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, but there is a fundamental issue with the current budget allocations. There is a blockage, and, as is well known, it is a political blockage. The Member is a member of a party that is central to the blockage in very necessary funds that could assist my Department and other Departments as they confront the very serious financial challenges at this time. As well as asking me to look at the situation, the Member and his party need to look closely again at a situation that is costing the Executive £2 million a week.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his supplementary question. Let me reassure him and, indeed, the entire House that this is not a situation that we want to be in and that every care and consideration will be given to ensuring that there is no impact on farmland or farmers' property. Local section offices work very closely with farmers in an area. We are not aware of any widespread difficulty, but, of course, if there are issues that farmers or landowners wish to discuss with my officials at section office level, they will be very happy to do so. Ultimately, I want to be in a situation in which we can properly fund all these important services.”
“Due to these pressures, my Department is able to provide only a skeleton routine maintenance service at present, at some financial risk to my Department. As a consequence, weed control is one of the areas affected. <BR /> <BR />Although my internal workforce has limited capacity to carry out chemical weed control, it will endeavour to undertake that type of treatment to ensure that the Department meets its legislative requirement for noxious weeds. It is not the service that my Department wishes to provide, but it is a direct consequence of the current very challenging budgetary position. In June monitoring, I have bid for additional resources to restore routine maintenance activities to normal levels, and I hope that the Member and the House will robustly support my Department's bid.”
“At the outset, I express my gratitude to the Speaker and his office, and to my ministerial colleague Mervyn Storey, the Minister for Social Development, for swapping oral questions today because of personal family circumstances. Thank you very much indeed. <BR /> <BR />My Department's policy and procedures on weed control are aimed at ensuring the safety of road users, preventing the deterioration of the road pavement and meeting statutory obligations to control noxious weeds so that they do not spread to adjoining farmland. As Members will be aware, however, my Department is facing a very significant £60 million resource budget pressure in 2015-16, more than half of which has fallen to Transport NI.”
“I beg to introduce the Water and Sewerage Services Bill [NIA Bill 51/11-16], which is a Bill to amend, and to confer power to amend, the Water and Sewerage Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006; and for connected purposes.”
“Sadly, for people in Northern Ireland, some here today seem much more comfortable with the character of opposition — a harum-scarum opposition — rather than the responsibility of government.”
“Those who blame a reliance on monitoring rounds fail to ask why DRD is being used as a valve Department by the Executive and why other Departments are able to underspend in a time of austerity yet DRD is being used as a sponge. <BR /> <BR />The motion fails to acknowledge the impact of the Budget passed by the DUP and Sinn Féin earlier this year and its impact on public services across a number of Departments. More than ever, the debate highlights the fact that our current system allows those in government to behave as though they are absolutely removed from it and as though they are in opposition.”
“The issues before us are the consequence of Executive decisions. The services that DRD delivers affect every citizen. The public expect the representatives in this House to stand up for their needs, not to score political points off political opponents. The Committee needs to stand up and be counted. If it is in favour of safeguarding public services, it should support me. <BR /> <BR />Today's debate has been characterised by conflict, not just between some members of the Committee and my Department but between the comments of some Committee members and the comments of other Committee members. Those who will no doubt support the phantom Budget next week are criticising those who are endeavouring to live within budget this week. Those who call for more capital investment in infrastructure fail to support bids for additional capital.”
“That service will cost money that DRD does not have at present. I am therefore providing it at risk. I have bid for the necessary funds in June monitoring. If the funding is not forthcoming, I will face another difficult decision. In that eventuality, I expect the Committee to support the need for investment.”
“With the budget available, I am able to put in place only a severely reduced road maintenance service. It is a skeleton service. It is the bare minimum consistent with protecting the public.”
“I do not like those facts either, but governing is about making decisions and standing over them, not cynical political grandstanding. <BR /> <BR />I and my officials have explained at length the basis of the £60 million of pressures that I face, yet there seems still to be a lack of understanding. If I did not face these pressures, I would not be making cuts. I came into politics, with so many others, to make a positive difference to people's lives. I have rehearsed the issues facing me for months, and I have yet to receive any alternative proposals from the Committee or anyone else. <BR /> <BR />Finally, Mr Speaker, I need to spell out the decisions that I have made in road maintenance, where I have a duty regarding public health and safety.”
“<BR /> <BR />I will now deal with the motion's call for me to set out my financial strategy for the next financial period. We only have a budget for 2015-16, and it looks vulnerable at present, but I have set out a clear financial strategy to deal with the £60 million of pressures that I face. I moved funding from roads and from Translink to fund NIW to within £5 million of the regulator's determined requirement. I levied cuts in my Department's staffing budget and had to make cuts in the budget for community transport. All of those decisions were unpalatable but necessary to ensure that I manage my budget. I would argue that the Committee's problem is not that I cannot manage my budget, but that it does not like the consequences of the reduced allocations to DRD. Some people seek to conveniently ignore those harsh financial facts.”
“If we do not do so and put plans in place, yes, there will be a risk of infraction proceedings, but there will also be constraints on economic development. My Department is leading work approved by the Executive to put together a strategic drainage infrastructure programme of work, but making available the necessary funding is a matter for the Executive to grasp in this and the next mandate. More recently, we have been at risk of infraction because of inadequacies at Ballycastle waste water treatment works. I have ensured that a scheme to upgrade the work is now going ahead, with completion due in late 2017. As a result, infraction proceedings are unlikely. Again, Mr Speaker, reality differs significantly from the sensationalism in the motion.”
“The chief executive has written to my Department in recent days to confirm that those measures are being implemented and that the company's future is secure as a result. He has described the reporting of his comments, as exemplified, I might say, in this motion, as, at best, selective and, at worst, misleading. I could not agree more. <BR /> <BR />In the recently concluded price control process for Northern Ireland Water (NIW), the regulator highlighted that while NIW might have expected to have available £1 billion to invest over the next six years, £1·7 billion was what it could, ideally, spend but, more critically, £2·86 billion is what should be spent. <BR /> <BR />We face huge challenges in upgrading our water and sewerage infrastructure.”
“Regrettably, that is a highly selective and, perhaps, mischievous interpretation of evidence given to the Committee by the Translink chief executive on the February 2015 fare increase. My Department had extracted £9 million from Translink in 2014-15 to meet the budgetary pressure that I have alluded to. The company faced a further reduction of funding in 2015-16 of £13 million. In that context, the chief executive made clear that, should Translink not take action, the company would cease to exist in its present form. The chief executive went on to set out a programme of action: the fare increase; reductions in management and administration of £3·1 million; and a programme of service adjustments to deliver annual savings of £7 million.”
“I have to make progress. I will move on to Translink. The Committee's motion refers to:”
“In recognition of this, the £20 million was restored to me in 2013-14 through monitoring. In 2014-15, against the same context, my bid for £20 million was refused. Despite that, in response, I made over £20 million of savings and 4·4% of in-year cuts. <BR /> <BR />It was abundantly clear towards the end of the financial year that there were sufficient reduced requirements, not least from the Justice Department, available to the Executive to cover the Belfast harbour shortfall. No such allocation was made. <BR /> <BR />There may have been mismanagement of this issue, but it was not on my part. Others can speak for themselves. The shortfall was down to a fundamental erroneous decision in Budget 2010 and it could have been sorted out in 2014-15.”
“I am grateful to the Member, but he misses the point that I made in my earlier submission, which is that the Finance Minister in the Executive deems it appropriate that monitoring rounds are how this Department is to be funded in terms of structural maintenance. That is my argument at the Executive. I would be a little bit more glad if the Committee actively supported me in that argument with not only the Executive but the Finance Minister. <BR /> <BR />I turn now to the 2014-15 out-turn. As part of Budget 2010, it was assumed, wrongly, by Conor Murphy — welcome back — that DRD could extract £20 million per annum from Belfast harbour. Hence, £20 million per annum was deducted from my allocations. It is now clear that no legal mechanism existed to extract funds from the harbour.”
“In particular, if it had its wish, we would see an even more marked deterioration in the fabric of our roads network in the years ahead. I have no intention of presiding over that. <BR /> <BR />I am intrigued by the Committee's position on monitoring. Last week, my officials appeared before the Committee to brief its members on my proposed June monitoring bid. That is a significant and important bid. I have reviewed that session with officials and have yet to find any argument against bidding. Indeed, officials were urged to accord a greater priority to one bid, namely that for community transport. It seems to me that the Committee is arguing for both more and less use of monitoring at the same time. I am confused about its position and wonder what it is. <BR /> <BR />I turn now to the 2014-15 out-turn —”
“Nonetheless, that has been the pattern in recent years. Now, apparently, it is I who stands accused of over-reliance on in-year monitoring. <BR /> <BR />The Committees of this Assembly have a vital role. One element is scrutiny of Ministers and Departments. As a member of the House and a former Chair of Statutory Committees in previous mandates, I fully support that role, but another role is to champion Departments' interests and act as an advocate for investment. This must be the first time that a Committee is arguing against investment and has come to the Floor of the House to argue that point. I await with interest the Committee's explanation — hopefully it will come in the winding-up speech — to the many stakeholders who appear before the Committee for why it is somehow opposed to bidding for monitoring moneys.”
“I have consistently made it clear that the use of my Department as a sponge militates against sensible planning and actually delivers less value for money, as the investment is best spent in the summer and autumn.”
“First, I need to address the inaccuracies in the motion tabled by the Committee for Regional Development. We have a well-established public expenditure system here: the Budget sets the total for each Department, and, through the financial year, adjustments are made by the Executive through the monitoring rounds. That allows reduced requirements to be surrendered and some additional pressures to be met. All Departments make use of it for both purposes. <BR /> <BR />For my Department, particularly for road maintenance, the Executive adopted a deliberate policy of dampening my opening budget in the recognition that any surplus capital emerging later in the year, as invariably happens, can be soaked up by spend on structural maintenance.”
“At the outset, I apologise for my slight lateness to the debate. I think that a number of Members were, like me, caught by the rolling forward of business. No discourtesy was intended to you, Mr Speaker, the House or the members of the Regional Development Committee. The delay meant that I missed the four minutes and 22 seconds attributed to the Chairman of the Committee, but I caught enough of the end to hear myself being likened to Oliver Twist. I return the compliment by describing the Chair as the Artful Dodger: he seems to be dodging some of the financial issues that confront the Committee, my Department and me. <BR /> <BR />I welcome the opportunity to set out how I am managing — I stress the word "managing" — my budget in the difficult circumstances that I find myself in.”
“I will continue to do that, and I ask the Committee to do so as well.”
“<BR /> <BR />Mr Byrne highlighted the plight of the disabled and the elderly. He also paid tribute to the transport assistance service that operates in west Tyrone, which I have no doubt does that very effectively. I want to see that supported. However, the contribution from Mr Swann — the collective response — is the one that we should concentrate on. <BR /> <BR />It is on that basis that I make this plea: the provision of public services ought to be something that everyone in the House can agree on, no matter what their political persuasion, and I ask that the matter not be made into a political football. In my view, the Committee has failed to say where any additional money for community transport should come from. I am the Minister, and I have to deal with the realities that I face.”
“No, I will not give way. It is sometimes time to listen and learn. <BR /> <BR />Mr Easton raised the issue of rural proofing. In this case, because the policy predated the rural proofing initiative, it was not necessary. However, we do of course pay careful attention to all the necessary consultations that have to be undertaken. <BR /> <BR />Mr Moutray expressed the widespread anger on behalf of those areas that have been affected. I am aware of that, I am concerned about it, and I hope that there might be some consensus, particularly around the Executive table. It might not get a consensus from the Committee for Regional Development — it might be a little bit too optimistic to hope for that — but I hope that there would be more sympathy from the Finance Minister and Executive colleagues.”
“Whilst I accept that that might be Alliance Party policy, it is certainly not Executive policy and it is unlikely to be so. I think that —”
“Roy Beggs attempted to introduce an air of political reality by mentioning the financial challenges that we all face. Other members of the Executive are the same, and I have no doubt that there are challenges for every Department and everyone in charge of those Departments. This week, the focus seems to be on DRD and, perhaps, Danny Kennedy, but what is important is my focus and desire. I am more concerned about the attitudes of the people and impacts on front-line services beyond the confines of the Chamber than in some of the party-political posturing that we have seen. <BR /> <BR />Chris Lyttle introduced an interesting scenario. The Alliance solution to everything, apparently, is to impose water charges. I see no political consensus for that.”
“All of that would benefit substantially if only I had access to the £2 million per week that is being sacrificed for a political, ideological reason by Sinn Féin simply to obey their southern command. Do not come to me and complain about cutbacks when you are the authors of everyone's misfortune in this. <BR /> <BR />Mr Dallat assured us that there was no party political side to his contribution, and I am happy to accept that. Nevertheless, the financial challenges are there, and your party, Mr Dallat, is contributing to the blockage on welfare reform. It needs to look at that urgently and deal with it as quickly as possible.”
“It does not give me any pleasure to present cuts of this nature to groups or people providing essential community transport services, especially in rural areas, but we need to face political and financial reality. <BR /> <BR />I get slightly frustrated when I am criticised severely by Sinn Féin and other parties who are costing the Executive £2 million a week by not moving forward with welfare reforms. I have to say that £2 million a week would transform and seriously address many of the issues that I face in my budget not only for community transport but for road maintenance and structural repairs, grass cutting, gully emptying, street lighting and road marking.”
“It was, in some ways, a predictable and slightly depressing opening from the Chair of the Committee for Regional Development. I am sorry to say that there was little or no sense of reality about the financial position that the Department faces. I regret that, but I am willing to continue to work with the Chair and the Committee to address all the issues. <BR /> <BR />Mr Ó hOisín commended the network and thought that the cuts were disproportionate. He raised the concerns, rightly, of the rural community. I represent a rural constituency; I know all about it, and I get representations too. I do not live in a bubble or with the dark forces that Mr Dallat seemed to indicate exist in my Department. I live in the real world; I represent real people and hear their concerns at first hand.”
“<BR /> <BR />That said, I confirm that I will bid for additional funding in June monitoring for community transport services and other front-line services delivered through my Department in order to reduce the impact of cuts that I was forced to make due to my initial 2015-16 budget allocation. That bid will be to the tune of £1·5 million, which would simply bring us back to the situation of previous years. I am encouraged that there appears to be support around the Chamber today for that bid. I ask, therefore, that efforts be made to speak to political colleagues at Executive level to ensure that those funds are secured. That would provide at least a bit more breathing space to allow the changes necessary to reduce the cost base to be effected. <BR /> <BR />I turn to the contributions of Members.”
“No. <BR /> <BR />Given the limited budget available, my Department has allocated funding to community transport providers this year, taking account of costs and the financial position of each provider. I have also been very mindful of the need to maintain a network of services across Northern Ireland. I do not think that there is much merit in debates about ways of simply shifting funds from one organisation to another. We would end up with no services being provided at all in certain areas. <BR /> <BR />Members may not be aware of this, but I am pleased to indicate that all the community transport providers have signed and accepted the offers of grant made to them some time ago. Whilst we are debating the issue, my officials are moving on with the real business of delivering services to end users across Northern Ireland.”
“Having substantial funds sitting in a bank account while reducing front-line services is difficult to accept and difficult for everyone else to understand.”
“Not every transport provider has the same area to deal with; the geography is different. I need to be careful when I listen to some of the suggestions made to me on how we address the issue. In addition, there may be opportunities for the providers to share back-office services. <BR /> <BR />In Wales, they have been able to increase services while reducing costs. I have to say that I would need some convincing that we could not do likewise. It may not be easy, but my Department stands ready to assist the service providers in meeting the challenges before us. I recognise that that process will not happen overnight. We need to recognise also that some providers have built up sizeable reserves to cope with a rainy day. It is raining now — it is raining very heavily now.”
“The grant provided by my Department is not a contract for a set number of trips; it is a contribution to the costs incurred by those organisations for the provision of community transport services. That is not to say that those organisations, like any organisations that receive funding from the public purse, should not have to demonstrate that they operate effectively and efficiently. As with every other public service, we need to scrutinise administration and bureaucracy and protect the front line as much as possible. I am pleased to advise the House that the community transport service providers have indicated a willingness to engage in the process in a constructive manner. We need to continue down this path. We need to be clear why there are variances in the average costs per mile and per journey.”
“I have to say that the Committee for Regional Development has been vocal in suggesting that I should restore the reduction from community transport, but I have yet to receive from the Committee any suggestion on how this could be achieved on the basis of my 2015-16 budget allocation. It is clearly fantasy economics to suggest that I could invest more in some areas without identifying where the funding should come from. Perhaps, it is another example of phantom budgeting. I wonder. <BR /> <BR />Community transport providers operate at a local level every day in towns, cities and rural areas across Northern Ireland to provide and deliver services to their members. The services are provided to people who are unable to access public transport for a variety of reasons.”
“We are talking about basic public services, including water services, a road network and bus and train services. I have had to make very difficult decisions on how to apportion the pain across those services, when, frankly, we ought to be investing in them. I assure the House that no areas have been immune from reductions, and, worse, I am now providing a skeleton road maintenance service with money that I do not currently have. The motion tabled by the Committee Chair does not, in my view, take account of the reality of the budgetary position that I face. This is despite that fact that, as recently as last Wednesday, officials and I have set out the stark reality to the Committee, then and on a number of occasions.”
“<BR /> <BR />I have repeatedly made it clear to the House that I have had to make very difficult and challenging decisions due to the budget that has been allocated to me. The services provided by my Department and its arm’s-length bodies impact on people's lives 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”
“At the outset, I want to record my appreciation of the valuable services that the community transport providers provide to local communities and to some of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged people in our society. As Minister, I have increased funding for community transport services year on year through internal budget allocations over and above the baseline budget. My track record in supporting these services has ensured that this group of service providers is in a reasonably healthy financial position. <BR /> <BR />I have listened carefully to everything that has been said, and officials have taken note. If there are specific issues not covered in my response, then we will endeavour to write back to the Member concerned.”
“I thank the Member for his welcome of the announcement and of the project itself. I very much hope that we can meet the target. Translink and, no doubt, the contractors will be working to achieve the completion date, which we outlined today, of the end of 2016. We have made provision in this financial year, and I have indicated that I am prepared to treat it as a priority in the next financial year. Hopefully that will resolve the issue of finance. <BR /> <BR />As for other commitments and capital projects, those are brought forward by Translink on an ongoing basis and will be considered in their own right, subject to the availability of funding.”
“I am sorry that Mr McNarry has become the Victor Meldrew of this Chamber and can see nothing of a positive nature, particularly, it seems, from his erstwhile colleagues, but we will leave that aside. It might be easy to make hits like that from the luxury of Strangford, but when you need transport connectivity to be improved between Belfast and Londonderry, this is essential work. That is why it was a Programme for Government commitment by the Executive, why it is supported by the vast majority of Members and parties in the Chamber and why, though it has been challenging, we have been able to bring it to a successful conclusion. I have to say that I am disappointed in the ongoing tone adopted by Mr McNarry, which leaves him little more than a Poundworld version of Nigel Farage.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his question, and I am happy to confirm that the project includes the provision of the loop service in the Bellarena area. It is a comprehensive project that will meet in full the requirements of phase 2 of this important development.”
“The work will begin almost immediately, hopefully later this month, and it will continue through to successful completion by the end of 2016.”
“I am grateful to the Member and thank him for his encouraging comments. In line with the success of rail in Northern Ireland and the major investment that my Department has put into it, I am pleased that this line has shown considerable increase in usage, even in the current circumstances. The number of journeys last year on the line amounted to something like 2·2 million, which is very considerable indeed and represents a 12% increase on the previous year. To those who doubt the wisdom of investing in this rail project, or indeed of investing in public transport, I think that that answers that. The public wants to use this system but we need to improve and upgrade it. Hopefully, in the future, we will achieve an hourly service because that is what the public needs and demands.”
“Translink is in the process of negotiating about sites and it will take forward a feasibility study. We will also be actively pursuing EU funding sources. There are not sufficient funds available to us to indicate whether it is possible at this stage, but we will pursue options whereby we can make that dream a reality too.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his complimentary remarks. I know that he, personally, has been a long-standing supporter of the retention and upgrading of the line and, in difficult days, has given support to the overall project. I thank him for that. The Member will know that the old Waterside station is a popular option for the potential new transport hub.”
“Into the future, people will enjoy the benefit and the additional connectivity that it brings between Belfast and Londonderry.”
“I am grateful to the Member for his question, and I acknowledge that he has welcomed today's announcement. This is a scheme that there have been challenges in. I believe that the timescale that we are operating to at this point is not that different from the timescale that had been previously hoped for and indicated. That is welcome. <BR /> <BR />In terms of the capital investment, when I arrived in this Department, the Coleraine/Londonderry line was on a life support machine. There had been insufficient investment, and it was ready, ultimately, for closure. I take pride in the fact that we were able to resurrect it. Lazarus is going to be alive and well here. I hope that that fact can be recognised. I take considerable pride in the fact that it was the Ulster Unionist Party that breathed life into the project and has made it viable.”
“I think that it is positive as we go forward.”