§ Mr. William RossTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what extra costs have been incurred as a result of the decision not to lay asbestos cement pipes in the contract for the Mourne conduit. [38813]
§ Mr. MossResponsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Water Service under its chief executive, Mr. H. R. F. Plester. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from H. R. F. Plester to Mr. William Ross, dated 22 July 1996:
76WMr. Moss has asked me to reply to your parliamentary question asking what extra costs have been incurred as a result of the decision not to lay asbestos cement pipes in the contract for the Mourne conduit.The decision not to lay asbestos cement pipes in the contracts for parts of the Mourne Conduit was taken after consideration of the implications of a detailed report prepared by the Water Research Centre. Taking into account the estimated whole life costs of installation, maintenance and decommissioning it is considered unlikely that any significant additional costs will accrue.