AQO 1783/22-27 Oral question to the First Minister and deputy First Minister
To ask the First Minister and deputy First Minister when the interdepartmental working group will publish its updated paper on the establishment of an Infrastructure Commission.
Asked by Peter McReynolds MLA on 20 March 2025
- Answered
- Oral
- Answered in the Chamber
- Tabled
- 20 March 2025
- Answer due by
- 31 March 2025
- Answered
- 31 March 202511 days after tabling
- Department
- The Executive Office
- Priority question
- No
Answer
Answered in the Assembly Chamber on 31 March 2025. Extract from the Official Report (Hansard), including any supplementary questions:
Mrs Little-Pengelly
A draft paper was produced by the interdepartmental working group in early 2022. It set out an initial assessment of options for consideration and was a precursor to more detailed analysis and the development of a business case. The working group was then stood down. TEO officials are reviewing that assessment alongside other developments and will provide us with advice on the next steps. We are considering the report from the recent Strategic Investment Board (SIB) review. The recommendations from the review will also inform that work. Decisions on the way forward will be a matter for the Executive in due course, but, as the Member knows, Executive papers are not routinely published.
Mr McReynolds
I thank the deputy First Minister for her response. The Department for Infrastructure was allocated the largest capital budget in the history of the Northern Ireland Civil Service. Does she agree with my colleagues and me that the commission is needed and that the paper needs to be published urgently, given that the establishment of an infrastructure commission was first explored and proposed by a ministerial advisory panel five years ago, in 2020?
Mrs Little-Pengelly
I thank the Member for his question. The most important thing in all of this is that the assessment is of whether a commission would make a positive difference. In that context, it is notable that the National Infrastructure Commission in England has been rolled into another organisation. The UK Government tried that idea and have moved on from it and made some changes. That indicates to me that they felt that the commission, perhaps, did not do what they wanted it to do as initially envisaged. From our point of view, we want to assess whether this is the right way forward. We have the Strategic Investment Board and the investment strategy for Northern Ireland (ISNI), which is the Executive's strategic infrastructure document. We need to look at how we can improve on all of that. At this stage, however, I can advise the Member that I am open-minded on the way forward on this. I simply want a structure that works better than what we have had before and delivers against our ambitions for our infrastructure. I look forward to officials giving us those recommendations, and we will discuss the issue. As I said, the Executive will consider it as well.
Ms Ennis
Will the deputy First Minister outline a time frame for the publication of the final investment strategy?
Mrs Little-Pengelly
I thank the Member for her question. That is under active consideration. Over the past number of months, we have been working with departmental officials and the SIB to finalise some elements of the strategy. Of course, much of the capital that we have available is already committed to existing projects. As I said in response to the previous question, however, it is really important to us that those projects start to come in on time and on budget. That is not the way in which capital projects have been done before. It is not just about getting the strategy out — we have committed to doing that over the next number of weeks — it is about the structures around it. How can we deliver our capital projects in a better way than we have done before? How can we make sure, as far as possible, that they hit their budget and time frame? Of course, that then enables us to do more with the capital budget that we have.