Foster ‘bemused’ by critics of Johnson’s bridge plan
But Deputy First Minister says idea of ‘Boris bridge or burrow’ is just a pipe dream
FIRST Minister Arlene Foster has said she is “bemused” by those critical of proposals for a bridge or tunnel connecting Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
Deputy First Minister Michelle O’neill, on the other hand, described such a project as a “pipe dream” of Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
It comes after it was announced that an official feasibility study including examining potential for either a ‘Boris Burrow’ or ‘Boris Bridge’, as they have been dubbed, is to get under way.
Transport expert Sir Peter Hendy — who was reappointed as Network Rail chairman yesterday — was asked by the UK Government to examine how to keep the Union connected and he has now said work should be carried out to look at a “fixed link” across the Irish Sea.
The proposals have drawn criticism from many quarters, including from Infrastructure Minister Nichola Mallon and SDLP leader Colum Eastwood, who described it as a “fantasy”.
Speaking during a press conference in Dungannon yesterday, Mrs Foster welcomed the news of the review.
“It’s not just about the ‘Boris Burrow’ or the tunnel, it’s much wider than that and I hope people will look at that, because if the UK national government are looking at infrastructure across the UK, then that is a good thing,” she said. “I’m somewhat bemused by the fact that our Infrastructure Minister does not think it is a good thing. You would think that the Infrastructure Minister would welcome the fact that government is focusing on infrastructure across the UK.”
Ms O’neill however, described a bridge or tunnel as a “pipe dream” that is just a way of creating a smokescreen to distract from the UK Government’s handling of Brexit and its “reckless and partisan” approach to the Withdrawal Agreement.
“For me that’s all about deflection, [Boris Johnson] would be better spending money on giving healthcare staff additional wages, proper wages,” she added.
One major factor that could sink any “fixed link” before it even breaks ground is Beaufort’s Dyke, an area of the Irish Sea where surplus munitions from the two World Wars and radioactive waste were dumped.
It is thought that in excess of one million tonnes of munitions dumped there by the War Office and its successor the Ministry of Defence up until the mid-1970s.
The UK and Ireland Nuclear Free Local Authorities campaign group said it would be a “real challenge” to develop either a bridge or tunnel project between NI and GB.
One leading bomb disposal expert said either project would be “impractical but not impossible”.
Former Royal Navy clearance diver Michael Fellows told the Belfast Telegraph earlier this month that a tunnel would be a “dodgy operation”, considering the volume of munitions on the seabed.
“Whatever you put in place, be it a tunnel or a bridge, it’s going to need supports, so you’re going to have to be very careful where you place those supports so that you don’t hit something while drilling. You’ll also have to conduct regular surveys to stop any explosions,” he added.
“The idea of a connection between Scotland and Northern Ireland is a brilliant one but you have got to get rid of the explosive problem initially, which is an almost impossible task.”