Water bills which were due to be posted out on Tuesday 27 March have been put on hold for 12 months, following the news that power-sharing will return to Northern Ireland. Secretary of State Peter Hain said the move had been made at the request of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and Sinn Fein and will be dealt with by the Northern Ireland Executive when devolution is restored on 8 May 2007. The parties have also asked for further talks with Gordon Brown over the controversial issue.
The new charging system, which was established under the Water and Sewerage Services (Northern Ireland) Order SI 2006/3336, was due to start on 1 April and was to be phased in over three years. It was introduced because the Government wanted water and sewerage services in Northern Ireland to become self-financing.
However, the decision was contentious to say the least, with critics arguing there was no justification for the soaring bills. Gary Mulcahy, secretary of the "We Won't Pay Campaign", said news that the water bills would not be delivered was another "humiliating climbdown" for the Government and a welcome relief for householders. "The threat of mass non-payment has forced the DUP and Sinn Fein to negotiate the delaying of the charges. But this does not go far enough, they should be scrapped not just delayed for another 12 months."
The Department of Regional Developments (DRD) website states that some £3 billion is needed over the next 20 years, in order to bring Northern Ireland's archaic and failing water and sewerage infrastructure up to the required standards. The bulk of this was to come from water charges. Should a Northern Ireland Executive reverse this policy, a decision will also have to be made on how to sustain those levels of investment without cutting back on other public services, such as health or education.
