A Westminster committee has urged political parties in Northern Ireland not to shy away from discussions about introducing water charges as part of efforts to address the region’s ongoing public service funding crisis.
The Northern Ireland Affairs Committee (NIAC) has called on both the British government and the Stormont executive to develop a clear route map toward greater fiscal devolution, allowing the region to reduce its dependency on central government funding and increase its ability to generate revenue locally.
In their follow-up report on the funding and delivery of public services, the cross-party committee emphasized that while Northern Ireland has received 124% of any increase in funding for England since the restoration of powersharing institutions, this enhancement will not sufficiently address the public service crisis in the short term.
“The introduction of water charges (for example) may be politically difficult, but the public elect politicians who are expected to make difficult decisions and therefore the discussion should not be avoided,” the report stated.
The committee highlighted the severe strain on Northern Ireland’s public services, noting that the health service faces “immense pressure, with long waiting lists, a struggling primary care sector and an acute mental health situation.” Education is similarly challenged, with special educational needs pupils suffering and schools operating with substantial deficits, while policing and justice continue to function under significant budgetary constraints.
NIAC chairwoman Tonia Antoniazzi condemned the “hand-to-mouth approach” to funding, describing it as “too little, too late, particularly when it comes to what one witness to our inquiry called the three hungry children of the health service, schools and the police.”
The MPs have urged the government to reconsider “both the levels and mechanisms” for funding public services in Northern Ireland, calling for the next block grant baseline from 2026-27 to be “calculated according to Northern Ireland’s level of need.” They also recommended backdating the 124% uplift to the start of the 2021 spending review period to avoid a potential “funding cliff edge” when the additional one-off funding from the 2024 executive restoration package expires.
“The aim must be that public services in Northern Ireland are fully funded according to need, through stable, sustainable and predictable allocations,” Antoniazzi added.
A British government spokesperson responded that they remain committed to working with the NI executive to “improve how public services are delivered in Northern Ireland to ensure better outcomes for citizens,” noting that the Chancellor’s autumn Budget provided £18.2bn (€21.3bn) for the executive over the next year—”the largest settlement in real terms in the history of devolution.”
The government will “take time to consider the findings of the report and respond in due course,” the spokesperson concluded.