Debate contribution: Rates (Regional Rates) Order (Northern Ireland) 2026

Debate contribution by Mr John O'Dowd on 10 March 2026.

MLA

Mr John O'Dowd

Party at the time

Sinn Féin

Date

10 March 2026

Type

Debate contribution (made as a minister)

Business

Executive Committee Business

Heading

Rates (Regional Rates) Order (Northern Ireland) 2026

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5436709

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Thank you, a Phríomh-Leas-Cheann Comhairle.

I thank the Members who have contributed to this important debate, and I thank members of the Finance Committee for their comments and for facilitating the debate with their timely scrutiny. As always, it has been an interesting debate, if not always an enlightening one, with a range of views expressed. As I stated, the 2026 order sets the regional rate for the forthcoming year, and the Executive have aimed to strike a balance between the needs of ratepayers and the need to raise vital funds for public services. I think that ratepayers acknowledge the need for annual increases to their rates, because they understand that, if we are to continue to provide front-line public services, public-sector pay awards and support to the economy, those costs will increase slightly each year and there will be a need to increase the contribution to rates. Of course, public funds should be spent effectively and efficiently, and each Minister has a role in scrutinising their Department's spend, just as there is a role for each scrutiny Committee in this place to ensure that public funds are properly spent. Mr O'Toole spoke as Chair of the Committee and outlined the Committee's role. Again, I put on record my thanks to the Committee for carrying out its role on the matter. He went on to speak as leader of the Opposition; he spoke for maybe eight to 10 minutes and said a whole lot but said nothing. I still do not know at what level the SDLP would set the regional rate. Should it be below inflation? If so, where should it be below inflation? He said that he believes in being honest with the public. If he is going to be honest with the public as leader of the Opposition, he needs to set out what he believes the regional rate should be. Should it be 0%, 1%, 2% or 3%? What should it be? Answering that is being honest with the public. As I said in my opening remarks, I believe that the public acknowledge that there needs to be an increase annually to manage the costs that are there. As for the challenge on what that money is going to, it is going to childcare for 29,000 families that have around £19 million in savings as a result of the Executive's intervention and support for childcare. It is going to support the 200,000 extra elective care treatments and appointments that there have been this year. It is going to public-sector pay rises. Mr Carroll said that public-sector pay is not rising. Public-sector pay has risen as a result of the work of the Executive. Despite the challenges that the Executive face, public-sector pay has risen. I will remind you again that, at every opportunity that you had to vote for a public-sector pay rise, you voted against.

I will when I finish my point. You voted against a pay rise for MLA staff a number of years ago. I said to you at the time that you did not follow the example of big Jim Larkin; you followed the example of wee Jim Allister, because you and he voted in the No Lobby. The one opportunity that you ever had to increase public-sector pay, you voted against it.

The MLA award is separate to this, and it has been set by an independent body, but you have missed the point.

You missed the point. When you had the opportunity to vote for public-sector pay, you voted against it.

You did. The record will show that you did. Understandably, the Reval issue was raised again. As I said in a previous debate on that matter, all of a sudden, many Members now realise that there are sectors other than the hospitality sector, and they are very concerned about those other sectors. They were not concerned about those sectors when the Reval debate was going on or before I made my decision. No Member ever raised with me the issue in relation to retail, the manufacturing sector, warehouses, the office sector or cinemas. Now there is legal action, and my Department and I are involved with pre-action letters etc, so I am limited in what I can say. All of a sudden, Members have concerns about those matters. You were not concerned about them several weeks ago. Perhaps if you had been concerned about them several weeks ago and allowed the space for an informed and full debate around Reval and for proper engagement, we could have reached the point where we met the needs of all sectors as best as we could in a rating system where there is always going to be a requirement to raise revenue to put back into the public sector and the economy, but that simply was not the case.

Yes.

Yes. Just to respond quickly to the Member's point, I was aware, and, to answer Dr Aiken's point, there was no breakdown in communication between LPS and my Department. I set aside £10 million in the draft Budget for the very purpose of supporting small and medium-sized enterprises, including the hospitality sector. Under the current scheme, around 50% or more of the hospitality sector and pubs etc benefit from the small business rate relief scheme. Under my proposals, that will increase significantly. There will be an opportunity for Members to return to that issue when we get to the three-year Budget. As for other points, the ongoing review of rates etc will continue. I can bring it only so far. I can go out to consultation and bring recommendations to the Executive, but it is up to the Executive to make decisions. At times, those decisions can be challenging and difficult. They often will take on vested interests, but, sometimes, those vested interests need to be taken on if we are to have a fair and equitable rating system and the funds that we need to invest in our public sector and economy.

I have presented a proposal to the Executive in relation to the regional non-domestic rate. The Executive have agreed it, and I now present that proposal to the Assembly for agreement. It is presented in the absence of any alternative proposals from anywhere in the Chamber.

1,047 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 15:12 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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