The DUP MLA who is Deputy Chair of the Assembly’s Finance Committee said,
“This is a welcome decision for owners of these apartments who have been unable to live in their homes for several years through no fault of their own. It is disappointing that it has taken this long to reach a decision and lessons should be learned from this in the future.
It is important now that refunds which are owed to owners are processed as quickly as possible. Many of them have been placed in huge financial hardship as a result of the problems they faced.
Whilst the decision on rates will be warmly welcomed, ultimately there is a need for the issues facing these owners to be properly resolved. I know the Communities Minister has been working on this in conjunction with other colleagues and I hope that progress can be made on this as quickly as possible.”