Northern Ireland Water’s delays hinder Ballymena housing and economic progress, says MLA

North Antrim TUV MLA Timothy Gaston speaking in the Northern Ireland Assembly

In a passionate address to the Northern Ireland Assembly, Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) MLA Timothy Gaston has called for urgent reform of Northern Ireland Water (NI Water), accusing the organisation of stifling economic growth and blocking vital housing developments in Ballymena.

Speaking on Monday, April 28, Gaston outlined two stark examples from his North Antrim constituency, where bureaucratic delays and inadequate waste water infrastructure are preventing progress on much-needed housing projects.

Gaston began by underscoring the broader economic implications of NI Water’s limitations.

“I welcome the opportunity to share my concerns about how a limping Northern Ireland Water hurts economic growth and stifles investment across Northern Ireland,” he said, before focusing on specific cases that illustrate the challenges faced by developers and residents in Ballymena.

Grange Road: A Stalled Development

The first case highlighted by Gaston concerns a small housing site on Grange Road, Ballymena, where planning permission for 10 dwellings was granted in December 2020. Despite its prime location—directly opposite the Spencestown treatment plant and adjacent to a main combined sewer—the project has been stalled due to NI Water’s refusal to allow connection, citing capacity constraints.

“The infrastructure is there, but, it is claimed, it is overwhelmed,” Gaston noted.

The site owner, determined to move forward, commissioned an NI Water solutions engineer’s report at significant expense. The report presented two options, costing £160,000 and £175,000 respectively, which Gaston described as “wildly expensive” and “utterly unviable” for a modest development of 10 homes.

“That is a death sentence for the development,” he said.

The report also outlined nine other potential solutions, all deemed inappropriate or unfeasible, leaving only one viable option: a privately funded waste water treatment works built to an adoptable standard.

Gaston emphasised that this solution would cost a fraction of the quoted figures and involve no public expense. However, NI Water has rejected this proposal.

“Bureaucratic stubbornness reigns supreme in that organisation. Logic, reason and common sense are all set aside. Sites lie dormant as a result,” Gaston told the Assembly.

Connor: A Year-Long Wait for Progress

The second case involves a 24-house development in Connor, approved in February 2023. The contractor paid NI Water a non-refundable £12,000 fee in April 2024 to redesign the drainage scheme, a process Gaston said could have been completed in a morning by a private-sector worker.

Yet, 12 months later, the contractor is still waiting for a final design. NI Water has cited difficulties in securing a contractor to survey road levels, with the earliest projected completion date now set for July 2025.

Gaston detailed the frustrating timeline:

“It will be July before it can provide the contractor—my constituent—with a price for the works to bring the tails to the site. Then, once that payment has been received by Northern Ireland Water, it will be a further three months before Northern Ireland Water will commit to bringing the tails to that site.”

In total, the process will take 19 months from the initial payment, a delay that Gaston argued is unacceptable in the face of expiring planning permissions and growing housing needs.

A Call for Action

Gaston’s speech concluded with a direct appeal to NI Water and the responsible minister.

“To Northern Ireland Water, I say this: get out of the way of progress when it comes to these sites, get out of the way of builders who are willing to invest in our country and get out of the way of ordinary people who want nothing more than a roof over their heads,” he urged.

Addressing the minister, he added, “It is your arm’s-length body: it is time that you got a handle on what it does.”

The issues raised by Gaston reflect broader concerns about NI Water’s capacity to support Northern Ireland’s economic and housing ambitions. With an at-capacity waste water network and prolonged bureaucratic processes, developers face significant barriers, while communities like Ballymena grapple with unmet housing demand.

Economic and Social Impacts

The delays in Ballymena are not isolated incidents but part of a systemic challenge that Gaston believes is undermining Northern Ireland’s economic potential.

The inability to deliver timely infrastructure solutions risks deterring investment and exacerbating the region’s housing shortage. As planning permissions lapse and costs mount, developers may abandon projects, leaving communities without the homes and economic opportunities they need.

Gaston’s intervention has sparked renewed debate about the need for investment in Northern Ireland’s waste water infrastructure and reforms to streamline NI Water’s operations. As the Assembly considers these challenges, the experiences of Ballymena’s developers serve as a stark reminder of the human and economic costs of inaction.

As Gaston’s speech makes clear, the time for bureaucratic excuses has passed—Northern Ireland Water must act to deliver the infrastructure that communities and the economy urgently require.