Elected Members’ Questions to Council
This page provides the answers to Elected Member questions submitted to Council and Committee meetings.
Elected Members' Questions and Answers:
Date: 16 January 2025 Full Council
Elected Member |
Question in the name of Cllr P Johnston: |
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Question | “Article 66 of the Pollution Control and Local Government (Northern Ireland) Order 1978 is legislation that deals with dilapidated or ruinous buildings and structures that are considered a serious detriment to the local community. Can council officers advise what recent assessment has been made of Prospect House with regards to Councils powers under this order and what action has been taken since the recent damage which has now left the building and roof in a very dangerous condition for the local residents and general public.” |
Response |
“Council was made aware of a potentially dangerous structure at Prospect House on Sunday evening the 22 December 2024. The matter was referred to the Council's Building Control Team who attended site on Monday 23 December 2024 and liaised with the Council Facilities Team to have the area cordoned off. Contact with the owner was made via a local estate agent who confirmed that the owner was arranging for the site to be made safe. In relation to an Article 66 notice served under the Pollution Control and Local Government (NI) Order 1978 if threshold for action is met, then an Article 66 notice requires the owner of the property to repair or restore or demolish the building. Prospect House is a listed building and previous enquiries with the Historic Environment Division of Department of Communities advised that the owner would be committing an offence by demolishing a listed building and this is the considered policy across the province. Previous legal opinion stated that an Article 66 Notice must give the option of demolition and therefore it is not appropriate for cases involving listed buildings.” |
Elected Member |
Question in the name of Cllr A Barr: |
Question |
"Does this Council intend to commemorate the following anniversaries: 80th anniversary to mark VE and VJ Days; and 75th anniversary to mark the start of the Korean War? If so, how can these momentous anniversaries be commemorated?'' |
Response |
“The Council is developing a programme of activities to commemorate VE and VJ Days and other wartime anniversaries which proposes events in Ballymena, Larne and Carrickfergus and will include the marking of the 85th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, the 85th anniversary of Dunkirk, the 80th anniversary of the departure of the Belgian army from Northern Ireland, the 60th anniversary of the death of Winston Churchill as well as the 75th anniversary of the start of the Korean War. It is proposed to re-prioritise the proposed annual Civic Event budget for next year to be able to fund these activities. An update on this will be brought to the Events Sub-Committee in Jan 2025.” |
Date: 16 September 2024 Environment & Economy Committee
Elected Member |
Question in the name of Cllr Mrs Angela Smyth: |
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Question |
"Further to recent communication sent from the Mineral Products Association regarding lack of project completion from the Department for Infrastructure within the Mid and East Antrim Borough, could I ask the Council to write to DfI seeking a plan to inform us when this will be caught up and what impact this has on future works?" |
Response |
"Officers will write to DfI to ask about the status of their work programme for Mid & East Antrim." |