COMMITTEE FOR REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT
MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS
Tuesday 19 TH August
2008
ROOM 144, PARLIAMENT BUILDINGS
Present: Fred Cobain MLA (Chairperson)
Cathal Boylan MLA
William Irwin MLA
Raymond McCartney MLA
Stephen Moutray MLA
George Robinson MLA
Jim Wells MLA
Brian Wilson MLA
In Attendance: Roisin Kelly (Assembly Clerk)
Conor Coughlin (Assistant Assembly Clerk)
Pauline Devlin (Clerical Supervisor)
Lindsay Dundas (Clerical Officer)
Stephanie Galbraith (Research Officer)
Apologies: Willie Clarke MLA
John Dallat MLA
John McCallister MLA
The Committee decided to begin the meeting in open session.
The meeting opened at 1.49 p.m. in open session.
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Apologies.
Apologies were received from Willie Clarke, MLA, John Dallat, MLA, and John McCallister MLA.
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Chairperson’s Business
The Committee noted receipt of a current assessment of the rainfall of Saturday 16 August 2008, provided by the Met Office.
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Briefing: Flood Management Group
Roads Service officials Geoff Allister, Chief Executive, and Andrew Murray, Director of Network Services, joined the meeting at 1.49 p.m.
The Committee received briefing from Roads Service officials on the flooding events over the weekend of 15, 16 and 17 August. The Committee requested additional information on the Department’s flooding action plans, the work of the Flood Management Group, the management of flooding risk in the Broadway Underpass and details of the Department’s reviews of the flooding of the Broadway Underpass.
The Committee invited Thomas Burns, MLA, and member of the Committee for Agriculture and Rural Development, to join the Committee.
The Committee thanked Geoff Allister, Chief Executive, and Andrew Murray, Director of Network Services, for their briefing.
Roads Service officials left the meeting at 2.44 p.m..
Phil Baker, Director of Operations, and David Dangerfield, Head of Network and Sewerage, of Northern Ireland Water joined the meeting at 2.45 p.m.
The Committee received briefing from executives of Northern Ireland Water on its response to the flooding events over the weekend of 15, 16 and 17 August. The Committee requested additional information on the emptying of flooded septic tanks and a review of the company’s asset performance.
The Committee thanked Northern Ireland Water executives for their briefing.
Phil Baker, Director of Operations, and David Dangerfield, Head of Network and Sewerage, of Northern Ireland Water left the meeting at 2.59pm
The Chairperson suspended the meeting at 3.00pm
Stephen Moutray MLA left the meeting at 3.00pm .
The meeting reconvened at 3.07pm
Philip Mehaffrey, Director of Operations, David Porter, Engineer (Omagh), and John Clarke, Director of Development, of the Rivers Agency joined the meeting at 3.07 p.m.
The Committee received briefing from officials of the Rivers Agency on its response to the flooding events over the weekend of 15, 16 and 17 August.
The Committee thanked the officials from the Rivers Agency for their briefing.
Philip Mehaffrey, Director of Operations, David Porter, Engineer (Omagh), and John Clarke, Director of Development, of the Rivers Agency left the meeting at 3.30 p.m.
The Committee agreed to request further information from the Met Office into the process of issuing severe weather warnings and details of the weather warnings that were issued over the 15 th, 16 th and 17 th August 2008.
The Committee decided to seek further information on progress on the development of a single response number for flooding, and to return to consider this matter at an early stage in the autumn.
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Any Other Business.
There was no other business.
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Date, Time and Place of Next Meeting.
The next meeting will be at 10.30 a.m. on Wednesday 10 September 2008 in Room 21, Parliament Buildings.
The Chairperson adjourned the meeting at 3.32 p.m.