MoT tests: John O'Dowd rules out privatising services

MoT centres carry out tests across Northern Ireland

Infrastructure Minister John O'Dowd has ruled out the privatisation of MoT services in Northern Ireland.

Mr O'Dowd was speaking ahead of an assembly debate on waiting times for the service on Monday.

Last week, the chief executive of the Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA) said motorists in Northern Ireland face an average wait of 72 days for MoT tests.

Mr O'Dowd said there had been calls for a similar testing model to that in Great Britain.

That would mean establishing a network of authorised private garages to carry out tests.

"Let there be no mistake, that is a call for privatisation of MoT services, taking work and jobs away from our valued public servants," Mr O'Dowd said.

"I will never support that approach."

The minister said DVA staff were working hard to reduce waiting times through increasing its capacity with nearly 1.2 million MoT tests carried out in the last financial year, the most-ever in a single year.

A new test centre at Hydebank was due to open in 2022

"I will be making announcements in the assembly on further measures to alleviate waiting times and have asked officials to bring forward other options for my urgent consideration, however privatisation is ruled out," he added.

Delays to MoTs began in late 2019 when cracks were found in vehicle lifts across Northern Ireland's MoT centres.

'Changed customer behaviour'

A report later found cracking in 48 out of 55 lifts.

The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in Northern Ireland in 2020 caused a further backlog.

However, DVA chief executive Jeremy Logan said "changed customer behaviour" was responsible for the current pressure on the system.

"The reality is that people are holding onto their cars for longer," he said, adding that there were also more cars on the road than ever before.

In February, BBC News NI revealed further delays to the opening of two new test centres.

A centre at Hydebank, in south Belfast, due to open in 2022, is now scheduled to open later in 2024, while a new test centre at Mallusk, in County Antrim, scheduled to open in 2024, is now planned for 2025.

The DVA said that the two new centres will provide the capacity to test more than 200,000 additional vehicles per year.