Agenda item

            The Members of the Committee were reminded that the Council, at its meeting on 1st July, had passed the following motion, which had been proposed by Councillor McReynolds and seconded by Councillor Hanvey:

“The economic impact caused by Covid-19 has had a devastating impact on many of our businesses and it is essential that the Council has the necessary powers and funding to support the rebuilding of our local economy.

The new councils formed in 2015 were designed to be larger and more powerful, and since then Belfast City Council has demonstrated its competence and capability. Successfully undertaking planning and local economic development functions and delivering vital services.

One of the key levers that councils were promised, and is now needed, is the power of regeneration. Place shaping is increasingly becoming a critical part of the recovery process, especially in an environment where places will be different and there is a need of local solutions. Obtaining control of regeneration powers will also complement the Local Development Plans and our community planning framework.

In recognition of the consultation on Programme for Government, Investment Strategy and Budget, lobbying by NILGA and other stakeholders, we call on this Council to write to The Executive Office and the Department for Communities calling for the transfer of full regeneration powers and associated resources to local authorities as a matter of priority, as soon as an equality statement is agreed by all councils, to ensure the principle of objective need is central to any use of future powers or resources.”

            The City Solicitor informed the Members that the Council has received a response from Mr. C. Donnelly, Director of the Belfast Regeneration Directorate, on behalf of both the Department for Communities and the Executive Office.

            Mr. Donnelly had begun by stating that he was aware of the continued calls for the legislation to extend regeneration powers to local government to be reintroduced and that the Minister for Communities had addressed those calls on a number of occasions.

            He had then proceeded to set out the Department’s current position on the matter by explaining that the Department for Communities had a range of powers which could be used to take forward physical, economic and social regeneration, including community development activities.  The principal powers currently used by the Department to pursue physical regeneration projects were mostly contained within Part VII of the Planning (NI) Order 1991.  These provided the legislative basis for progressing development schemes, acquisition, disposal and development of land for planning purposes and the extinguishment of public rights of way over land held for planning purposes.  The Department exercised these statutory powers in the public interest in the assembly and vesting of lands for the purpose of comprehensive development schemes and projects.  He highlighted the Victoria Square as being one example where the Department worked closely with a preferred developer and had used its vesting powers to acquire the necessary land to enable a Development Scheme to complete.

An alternative provision in the Planning Order 1991 allowed the Department for Communities to acquire land where it was expedient to do so for a purpose which it was necessary to achieve in the interests of the proper planning of an area in which the land is situated.  This provided it with scope to vest land in circumstances where it had not prepared a Development Scheme, such as where the use proposed would be consistent with strategic policies and site-specific proposals in the current Area Plan.

Mr. Donnelly had gone on to state that, as part of the Reform of Local Government, certain regeneration responsibilities and the associated resources had been due to transfer from the Department to local government.  To give effect to that decision, a draft Regeneration Bill had been prepared, which provided for the powers available to the Department to be conferred on councils to allow them, where necessary, to address issues related to social need and to take forward regeneration within their areas.  It provided also for the transfer of functions associated with Laganside to the Council.

The Department for Communities and its immediate predecessor (The Department for Social Development/DSD) had developed proposals to transfer regeneration powers to local councils on a number of occasions, as part of the wider Reform of Public Administration (RPA) and a number of attempts had been made to put the necessary legislation in place  (2011, 2015 and 2016).  On each occasion, this had not progressed, due to a lack of consensus on the issue.  He stated that there had been significant practical difficulties associated with the reintroduction of similar legislation, including the requirement for primary legislation, and that it would not be possible to complete the passage of such legislation in the current Assembly’s mandate.

He had pointed out that, since the decision in 2016 not to progress the Regeneration Bill, the Department had been working more closely with councils and this collaboration was working well at present.  The relationship had been strengthened further in the response to Covid-19, where the Department had liaised with councils and other stakeholders to develop locally designed recovery plans funded through the Covid-19 Recovery Revitalisation Programme.

Mr. Donnelly had concluded by stressing that the Minister was committed to strengthening this collaboration and focussing even more on partnering, co-design and delivery.

After discussion, the Members of the Committee agreed to recommend that, in accordance with the Council decision of 4th May, the Chief Executive exercise her delegated authority to note the response and agree that the Council should, in future, in responding to consultations relating to regeneration, emphasise the benefits for Belfast of councils being provided with regeneration powers.