To ask the Minister of the Environment what steps his Department and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency are taking to encourage (a) businesses; (b) non-governmental organisations; (c) councils; and (d) associations or professional societies to be signed participants in Prosperity Agreements.

Prosperity Agreements are voluntary agreements through which the NIEA and an organisation can explore opportunities for reducing environment and heritage impacts in ways that create prosperity and well-being.

I have instructed my Department to negotiate and develop Prosperity Agreements with organisations where significant environmental, social and economic benefits can be gained.

I regularly talk about this new initiative publicly and my senior Department officials are in discussions with a wide variety of businesses, trade associations, non-government organisations and councils about potential Prosperity Agreements.

We have also provided information about Prosperity Agreements and made the first signed Prosperity Agreement publicly available on the Department’s website. There is a small team in the NIEA who ensure that organisations that are interested in discussing Prosperity Agreements further can access more information.

Finally, all NIEA staff are briefed on Prosperity Agreements so they can discuss them with organisations that are interested in the programme.