Michelle McIlveen
Strangford · Democratic Unionist Party · Northern Ireland
“Public confidence depends not only on effective enforcement but on enforcement being exercised fairly and consistently. <BR /> <BR />There is widespread concern across Northern Ireland about the condition of many of our lakes and rivers, and there are a vast number of factors that contribute to water quality challenges.”
“Although we support the overall direction of travel, I think that is appropriate to reflect on the concerns that have been raised and ensure that the legislation is proportionate, practical and capable of delivering its intended outcomes.”
“If we are therefore serious about improving our aquatic environment, every source of pollution must be addressed. New legislative powers are meaningful only if the Department has the resources, the expertise and the personnel necessary to implement them effectively.”
“There is, however, a need for accompanying clear guidance and support and for regulatory consistency and prompt decision-making. Delays, uncertainty and excessive bureaucracy will undoubtedly discourage investment and undermine confidence in the sector.”
“Subordinate legislation should not become a substitute for proper democratic accountability. Consultation and engagement must be undertaken before regulations are introduced, and I cannot overstate the need for stakeholder engagement. <BR /> <BR />I will now talk about the Bill's proposed enforcement powers.”
“The DUP broadly welcomes the Bill. As has been said, it provides an opportunity to modernise legislation that, in some areas, has remained largely unchanged for decades. The Bill strengthens the protection of our fisheries, improves the regulatory framework for aquaculture and enhances the management of our water environment.”
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“The £19 million requested for Translink in the monitoring round was unsuccessful. Next year, Translink's reserves will be well below the level of working capital that it needs and it may cease to be deemed as a growing concern. In many respects, that is academic now given that, as a result of this crisis, Translink's revenue streams have dried up due to social distancing and the lockdown. <BR /> <BR />The Committee is aware that there is a COVID-19 fund to mitigate those challenges, yet the Committee has had to write to the Minister of Finance for clarity on why the Department for Infrastructure is the only Department not to have received money from that fund. The Infrastructure Minister acknowledged that when she came before the Committee last week.”
“Funding for Waterways Ireland, the design phase of York Street and the deficit to Translink also has to be found. The Living with Water Programme requires £1·45 billion capital budget over the next decade. The recent Barton and NIAO reports on structural maintenance of the roads network recommended that the Department of Finance and the Department for Infrastructure work towards ensuring funding of some £143 million per annum on a recurring basis to prevent further deterioration. <BR /> <BR />I have left the most notable shortfall to last, namely the matter of Translink and the very real possibility that it could become insolvent. As has been well rehearsed, Translink has had a reduced budget of around £13 million per year and has run its service at a deficit and used its reserves to supplement that.”
“Officials told the Committee that, prior to the 2014-15 departmental budget reductions, the Department would have regularly allocated some £35 million to cover routine maintenance and meet winter requirements. In recent years, that budget has been cut to less than half. <BR /> <BR />The capital budget for 2019-2020 was £471 million, and the requirement for 2020-21 is £795 million, increasing to £1·4 billion by 2022-23. Officials outlined that the Department prioritises funding for flagship projects, such as the major road upgrades, and says that those are inescapables. The Utility Regulator's determination on Northern Ireland Water funding is inescapable. There is a contract in place to buy new carriages for the rail network and procurement for new buses.”
“The Minister advised that she has yet to decide on the final distribution of allocations for resource and capital and so provided the Committee with only indicative resource budget allocations. Given that the Committee is unable to fully scrutinise the 2020-21 allocations at this stage, I will outline the pressures facing the Department. <BR /> <BR />With respect to water and sewerage, it has not been possible to fund Northern Ireland Water to the levels recommended by the Utility Regulator. That has meant that Northern Ireland Water has been unable to connect new housing developments and businesses to the sewerage network and has warned that developments at over 100 locations across Northern Ireland have the potential to stagnate.”
“While the Department's budget for 2020-21 has increased by 8·6% to £558 million capital and almost £418 million resource, that amounts to an additional £33 million on last year. The Department has warned that:”
“I express my condolences to John Dallat's family at this very difficult time. <BR /> <BR />I welcome this opportunity to outline the Committee for Infrastructure's consideration and views for today's debate. I will first reiterate the size of the deficit facing the Department of Infrastructure prior to the current health crisis, before speaking about the impact of COVID-19 on the Department and the budget allocation being discussed by Members today. <BR /> <BR />During the Committee's scrutiny of departmental finances, the stark situation faced by the Department was made clear. The Department informed the Committee in January that its budget has a recurring structural deficit of £61 million going into 2020-21, which is to rise to £80 million in 2021-22 and to £90 million in 2022-23.”
“I thank the Minister for her statement. I welcome the clarity given today on MOTs and the commitment by the Executive in the last number of days to supporting airports as well as city deals and their associated infrastructure projects. <BR /> <BR />The statement does not mention the outstanding matter of financial support for hauliers and taxi drivers. It is also disappointing that the problem accessing medical assessments has still not been resolved. In addition, DVA has introduced a fully online system for driving licence renewal. This is proving problematic for those who do not have access to the online system, with hard copy applications being returned. Can the Minister give a clear timeline for when these matters will be fully addressed?”
“We should improve and expand such fantastic assets, but those charged with carrying out that function need to apply the lessons learned from other schemes in Northern Ireland and elsewhere. We need to ensure that there is consensus and acceptance not only from those who use greenways but from those who accommodate them when they go through or run adjacent to their property. Consensus and accommodation are obtained not through confrontation but through consultation and engagement. <BR /> <BR />In conclusion, I welcome the opportunity to have contributed to today's debate, and I look forward to seeing improvements being made to my local greenway.”
“It is natural that landowners and residents will have certain reservations, and those concerns need to be managed sensitively. There is a wealth of evidence now available to show how concerns about problems such as antisocial behaviour are largely unfounded and how, for example, those living along the Connswater greenway have embraced it. It is little wonder, though, that locals have objected when the "vesting" word has been used. <BR /> <BR />As we focus on an outcomes-based approach, investment in greenways can meet many of the outcomes, including connecting people; helping people to enjoy a long, healthy and active life; helping people to live and work sustainably; and creating places where people want to live and work, visit and invest.”
“<BR /> <BR />I have been a consistent advocate of our greenways, which is why, when I held the post of Regional Development Minister, I launched a fund to enable councils to undertake feasibility studies of expanding the greenway network in their area. As a Strangford MLA, I was delighted that Ards and North Down Borough Council availed itself of the opportunity to look at an ambitious expansion that sought to extend the Comber greenway through Comber itself to Newtownards and on to Bangor, connecting with the north Down coastal path. In principle, that is a fantastic concept that provides a large, circuitous and traffic-free route. However, problems have arisen in the conduct of consultations and how information has been presented to local landowners.”
“While I appreciate that work has commenced in East Belfast at that end of the greenway, if we are to encourage commuters from my constituency to use it as an alternative to the car, it is imperative that lighting be installed along the full route. <BR /> <BR />While the proposer has talked about the enhancement of the Comber greenway as it currently exists, as well as its future management, I am keen to see further expansion of the network. As part of a fact-finding visit, I went to the Netherlands to look at the fast-cycle route between Arnhem and Nijmegen and at how high-quality, dense cycling infrastructure networks enable local children to cycle to school and to assess the urban cycling infrastructure in Amsterdam. I also took the opportunity to go to Edinburgh to learn the lessons from their greenway expansions.”
“Having my constituency office in Comber, I see at first hand the benefit of the greenway to the town and, in particular, to the local coffee shops. There are, therefore, numerous benefits to investments in our greenway network. <BR /> <BR />The development of the Connswater greenway has been a great addition to east Belfast, with its link to the Comber greenway. However, the contrast between the two is stark. The lack of lighting along the Comber greenway makes it unsafe and practically unusable once the evening starts to draw in. The fact that the greenway was constructed without some lighting provision is difficult to fathom.”
“First, I thank the proposer for tabling the Adjournment debate. Robin has been a great advocate of the Comber and the Connswater greenways. We can all agree that greenways such as the Comber greenway are an investment in the health and well-being of all our communities. I have used the Comber greenway on numerous occasions as a pedestrian and a cyclist, along with my colleague Joanne Bunting. As you travel along the greenway, it is evident that it attracts users of all ages and abilities. There are those on their own, those with families — both young and older families — and those with friends. It presents an opportunity to re-engage with nature and to exercise in a traffic-free environment. Certainly, the expansion of greenways in the UK and Europe has proven to be extraordinarily popular and a huge draw for tourists.”
“Signage is clearly important, and I will continue to lobby for it in my area. However, to effect real behavioural change, we need to be much more effective in visible detection and enforcement. To do that, we need our police on the ground. What discussions has the Minister had with the Chief Constable on road safety?”
“The Committee has sought comparable tables on concessionary fares in Northern Ireland and other jurisdictions. The Committee has also asked the Department whether the Department's underfunding of Translink is a breach of its contract under the public service agreement. <BR /> <BR />The Committee for Infrastructure will continue its scrutiny of the Department for Infrastructure's budget and especially the Minister's efforts to mitigate the impact of cuts.”
“That would be catastrophic for the transport infrastructure of Northern Ireland and would leave the Department in breach of its responsibilities. A number of reduced budgets for the Department have meant reduced budgets for Translink of around £13 million per year. Translink, therefore, ran its service at a deficit and used its reserves to supplement that. As the £19 million requested for Translink in the monitoring round was unsuccessful, its reserves next year will be below the level of working capital that it needs, and it may cease to be deemed a going concern, which is a critical issue facing the Department. Given our ageing population, officials noted that the concessionary fares scheme is becoming more expensive and has risen to almost £50 million. The Department gives Translink only £40 million for the scheme.”
“On the road network, the recent Barton and Northern Ireland Audit Office reports on structural maintenance of the road network recommend that the Department of Finance and the Department for Infrastructure work towards ensuring funding of some £143 million per annum on a recurring basis to prevent further deterioration. Furthermore, additional funding is needed to address the £1·2 billion backlog of road maintenance. The Committee will, as always, do its best to scrutinise the work and budget of the Department, but, with such a depleted budget, it is difficult to critique a Department in such crisis. <BR /> <BR />I have left the matter of Translink and the now very real possibility that it will become insolvent to the end.”
“<BR /> <BR />It is a Department with severe pressures, a Department struggling to keep the infrastructure that we all rely on from breaking down irrevocably. For Northern Ireland Water, there is a requirement for £1·45 billion identified under the Living With Water programme. That will bring hugely increased demands on the capital budget over the next decade. Northern Ireland Water also urgently requires assistance on a sustainable funding agreement. Officials warned that, if the constrained budget settlement for the current price control rolls forward, choices will have to be made that will lead to failed outcomes for our environment and more frequent prosecutions, including increasing fines for pollution events. Additionally, economic growth in many areas across Northern Ireland, particularly in Belfast, would need to be put on hold.”
“The Department's capital budget for 2019-2020 was £471 million. However, the Department pointed out that the requirement for 2020-21 is £795 million, increasing to £1·4 billion by 2022-23. In response to the Committee's question on how the Department prioritises its spending, the officials outlined that funding flagship projects, such as the major road upgrades, are at the top and, if approved by the Executive, the city deals are next. The Department noted that the Utility Regulator's determination on what Northern Ireland Water should get is inescapable. Next, there is critical rail safety work required. There is a contractual commitment in place to buy new carriages for the rail network and for new buses. There is also a need to find money for Waterways Ireland and the continued funding of the design phase of York Street.”
“The budget spend for 2010-11 was £1,703,256 and in 2011-12 was £2·5 million. The opening baseline budget for road safety advertising for 2018-19 was £700,000, and again for 2019-2020, representing a 30% reduction on the previous low allocation of £1 million in 2017-18. <BR /> <BR />The Department told the Committee of its ongoing support for community transport organisations. The Committee noted the Department's provision of £4·5 million to a number of them in 2019-2020 through the provisions of the rural transport fund and the transport programme for people with disabilities to deliver specialised and affordable transport. The Department made the point that, whilst this funding has remained the same as that in 2018-19, it is a reduction of almost 20% in the overall baseline since 2015-16.”
“Prior to the 2014-15 departmental budget reductions, the Department would have regularly allocated some £35 million to cover routine maintenance and meet winter requirements. In recent years, this budget has been cut by more than half. <BR /> <BR />As an asset, the Northern Ireland roads system is worth an estimated £40 billion, and experts suggest that £400 million should be spent each year just to maintain it. At best, the Department has managed only £75 million over the past few years. Underspending on that level only stores up bigger problems, and officials noted that it takes four times more to repair than to maintain. <BR /> <BR />The Department has a statutory duty to promote road safety, and the budget for that has been significantly cut over the past number of years.”
“New housing developments and businesses are not able to connect to the sewerage network in over 100 towns and villages across Northern Ireland. This has the potential to stagnate development, with various knock-on effects. The Minister advised the Committee that she intended to discuss Northern Ireland Water's organisation, borrowing powers and funding model with her Executive colleagues. <BR /> <BR />I have talked about the severely needed money that has been spent on roads. Funding has been pared back to such an extent that only a limited maintenance service exists, with much-reduced pothole repairs and half the number of grass cutting and gully emptying operations.”
“<BR /> <BR />Understandably, the Minister has allocated additional moneys to those aspects of her remit that protect lives, such as street lighting and road maintenance. However, because these are the areas most critical to fund, large swathes of the Department continue to be depleted. <BR /> <BR />I want to outline what a Department in financial crisis looks like. The Department for Infrastructure budget has a recurring structural deficit of £61 million going into the next financial year and due to rise to £80 million in 2021-22 and £90 million in 2022-23. <BR /> <BR />Within the area of water alone, there is shortfall in resource of £7 million. According to the Department, it has not been possible to fund Northern Ireland Water to the levels recommended by the Utility Regulator.”
“There has been a trend over recent years to ignore Translink's deficit. In briefings by the Minister and her officials, the Committee was advised that there were no further identifiable savings. While additional money through the monitoring round is obviously welcome, it is only a sticking plaster. <BR /> <BR />The Department has become increasingly dependent on monitoring rounds to deliver basic core services. As other Departments utilise their budgets better and surrender less, there is less funding at the monitoring rounds for the Department to make up its increasing shortfall. According to the Minister, Treasury approved the moving of £130 million from the capital grant into the resource block to supplement the shortfall. This position looks set to continue, but it is unsustainable.”
“The £4·8 million received from the Department of Finance went to the Belfast transport hub, street lighting and winter services. It is to be welcomed that the Executive found an additional £3 million, which was announced by the Minister of Finance last week, that will go towards street lighting, road maintenance and winter services. <BR /> <BR />During her briefing to the Committee, the Minister was pressed about the severity of underfunding of these recurrent services. She highlighted that the required annual budget for street lighting repairs was £3·2 million, but that the current allocation had been £1 million. To clear the backlog alone would require an estimated £710,000. <BR /> <BR />The additional funding has ignored water mains replacement, digital transformation of DVA and, of course, funding for Translink.”
“It is evidently a Department that has reached breaking point after years of underfunding and it is hard, as Chair of the Committee, to point to priorities for additional spend when so much of the Department has been depleted. The Committee notes that in the January monitoring round the Department made bids for £28·5 million of resource funding and £14·5 million of capital, and received £1 million of resource and £3·8 million of capital. The Department's bid requested funding for the Belfast transport hub, street lighting and roads maintenance, winter services, water mains replacement and the digital transformation of the Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA). The largest bid by far, however, was for £19 million to address Translink's operating deficit.”
“As Chair of the Committee for Infrastructure, I will take this opportunity to outline the Committee's consideration and views in respect of today's motions. <BR /> <BR />The expenditure of the Department for Infrastructure is one of the Executive's largest, and scrutiny of its budget is a key role for the Committee. In the short time that the Assembly has been back, the Committee has received a number of briefings on the Department's financial situation. Minister Mallon was invited to the Committee on 5 February to discuss her priorities for the Department. She outlined the financial challenges, and departmental officials briefed the Committee on the details of the Department's finances on 28 January and 19 February. <BR /> <BR />The stark financial situation faced by the Department was made clear.”
“The Minister will be aware that only 427 battery electric vehicles were purchased in Northern Ireland last year, and, with only 337 charging points, it is hardly a surprise. In the Ards and North Down Borough Council area, there are only eight charging points, with only three of those being in the Ards area, which, as it is a tourist destination, is not enough. If we are serious about lowering emissions, we need to get the basic infrastructure in place. Can the Minister tell the House what funding streams she is actively pursuing to assist councils in improving the current situation?”
“I thank the Minister for her response. I very much appreciate the great service that Libraries NI provides, despite challenging finances. I also welcome the cross-departmental work to provide the pilot out-of-hours service, particularly in Saintfield in my constituency. <BR /> <BR />Will the Minister give an update on the much-anticipated and long-overdue redevelopment of Newtownards library, please?”
“I thank the First Minister for her response. I am sure she will join me in welcoming the financial support that is now being given to those victims who were injured through no fault of their own — something that has been long fought for. Will the regional trauma network, as developed, meet the requirement and expectation of the Stormont House Agreement?”
“I thank the Minister for his statement this evening. While we all appreciate the challenges of the limited amount of money available in this monitoring round, and obviously the competing priorities of all Members, we are all aware of the deterioration of the roads network. It is disappointing that the roads maintenance bid was unsuccessful in its totality. While I welcome the allocation to winter service and street lighting, that does not go far enough to cover either of these services. <BR /> <BR />Will the Minister give a commitment in the forthcoming Budget to prioritise resource in those areas?”
“From the outset, I would like to declare that I am a governor of Killinchy Primary school, and I have met the EA on a number of important issues in relation to it. I am delighted that Killinchy Primary School and Glastry College will benefit from the Minister's announcement. <BR /> <BR />Is the Minister in a position to give details of the anticipated work to be carried out, the amount of money to be allocated and the likely delivery timescales for both schools?”
“Apologies; you must have spoken into my deaf ear. As the Member will be aware, over 90% of eligible farmers received an advance payment from October, which equated to £158 million. The first day on which full payments could then be made was 1 December. On that day, we issued 21,372 payments — that is 91% of eligible farmers on day 1. That is 3,540 more payments than were made on day 1 last year. The target set is to pay 95% of eligible applicants by the end of December, and I am confident that we will meet that target.”
“I thank the Member for his question. Obviously, the decision on CAP payments and what they will look like post-Brexit is something that we will look at in due course. <BR /> <BR />I am not actually quite sure what else he asked. I did not pick up on it, but I will pick it up in the supplementary.”
“I thank the Member for his question. I cannot give him an exact figure at the moment, but I am happy to provide that to him.”
“This work will be taken forward in consultation with our stakeholders over the coming months. However, my immediate priority is to address the timelines of final decisions for those who are already awaiting reviews arising from the introduction of CAP reform area-based schemes. Therefore, my officials will shortly engage with stakeholders to determine a means by which review of decisions can be streamlined and made more efficient.”
“I thank the Member for his question. Obviously the introduction of CAP reform area-based schemes has led to an unprecedented increase in the number of review-of-decision applications received by my Department. Review of decisions is an important part of the decision-making process that provides farmers and farm businesses with the opportunity to seek reconsideration where they believe that the Department did not reach the correct decision in respect of an area-based payment. Whilst the current process has been meeting objectives, I am nevertheless concerned about the time taken to issue final decisions. I have therefore asked my officials to review our current provision and put in place a process that better meets the needs of farmers for the 2017 scheme year going forward.”
“I am not sure that I can commit to that, because I do very much like my car. What I will do is work alongside colleagues in other Departments to ensure that they raise awareness of this because we are all in this together and there is a job of work for us to do to reach targets.”
“As I have said, I have written very recently to the Secretary of State about working alongside her in order to increase the overall target to 57% by 2025.”
“There are good achievements to date with regard to energy, with 25% of our total electricity consumption now generated from local renewable resources. We have the ongoing expansion of the natural gas network. We are working a lot with colleagues in transport for a new cycling infrastructure. There is additional electric-vehicle charging infrastructure. Obviously, agriculture is probably one of the trickiest to look at. We have the Efficient Farming Cuts Greenhouse Gases phase 1 initiative. I have also very recently received the independent report that was commissioned on a sustainable agricultural land management strategy. <BR /> <BR />My Department is taking this really very seriously. I do believe that the work that is going forward will assist us in reaching our targets.”
“I thank the Member for her question. She may be alarmed by all of this, but I have to say that work is ongoing right across my Department. She will be aware that the Executive are taking this very seriously. We are out for consultation on key indicator 29 with regard to air pollution. There are a number of things being done right across all of our Departments. I am working in collaboration with Departments for a mitigation action plan.”
“I thank the Member for her question. I go back to the original question insomuch that this was a decision that was taken in the last mandate and given Executive approval at that time. Construction has now commenced, and the building is scheduled to be completed and open by January 2018. It will then start the business that it is designed to do, which is to accommodate employees in the north-west of Northern Ireland.”
“I thank the Member for her question. The Member will be aware that this was done before my time in office. She may want to take into consideration the fact that this is a development that will allow for 600 jobs in the north-west. There are economic benefits to that. My understanding is that, at the time, it was seen as value for money in order to ensure that this project went ahead.”
“I thank the Member for her comments. I will certainly come back to the Member with the detail. I was not aware of that.”
“I thank the Member for her question. Obviously, they will have visited the pork plants in Northern Ireland. When I was in China myself just a few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to speak to a number of officials. Last week, I met Andrea Leadsom, who has since been in China. We are all getting very positive information back with regard to the export of our pork products to China. We are expecting hopefully good news in the not-so-distant future. This is very lucrative for our plants. There is an estimate that it could be worth somewhere in the region of £10 million to the Northern Ireland economy.”
“I thank the Member for his question. I agree absolutely with everything that he said, having met people who benefited from the clinics and spoken to staff. I recommend that the Member, if he gets the chance, meet the staff who man the clinics, and do so during very unsociable hours, I have to say. <BR /> <BR />People have found the clinics beneficial, particularly farmers who live on their own, are isolated and who do not always look after, or are mindful of, their health. They are very much mindful of the welfare of their animals but often forget about themselves. This has been a fantastic service, and people have found the benefit of it.”
“I thank the Member for his question. He will be aware that the scheme has been ongoing for some time. I had the privilege of welcoming the 12,000th recipient of the health checks to Saintfield mart the week before last.”
“I thank the Member for his question, but that is outside my remit.”
“I thank the Member for his question. At this stage, I have not received a report on that.”
“As I said, a business case still needs to be drawn up, but we are still some way off a decision being made.”