Debate contribution: British-Irish Council: Transport

Debate contribution by Ms Liz Kimmins on 3 June 2025.

MLA

Ms Liz Kimmins

Party at the time

Sinn Féin

Date

3 June 2025

Type

Debate contribution (made as a minister)

Business

Ministerial Statement

Heading

British-Irish Council: Transport

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4985737

Read the official Assembly record

Text

In compliance with section 52 of the NI Act 1998, I wish to make the following statement to the Assembly in respect of a British-Irish Council (BIC) ministerial meeting of the transport work sector, held on 4 April 2025. To ensure appropriate cross-community representation at the meeting, junior Minister Cameron was also in attendance and is aware that I am making this statement to the Assembly. Members will be aware that the British-Irish Council, which was established in 1999, with transport as one of the original areas of activity, is a forum for its members to discuss, consult and use best endeavours to reach agreement on cooperation on matters of mutual interest within the competence of its member Administrations. The British-Irish Council transport work sector is chaired by the Executive. This group has proved to be a valuable forum for ongoing cooperation in sharing information and experiences of developing and implementing transport policy. As I have previously highlighted, the Executive were represented at the ministerial meeting that took place here in Belfast by me as chair, accompanied by junior Minister Cameron. The Government of Guernsey were represented by Deputy Lindsay de Sausmarez, President of the Committee for the Environment and Infrastructure. The Government of Ireland were represented by Darragh O'Brien TD, Minister for Transport. The Isle of Man Government were represented by Hon Michelle Haywood MHK, Minister for Infrastructure. The Government of Jersey were represented by Andy Jehan, Minister for Infrastructure. The Scottish Government were represented by Fiona Hyslop MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Transport. The British Government were represented by Simon Lightwood MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Transport. The Welsh Government were represented by Chris Warner, deputy director of transport strategy and policy, deputising for Cabinet Secretary for Transport and North Wales, Ken Skates MS. During the meeting, Ministers considered a paper prepared by the work sector on the review of activity 2021-24, detailing the extensive work that has been undertaken under that work plan. The Council proceeded to discuss developments in transport from 2024 onwards. I noted that the Executive have taken a targeted approach to emissions reductions and that the introduction of a zero-emissions vehicle mandate and the vehicle emissions trading schemes (VETS) have been key policy and climate change interventions. Confidence in the electric vehicle market continues to grow here. There has been a 75% increase in the availability of public EV charging infrastructure in the past two years, and the number of EVs on our roads has more than doubled over that period. That shift to the use of electric vehicles is pivotal as we move towards our goal of net zero by 2050. In addition, I highlighted the road network improvements that I have recently announced, specifically key bypass projects that aim to lower emissions and reduce congestion, particularly in our small town centres. I reflected on our partnership with the Irish Government in developing the A5 to improve connectivity and, importantly, to save lives, and highlighted the all-island rail review as a further example of positive collaboration between the two Administrations. Ministers from across Administrations shared their experiences, achievements and challenges in the transport sector. Priorities that were identified included the importance of active travel solutions, connecting communities, freight, decarbonisation and removing barriers to travel for the most vulnerable people. Council members reiterated their view that working collaboratively in the transport sector will be key to achieving wider ambitions around economic growth and the delivery of clean energy, as well as improving public health. Ministers noted and agreed to the content of a forward work plan for 2025-28 for the transport work sector, which will inform each Administration's policy in addressing decarbonisation of the sector. The forward work programme identified four areas of focus for the work sector over the next three years, including the role of modal shift, active travel and public transport, the importance of HGVs and linkages across these islands, decarbonisation of ports and sustainable transport in rural areas. The transport sector is one of the largest contributors to carbon emissions. Member Administrations are fully committed to reducing those emissions and agree that a collective approach to decarbonisation will be required to meet net zero climate commitments across these islands. As an Assembly, we have committed to taking action to tackle the climate crisis and reduce emissions across all sectors, including transport. In that context, the British-Irish Council continues to offer an essential framework for sharing challenges and best practice across the Administrations. In closing, I place on record my thanks to my ministerial colleagues across the BIC member Administrations who participated so productively in the ministerial meeting, and to junior Minister Cameron who accompanied me. My officials and I look forward to working with the Ministers from the other Administrations and their officials in all the agreed areas of cooperation in the transport sector. The development of an implementation programme for the forward work plan, to include the timing and location of each activity that has been agreed, will be decided in the coming months. That concludes my statement. I am happy to take questions from Members.

As the Member will be aware, officials are working on the new suite of transport plans, which will look at transport policy and investment decisions until 2035. It is my aim to ensure that the transport network meets the needs of people and businesses both now and in the future. As I have mentioned in the House before, there are eight plans in total: seven local transport plans and one strategic transport plan. The strategic plan covers the strategic road and rail network across the region, whilst the seven local transport plans are being developed in a more integrated manner with the councils' local development plan processes. The plans that are in development will set out the potential interventions that I propose to bring forward to address many of my priorities in the transport strategy. The local transport plans are being developed in an integrated manner and are, therefore, dependent on councils' timetables for their local development plans. The largest, and one of the most advanced, transport plans is the eastern transport plan (ETP), which covers Belfast and the four surrounding council areas. The site visit that we had as part of the BIC sessions provided insight into the transport challenges that Belfast faces and outlined some of the draft proposals from the Belfast city transport plan section of the ETP. It is an example of the work that is incorporated into all those transport plans. As I said, officials are actively working with all councils and stakeholders using a vision and validate approach, which will consider the wider societal changes that we face, generate a future vision for the planned area and identify transport measures that will help us achieve the overall vision. It is my intention to prepare and have ready for public consultation draft plans for the Fermanagh and Omagh transport plan, the north-west transport plan, the Belfast city centre transport plan and the metropolitan transport plan. Those plans will consider the further investment that is required in all areas of transport.

1,186 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 12:45 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

Disagree with this assessment?

Classifications can be challenged. A person reads every challenge, and any change is recorded publicly above with its reason.

Challenge this classification