Debate contribution: Residents’ Parking Zones

Debate contribution by Ms Liz Kimmins on 10 March 2026.

MLA

Ms Liz Kimmins

Party at the time

Sinn Féin

Date

10 March 2026

Type

Debate contribution (made as a minister)

Business

Ministerial Statement

Heading

Residents’ Parking Zones

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5436150

Read the official Assembly record

Text

It is an annual fee. That will be kept under review to establish how sustainable it is.

As I mentioned, one of the considerations that will be taken into account when doing an assessment for a scheme is whether there is off-street parking, such as a driveway, available. That will be looked at in the round. We also have to ensure that proposed areas for a scheme have a workable solution. For example, is there enough space to deliver the scheme properly? That will be worked out through the process. We will look at the requirement for 1·2 parking spaces per property. A bit of methodology is involved in how that is worked out, but it will be taken into consideration to ensure that there is ample parking for everyone involved.

In residential areas where there is a particular issue with commuter or nuisance parking, with people parking for long periods, which affects the ability of local residents to get access to or park close to their home, the aim of the scheme is to mitigate those challenges. I appreciate your point about the different car parks that are there, but the schemes are looking at residential areas specifically. For example, in Belfast, people park in residential areas that are near their workplace. I know that there are particular issues in some student areas and suchlike. It is therefore about trying to strike a balance so that residents are not forced to park very far away from their home because of people from outside the area coming in and parking there all day. I hope that that answers your question, but if you need more specific information, please let me know. I assume that there are similar impacts in rural areas. Where there are challenges, I encourage people to have a look at the application process and submit an application, because we will look at everything in the round and take on board the unique circumstances that may affect certain areas.

The scheme represents a good step forward, because I know that parking is a particular issue there, and people have been waiting a long time for a scheme. We developed the process because what existed previously did not meet the needs of communities, so, hopefully, the various schemes will help create broader benefits right across the North. On the scheme for the Iveagh area, the proposals for the residents' parking zone are being finalised to enable officials to carry out a formal consultation. Any further progress made on that will be subject to the satisfactory completion of the legislative process.

We looked across all jurisdictions to see what has and has not worked well and at our experience of the previous process. We very much took the view that the process should be based on good practice in areas where we have seen such schemes run smoothly. One of the developments as part of that work is that the schemes will be designed very much from the Department's perspective, because one of the challenges in the past was that the design went back and forth between residents and kept changing, and we then did not make any progress, because it was very difficult to agree on something that suited everyone. The support will absolutely be community-led, but the Department will design the schemes to ensure a more efficient and effective process.

That will very much depend on the demand for schemes. As I said earlier, it is a resource-intensive process. There are various stages: application, assessment and implementation. As we go through the process, we will be able to work out exactly what enforcement capacity we will need. In areas in which a number of schemes will be in place, staff will not be required to be in one location for 24 hours a day or anything like that, but we will be able to manage our resources to meet the need. We are at the earlier stages, but, as we go through the process and once the application window closes, we will have a better sense of what is required and what resources we will need to deliver the schemes.

The Department is committed to giving consideration to a residents' parking scheme to address the emerging pressures that are faced around the Ulster University campus area in Belfast. As part of that, officials will undertake feasibility work for the potential of the scheme in Lancaster Street, Thomas Street, McGurks Way, Portland Place and part of Great Georges Street. Any further progress will be subject to satisfactory completion of the same legislative process that I outlined in relation to Iveagh.

This is a scheme that seeks to ensure that people are able to park closer to their homes. I hope that it will benefit anywhere where there is a problem with people from outside the area nuisance parking, or preventing someone who needs cross-pavement access for charging from doing so. These schemes will operate within restricted hours. They will look at the peak times for particular problems with commuters, or whomever it may be, parking in residential areas and impacting on residents. I hope that that will be a natural mitigation for people who require cross-pavement charging.

We have looked at a threshold of 50% plus one to ensure that minority voices are heard and recognised. The example that you have given is one of the issues that has arisen in the past. I hope that we can address that to ensure that local residents in the area can get a solution that will benefit them more widely. As I said earlier, we will be looking at the process continually to see if there are ways in which it can be strengthened. Matthew O'Toole gave the example of short-term lets, and we will be looking at things like that. Hopefully, as we go through the process and get the applications in, we will get a better sense of whether more work is required in relation to unique issues.

To address your earlier points, the idea of developing the process is to ensure that we find solutions for residents who have been particularly impacted by nuisance parking and an inability to park close to their homes. I am, obviously, familiar with many of the areas that you mentioned.

As I said, the application process is due to open next month, so I encourage anybody who has an issue to look at the information that will go live on the website today so that they can get up to speed with what is required and what the criteria are and can prepare themselves for the application process. The timeline for implementation will very much depend on the level of demand. A number of stages have to be completed to get approval, and every area will be treated in that way when going through the process. It is important that, during this lead-in time, people get as much information as possible, prepare the required evidence and then get their applications in at the earliest possible stage. We will certainly endeavour to process applications in the timeliest manner possible.

As the Member may be aware, my officials regularly attend the university community engagement forum to discuss a residents' parking zone for the Magee area. We have held a number of events dedicated to that. Based on the feedback that has been obtained through those engagements, including with residents' groups who have engaged directly with households, an updated proposal was shared with the engagement forum. Following the most recent meeting of the forum, officials are now undertaking the agreed amendments to the proposal ahead of further planned engagement events. That will hopefully ensure that progress continues and that we see implementation in the not-so-distant future.

Absolutely. The criteria very clearly lay out what will constitute nuisance parking. There are variations of that for different circumstances. For example, during the week, there is a lower threshold, but, at weekends, the issues are more likely to be in line with what the Member describes because there may be more tourists, for example. All those things will be taken into consideration. As I said, the information will be online from today, and that, hopefully, will set out very clearly for people who have unique circumstances where exactly they will fit into the process.

School pickup times are probably not the same as the issue that we are talking about. We are thinking of a more sustained situation that lasts a number of hours. I think that the minimum is about five hours, but I will get clarification on how long someone can park outside a property. It is very much targeted at the areas of highest need where there is long-term parking by people who are not from the area that is directly impeding local residents. However, if there are specific areas where that is a long-term issue, we can take that into consideration. As I said, once the information goes live, it will, hopefully, be clearer as to what exactly is included and whether the examples that the Member is aware of meet the threshold. It is mainly targeted at commuters or others who park outside homes and affecting residents' access in a sustained way that is causing serious issues, not just for residents' own access but access for emergency services and other services that need to access properties throughout the day.

As you will be aware, the Department is working on transport plans for all the council areas across the North. There is the eastern transport plan, which takes into consideration a number of council areas. Outside of that, individual council areas will work on that. That is a prime opportunity for areas to have input and identify where there are significant issues, of which parking is one, while enhancing public transport access, active travel routes and all those things to ensure that we offer many different modes of transport and keep our towns and cities moving.

1,662 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 15:11 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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