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Developer contributions will push cost of fixing Northern Ireland’s wastewater crisis onto home buyers, trade body warns
A trade body has attacked the Northern Ireland Assembly’s decision to allow housing developers to pay for much-needed improvement to the region’s wastewater infrastructure as a “de facto tax” on buyers.
A trade body has attacked the Northern Ireland Assembly’s decision to allow housing developers to pay for much-needed improvement to the region’s wastewater infrastructure as a “de facto tax” on buyers #UKhousingBuild Homes NI said the plan to allow developer contributions to fix a sewage problem that it says is holding back the delivery of thousands of homes was a “distraction from the fundamental problem” of poorly funded infrastructure.
Last week, Liz Kimmins, the Northern Ireland minister for infrastructure, unveiled plans to allow developers to contribute to upgrades of the sewage system as part of a “three-pronged approach” to the problem.
The approach also involves seeking additional funding from the Northern Ireland Executive and the introduction of new legislation.
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While contributions would begin as voluntary, Ms Kimmins added that officials were working on the possible introduction of a compulsory levy in the future.
But Paul McErlean, director of Build Homes NI, said the plan would fail to “deliver the investment needed to fix Northern Ireland’s failing sewage network”.
Mr McErlean added: “NI Water is facing a £2bn deficit during its next funding period, and as the Department for Infrastructure’s own consultation acknowledged, developer contributions will not address the magnitude of this funding crisis.
“Discussions around developer contributions are a distraction from the fundamental problem, which is NI Water’s broken funding model.
“Until the NI Executive develops a credible long-term plan to address this problem, our critical wastewater infrastructure will continue to degrade.
“Given the soaring costs of materials, labour and grid connections, the reality is that any contributions – voluntary or compulsory – will be passed on to consumers, making it a de facto ‘water tax’ for home buyers.”
NI Water, which runs wastewater infrastructure in Northern Ireland, has 68 treatment works with no capacity and a further 107 networks with restricted capacity.
Build Homes NI previously said the lack of suitable sewage infrastructure had prevented the building of more than 15,000 new homes.
In January, infrastructure consultant Aecom said wastewater infrastructure was “the single biggest constraint on housing delivery”, with new developments held up in Belfast, Newry and Derry-Londonderry.
Mr McErlean continued: “Chronic underfunding of wastewater infrastructure has helped push housebuilding to historically low levels at a time of record homelessness and record rises in rent and house prices.
“This failing network is also preventing commercial development and inward investment and is pumping millions of tonnes of untreated sewage into our waterways.
“This is basic infrastructure which everyone in Northern Ireland relies upon. Developing workable solutions should be a top priority for the executive between now and the next assembly election.”
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