Member's statement: WEST Project
Member's statement by Miss Jemma Dolan on .
- MLA
- Miss Jemma Dolan
- Party at the time
- Sinn Féin
- Date
- 10 November 2025
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- WEST Project
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5224896
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I want to take a moment today to highlight some really positive news for Fermanagh and our neighbouring counties: the launch of the water enhancements through sustainable treatment project, better known as the WEST project. It is a €32 million cross-border initiative between NI Water and Uisce Éireann that is funded through the PEACE PLUS programme, which is managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB). It is due to be launched tomorrow at Finn Lough resort on the shores of our own Lough Erne, a fitting setting for a project that is all about protecting and improving our local waterways.
The WEST project will focus on tackling water pollution in Lough Erne, Lough Melvin and Donegal Bay. Through innovative modelling and sustainable treatment, it will help identify where investment is needed most, no matter from which side of the border the issue comes. In Fermanagh, we will see benefits on the ground, with low-carbon waste water treatment upgrades planned for Belleek and Garrison. The upgrades will improve services for more than 5,000 people, with extra capacity for another 1,000. That is an example of real investment in rural communities that have often been overlooked when it comes to infrastructure. Clean water is vital not only for the environment but for farming, tourism and the health of our people. Such projects show the real value of cross-border co-operation, of EU funding and of communities working together to protect what we share. I commend NI Water, Uisce Éireann, the SEUPB and the Department for Infrastructure for their hard work and vision. The WEST project is a fantastic example of partnership in action, and it will make a lasting difference to Fermanagh and for future generations.
284 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Assessment
Jev’s structured answers met the documented threshold for “not flagged”.
- Overall probability that the activity is being used to promote, exploit or escalate an identity-based controversy: 0.02 (flagging needs at least 0.70; at or below 0.30 is not flagged).
- None of the five culture-war criteria was met (each was below 0.60).
- No identity-based framing was identified (1.00).
- The overall probability was at or below the not-flagging threshold.
This is an AI-generated assessment of the text, made against published criteria. It is not a finding of fact about the MLA or their intentions. The Assembly record itself is the fact.
Jev’s structured answers
| Question | Probability | Met? |
|---|---|---|
| Identity framing | 0.02 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.01 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.01 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.01 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.02 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.37 | No |
| Overall judgement | 0.02 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 1.00 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.00 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.00 |
| Adopts it | 0.00 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-related subject | 0.84 |
| Constitutional question, Brexit, the Windsor Framework and sovereignty | 0.15 |
| Another identity-related subject | 0.01 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
| Parades, bonfires and commemorations | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 13:43 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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