Sarah O'Reilly (Aontú)

I want to speak today about the fact that the upgrades to the A5 road, which links Derry with Aughnacloy in County Tyrone, have effectively been cancelled. The project has been quashed by the Belfast High Court as it was in breach of elements of the climate action Act. This is a devastating result for the 57 families who have lost loved ones on a road that we all know to be unsafe. The climate change Act was enthusiastically supported by Sinn Féin, People Before Profit, the SDLP and Alliance who were all informed throughout the consultation and committee processes that it would have a detrimental impact on projects such as the A5 road.

Fifty-seven lives have been lost on this stretch of road and 1,200 people have been injured over the years. The Sinn Féin infrastructure Minister stalled a number of roads in 2023 because of the implications of the Act. They knew there was a problem and did nothing to address it. Why did they not repeal the Act or elements of it? MLAs are highly paid to scrutinise legislation like this. To see the extent of incompetence laid bare in the determination of the court yesterday shocked many. Political parties were left scrambling to distance themselves from a law they had championed. The Executive now has to get expert legal advice and fix the mess it has created through the laws it has introduced.

We cannot have the A5 upgrade stalled any longer as such a delay poses a threat to drivers' lives and disrupts the connectivity of the north west, in particular for the people of Donegal, Derry and Monaghan who have waited a long time for Stormont to deliver a project that is now over a decade in the making. Will this Government still commit to the huge infrastructural road projects for Donegal that are depending on this infrastructure?