NI Dilapidation Bill progresses in Assembly

In June 2025, the Minister for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), Andrew Muir, announced that the Executive had approved the introduction of the Dilapidation Bill to the Northern Ireland Assembly.

The following month, the Bill progressed to its Second Stage and is now moving towards anticipated approval.

In the meantime, as part of the standard legislative process, the Assembly has launched a public survey on the Bill, which remains open for responses until 10 October 2025.

Key elements

The Bill aims to give local councils a modern and consistent enforcement framework to deal with dilapidated buildings and neglected sites, in line with powers used elsewhere in the UK.

Specific measures include, but are not limited to:

• Allowing councils to serve a maintenance notice to require remedial action to deal with low level dilapidation and neglect.
• Allowing councils to serve a dilapidation notice to require remedial action to deal with more serious dilapidation and neglect (including demolition).
• Allowing councils to serve a dangerous structure notice to require remedial action (including demolition) where a council considers that a building is in a dangerous condition or is used to carry such loads as to be dangerous.
• Allowing councils to serve a defective premises notice on a range of persons where premises appear to be in such a condition as to be ‘prejudicial to health or a nuisance’, stating that the council intends to remedy the relevant defects.

The full Dilapidation Bill can be viewed here.

If you have any questions or comments about the Bill, please contact Curtis Large, RSUA Policy and Public Affairs Officer, at curtis@rsua.org.uk