To ask the Minister of Finance pursuant to AQW 20813/22-27, to detail (i) when the land of the former Department for Education car park at Rathgael House, Bangor was made available to Executive colleagues; and (ii) if any of the Executive or their Departments have indicated an interest in this land.

ANSWER

The car park adjacent to the Rathgael House site has not yet been deemed surplus as it is currently in use whilst the ground works on the Rathgael site are ongoing.

These ground works should be completed by the end of October 2025 which will allow the Department to declare the adjacent car park surplus under the Land and Property Services ‘Disposal of Surplus Public Sector Property’ policy. This process will allow other public bodies to express an interest in acquiring the land.

At this stage, my Department has not been made aware of any interest from other departments or public sector bodies, however this will be formalised when the disposal process is initiated.