I am keen for such proposals to reflect a thorough exploration of models that would deliver improved and more independent environmental governance than what is currently in place. In order to improve Members' and the public's confidence in our environmental governance arrangements, I want to ensure that that is done right. I therefore do not plan to rush the decisions on such an important and complex matter. There is clearly a need to consider the substantive issues involved in moving to a more robust model of environmental governance, and I am keen to obtain an independent view to ensure that the best possible outcomes can be achieved. I am therefore pleased to announce that I have appointed an independent panel with appropriate experience and expertise that will oversee a review of current environmental governance arrangements in Northern Ireland and provide recommendations for improvement for my consideration, including on how to enhance scrutiny, accountability and public confidence. They may contain proposals for establishing an independent environmental protection agency in Northern Ireland, including the potential shape, policy and legal responsibility of such an organisation. The estimated cost, deliverability and time frames for implementation of each option will also need to be considered. The independent panel will lead a call for evidence on improving environmental governance in Northern Ireland and will use information gathered from the process, along with other relevant factors and research, to inform its recommendations. The panel will provide its independent recommendations to the Department on the basis of its assessment and findings, and I will not seek to influence those in any way. A stakeholder reference group will be established to support the work of the panel, and membership of the group will be confirmed in due course. Members will want to know a bit more about the membership of the panel. Dr Viviane Gravey will chair the panel. She is a senior lecturer in European politics at Queen's University and has considerable knowledge of environmental governance in post-Brexit Northern Ireland. Dr Gravey will be assisted by Diane Ruddock, who has now retired from the National Trust as external affairs manager, and John McCallister, who is a member of the Ulster Farmers' Union (UFU) and provides a wealth of experience of the agriculture industry.

Together, they will use their experience and independent expertise to take forward a short, focused review of environmental governance in Northern Ireland. It will include a brief review of current arrangements in Northern Ireland, which will be supported by the Department’s initial scoping exercise of the environmental governance arrangements that are in place across the UK and Ireland, so that they can take lessons from the various approaches that have been adopted by others; taking forward a call for evidence and engaging with interested parties and stakeholders to understand views and opinions and identify best practice in related work areas from other parts of the UK, Ireland or elsewhere; exploring options to improve environmental governance; and consideration of the linkages and interdependencies between the environmental governance being considered and other functions and business needs in DAERA and other relevant organisations.

Delivering that review will require the independent panel to engage with relevant key stakeholders, including, of course, the OEP, and the process will be confirmed in due course. My officials will support the work of the panel in an administrative capacity. The terms of reference for the panel’s work and how people can engage with it will be published later today. I have asked the panel to produce an interim report by spring 2025, and the review will be completed by summer of next year. Following my consideration of its recommendations, I intend to identify a preferred way forward, which I will take to the Executive so that we can reach agreement on any proposed new arrangements before they are presented to the Assembly. In taking this forward, I am mindful of the commitment contained in 'New Decade, New Approach':

"The Executive should bring forward a Climate Change Act to give environmental targets a strong legal underpinning. The Executive will establish an Independent Environmental Protection Agency to oversee this work and ensure targets are met."

In closing, as I have said many times, there are no quick fixes for the significant environmental challenges that we face today, and environmental governance is no different. However, rest assured that I am fully committed to strengthening environmental governance in Northern Ireland and, by doing so, improving public confidence in our governance arrangements and, ultimately, reducing our environmental degradation. I hope that this announcement will be welcomed by Members, as its outworking will provide up-to-date and robust evidence to support the preferred option. That will allow us to progress this work with credibility and confidence. I will, of course, update Members when the environmental governance review has concluded and following Executive consideration.

I thank the Member for his question. I believe in an independent environmental protection agency, and I am on the record in that regard. This is about a genuine attempt to improve environmental governance in Northern Ireland. I am setting up an independent panel so that we can look at how we can improve environmental governance. I am open to whatever recommendations it comes back with. I will be surprised if it does not come back with a recommendation for an independent environmental protection agency, and, if it does, it may be considered. Let me be clear: the review is a genuine attempt to move this forward. Once the report comes back, I will give it due consideration and bring it swiftly to the Executive and then to the Assembly.

The stakeholder reference group still has to be established. We will want to make sure that relevant views are considered as part of that, and the panel has already defined a number of groups with whom it will want to engage. Of course, the panel will be open to further engagement.

The Member touched upon the important issue of the complexity of the landscape that we are in. We have the Office for Environmental Protection, the NIEA, the climate commissioner, who will come on board, and the just transition commission. That is why it is important that we give that matter careful consideration. Many people come to me and say that they want an independent environmental protection agency. My support for that is clearly on the record. What I have not heard, however, is exactly what its functions should be, what it should do and how it would fit into the way forward for the environmental governance landscape. That is the key issue, and I am establishing the panel so that we can consider the landscape that we are in and where we want to take things. I hear the concerns around that, and that is why I am taking action on it. I hope that people will see it for what it is, which is a genuine attempt to try to improve environmental governance in Northern Ireland. I could have come to the Assembly and said that I am setting up an independent environmental protection agency tomorrow, but what about the details of it? What would its powers be? How would it be funded? Where would the accountability measures for it be? It is also important that we engage with society on those issues so that we can bring forward very clear proposals that would have the support of society in Northern Ireland, because we need to work together on those issues.

I decided to ask the individuals to serve on the panel. I believe that they bring appropriate expertise on academia, the environment and agriculture. I think that they will do a very good job, and I am grateful to them for stepping forward to serve. The NIEA is part of my Department. I am proud of the work that it does, and capable individuals work there. Part of the issue in any consideration of an independent environmental protection agency is resourcing. That is crucial, because it also feeds into the structure of the organisation. You could set up an independent body, but, essentially, the funding could then be determined as part of Budget rounds and stuff like that. That could also be a consideration when thinking about its effectiveness. That is why we need proper consideration of how anything will be resourced. That is for the panel to engage with people on and to consider.

A number of issues can be teased out from that. One is public trust and confidence. That is where the independence point arises in how the body would be structured and how you would ensure that it genuinely was independent. Some people may say to me that other bodies across the UK, Ireland and Europe are independent, yet they are under the direction of Ministers, so when you tease it out a bit more, you find that the consideration of the issue is a bit more detailed. The other point relates to the body's ability to take action to deal with environmental issues and being able to have the confidence to speak out on the issues of the day. The chair of the Office for Environmental Protection was on the radio this morning debating the water quality report, and that was a constructive contribution to the issue. I come here, as the Minister, looking for increased and strengthened environmental governance. I do not shy away from it, and that is why it is important that it is done.

In considering members for the panel, we had to look at the different expertise that was required. It was not a public appointment process, because it is a very short, focused piece of work that requires expertise. Those were the people whom I appointed, and I believe that they will do an excellent job.

I am taking that forward separately, because one can walk and chew gum at the same time. I have asked officials to review the statement of regulatory principles and intent (SORPI), which has been the arrangement in place for NI Water since 2007, when it was founded. I am on the record as saying that I do not believe that that statement is fit for purpose and that we need to call time on SORPI. I want to move to a situation where, in a regulatory context, NI Water is treated like any other polluter in Northern Ireland, and I am working on that as well.

The Member touches on the importance of setting up the panel. That is why I am taking this approach so that the public can engage with the panel and have their views heard. I am keen to do that, because this is a genuine attempt to ensure that people's issues are heard and that their desires for improving environmental governance can shape the way forward. I am genuinely committed to doing that and I am making a real attempt to try to move the issue forward.

It will be for the panel to come back with recommendations. Members will know that NIEA performs various functions. I am very conscious of the good work that NIEA does, and I expressed my thanks to its officials in my statement because I am very grateful for the excellent job that they do. However, we need to consider what any future arrangements will involve and how that will interface with NIEA. The panel will tease that out in the time ahead. I am not going to prescribe exactly how I feel that NIEA should perform, because there are other environmental governance functions in Northern Ireland beyond NIEA that we will want to consider.

It is not a duplication: it is a genuine attempt to ensure that there is not duplication and that we consider a better way forward. I am listening to people, and I get the concerns around environmental issues in Northern Ireland. Farmers are the custodians of our countryside, and they are doing an excellent job. There are many examples of that across Northern Ireland. We all know that we need to do better, and that is what this is about: it is about trying to do things together. We would do well to listen a bit more in Northern Ireland, and this is an attempt to do that.

The list of organisations that the panel will engage with will include youth groups in Northern Ireland, such as, for example, the Northern Ireland Youth Forum and the Young Farmers' Clubs of Ulster. It is important that young people's voices are heard in relation to this, and that is what the panel will be doing in the time ahead.

3,330 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:37 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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