Mr McGimpsey: I thank the Minister for the personal interest that she has shown, particularly in the Village area of South Belfast — the largest concentration of unfit housing anywhere in Northern Ireland. I welcome her announcement of £7 million to begin the long-term project. Had she accepted the draft Budget, as many people urged, that announcement could never have been made. I also welcome the authorisation of the initial investment, the declaration of the urban renewal areas, and her remarks that trigger a £100 million process. That is music to the ears of the Greater Village Regeneration Trust, the people who live in that area and those of us who have battled on that issue for many years.

How does the Minister see the process moving forward? I represent an impatient community, and they want to see houses being built. What is the process for the delivery of that £100 million redevelopment?

Ms Ritchie: I thank Mr McGimpsey for his kind words. At his invitation, I visited the Village area with him and the Member of Parliament for South Belfast, Dr McDonnell, on 14 June 2007. I have had an opportunity to meet members of the Greater Village Regeneration Trust, along with a section of the local community and many other people, over the last few months. I was struck by the housing conditions that I witnessed in that area, and I wanted to do something to alleviate the problems that those people have suffered.

As a result of my decision today, I have instructed my officials to work on the Village area as a priority. I have also urged the Housing Executive to ensure that it deals with that issue not only at its board meeting tomorrow, but at its subsequent board meeting in March. That board meeting will deal with two separate papers on the Village area.

My Department and the Housing Executive are charged with the need to address housing conditions in that area, and we will work collectively. We also want to work with Mr McGimpsey and the other repre­sentatives for South Belfast to kick-start the building of new houses and a new housing and regeneration agenda for the Village area that will deliver a better sense of health, well-being and better housing, and will create a series of opportunities for current and future generations.

Mr Burns: Will the Minister gift many sites to local communities as she rolls out her housing agenda?

Ms Ritchie: Consultation with local communities will be paramount in any housing or regeneration development that I will undertake. Housing and regeneration are interlinked, because they deliver a better sense of health and well-being. I do not see how a proposed development can be successful without the support and buy-in of local communities such as those in the Village or North Belfast. In addition, any significant development will be subject to full equality proofing, and an equality impact assessment will be necessary.

Having said all that, I know that it is natural that many communities would wish to take control of some available sites for community purposes. However, I must accept that, in a time of inflated land prices, such sites are valuable assets, and, as a rule, I cannot pass them on to communities for community use.

When a suitable site becomes available, my first instinct will be to build social and affordable housing on it. Although most building will be done by housing associations through the Housing Executive’s social housing development programme, I will be seeking mixed-tenure developments and more involvement from the private sector; private-sector involvement is crucial. I seek partnership among the Housing Executive — as the strategic housing authority — the housing associations, my Department and the private sector to deliver a new housing future for the people of Northern Ireland and for future generations.