New Northern Ireland infrastructure minister promises action on wastewater spend

Northern Ireland’s newly installed Infrastructure Minister, Liz Kimmins, has stressed that improving the region’s creaking wastewater infrastructure is a priority. She acknowledged the cost would be eye watering. “Improving our sewerage systems will be a huge exercise, costing billions and taking decades,” she stated. She is, however, expected to toe the line and maintain Sinn Féin’s opposition to domestic water charging.

Following a Stormont cabinet reshuffle, publicly-owned Northern Ireland Water and water policy generally is now the responsibility of the infrastructure minister. Sinn Féin member for Newry and Armagh, Kimmins, has succeeded minister O’Dowd who has been moved to the finance department.

Kimmins has promised to work with colleagues to increase wastewater investment, explore options for developer contributions and introduce a water, flooding and sustainable drainage bill to the assembly.

She is a healthcare professional who has chaired Stormont’s health committee over the past 12 months. She sat on Stormont’s infrastructure committee between 2020 and 2023. She became an MLA in 2020.

She pledged to put the resources in place to allow her department to deliver the quality of services everyone deserves. “There is no quick fix, but getting infrastructure right and investing in it accordingly will deliver a better future for all” she insisted.