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As I have just announced, I have invested £19·5 million — half of the capital allocation that I was given — in NI Water, because I accept that there are resource and capital challenges for NI Water, as there are with all public services. That investment will help to alleviate the pressures that it has been facing in…
NI Water will be remaining public. There has been no move away from that, and there will not be during my term in this office. I am aware that the Finance Minister is exploring all options in relation to funding, moving forward. Yes, NI Water requires additional funds, as do all public services, moving forward. I will…
I thank the Minister. In relation to problem-solving, does the Minister agree that the solution is public investment in NI Water? Will he expand upon any work that his Department has done to engage with Treasury around the new capital borrowing rules, which could allow NI Water to remain public but get access to more…
It applies to both. I have a lot of correspondence from developers regarding the development of businesses, hotels or whatever it may be, who are concerned that there may be waste water infrastructure constraints that will hold back their developments. As I said to Mrs Erskine, we all have to be in problem-solving…
Given the scale of work that we undertake, it is not always possible to have contracts delivered at a time that we find most favourable, be that due to cost, school times or whatever it may be. We have to align our contractors to the delivery of projects when they are available — we work with them on that — and when…
I thank the Minister. Following on from what the Minister has said, someone will take the hit, be that the public, through the tendering process, or the contractor. Would it not be more cost-effective to the public purse to programme such major work outside the period in which we have that traditional cessation of…
I do not know that I can be specific about that site, because I do not have the information in front of me. I imagine that, if a contractor has equipment and staff lined up for a job, there will be additional costs as a result of a cessation of work. However, it is important that we suspend some work of that sort…
Yes. My Department looks at the methods and at how we can use innovative measures to improve our reaction to and efficiency of road maintenance and to reduce the cost of road maintenance, which is always a challenge. I assure the Member that we are future-focused in how we deliver that service.
The answer is yes. I have been provided with resource allocation of £22·8 million, which will allow me to take a number of measures. I will be delivering a full winter service in line with last year's, and I have provided money to NI Water and Translink. I have also invested around £15 million, I think, in my Roads…
I have had many conversations with my planning officials as to how we expedite planning matters, but the Member will appreciate that due process and due diligence have to be followed. I am acutely aware of the upcoming Open and the potential need for tourist accommodation in the area, so I assure the Member that the…
I appreciate that, and I appreciate that you are giving it attention. However, the British Open is coming to Northern Ireland next year, and we have a hotel that has been held up for nearly eight years, not necessarily because of your Department but for other reasons. Will you give this your attention, considering the…
In fairness, I think that that application came into my Department in early September. If I am correct, it was sent to us by the local council, which suggests that it is technical in nature and that there are issues that have to be resolved. My officials will work their way through those issues as quickly as possible,…
My message is always the same in relation to these matters: people have to be in problem-solving mode rather than being simply in problem mode. It is vital that all of us — NI Water, developers, me and whoever — include in our minds how we will solve the problem. That is where the mindset is at. I have allocated an…
I share some concern about that, because time is ticking on a crisis in NI Water. There is a funding gap of £145 million, and the £39 million of capital in the October monitoring round will not be just for NI Water. Last week, we had a debate on unadopted sites. When asked about developer-led contributions, NI Water…
I do not have a definitive timescale. I would obviously prefer it to happen sooner rather than later. It will probably require primary legislation, which means that it will have to be properly thought out and developed through the normal legislative processes of the House. Obviously the Committee will be key to that.
At the moment, it is not. If you do not have a site or planning permission, I do not see how you can spend a budget. A number of barriers have to be overcome there. The site has to be identified, and planning permission has to be granted, and then the thorny question of budget comes alive.
NI Water has advised me that it has not secured a site for the new waste water pumping station at Coshquin and, therefore, does not have planning permission to operate the waste water treatment works. The Coshquin waste water treatment works cannot be upgraded until a site has been identified and secured, and it then…
Yes. We have to make park-and-ride services accessible and understandable to drivers. I will use the example of Sprucefield park-and-ride. Up to this stage, it has been difficult, I am sure, for drivers even to understand that there is a park-and-ride there. I have asked my officials to bring forward measures to…
I thank the Minister for his response. He talked about other measures. Perhaps one of those could be the utilisation of park-and-ride facilities. Does the Minister agree that increased use of park-and-ride services could make public transport more accessible and help ease congestion?
I have established a working group in my Department that includes officials from DFI Roads and others to engage with Translink, the PSNI and the city council. It meets on a regular basis and analyses the condition that the roads were in on previous evenings. It will bring proposals to me on how we can help to…
We will seek a speedy hearing of the case, at which we will present our arguments, as will the other party. A month's delay to a capital project of this scale can cost of millions of pounds. We are not at that stage yet, but if we go much further into the new year, we will be talking about millions upon millions of…
I thank the Minister for his answer and welcome his commitment to face down the challenge. Is he able to outline the implications of such a challenge to the A5 scheme, such as potential delay and continued risk to road users?
I have been advised that it would not be appropriate for me to name the challengers at this stage. However, I understand that there may be a hearing tomorrow, with each party setting out their initial case. At some stage then, there may be an opportunity for those who brought forward the case to be named, but it would…