Minister says 'everything on table' in A5 ruling response

The Infrastructure Minister has said "everything is on the table" in considering how to respond to a court ruling which quashed plans for the A5 road upgrade.

Liz Kimmins was responding to an urgent question in the Northern Ireland Assembly on Tuesday on the stalled dual carriageway project.

The Sinn Féin minister said she would "remain committed" to climate change legislation passed by Stormont which was cited in the judgement.

A High Court judge on Monday ruled it should not go ahead in its current form because it does not comply with Stormont's climate change targets.

Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) assembly member Jonathan Buckley said the "radical" targets had been an "act of infrastructure vandalism".

Speaking in the assembly, he urged the minister to "review such targets and repeal", describing them as a "dead weight around the neck" of Northern Ireland's devolved government.

Kimmins responded: "The Climate Change Act received cross-party support in 2022 - not just Sinn Féin.

"But we remain committed to that, and we will look at all of that in the round and see what that means going forward."

Kimmins said she and her officials were "working through the judgement and what that means", describing it as "extremely detailed".

"I hope to have a briefing on that later this week, and then we'll be able to identify what the next steps are," she told members of the legislative assembly (MLAs).

She said there were "a number of options being considered, so at this point in time, everything is on the table" to achieve a "successful outcome".

More than 50 people have died on the A5 since 2006 and campaigners have called for the road to be upgraded.

The road is the Northern Ireland part of the major arterial route that connects the north-west of the island - Donegal and Londonderry - to Dublin, via towns including Strabane, Omagh and Aughnacloy.

The dual carriageway scheme was first announced back in 2007, but has been beset by a number of delays.

The 58-mile (94km) £1.7bn project was given the green light by Stormont ministers in October last year.

The minister was also asked by Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) MLA Diana Armstrong about land held by the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) in preparation for the A5 project.

Armstrong said DfI was "in possession of thousands of acres of farmland" and it was "still unclear" whether the department could retain the land following the court judgement.

Kimmins responded: "The judge has indicated that the decision and the subsequent orders will all be quashed as a result of yesterday's ruling.

"So once that is in place, those lands will be returned to landowners that they were vested from.

"Officials will write to all the landowners in the coming days setting out how it plans to manage the process of returning the vested lands."

The deputy president of the Ulster Farmers' Union (UFU) has said farmers and landowners on the A5 route have been left in a state of uncertainty and must be compensated fairly.

John McClenaghan said some landowners have not accepted any compensation although they have "not been able to use their land" since October.

He urged officials to make "concerted efforts" to address issues so a safer road can be built.

Speaking to BBC's Good Morning Ulster programme Mr McClenaghan said "land was taken away" from farmers last October.

"The level of compensation has not yet even been determined and farmers have been reluctant to accept offers which may have been made because they don't know what the final costs will be.

"Our feeling is that if our farmers are to be displaced they should be fairly compensated."

Stephen Kelly from Manufacturing NI said the road was a critical piece of economic infrastructure and a critical piece of safety infrastructure for people.

His father Terry was killed instantly when the van he was a passenger in left the road at Bready, on the stretch of the A5 between Strabane and Derry.

Mr Kelly said he was disappointed by the decision, which he described as the latest episode in the "disaster" for the department.

He said the judge's comment that the delay would coincide with more loss of life was "chilling".

The High Court judgement blocking the upgrade of the A5 road - because the plans did not comply with government climate change targets - shows the reach and impact of Stormont's climate change legislation - but the judgement is clear that shortcomings in the project can be remedied.

A solicitor for the Alternative A5 Alliance campaign group, which brought the successful case, said his clients' efforts had been "vindicated" and it was an important day for the environment.

Safety campaigners from the Enough is Enough group said they were disappointed with the decision but added the judgement provided a "roadmap" for how the upgrade could proceed.

On Tuesday, the organisation Friends of the Earth welcomed the judgement and said "money earmarked for the A5 project should now be redirected to meet other challenges in Northern Ireland's climate change legislation".

The Irish Minister of State Charlie McConalogue, who is a TD for Donegal, said the decision was "extremely disappointing" and added transport access to the north west is "vital" and work "must now commence" to get the "go-ahead" for A5 work.

Kieran Kennedy, chair of Strabane business improvement district group, said Monday's judgement was a shock.

"We in the north west depend on infrastructure to carry goods along the A5 corridor... this is just a severe blow to business in Strabane and the north west in general," he told BBC Radio Foyle's North West Today programme.

"I think about the families who have lost loved ones. There are obviously going to be more families affected in the future by this judgement."

Mr Kennedy said it was a setback but "not the end".