The Member referred to news from America. We all have very limited information, but obviously the news is cruel, and our thoughts and prayers are with anyone who has been touched by this event.

We agree that more information about the work of the Civic Forum should be in the public domain to promote its worthwhile activities and encourage further work. The Forum has given this some attention and aims to raise the profile of its work. A recent initiative was the launch of the Forum's first newsletter, which contained updates of work carried out as well as plans for the future. About 4,500 copies were circulated, to MLAs and elected representatives among others. The Forum will issue further newsletters, initially every quarter.

The Forum also intends to improve the design and content of its Internet site to ensure that it provides better information about its work. A motion was passed in the House that allows Committees, as well as Ministers and the Executive at large, to look to the Forum for insight.

Do the First Minister and the Deputy First Minister agree that the work of the Civic Forum must be brought further into the public domain and that regular information updates would help to promote its activity?

We agree and have already noted some of the initiatives that the Forum has taken, such as publication of a newsletter, which it plans to revise and adapt. It is also important that work on its Internet site continues. Members, and particularly Committee members, should consider the facility that the Civic Forum provides. We should support its undertaking to explore issues and recognise the insight it can offer, given that several specific policy communities are represented on it who can bring their focus to bear on a range of issues.

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That brings to an end questions to the First Minister and the Deputy First Minister.

Regional Development

1.

asked the Minister for Regional Development to detail spending on major road schemes in Fermanagh over the past five years and to outline his plans for the next five years.

(AQO 362/01)

In the past five years, the Roads Service carried out a major road scheme in County Fermanagh which involved the realignment of six kilometres of road that spanned the border between Aghalane and Belturbet, and the construction of a new bridge. That was completed in 1999, and Northern Ireland's share of the cost was some £3 million.

The Department does not have a category that corresponds directly to the five-year period, about which the Member asks. The Department has a priority preparation pool and is compiling a 10-year forward planning schedule. In reviewing that schedule, the Department has written to all Members of the Assembly, to Members of Parliament and to our Members of the European Parliament, as well as to each district council. It has invited them to put forward schemes that they believe should be considered as part of that process. The closing date for replies is 30 November.

The road to which the Minister refers - he can confirm this - is the A509. Does the Minister accept that, for many decades, that road was impassable, having been closed because of the British Government's security policy? The money for reopening and restoring such roads was a special package and did not come out of his Department's programme. It seems that Fermanagh was excluded from the normal large schemes in the past five years and has been excluded for the next five years.

There is a pressing need to improve access to County Fermanagh, not least because of the economic repercussions of poor access, and there are two forums in which that could be remedied most speedily - the Executive and the North/South Ministerial Council. Does the Minister accept that those opportunities should be maximised?

Order. The Member has an opportunity to ask a supplementary question, not to read out a dissertation on roads in Fermanagh.

Does the Minister agree that the opportunities should be maximised, and will he attend those two forums?

I do not accept the basic premise of the many questions that were asked. First, it is not only schemes in Fermanagh that affect Fermanagh. Other schemes, which are part of the overall schedule for the coming years, are on the periphery of Fermanagh, but will relieve greatly the problems faced by the people there. Also, the Member is not right to say that the schedule has been set, or to conclude that there are no schemes in Fermanagh. As I said, the Department has written to Members, and although the closing date is 30 November, it has not received any response from the Member asking it to consider schemes in Fermanagh. The Department is inviting submissions from the Member and others so that in the future some smart-alec Minister cannot say that the Member did not respond within the given period.

As far as discrimination against Fermanagh is concerned, the Member will know that he has a duty not just to the people of Fermanagh, but to the people of Fermanagh and South Tyrone. When one takes the whole of that constituency, one will see that about one ninth of the capital programme in the past five years has gone into that constituency, which is one eighteenth of the constituencies in the Assembly.

The Minister has directed our thoughts to the constituency of Fermanagh and South Tyrone. As one who has an interest in both areas, I ask the Minister to indicate which major road schemes in Fermanagh and South Tyrone will be considered for inclusion in the 10-year forward planning schedule.

I will not limit the consideration that the Department gives to the schemes it is presently looking at. If Members ask the Department to consider other schemes, it will look at those too. However, the Department is already considering the Enniskillen southern bypass and the second stage of the Cherrymount link road in Fermanagh.

In addition, the Roads Service is considering several schemes to widen sections of the A4 Dungannon to Enniskillen route and the A5 Londonderry to Ballygawley route to provide three lanes with improved overtaking opportunities.

Does the Minister agree that Fermanagh's tourist industry could be better serviced by the continued upgrading of its road network?

Many industries, including the tourist industry, would be greatly improved if more finance were available to improve the road network. I am grateful to the Members of the Assembly for highlighting the need for increased funds to the Department to improve roads across the Province.

Question 2, in the name of Mrs Eileen Bell, has been transferred to the Department of the Environment and will receive a written answer. Question 4, in the name of Mr Eddie McGrady, has been withdrawn. This leaves a limited number of questions to the Minister, so I will take a further supplementary on this question.

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. Schemes quite often have a tendency to fall considerably behind schedule. The Enniskillen bypass is presently seen as a road to Enniskillen or to the west of Fermanagh. Could it be given higher priority if it were seen as a major transport link to areas such as Sligo, Donegal and Leitrim?

The Department might have priorities, but the difficulty is in getting schemes to move quickly. For that reason I recommended, and the Department initiated, the process of the preparation pool during my previous period in office. Under the preparation pool, those statutory and preliminary processes can proceed so that a scheme can be lifted out quickly and get under way as soon as money becomes available.

The new procedures in the Department mean that it can respond quickly when it receives money. We are not proud in the Department. I do not really care what mechanism provides the Department with money for roads. I am happy to use the money to the advantage of the road network in Northern Ireland.

In the Department's consideration of the Enniskillen southern bypass, it is up to Members to put a case which the Department can consider fully when looking at the 10-year forward planning schedule.

3.

asked the Minister for Regional Development what contingency plans are in place to address winter storms in the Kilkeel area.

(AQO 356/01)

Contingency plans in my Department are under constant review. In the past year, the Department for Regional Development has completed major reviews covering both its responses to flooding and to ice and snow conditions. An inter-agency approach to flooding response has been agreed between the three agencies with a responsibility in that area. Those are my Department's Roads Service, Water Service and the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

A major part of that approach is the dissemination of information to the public about whom to call in the event of flooding. Adverts are being run today in the three major newspapers, and similar details have been included in the new issue of the British Telecom (BT) telephone directory and Yellow Pages. A leaflet giving emergency numbers, as well as some advice on what to do if premises are at risk or have been flooded, will be distributed to all homes and business premises in the near future.

The Member will recall my predecessor's statement to the Assembly on 3 July 2001 about the review of my Department's winter service operations following the heavy snowfalls of last winter. As a result of that review, a number of improvements have been agreed, including in particular the development of a snow- clearance plan for use in extreme snow conditions. When Kilkeel was closed off for some time last winter, snowfalls were accompanied by high winds, resulting in fallen trees and electricity poles, and blocked roads. At that time a range of public services such as electricity supplies, social services and ambulance services were at risk.

It is now recognised that a co-ordinated response by service providers would produce faster results. In conjunction with the central emergency planning unit, the Department is working closely with other Government bodies, public service providers and district councils. They are reviewing the co-ordination of public service responses and the co-operation and assistance that might be available from those bodies during severe storms. It is anticipated that district councils may take a more active role in such co-ordination and in providing resources to assist in clearing routes.

There is still much work to be done, but networks have been established and co-operation is being encouraged by all. While snow- or flood-free roads can never be guaranteed, the measures recently agreed and under development should benefit all communities, including Kilkeel, in the event of further winter storms.

I welcome the Minister's reply, and I am sure that the people of the Kilkeel area will welcome it even more. As recognised by the Minister, the storms last year were more or less freak in nature. Is the Minister completely satisfied that freak storms will not cause a repeat of last year's problems in the Kilkeel area? I want complete assurance that even freak storms are allowed for at this stage.

It is very difficult for anybody to anticipate what the weather might do. I take responsibility for many things, but especially in Northern Ireland I would not like to take any responsibility for what the weather might throw at the Department. I am convinced, and can assure the Member, that the Department has recognised that under the extreme conditions faced by people in Kilkeel and elsewhere in the Province last winter, a more co-ordinated approach was needed. The steps that the Department has taken set a trend that I suspect will be followed by many others in other democracies.

For instance, one of the great difficulties faced last year was that snow-clearing operations are much more time consuming and, therefore, vehicle consuming than regular gritting for frost or ice. Twice the amount of grit is probably used, and it is also necessary to take out snowploughs.

Under the new procedures, other vehicles that would not have been used in the past will be equipped with a "bucket", or whatever the blade on the front of the vehicle that sweeps the snow to the side is called. Also, the drivers are doing practice runs. I hope that the Member will not question me too much on how they practise without snow. Nonetheless, this means that when the elements provide us with snow, the drivers will not only be equipped but will also know the procedures to adopt.

It is vital to get early information to the public about closed roads and any difficulties that they might face. The Department is better prepared in all those areas than it was before.

I welcome the Minister's reply and congratulate him on the recommencement of his ministerial duties.

Has any work been done by his Department in reassessing the winter gritting schedules, particularly for minor rural roads in the Newry and Mourne area, which includes Kilkeel, but more especially in the Newry and Armagh constituency that I represent, which is part of the Newry and Mourne area?

I thank the Member for his kind remarks. In relation to the question, I feel a sense of déjà vu. The issues have not changed too much during my absence. This is a conundrum that is not easily solved, nor is it likely that all Members will agree on it.

At present, the Department grits about 28% of the roads in Northern Ireland. That covers about 80% of the vehicles moving on our roads and costs about £5 million. To increase coverage from 80% to 90% would mean doubling that cost. If the Department were to extend it to the entire network, it would be somewhere in the region of £17 million to £20 million.

As far as safety is concerned, several projects would add more value to the safety of road users than spending the money in that way. About 1% of the accidents recorded by the RUC are on ungritted roads during times of frost and ice. The Department has slightly amended the gritting areas, but if it were to move away from the present 28% of the roads that are gritted, it would face resource difficulties. That would mean it would be taking away money from other areas where safety is more greatly prejudiced.

Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. Some areas are not covered by the winter gritting schedule. Keeping traffic on the move on the majority of rural roads in the North requires a joint approach with farmers. What is being done with farmers and farming unions to ensure that they can provide a back-up, where necessary, to clear rural roads of snow and ice?

I remind Members that supplementary questions should be relevant to the question. The Minister has responded on some occasions in general terms, not specifically to this geographical area. I am prepared to be lenient in this case if the Minister is happy to respond. I ask Members to bear that in mind.

I did not understand the first part of the Member's question. I must assume that there was no question contained in it. The second part dealt with the roads network and gritting.

Every Member of the House will recognise that it is imperative for the Roads Service to reduce the dangers on our roads as far as possible. It has finite resources to do that.

The task for the Roads Service is to use those resources in the best possible way, not only to improve the network, but to ensure maximum safety on the roads. The Department feels that it has got its gritting schedule right. I recognise that people will be unhappy that certain roads are not contained in that schedule. However, the topographical criteria for gritting roads that take more than 1,000 and 1,500 vehicles per day, or if safety measures are involved, are objective. That may cause grievance to some Members, but roads are not chosen at random. I believe that the Department has got it right, but I am always ready to listen to any recommendations that Members may wish to make to the Department.

5.

asked the Minister for Regional Development if he will commission a traffic impact study on homes in Horse Park, Lisburn, following a planning application for a business in that area.

(AQO 365/01)

The Roads Service normally needs developers to carry out traffic impact assessments in support of planning applications for large-scale developments, such as businesses in excess of 5,000 square metres gross floor area or residential developments of more than 200 units. Those assessments are required to evaluate the traffic impact of the development proposals and to determine whether roads infrastructure improvements are necessary to support the developments.

In the case of the planning application to use redundant farm buildings at Horse Park, Lisburn, for storage, and as a small office for a tree and hedge maintenance business, the proposal did not meet the criteria to warrant the application to submit a traffic impact assessment. Therefore, I have no plans to ask that such an assessment be carried out.

Will the Minister ask his Department to look into the matter further? The road that that business is using is barely wide enough to take two cars passing each other. I do not think that it can even take that. Young children live in the vicinity of that road, which is being used by heavy vehicles. When traffic is busy in the area, the road is being used as an alternative route. There has been a huge increase in the amount of traffic, and there is a question mark over the safety of the residents who live there.

The Member is a trier, Mr Deputy Speaker. That might be described as a cheeky little number. She has managed to have a question about a Lisburn Borough Council planning application asked on the Floor of the House.

To the extent that my Department co-operates with the Planning Service in those matters, it is essential that the Department look at them using objective criteria. The objective criteria set out in relation to traffic impact assessments require us to have a threshold, which is set at 5,000 square metres floor area. My Department has a difficulty with the differential that there may be between the former and the existing use of premises. Although the Department could go out and make an assessment of the existing traffic use, it does not have any statistics with which to compare it to its former use. It cannot therefore provide the Planning Service with a proper comparison.

I join with Mr Kennedy in welcoming the Minister back to the Department for Regional Development. With your permission, Mr Deputy Speaker, I pay tribute to the Minister's predecessor, who was very competent and pleasant to work with.

Will the Minister confirm that the Department is working to a policy that will lean heavily on encouraging inducements proffered by developers for the financial aid of road and motorway transport systems designed to enhance particular development schemes?

Mr P Robinson: I thank the Member for his kind comments about my predecessor. I will ensure that they are passed on.

Given my background in local government, I believe that developers should contribute to the infrastructure that their development will use. That is a vital part of the planning process. However, not only should the developers who require new infrastructure contribute to it, so should the developers who use existing or new infrastructure. Those are matters of a wider policy importance that will be considered in part during the Assembly's discussions on the regional transportation strategy. I look forward to hearing the Member's contributions on the subject at that time.

That ends the questions to the Minister for Regional Development.

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The Environment

I wish to inform Members that questions 1, 2, 7 and 9, in the name, respectively, of Mrs E Bell, Mr McGrady, Lord Kilclooney and Mr Ford, have been withdrawn and will receive written answers. Question 5, in the name of Mr Gallagher, has been transferred to the Department for Regional Development and will receive a written answer.

3.

asked the Minister of the Environment to detail the number of serious or fatal road accidents caused by the failure of motorists to use dipped headlights, over the past year.

(AQO 358/01)

The police are responsible for collecting road traffic collision statistics in Northern Ireland. The failure of drivers to use dipped headlights is not one of the 99 categories under which the police record the principal factors in road traffic collisions. Therefore it is not possible to say how many serious or fatal road traffic collisions were caused because a vehicle was less visible through the failure to use dipped headlights.

There are, of course, legal requirements for drivers to use dipped headlights when daytime visibility is seriously reduced. Generally, that applies to occasions on which a driver cannot see for more than 100 metres. Those requirements are set out in the 'Highway Code', along with other advice on the use of lights. With the darker days of winter upon us, I encourage all drivers and riders to familiarise themselves with those provisions. Drivers and riders should also ensure that they do not use any lights in a way that would dazzle or cause discomfort to other road users. I urge all drivers and riders to follow the valuable practical advice and guidance contained in the 'Highway Code' on driving in adverse weather conditions. Drivers, riders and pedestrians should take greater care on the roads, particularly during the winter.

Every week, I drive considerable distances at all times and in all weather. It is dreadful to see the number of vehicles out in bad conditions - fog or even driving snow - with no lights on. Can the failure to use dipped headlights in bad conditions be considered an indicator of the driving ability of a motorist? Perhaps, we need a carrot-and-stick method of making people use lights in the proper conditions.

There are so many accidents and deaths on the roads, and the greatest care should always be taken. The use of headlights during daylight hours has been considered, and the Transport Research Laboratory in Great Britain has carried out research into the effectiveness of daytime lights on vehicles. That work indicated that daytime lights could be of benefit in certain weather conditions, but that, in clear weather, no obvious safety benefits were apparent. The important thing is that motorists should always make sure that they are seen by others.

The European Commission is considering the merits of using lights during daytime hours, including automatic daytime running lamps. The UK is unable unilaterally to require the fitting of automatic daytime running lamps. As a vehicle construction requirement, that would have to be agreed by the member states of the European Union, so as not to create a barrier to trade.

There is some concern among UK road safety officials that any road casualty reductions arising from the use of dipped headlights during daylight hours could be offset by increased casualties among less conspicuous pedal cyclists and pedestrians. I take the Member's point: it is important for road users to be careful and to ensure, as I have emphasised, that, as well as being able to see, they can be seen.

The Minister will recall that he increased the number of road safety education officers from 11 to 18. When will he report on their work, so that the Assembly can be reassured that the money was well spent and will lead to a reduction in the number of serious or fatal road accidents?

We are pleased to have additional road safety education officers. Their key objective is to improve the attitudes and behaviour of road users, particularly children and young people, to develop a new generation of more responsible drivers and pedestrians. The contribution of that work to the reduction of road casualties can be assessed over the long term only. Progress will be reflected in the casualty statistics that are reported during the regular monitoring being carried out as part of the Northern Ireland road safety plan, which is due to be published next year, after the recent round of consultation. The road safety education officers play a vital role, but it is too soon to assess their impact.

4.

asked the Minister of the Environment if he will give an update on his Department's plans to reorganise local government in Northern Ireland.

(AQO 370/01)

The draft Programme for Government, presently out for consultation, includes a commitment by the Executive to launch a comprehensive review of public administration by spring 2002. The organisation of local government services will be considered in the context of that review, and there will be widespread consultation with the local government sector. It is important to understand that the review is likely to cover functions over and above those administered by local government at present, or which might potentially be transferred to local government. The Office of the First Minister and the Deputy First Minister will lead the review on behalf of the Executive.

Does the Minister agree that the greater the delay in the Department's presentation of concrete proposals the more uncertainty there will be? Does he further agree that that could lead to irrational decisions being taken by councils, which might suspect that they would not survive the reorganisation? Will the Minister consider adopting a Cabinet structure for local government and the introduction of directly elected mayors or chairs of council?

Mr McCarthy, you are straying from the subject of debate. Does the Minister care to answer?

The Member is thinking further ahead than I am. I assure him that we have not yet considered the introduction of mayors and deputy mayors. As an ex-councillor I am familiar with the important decisions that district councils take in their forward planning and resource management. It is therefore no surprise that councillors should express their concerns about the uncertainty created by the review of public administration. I appreciate councils' difficulties in making progress on major investment projects - there is uncertainty.

The effect on human resources is also of serious concern, because uncertainty must create uneasiness throughout the local government workforce. Securing new recruits for local government is a real problem, and I sympathise with the councils in that regard. I have been probing the Executive to resolve that problem, and developments will be made shortly. It is necessary to give councils confidence, because they have provided a tremendous service during the many years of a democratic deficit.

Does the Minister have any draft proposals on the future responsibilities of local government? Will those proposals include planning, roads or water provision?

Although many issues have been presented to me, Mr Shannon's question is premature, and it is too soon to make any major decisions.

I listened to the Minister's comments carefully. The matters he mentioned were debated at length at the recent Society of Local Authority Chief Executives (SOLACE) conference, which involves all local authorities. Local councillors are concerned about the situation, and I agree that the continued uncertainty is having a detrimental effect on councillors and council officers. I ask the Minister to do everything that he can to speed up the process.

I assure the Member that it is important to make progress so that the public can feel comfortable about the future. I addressed an evening session of the SOLACE conference last week. The society is putting together a package based on its views on the matter. We will consider carefully every submission that we receive, but we want to complete the exercise as soon as possible.

Normally, I would not accept a further supplementary question. However, because there are few questions on the Order Paper, I shall, by leave of the House, allow Mr Ivan Davis to pose a question.

In other words, you are desperate, Mr Deputy Speaker.

I have listened attentively to the Minister. How and when will he engage local government in the review of public administration?

As I said, important decisions on the timescale and modalities of the review of public administration have to be agreed by the Executive before I can determine plans for engaging local government in the review process. However, I have stated publicly that I propose to engage local government fully in that process at the earliest opportunity. Local government officials have considered the matter independently through SOLACE. I welcome the initiative, and I look forward to receiving SOLACE's report.

6.

asked the Minister of the Environment how the proposed reduction in grants and the revision of the local government funding formula will relate in monetary and percentage terms to Newry and Mourne District Council.

(AQO 357/01)

The reduction to which the Member refers is included in the Executive's draft Budget, which was published for consultation on 25 September 2001 and debated by the Assembly on 5 November. Several Members expressed concern about that aspect of the draft Budget during the debate. I am sure that the Executive will carefully consider the matter. An approximate spread of the £2 million reduction in the previous indicative allocation of the resources element of the general Exchequer grant for 2002-03 has been determined. For Newry and Mourne District Council, that would represent a cut of approximately £236,000, or 8% less than the allocation for the current financial year.

The proposed new formula for distribution of this element of the grant has no implication for next year. Any new formula would require primary legislation and could not be operational before 1 April 2003.

Since I come from the Newry and Mourne constituency, I do not welcome fully the content of the Minister's response. What assurance can the Minister give that the policies and guidelines of TSN that have already been adopted have been considered fully in advance of reducing grant aid and in making changes to the local government funding formula?

The Department is examining different formulae, and a new formula for the allocation of local government grants may be introduced next year. Total grant provision can be difficult to achieve.

The indicative allocation for 2002-03 is £47·2 million, with a derating element of £27·7 million and a resources element of £19·5 million. The allocation under the Executive's draft Budget is £45·2 million. The derating element will remain at £27·7 million, and the resources element will be £17·5 million. As a former councillor, I know that there is a big reduction of funding in my own council area and throughout the Province. Some 16 to 19 district councils will be affected detrimentally this year.

I cannot make any promises today, but I assure the Member that I will make further representations to the Executive to ask that changes be made to alleviate the difficult situation in which councils will find themselves as a result of the reduction in grant aid.

8.

asked the Minister of the Environment what time limits, if any, there are on the processing of a planning application for a business in a residential area and can that business operate without planning permission for an indefinite period.

(AQO 364/01)

There are no statutory time limits for the processing of a planning application. However, the legislation provides that my Department has two months in which to decide whether it should apply the article 31 procedure to an application.

If an application is to be accompanied by an environmental statement, the time limit for making an article 31 determination is extended to 16 weeks, starting from the date that the environmental statement is received.

For applications where the article 31 procedure is not applied, an application that is not determined within two months - or within a time agreed between the applicant and the Department - may be appealed with the Planning Appeals Commission on the grounds of non-determination. In such cases, where an environmental statement is required, an appeal on non-determination grounds can only be made after 16 weeks from the date of receipt of the environmental statement.

Where my Department is aware of a business operating without planning permission, enforcement action can be taken against unauthorised development - provided that the action is taken within the statutory time limits. Therefore, in general terms, where the unauthorised development concerns a material change of use, enforcement action can be taken only where the change of use occurred on, or after, 26 August 1974.

Enforcement action against other unauthorised development - for example, the erection of a building - can only be taken within four years of the building having been substantially completed. Enforcement action may include seeking the voluntary correction of the breach by the developer.

Ultimately, my Department may issue an enforcement notice seeking to remedy the breach. As a last resort, the Department may consider issuing a stop notice, or it may serve an injunction that requires the operation to cease. Both actions can result in prosecution through the courts. I am currently consulting with the Committee for the Environment on certain policy proposals that would strengthen the Department's enforcement powers.

Alternatively, my Department may seek to regularise the development through encouraging the submission of a planning application, which would then receive full and substantive consideration.

In January this year, a planning application was made in my constituency for a business to be operated from a residential area. No decision has been made on that as yet. In June, I asked the Department of the Environment to serve an enforcement notice on this business, but that has still not been done. Will the Minister tell us how many other outstanding planning applications concerning residential areas there are?

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