Court rule against Arc21 appeal
The Department of Infrastructure had made an appeal against a ruling in May 2018.
Last updated 6th Jul 2018
A court has denied permission to appeal a decision which blocked a £240 million waste incinerator in Mallusk.
The Department of Infrastructure was arguing against a ruling in May 2018 - which stated that a senior civil servant didn't have the power to give the go ahead for the waste treatment centre at Hightown Quarry.
That decision had been made by the Permanent Secretary of the DoI- after the collapse of Stormont last year.
But ruling on Friday, the Court of Appeal concluded that the decision made by the Department was crosscutting, significant and controversial.
It was, therefore, a decision which could only be taken by the Executive Committee.
The Court of Appeal commented that it was doubtful that any significant weight can be placed on the views of a Minister who has lost office as the political responsibility for responding to what has occurred in the interim is that of the incoming Minister.
It said that observations on the limited powers available to senior civil servants in the absence of a Minister are contained within the judgment but that it expressed no final view on the competence of Departments to make decisions during periods when no Minister is in place.
"Secretary of State must move to restore devolution or impose direct rule"
Reacting to the decision by the Court, Ulster Unionist Leader, Robin Swann MLA, said:
“The judgement from the Court of Appeal is clear and decisive. It means that the Secretary of State has now run out of road.
"She can no longer remain a back seat driver and must move to restore some form of devolution or the Government should appoint direct rule ministers on Monday.
“There is no running away from this. It is a time for decisive leadership. The Secretary of State and the Northern Ireland Office can no longer duck the hard decisions for fear of upsetting Sinn Fein or concerns about the DUP`s Confidence and Supply Agreement with the Conservative Party.
"The country is gradually grinding to a halt due to a lack of political direction or decision making. I urge the Secretary of State to be bold and do what`s right for Northern Ireland."
The Becon Consortium - who are the private sector bidder hoping to build and run the waste infrastructure project - say they are 'disappointed' by the outcome.
A statement from the company said:
"“We are disappointed with the outcome of the Appeal process for what we believe is one of the most regionally significant and strategically important infrastructure projects currently required here in Northern Ireland.
“We note however that today’s ruling does not in any way change the material facts or merits at the heart of the planning decision itself, the project’s compliance with regional waste policy or indeed remove the strategic need for such infrastructure here in Northern Ireland in the future.
"Instead, the court’s decision is entirely based on procedural matters surrounding the ability of the Department to make a decision in the absence of a Minister in post.
“We also appreciate the implications of this judgement for wider decision making here in Northern Ireland in the continued absence of a local Assembly and Executive. In terms of infrastructure the decision making vacuum is having a real impact on inward investment and job creation.
"The restoration of the local Assembly and Executive would provide the certainty needed for decision making across all government departments, but in the absence of this we now hope that the Secretary of State and Westminster will act to deliver some alternative form of local decision making for this and many other important infrastructure projects currently stuck in limbo.
“While this represents a further disappointing setback for the project, we remain steadfast in our commitment to deliver this strategically important infrastructure on behalf of arc21 and will now take time to consult with them, to consider the implications of this Appeal Court judgement and to review all options available to us to move this project forward."