To ask the Minister for Regional Development which groups are currently exempt from payment of water rates; and if he has any plans to exempt churches or other voluntary community facilities from this payment.

No customer groups are exempt from paying for water and sewerage services. The Executive has agreed the deferral of additional domestic water and sewerage payments for 2010/11. However, the Independent Water Review concluded that, historically, households have made an annual contribution to water and sewerage services through the Regional Rate.

The Executive agreed with the Independent Water Review Panel’s recommendation that billing for water and sewerage services should be extended to all non-domestic properties from 1st April 2008. The Panel also concluded in its Strand 2 report that everyone should contribute towards water and sewerage services.

There are no planned exemptions from non-domestic water charges. All non-domestic customers are subject to water and sewerage charges and trade effluent charges where applicable. This includes farms; small, medium and large businesses; industrial users; voluntary organisations; churches; public bodies and places of worship, as well as any household not intended for permanent household use. Prior to the extension of non-domestic payments in 2008, the company had been billing some 1,200 church properties for several years.