To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what debt recovery powers the new Government-owned water company in Northern Ireland will have. (81615)

The Chief Executive of Water Service (Mrs. Katharine Bryan) has been asked to write to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question.

Letter from Mrs. Katharine Bryan of 5 July 2006:

You recently asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland a parliamentary Question about what debt recovery powers the New Government-owned water company in Northern Ireland will have (81615). I have been asked t reply as this issue falls within my responsibility as Chief Executive of Water Service.

There are no special measures in the water reform legislation to assist Northern Ireland Water Ltd in recovering debt and the new company is unable to disconnect domestic customers if they fall into debt. Northern Ireland Water Ltd will rely o the normal law relating to civil debt, which involves enforcement through the courts and via the Enforcements of Judgments Office, under the Judgments Enforcement (Northern Ireland) Rules 1981. Consideration is currently being given as to whether the company will require any of the additional debt recovery measures that are available to other utility companies.

The implementation plan for the introduction of the new customer charging and billing arrangements includes an intensive communications campaign covering the domestic and non-domestic sectors. It will reflect input from the Consumer Council, Citizen’s Advice Bureau and Advice NI on payment plans and avenues for advice on debt.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much has been spent on water and sewage infrastructural improvements in Northern Ireland in each of the last 10 years; and how much is expected to be spent over the next five years. (81616)

The Chief Executive of Water Service (Mrs. Katharine Bryan) has been asked to write to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question.

Letter from Mrs. Katharine Bryan dated 5 July 2006:

You recently asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland a parliamentary Question about how much has been spent on water and sewerage infrastructural improvements in Northern Ireland in each of the last 10 years; and how much is expected to be spent over the next five years (81616). I have been asked to reply as this issue falls within my responsibility as Chief Executive of Water Service.

In the 10 year period from 1996-97 to 2005-06, Water Service’s capital expenditure on improvements to the water and wastewater infrastructure amounted to £556 million and £614 million respectively. The following table sets out the annual investment for each of these years.

Over the next five years, Water Service plans to invest a further £185 million on water infrastructure and £340 million on wastewater infrastructure. This will be augmented, during the first two years, by a programme of infrastructure improvements. The Alpha Project will provide water supply projects valued at around £110 million and the Omega project will provide wastewater and sludge disposal management projects valued at around £122 million

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether the pension rights of those employed with Water Service will be protected when they transfer to the new government-owned company in April 2007; and whether any changes to the pension scheme require the agreement of the Minister with responsibility for regional development. (85647)

Those employees transferring to Northern Ireland Water Limited will become members of a pension scheme which mirrors as closely as possible the terms of the civil service pension scheme. The new scheme will be required to have a certificate of broad comparability from the Government Actuary’s Department in line with the ‘Fair Deal’ policy. The scheme’s members will have protections through the running of the scheme by the trustees who will be drawn on a 50:50 basis from management and member nominees; from the pension regulator under whose remit the scheme will fall; and through the scheme’s membership of the pension protection fund.

The precise terms of the trust deed and rules have yet to be finalised.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much has been spent by the Department for regional development from 1 April 1999 to 31 March 2006 on water infrastructure improvements; and to what projects the funding has been allocated. (85649)

The Chief Executive of Water Service (Mrs. Katharine Bryan) has been asked to write to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question.

Letter from Mrs. Katharine Bryan, dated 5 July 2006:

You recently asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland a Parliamentary Question about how much was spent by the Department for Regional Development from 1 April 1999 to 31 March 2006 on water infrastructure improvements; and to what projects the funding was allocated (85649). I have been asked to reply as this issue falls within my responsibility as Chief Executive of Water Service.

During the period from 1 April 1999 to 31 March 2006, Water Service invested some £428 million on improvements to the water infrastructure throughout Northern Ireland. Almost 950 major capital projects, together with many minor works projects, were carried out to improve a number of water treatment works, including Drumaroad, Lough Bradan, Fofanny and Derg. Improvements to the watermain network system were also carried out. The scale and extent of this work varied from small watermain extensions to serve individual housing developments, to large-scale projects such as the replacement of part of the Mourne Conduit which transfers water from the Silent Valley to supply Belfast and surrounding areas.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what European Union funding was spent on the upgrade of water infrastructure in Northern Ireland between 1 April 1990 and 31 March 2006; and to what projects the funding was allocated. (85650)

The Chief Executive of Water Service (Mrs. Katharine Bryan) has been asked to write to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question.

Letter from Mrs. Katharine Bryan, dated 5 July 2006:

You recently asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland a Parliamentary Question about how much European Union funding was spent on the upgrade of water infrastructure in Northern Ireland between 1st April 1990 and 31st March 2006; and to what projects the funding was allocated (85650). I have been asked to reply as this issue falls within my responsibility as Chief Executive of Water Service.

During the period from 1st April 1990 to 31st March 2006 Water Service, received £44.822 million of European Union funds for improvements to water treatment works. The funding was allocated to projects benefiting the following works: