To ask the Minister for Infrastructure to outline her Department’s policy in terms of the Don’t Mow, Let it Grow rewilding initiative within the Ards and North Down Borough Council area.

My Department manages vegetation across our network in a number of ways with the primary aim of maintaining road safety while also protecting wildlife and taking care in maintaining their habitats. In this regard my current grass cutting policy seeks to achieve a balance between road safety, the control of noxious weeds and environmental protection.

In recent years my Department has been engaging in a ‘Don’t Mow Let It Grow’ (DMLIG) pilot project in conjunction with Causeway Coast & Glens Borough Council, Northern Ireland Environment Agency and others. Through this work, my Department has increased its understanding of the importance of road verges for biodiversity and will now be engaging with other councils, including Ards and North Down Borough Council, to consider how the lessons learned from DMLIG might be integrated into other transport corridors.

As partner and supporter of the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan (AIPP), my Department recognises that road verges are an important habitat for many species of insects and animals. Having devised the specific AIPP Action, to promote pollinator-friendly management of the strategic road network in NI, my Department is committed to reviewing its environmental policies to promote pollinator-friendly practices and to encourage their inclusion on road schemes, where practicable.