Danny Kennedy
Newry and Armagh · Ulster Unionist Party · Northern Ireland
“<BR /> <BR />I know the circumstances that we are in, but my hope is that departmental officials will continue to explore these issues and find solutions so that, at the earliest point, those solutions can be delivered to my constituency and to the people who have such frustration with the lack of service.”
“This situation is also prevalent in other rural areas of Northern Ireland. People in areas such as Lissummon, Ballygorman, Cladymilltown, Altnamackan, Loughgall, Mullaghglass and countless others, unfortunately, all of which are located in my constituency, find themselves in a position currently where they are provided with little or no e…”
“I, with others, receive regular contact from my constituents on this issue. It is abundantly clear from the representations that I receive that the lack of broadband provision, particularly in rural areas, impacts in many ways on families and businesses that reside in various locations across the constituency.”
“Madam Principal Deputy Speaker, I thank you and the Business Committee for affording me the opportunity to debate the issue of broadband provision directly relating to my constituency of Newry and Armagh. I also place on record my good wishes to you as you leave the House, and I wish you well for the future.”
“The lack of high-quality broadband, for instance, has an impact on the ability of many rural businesses to function efficiently, placing them clearly at a disadvantage to other competitors in their particular field.”
“I could continue to detail many more circumstances, but I want other Members to contribute and to hear what the Minister has to say. I take this opportunity to make an impassioned plea to the Minister to pursue, within a quick time frame, the network improvements that are so clearly required.”
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“I am grateful to the Member for his question. We had the opportunity, as he will know and remember well, to have an exchange at the Regional Development Committee last Wednesday. I set out clearly my view of and my displeasure at the failures involved in the project. He will also know that I have initiated a lessons learned exercise in Translink and in my Department, and I expect those reports to be on my desk before the end of this year.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his supplementary question. I concede that there are anomalies in the system, but I do not believe that it is worth addressing them. I am not sure about and will want to check his assertion that the savings could amount to £7 million. We will look at that, but, irrespective of that, the concessionary fares scheme provides an opportunity for people to go out and socially engage and to spend money. Even the few who perhaps use it to travel to work at least have other opportunities to use it at weekends, when they can benefit local economies. It strikes me as strange electoral policy to be in favour of water charges and cutting the concessionary fares scheme. I will be interested to read the Alliance manifesto when it is published.”
“I believe that the Executive should fund it centrally, and I believe and hope very much that I have won that argument around the Executive table. I want to see people benefiting from the concessionary fares scheme as it is presently constituted.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his question. I am not going to ask him to declare any special interest in the scheme. I am a very firm supporter, as is my party, of the concessionary fares scheme. It brings considerable benefits to the travelling public, not least people who may be regarded as senior citizens. It gives them the opportunity to enjoy a day out in the company of friends and, perhaps, family or to go and visit family. It gives them the opportunity to engage socially, and, importantly for our town centres and cities, to shop, spend money and help the local economy. I am not interested in cutbacks to the concessionary fares scheme, and I have argued that consistently around the Executive table.”
“That consultation is likely to lead to the need for a further public inquiry, but a decision on that can only be made following careful consideration of the representations and level of objections raised in response to the consultation exercise. If deemed necessary, a public inquiry is likely to be held later in 2015.”
“As I have indicated to the Member, it is important that we work through the processes involved. The next step in progressing the scheme would be the publication of the new environmental statement, the draft vesting order and the draft direction order for the scheme. Development work on those is now at an advanced stage, but a firm date for publication cannot be given until after consideration of any submissions to the ongoing public consultation exercise into the impacts on the Tully Bog special area of conservation. <BR /> <BR />Publication of those documents would be followed by a further consultation period, a minimum of six weeks, when formal representations and/or objections to the scheme can be made.”
“<BR /> <BR />It is important that my Department does not in any way pre-empt the outcomes of the consultation exercise; hence the way forward with the scheme thereafter can be determined only after careful consideration of all the responses received.”
“Following on from the successful legal challenge in 2013 to the A5 western transport corridor, four draft reports have been developed to assess impacts on the integrity of all potentially affected European-designated environmentally sensitive sites — nine in total — in the vicinity of the A5 western transport corridor scheme. A public consultation exercise on three of those reports commenced on 30 April and concluded on 13 June 2014. The subject of the fourth report, the Tully Bog special area of conservation, is impacted by air-quality aspects and, therefore, required further updated traffic survey information before publication. The consultation period on that draft report commenced on 15 October and will conclude on 28 November 2014.”
“The planning of the Londonderry to Dungiven dual carriageway allows it to be constructed in up to three parts: the Dungiven bypass itself, which is the Derrychrier Road to the Crebarkey Road; the Caw roundabout to the Maydown roundabout; and the Maydown roundabout to the Derrychrier Road. The A6 Randalstown to Castledawson stretch will cost, we estimate, somewhere between £120 million and £140 million for the 14 kilometre dual carriageway. The A6 Londonderry to Dungiven scheme cost estimates for the three sections are as follows: for the Dungiven bypass, between £55 million and £65 million; between the Caw roundabout and the Maydown roundabout, between £45 million and £50 million; and the 25-kilometre section between the Maydown roundabout and the Derrychrier Road, between £290 million and £305 million.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his question. Safety remains the priority for the Department in the planning of all schemes, but, more importantly, in all situations where they are not yet in place. That remains of paramount interest and concern to us. We have been looking steadily at the improvements to the A6 through this major scheme. It can separated into sections and, again, if money becomes available, we will certainly consider that in a positive way. In the meantime, we continue to maintain the route to the best of our ability.”
“The Member will understand that I am not a fan of guesstimates. There is widespread political support for the A6. Obviously that is one reason why we have, in part, allowed sections to be built to move forward as finance becomes available. We will look at that. Of course, we find ourselves in challenging financial times, and that is another reason why I am loath to begin to put a date on it. I assure the Member and the House that there is no reluctance on my part to carry forward the scheme at the earliest available opportunity.”
“That work is continuing, and, when I am satisfied that all issues have been appropriately reviewed, a number of which are complex, I will issue a departmental statement.”
“There are currently proposals to dual two sections of the A6: Randalstown to Castledawson and Londonderry to Dungiven. Funding has been provided to advance the A6 Randalstown to Castledawson dual carriageway project to a shovel-ready position in 2014-15 so that it would be ready to commence construction at short notice should the necessary funding become available. <BR /> <BR />The A6 Londonderry to Dungiven dualling scheme, which includes a bypass at Dungiven, is well advanced in its development. It has been through public inquiry, and the inspector has produced a report containing a number of recommendations. Those include a request to consider an alternative route in the vicinity of Dungiven.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his question. I am not aware of DRD officials swapping lights, either working or not working, particularly outside places of worship, where "lighten my darkness, we beseech thee" would be a common enough prayer. On a serious note, the issue he refers to at that church property has been resolved through maintenance work. If the Member has specific issues or cases that he wants to draw to my attention, I will certainly investigate those.”
“Obviously, there are statutory duties involved here, under article 8 of the Roads (Northern Ireland) Order, to maintain roads etc. My Department has received legal advice on the issue. We will continue to inspect roads, footways and street lighting columns, and defects will be recorded as normal. <BR /> It is clear that defects may not be repaired as quickly as normal, and all repairs will be prioritised on the basis of safety. My Department will continue to actively investigate and defend public liability claims, with every case turning on its own facts. Ultimately, it will be for the courts to decide whether the reduced standards comply with my Department's statutory duty.”
“I am grateful to the Member for at least having sympathy for me.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his supplementary question. This has not been an easy decision for me, or one that has been lightly taken. We have forensically scrutinised all aspects of our budget for this year, and, unfortunately, such are the impacts that that was one of the realistic measures available to me for external contractors. I draw a parallel with the Member's colleague in charge of health, who at this stage appears to have cancelled external works, operations and the like provided by external carers and companies for health operations. I think that there are parallels. These are not easy decisions to take, and we will continue to work through them as quickly and efficiently as we possibly can.”
“<BR /> <BR />I must point out that street lighting repairs have not ceased. All fault reports are being recorded and will be dealt with as soon as resources permit. That is not the level of service that my Department would like to provide, but I have had to take some difficult decisions following the outcomes of the June and October monitoring rounds. I simply cannot spend money that I do not have.”
“<BR /> <BR />My Department’s operations and maintenance staff, who can provide around 25% of the overall resource required to fix street lighting faults, will endeavour to repair as many lights as possible, prioritising large groups of lights that are out and then individual lights that have failed. <BR /> <BR />At this stage, it is very difficult to predict how many street lights will not be repaired by the end of this financial year. As of 14 November 2014, almost 15,000 of our total of 280,000 street lights were out across Northern Ireland. In the period since 8 August 2014, when I had to suspend the use of external contractors for routine street lighting repairs, my operations and maintenance staff have fixed over 5,000 faulty street lights across Northern Ireland.”
“I am happy to go straight to question 4, but the Member's interest seems to be in question 3. <BR /> <BR />My Department is facing significant resource budget constraints, so I have had to take a number of difficult decisions, including the suspension of works orders to external contractors that were responsible for the repair of approximately three quarters of the street lights that go out. To deal with the health and safety implications, I have set priorities for dealing with street lighting faults. Priority will be given to those faults that present an electrical hazard to members of the public, and contractors will still be employed to deal with such faults.”
“I thank the Member for his supplementary. We have not yet had final confirmation from DFP, but I believe that this is an important Programme for Government project. With passenger journeys on the Londonderry to Belfast line increasing by over one third in the last two years — up to 1·6 million following phase 1 — I very much that hope that DFP will recognise the value of the project despite the increase in phase 2 costs. We can, of course, re-look at the business case to ensure that all relevant social and economic benefits have been set out in sufficient detail and that the established growth in passenger numbers has been clearly taken into account.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his supplementary. I outlined in some detail the timeline of how things evolved last week. We were alerted to the situation at the end of June. That was confirmed to us in late July by the Translink board, and, in early August, I commissioned the special report, the progress assessment review (PAR), which was undertaken with considerable speed in September. Its recommendations were made available to me by the end of September, and I had to conclude on those and chart a way forward with Translink. That took us to the end of October, and we were then in a position to inform the House, which I did in my statement of 3 November.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his supplementary question. He has a continuing interest in the Bellarena part of the project and is aware of the land issue involved there. We are seeking to resolve that, and, of course, I expect that Translink will continue to consult landowners and all interested parties in the area.”
“My officials have engaged extensively with the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB) and officials in Scotland and the Republic of Ireland to explore the potential for the project to be funded through INTERREG Va. That cooperational programme document is being formalised by the Commission, and the first call for suitable applications is planned to be in spring 2015. We will pursue that as well.”
“All of those issues have been explored in some detail, not only following the questions to my statement in the House on 3 November but at the Regional Development Committee. I say again today that I am committed fully to the completion of that work. We are working though the various stages. We await the outcome of the economic appraisal with DFP but will continue to make progress as speedily as we possibly can. <BR /> <BR />The Member asked whether I have any other good news for the north-west. I indicated in my earlier reply to his colleague Mr Ramsey the potential for EU funding at Londonderry's Waterside rail station. I am very hopeful that we can move forward on that.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his supplementary question. I do not consider him, or anybody else in the Chamber, to be a mushroom. I have treated everyone with the utmost respect, and I am sure that the Member will concede that.”
“<BR /> <BR />The Member was in attendance at the Regional Development Committee meeting last Wednesday when I explained the current situation on the project in detail. I remain fully committed to the completion of the work and to the improvement of the rail service between Northern Ireland’s two largest cities.”
“I would say at the outset that I do not accept the premise of the question. I made myself available to the Assembly on 3 November when I made my statement, and I went before the Regional Development Committee on 12 November to speak about the matter in detail. I also sought to speak with the Chair and Deputy Chair of the Committee in advance of my statement, but circumstances did not permit me to speak to the Chair. However, I did speak to the Deputy Chair and Committee Clerk. <BR /> <BR />As I made clear in my statement to the Assembly on 3 November, I can advise that the current tendering process relating to the signalling element of the upgrade of the Belfast to Londonderry railway line will proceed, subject to the necessary approvals being obtained and an updated economic appraisal.”
“We have put forward other schemes such as the Belfast intermodal transport hub and York Street interchange and at some stage, I also hope, the new Waterside station in Londonderry.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his supplementary question. Indeed, I accept the point he is making, which, presumably, is that better connectivity throughout Northern Ireland is surely a key benefit to economic progress. That is what I have sought to do, not only around the Executive table, as I bid for necessary funds from conventional sources, but in utilising the opportunities before us from Europe. We have had some success with that. The Member will know that, under TEN-T, we had success in the Coleraine to Londonderry track relay phase 1; the dualling of the A8 Coleman's Corner to Ballyrickard roundabout; and the installation of rapid charge points for electric vehicles and supporting IT systems.”
“I thank the Member for her question. Indeed, I am very happy to confirm that, of the Executive Departments, DRD is easily the best and has had the most success in drawing down EU money, and I have established a dedicated funding team to ensure that we remain top of that particular league. Therefore, we will continue to draw down as much European funding as we can. I can tell you that, for the Budget 2011-15, and for the period to date, £57,174,839 has been drawn down as a result of our efforts through the European sustainable competitiveness programme, INTERREG IVa, INTERREG IVb and TEN-T. Therefore, we are very much on top of this game and looking at all opportunities whereby we can benefit from EU funding.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his question. Some further clarification about and understanding of the European Investment Bank and how it operates is required. I tried to outline that. Her Majesty's Treasury's public expenditure guidelines restrict very much the ability of Northern Ireland Departments and their non-departmental public bodies to borrow from external sources. Therefore, it is for private initiatives or something that we would carry forward, as we attempted to do even through using councils as a potential avenue of funding. That has not been possible, but we will continue to try to do that. <BR /> <BR />If I was very mischievous, I would welcome the interest from a member of UKIP in accessing European funds. I hope that you have told Nigel, because Rochester is this Thursday.”
“<BR /> <BR />My Department has been very successful to date, as the Member will know, in accessing European funding for a number of roads and transport projects, and I will continue to explore opportunities for further EU funding.”
“In that respect, even government loans to public corporations will score against departmental capital budgets. Therefore, the scope to directly involve the European Investment Bank in funding projects across my Department is more limited. I met representatives from the European Investment Bank earlier this year to discuss its potential involvement in a number of projects, in particular, the funding of the A6. European Investment Bank funding being provided through councils was considered, and we met the councils to consider the proposal. Unfortunately, it has not yet been possible to reach a successful outcome on the proposal. I will, however, continue to explore all feasible options for the funding of capital projects by my Department.”
“The Northern Ireland investment fund is targeted at areas where significant infrastructure investment is usually taken forward by the private sector but where government has a particular interest since the investment helps to deliver on specific Executive objectives. Those areas include: social and affordable housing; energy production; energy and renewable energy; telecommunications; and urban regeneration. As such, my Department's functions and related projects do not fall within the scope of the fund. <BR /> <BR />With regard to the specific use of European Investment Bank (EIB) funds, Her Majesty's Treasury's public expenditure guidelines restrict the ability of Northern Ireland Departments and their non-departmental public bodies to borrow from external sources.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his interest and his question. I am aware that there are issues around the passing loop at Bellarena. I will endeavour to write to the Member and give him an updated position on that. Current jobs are not at risk. The important thing is that we move to enhance the service, which will bring benefits as well as increased passenger numbers and will continue to generate public transport availability between Belfast and Londonderry for tourism. For those who work in either destination, it has been an important link and transport benefit, and I want to see it enhanced. That is why I want to see the project succeed as quickly as possible and to overcome any issues that there may be around the passing loop at Bellarena.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his question. I simply raised the issue of the contract work ahead because it is specialist, and my understanding is that it is carried out by a limited number of companies, primarily in the rest of the United Kingdom. We will seek to get the procurement process into place as quickly as possible to encourage firms to tender. I am not about to look forward to further failure on the project. I am determined to see the project succeed and will take every reasonable step in my power and under my control to ensure that it does.”
“I am grateful to the Member for the question. She will know and, at least, recognise my efforts to restore the line and make it ready for the future so that it can help to host events such as the Open in 2019. Phase 2 should be completed within that time frame, and we will seek to achieve that. <BR /> <BR />I remind the House that, when I came into office, I inherited the Coleraine to Londonderry line, which was simply in mothballs and being earmarked for closure. We have moved heaven and earth to make sure that it has been rescued and retained. We need to build on that and move to the next stage of the three-phase upgrade. That is a continuing commitment that I give again to the House.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his supplementary question. If he was listening closely to a previous answer, he will have heard that I fully expect the recommendations of the Whitehall Cabinet Office review to be implemented by Translink and accountability to be properly accepted, corporately and individually.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his question. I said that it amounted to "little more than a guesstimate". I believe that that is justified criticism; it is serious criticism levelled on my behalf and on behalf of those who undertook the review. Let me state this again: that review was done at a very high level by the Cabinet Office at Whitehall. So, we cannot be accused of not taking this situation seriously. We have to move the situation on. I have already outlined my intention that the new chief executive of Translink and the Translink board will carry it forward. I will be taking personal interest in it and will not rest until we see substantial progress on the project that is acceptable to me, my Department and Members.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his question. I am sure that there will be anger and frustration among the political representatives in councils and the Members from the area affected. I have already met Translink's new chief executive. He took up position last Monday. He is in no doubt as to the gravity with which I view the issue, and he is aware of the clear level of disappointment that I have expressed. I fully expect all the recommendations of the Whitehall Cabinet Office review to be implemented by Translink and accountability to be properly accepted, corporately and, may I say, individually.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his question, and I understand the frustration behind it. However, as I said in my previous answer to Mr McCartney, I expect Translink to deliver this project, and I am determined that it will. I am equally determined that, going forward, the lessons from this incident and process will be learned. We will pursue the issues in Translink as well as in my Department.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his question. That is why it is so important that we have a lessons-learned review. The new group chief executive appears to be an almost ideal candidate to do that, given that he comes to the company from the private sector and will be able to assess the failings of the original procurement process. I share the anger and the disappointment. I am determined that we move forward, and we will do that at all stages. I have cautioned that there may be reasons for suppliers not showing the necessary interest as we go forward, but let me be absolutely clear that Translink will be expected to deliver this Programme for Government priority on behalf of my Department and me.”
“I give him this assurance: I will pursue it and ensure that it will be pursued. I have made that clear not only to the board of Translink but to its new group chief executive. He is aware of my personal interest in this, and we will pursue it. I am not washing my hands or seeking to put others in the frame; I am simply saying that Translink, at an early stage, got this terribly wrong. It is important now that it recovers the position and that we move forward to progress a project that has, I believe, widespread political support.”
“We did, however, take the opportunity to brief the Deputy Chair and the Clerk to the Committee, and I know that it was the Clerk's intention to relay that to the Chairman. <BR /> <BR />To say that I am disappointed is an understatement. I am very angry indeed that we have arrived at this situation. I remind the Member and the House that, in this operation, the original underestimate is where the fault lies. The cost was woefully underestimated as being in the region of £20 million to £22 million; a more accurate estimate of £40 million has now been arrived at. So, at least we know now the true extent of the work ahead of us. I am glad that the Member indicated the importance of this line and project, not least because it is a key element of the Programme for Government.”
“I am grateful to the Chair of the Regional Development Committee. I am sorry that, for reasons of business in the House and meetings, we were unable to engage.”
“I have made the newly installed Translink chief executive aware that the next stage of the project must be a priority for him, and I assure Members that I will deal with any further failings. However, let us be clear: if I had not intervened in the first place, a service would not be operating on the line. I am committed to delivering an improved rail service on the line, and my actions demonstrate that. <BR /> <BR />My record on delivering improved rail services is also clear. We had a record number of 13 million passenger journeys last year, and there has been growth on all lines, including Coleraine to Londonderry. We have also had record customer satisfaction levels and fares that compare very favourably with other parts of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. I commend the statement to the House.”
“I must be candid with Members and say that risks remain with the project, notably land purchases around the Bellarena passing loop and a potential lack of interest from suppliers. I will, however, expect my officials and the Translink board and senior executive team to manage those risks proactively and keep me fully informed. <BR /> <BR />Members will recall that I inherited a situation in 2011 in which there was a very real risk that the rail line between Coleraine and Londonderry would be closed for safety reasons because no budget had been set aside to carry out the essential track work that was needed. I took immediate action to ensure that the line remained open, and the completion of the first phase of the project in early 2013 demonstrates my commitment.”
“The decision last summer to separate the signalling and passing loop elements and the design of the signalling from its construction led to some delay. However, it was the detailed design work that laid bare the inadequacy of the previous estimate. <BR /> <BR />I am disappointed with the way in which Translink has managed this important project, given the particular importance that I attach to it and its Programme for Government status. I expect the Translink board and the new chief executive to review the organisation’s failings comprehensively. As I said, I expect a comprehensive lessons-learned exercise and follow-up actions before too long. <BR /> <BR />My focus now is on sorting out a practicable and affordable way forward.”
“The cost of the signalling element has clearly escalated, partly because splitting the project between permanent way construction and signalling involves two contractors being brought in at different times and, to avoid a line closure, overnight and weekend costs may increase. When that is combined with the fact that specialist staff rates have increased since 2011 because of market conditions, it means that the overall projected cost of phase 2 is higher.”