The Green Party in Northern Ireland has condemned what it calls years of inaction over an abandoned car in the River Lagan, claiming the vehicle has sat in the water for around four decades while politicians only engaged once cameras appeared.

The party points to Alliance's presence on Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council — 13 seats, the chamber's second-largest group — and notes that Cllr Nicola Parker is Vice-Chair of the council's Environment and Sustainability Committee. They argue the issue should have been addressed long before now if it was being properly prioritised.

They also highlight UUP MLA Robbie Butler's record, saying he has represented Lagan Valley since 2014 and has chaired the Stormont committee overseeing water quality and environmental enforcement since September 2024 — nearly two years — yet the car remains in place.

Green Party Cllr Anthony Flynn, who first raised this issue, said: "We've been told for weeks that this isn't anyone's job. Not the council's, not the department's, not the agency's.

"Now that it's a headline, everyone's suddenly got an opinion, but an opinion isn't the same as taking responsibility." The party asks whether any agency has formally assessed potential hazards from the vehicle, such as a legacy battery that could contain heavy metals and corrode in the water, warning the situation may be more than a simple clean-up task.

They add that the public debate has been framed as a tidiness issue, while uncertainties remain about possible pollution.

Richard Gill, Lagan Valley Greens Co-chair, put it plainly: "We don't know if the battery is still there, we don't know what's leaching into the water, and apparently neither does anyone else.

"That's not good enough for a river running through the middle of a town."

The party says it is not engaging DUP or TUV on the matter, arguing there is no expectation they would perform better.

According to the Greens, Alliance and the UUP have long presented themselves as competent and pragmatic, yet the continuing presence of a wreck and other debris in the river undermines those claims.

They insist titles do not clean rivers and call for immediate removal of the car alongside on-site contamination checks, with written confirmation that the Lagan will be cleared more broadly by next summer. The party urges the public to sign its petition, support a strengthened Environmental Protection Agency, and hold parties to their promises: www.greenpartyni.org/remove_the_abandoned_car_from_the_river_lagan