Department for Infrastructure (Northern Ireland)

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The Department for Infrastructure (DfI, Template:Langx;[1] Template:Langx) is a devolved Northern Ireland government department in the Northern Ireland Executive.

Up until May 2016, the department was called the Department for Regional Development.

Aim

DfI's overall aim is to "improve quality of life by securing transport and water infrastructure and shaping the region's long-term strategic development".[2]

Responsibilities

The department's main responsibilities include [3]

  • regional strategic planning and development;
  • transport strategy and sustainable transport;
  • public roads;
  • public transport;
  • air and sea ports;
  • water and sewerage services.

Two transport matters are reserved to Westminster and are therefore not devolved: [4]

DfI's main counterparts in the United Kingdom Government are:

In the Irish Government, its main counterparts are:

Agencies

  • DfI Roads: Responsible for ensuring that measures are taken to implement the roads aspects of the Regional Transportation Strategy for Northern Ireland 2002–12 and that the public road network is managed, maintained and developed. Roads Service is responsible for just over 25,000 kilometres of public roads, approximately 9,000 kilometres of footways, 5,800 bridges, 257,700 streetlights and 370 public car parks.
  • Driver and Vehicle Agency: Responsible for vehicle MOT testing, driver testing and driver licensing, including licensing for taxi drivers.
  • DfI Rivers

History

The Ministry of Home Affairs was established on the formation of Northern Ireland in June 1921 and was responsible for a range of non-economic domestic matters, including local government. A separate Ministry of Health and Local Government was formed in 1944 and was subsequently split in 1965, to create the Ministry of Development. An environment ministry existed in the 1974 Northern Ireland Executive and the ministry was known as the Department of the Environment under direct rule.

The DoE is still a phrase used in everyday language in Northern Ireland to describe the Roads Service, which was once run by the department but is currently an agency of the Department for Infrastructure.

Following a referendum on the Belfast Agreement on 23 May 1998 and the granting of royal assent to the Northern Ireland Act 1998 on 19 November 1998, a Northern Ireland Assembly and Northern Ireland Executive were established by the United Kingdom Government under Prime Minister Tony Blair. The process was known as devolution and was set up to return devolved legislative powers to Northern Ireland. DRD was one of five new devolved Northern Ireland departments created in December 1999 by the Northern Ireland Act 1998 and The Departments (Northern Ireland) Order 1999.

A devolved minister first took office on 2 December 1999. Devolution was suspended for six periods, during which the department came under the responsibility of direct rule ministers from the Northern Ireland Office:

  • between 12 February 2000[10] and 30 May 2000;[11]
  • on 11 August 2001;[12][13]
  • on 22 September 2001;[14][15]
  • between 15 October 2002[16] and 8 May 2007.[17]
  • between 26 January 2017 and 11 January 2020
  • between 27 October 2022 and 3 February 2024

Ministers for Infrastructure

Minister Image Party Took office Left office
style="background:Template:Party color" |     Peter Robinson File:Peter Robinson MLA DUP.jpg Template:Party shortname 29 November 1999 11 February 2000
Office suspended
style="background:Template:Party color" |     Peter Robinson File:Peter Robinson MLA DUP.jpg Template:Party shortname 30 May 2000 26 July 2000
style="background:Template:Party color" |     Gregory Campbell File:Gregory Campbell 2011.jpg Template:Party shortname 27 July 2000 18 October 2001[18]
style="background:Template:Party color" |     Peter Robinson File:Peter Robinson MLA DUP.jpg Template:Party shortname 25 October 2001 11 October 2002
Office suspended
style="background:Template:Party color" |     Conor Murphy File:Conor Murphy.jpg Template:Party shortname 14 May 2007 4 May 2011
style="background:Template:Party color" |     Danny Kennedy File:DannyKennedy.jpg Template:Party shortname 16 May 2011 2 September 2015
style="background:Template:Party color" |     Michelle McIlveen File:Michelle McIlveen DUP.jpg Template:Party shortname 21 September 2015 30 March 2016[note 1]
Office renamed Minister for Infrastructure
style="background:Template:Party color" |     Chris Hazzard File:Chris Hazzard.jpg Template:Party shortname 25 May 2016 26 January 2017
Office suspended
style="background:Template:Party color" |     Nichola Mallon File:Nichola Mallon - SDLP Lord Mayor of Belfast.jpg Template:Party shortname 11 January 2020 5 May 2022
style="background:Template:Party color" |     John O'Dowd File:John O'Dowd 2021.jpg Template:Party shortname 16 May 2022 27 October 2022
Office suspended
style="background:Template:Party color" |     John O'Dowd File:John O'Dowd 2021.jpg Template:Party shortname 3 February 2024 3 February 2025
style="background:Template:Party color" |     Liz Kimmins File:Liz Kimmins 2019 (cropped).jpg Template:Party shortname 3 February 2025 Incumbent

Direct rule ministers

During the periods of suspension, the following ministers of the Northern Ireland Office were responsible for the department:

See also

References

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Notes

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External links

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  1. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  2. ↑ Northern Ireland Budget 2011–15, page 91
  3. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  4. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  5. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  6. ↑ Defra: Water Template:Webarchive
  7. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  8. ↑ Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: About Us Template:Webarchive
  9. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  10. ↑ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Commencement) Order 2000
  11. ↑ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) Order 2000
  12. ↑ Article 1, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Suspension of Devolved Government) Order 2001
  13. ↑ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) Order 2001
  14. ↑ Article 1, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Suspension of Devolved Government) (No.2) Order 2001
  15. ↑ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) (No.2) Order 2001
  16. ↑ Article 1, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Suspension of Devolved Government) Order 2002
  17. ↑ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) Order 2007
  18. ↑ Office suspended for 24 hours on 11 August 2001 and 22 September 2001


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