To ask the Minister for Infrastructure, pursuant to AQW 18962/22-27, (i) for a breakdown of the £0.5 billion figure cited by (a) resource; (b) capital; and (c) earmarked projects, taking account of the alterations to the final opening budget allocations from the Equality Impact Assessment; (ii) to detail the percentage of the £0.5 billion allocated to improve wastewater treatment; (iii) to detail the wastewater treatment works that received this funding; and (iv) how he plans to fill the funding gap.

(i) (a),(b) The table below sets out the breakdown of the £0.5 billion figure, including the additional £11.5m resource DEL and £19.5m capital DEL allocated following the October monitoring round:

*This is to cover the Department’s match-funding element of the EU Peaceplus grant for this scheme.

(c) The funding is earmarked for the delivery of water and wastewater base maintenance and capital enhancement as determined under the Price Control and subject to budget availability. The capital funding I have provided in addition to the final opening budget will be used to alleviate capacity constraints to enable housing connections.

(ii) NI Water has advised that, of the £0.5 billion allocated, 33% overall has been allocated to improve wastewater infrastructure.

(iii) NI Water has advised that they are investing public funding in the following Wastewater Treatment Works in 2024-25:

(iv) I continue to work with Executive colleagues to try and increase wastewater investment, I am reviewing the policy and legislation around developer contributions and I have secured Executive agreement for the Water, Flooding and Sustainable Drainage Bill to be introduced to the Assembly. This legislation will provide powers to encourage increased use of sustainable drainage systems which use nature to separate and release storm water more slowly into the system so that it does not overrun wastewater treatment works.