Plan to sell 'Agreement building'

Parliament buildings is not going to be sold off

The government is considering plans to sell the building where the Good Friday Agreement was signed to the private sector.

It has been proposed Castle Buildings, the venue for the 1998 negotiations, should be sold together with Dundonald House and Craigantlet Buildings.

They currently provide accommodation for civil servants.

The plans do not cover Parliament Buildings, Stormont Castle, Stormont House, or the public park area.

The proposals, which have yet to be approved by ministers, would see the government buildings sold to a private finance company which would look after their upkeep and lease them back to government tenants.

The government said the model had been used by the Ministry of Defence and the Treasury and it was hoped the sale would provide better accommodation for staff and deliver savings of about £100m.

Government sources said any sale would be subject to the condition that the land should be primarily for government use.

It is possible that some private sector offices, for example, could be sited at Stormont, but there would be no luxury apartments.

A Department of Finance and Personnel spokesman said: "There are no plans to sell off the Stormont estate. There are, however, plans to rationalise and improve the wider civil service office estate over the next 5-7 years."

He added: "The feasibility of including some government office buildings at the Dundonald end of the Stormont estate is being considered as part of those plans."