AQW 26602/22-27

Mr Nick Mathison
Alliance Party
Strangford

Tabled Date: 06/05/2025
Answered On Date: 12/05/2025
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister for Infrastructure whether she will provide the necessary funding to NI Water to bring unadopted sewerage and storm drainage systems in private developments up to standard, when it has not been possible to either make a developer liable or the bond has been insufficient to fund the required works.

Answer:

The primary issue with unadopted developments, is that they remain private developments. In some cases, the houses were sold to the residents without the sewerage infrastructure being adopted or having an agreement in place for future adoption by NI Water.

In other cases, an agreement and bond may be in place, but the value of the bond is insufficient to cover the cost of the works required to make good the site.

In both cases, neither the Department nor NI Water has any legal remit to carry out works in private developments, with the responsibility for the development resting with the developer or the residents. In such circumstances, NI Water makes every effort to encourage developers to complete their sites to an adoptable standard so that they may be adopted.