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JOSEPH KILROY, CIOB POLICY AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS MANAGER FOR IRELAND AND NORTHERN IRELAND, EXPLORES THE POTENTIAL IMPACT OF CHANGES IN WESTMINSTER… What does the UK General Election result mean for construction in Northern Ireland?
The results in the UK general election were telegraphed by most polls, yet they still represent a seismic shift to the Westminster political system. While not at the scale of the changes seen in England, NI has seen significant developments. Sinn Féin is the largest party across NI’s councils, assembly, and now at Westminster too. The party has seven seats after the election. The Alliance Party, Ulster Unionists and Traditional Unionist Voice each gained a seat at the expense of the DUP. This Labour Government wants to reset relations with Ireland. Keir Starmer knows NI well from his time as a human rights adviser to the NI Policing Board. Indeed, one of the new Prime Minister’s first acts was to visit Stormont to meet First Minister Michelle O’Neill and Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly. Labour has made a few commitments on Northern Ireland issues. These include a new financial settlement, referred to as a fiscal framework. While this may include a small amount of additional money, there is likely to be an increased focus on additional revenue raised by the Stormont Executive. Hilary Benn has been appointed Secretary of State for NI. From a political perspective, the UK election is a proxy indicator of change in Northern Ireland. However, from a policy perspective, the impact will be minimal. DEVOLVED AND RESERVED POWERS Under the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, the UK Parliament transferred legislative and executive powers to the NI Assembly
and Executive. This is called devolution. The Assembly and Executive make laws and decisions on most of the issues affecting everyday life in NI. For the majority of policy issues, the NI Assembly has full legislative powers, including education, employment and skills, housing, economic development, and environmental issues, including planning. Two of Labour’s construction sector-
adjacent ideas are shaking up the planning system and more state
involvement in the energy market. Both areas are almost entirely devolved to Stormont. From a construction sector perspective, this means the election result will have minimal impact. Nevertheless, a lot of the challenges facing construction in NI may well be aided by a period of political stability in Westminster. As the CIOB has repeatedly argued, a stable pipeline of work is a necessary condition for the construction sector to thrive. While the new Labour government has already sounded concerns regarding the viability of large-scale infrastructure projects announced by the previous Conservative government, in the medium to long term, Labour’s more open approach to public investment may create the stability that the construction sector thrives on. If Labour does pursue public capital investment in the long term, alongside a stable funding agreement, which ensures per-person public funding in NI reaches an objective level of need, the UK General Election result could reverberate positively to the NI construction sector. Nevertheless, it is important to remain
Joseph Kilroy, CIOB Policy and Public Affairs Manager for Ireland and Northern Ireland.
focused on the key challenges facing the industry in NI, all of which remain the exclusive remit of the NI Assembly: uncertainty in large infrastructure projects; capacity issues in NI Water; housing; sustainable planning; funding of local authorities; skills shortages; aging workforce; female representation; sustainability and net zero targets; insolvency; and the cost of materials. While the election result in Westminster indirectly impacts the politics of NI, the business of policymaking and implementation remain the responsibility of MLAs. CIOB will continue to engage with the NI Assembly on that basis.
Joseph Kilroy, CIOB Policy and Public Affairs Manager for Ireland and Northern Ireland M: +353 (0)87 119 4475 - E: jkilroy@ciob.org www.ciob.org
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