Council row erupts over ‘sectarian carve up’ of city

The designation model for the funding, supported by Sinn Fein and the DUP, will see allocation based on percentages relating to population and the multiple deprivation measure.

Over £2.6 million will go to West Belfast, over £1.9 million for North Belfast, £1.8 million for East Belfast, and over £1.5 million for South Belfast.

Particular controversy surrounds the decision to give Shankill a specific designation of £564,608, with the rest of West Belfast £2,117,613.

Alliance Councillor Michael Long said during Thursday’s meeting of the full council that the fund was “moving towards fair funding for all,” but asked that specific criteria be reviewed, as well as the Shankill plan.

He said: “I oppose this latest attempt to carve up the city on sectarian grounds by the DUP and Sinn Fein, to hive off the Shankill and create a miraculous fifth quarter in our city. It is 2021, for goodness sake it is well past the time we stopped dividing our city up on the basis of identity.”

He added: “This fund is meant to help us build back better. How can we do that when we continue to carve up the city on this type of basis. Surely we should be promoting projects that bring our community together, working across old divides rather than entrenching them.”

He said the measure of deprivation used for the calculations were “completely arbitrary” and would see “East and South Belfast lose out again, this time to the tune of over £600,000.”

He added: “We believe deprivation is an important criteria that needs to be included but it has to be fine graded in terms of the analysis. That means that as well as areas in North and West Belfast, that many pockets that we have in East and South Belfast can also be looked at.”

He said the data was “old” and deprivation in East and South Belfast were “masked by surrounding areas that are more affluent”, and referred to the Cregagh estate, Clonduff, Tullycarnet, Clarawood, Knocknagoney, Braniel, Beaver and Annadale as being areas wrongly left outside the definition.

SDLP Councillor Donal Lyons said there were questions about “how it is being tailored appropriately and intelligently towards a post-Covid situation.” He said these would only be answered after the decision on the funding was made.

He said this was “ridiculous” and also asked the decision to be taken back for further discussion, adding decisions on funding were “more political than needs-based.”

Representatives from the Green Party and People Before Profit also questioned the separate Shankill allocation.

Sinn Fein Councillor Ronan McLaughlin said the multiple deprivation scale was set up by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency, and Alliance should “take up their problem with them.”

Sinn Fein Councillor Ciaran Beattie said comments made by Alliance Councillor Michael Long in council and in the media were “grossly offensive,” “inaccurate” and “undermined the integrity” of the council.

He said Sinn Fein agreed to the Shankill allocation as it “basically had a high concentration of deprived communities.” He added: “Alliance are calling that sectarian – how does that even work? I don’t understand that.

“To have disgraceful comments like this has no place in this council, as it only causes division and causes offence. I don’t know where they are coming from, whether it is a populist approach to get a few facebook likes.”

He said Councillor Long’s statements in a Belfast Telegraph article and at the council meeting should be forwarded to the new council standards committee as its first item, and potentially to the local government ombudsman. The council’s city lawyer said he would look at the statements.

DUP Alderman Brian Kingston said: “I am mystified by what it is Councillor Long and the Alliance Party is making an issue of. I think they are determined to have a row about this funding, and they are trying to find some grounds for a row, and there isn’t one.”

He added: “We will always argue that the Greater Shankill area will get its fair share of funding. Councillor Long in his comments said this should be done. All that has happened here is that officers have said what the fair share should be for that substantial part of the city.”