RATES & WATER CHARGES Further economic progress will be undermined if the Government proceeds with industrial and domestic rate increases and water charges.

The DUP does not support separate charging for water, believing such a charge to be excessive and unfair. We were the only local party who opposed breaking the linkage between paying for water and the regional rate in 1998/99. This decision left Northern Ireland vulnerable to the threat of a separate water charge being introduced. If the Government intends to impose water charges, they must reduce the regional rate by an equivalent amount so that the overall burden of local taxation remains stable.