THE NORTH’S Minister for Finance Sammy Wilson has dismissed as “bananas” a plan by Sinn Féin Minister for Regional Development Conor Murphy to take crisis-hit Northern Ireland Water (NIW) back into public ownership.
The issue, and the wider controversy of expected 20-25 per cent cuts in public expenditure next month, is expected to dominate the new Assembly term and the run-up to the Assembly elections in May.
Mr Murphy told the first session of the new term yesterday that the water company’s government-owned, contractor-operated model had failed in its remit. He said his proposal to bring it back within his department’s control would take time and legislation.
However, Mr Wilson, who heard the proposal for the first time in the Assembly chamber, denounced the plan on the grounds of cost and future workability. He said a renationalised NIW would be hampered in its search for the £2,000 million needed to upgrade creaking water and sewerage infrastructure.
Mr Murphy sacked four NIW members in March over concerns about the company’s procurement practices. Former IDA boss Padraic White has been announced as an interim chairman.
Last month the North’s civil service suspended the permanent secretary at Mr Murphy’s department following an inquiry into affairs at the company. It stressed that the suspension of Paul Priestley was to facilitate an inquiry and was not disciplinary.
Yesterday’s announcement took the Assembly by surprise and prompted a wave of criticism from the other parties.
"This is something which is bananas," Mr Wilson told The Irish Timesimmediately after Mr Murphy's announcement. "At a time when we are dealing with public sector spending cuts, we're looking at a 30 per cent reduction in the capital budget over the next year, and a 10 per cent reduction in current spending. The consequences if [Mr Murphy] got his way on this for the public purse would be very severe."
He said he could not see the Executive voting for a change in governance in water structure that put between £40 million and £100 million per year to the cost of delivering water.
He repeated his criticisms of nationalist parties who last week spoke of resisting British government cuts and were now proposing “to make the delivery of water more expensive”.
However, Sinn Féin is holding to its position of opposition to the British government plan to cut expenditure.
Finance spokesman Mitchel McLaughlin said: “We want to engage with the British exchequer ... and we want to talk to the British government about how we can avoid driving those who are already experiencing significant levels of poverty even further into the poverty trap.”
The Ulster Unionists also criticised Mr Murphy, accusing him of a “major shift in policy direction”.
Fred Cobain, warned the move could have “enormous financial implications”.
“The amount of money that the Executive has invested in privatising Northern Ireland Water and the financial implications of reversing that move are potentially enormous.”
The SDLP’s Conall McDevitt accused Mr Murphy of a “a complete U-turn on his own policy”.
“The Minister has made an announcement which, by his own admission, he cannot deliver. Is he really determined to get to the bottom of the crisis in his department or is he more concerned with pursuing his own ideological agenda?”