UFU says A5 landowners ‘remain in the dark’

Farmers who are impacted by the A5 western transport corridor are still unclear about the reinstatement of land, the Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) has said.

Following a high court judgement which quashed the current road project, the ownership of the vested land returned to the original landowners on 27 June 2025.

“Now, weeks after, affected farmers remain in the dark, unsure if, when or how their land will be reinstated,” said James McCluggage from the UFU.

He said the only correspondence was a “generic letter” from the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) that set out “vague options” for reinstating vested land.

According to the letter, one option is to leave the fences and land as they are until “further decisions” about the road project are made, with “reasonable payment” made to landowners.

Another option is that DfI reinstate boundaries and land themselves, and a third option is that payments are made to landowners instead of the department carrying out any remedial work.

“The department’s communication has been vague, one-sided and utterly inadequate. Hundreds of farm businesses have been held hostage by indecision and silence. It’s unacceptable,” McCluggage said.