DUP and SDLP oppose Sinn Fein proposal to ‘close’ Belfast Zoo

Last month SDLP councillors expressed the same concerns, saying Sinn Fein’s plans for the loss-making facility would put endangered species and jobs at risk.

“Belfast City Council has been considering over recent years the most appropriate way forward for Belfast Zoo, considering it in the context of the surrounding Belfast Hills and Cavehill Country Park,” said DUP group leader, councillor George Dorrian, after the party met trade union officials representing staff yesterday.

He said the zoo is running at a loss and needs “a more sustainable model” and investment to create “a wider outdoor activity leisure park”.

“However, we cannot support this Sinn Fein proposal to, effectively, close the zoo.”

He claimed a statement by Sinn Fein was a gross misrepresentation, citing “caged animals” and proposing to “return animals to their natural habitats” adding that the party fails to recognise the importance of the zoo in education and international breeding programmes for rare and endangered species.

Trade union officials, he said, had told the DUP that staff “take great exception” to Sinn Fein claims about animal welfare at the zoo.

“Council staff at the zoo are highly trained and dedicated, creating animal enclosures designed to replicate natural environments,” he added.

SDLP councillor Carl Whyte said last month that the zoo was built in 1974 and is only slightly smaller than Dublin Zoo, which attracts over 1,000,000 visitors per year.

“We can have a similar attraction here with proper planning and investment,” he added.

Sinn Fein’s motion on the future of the zoo has been referred to the a council sub-committee for consideration. Sinn Fein says the council subsidises the zoo with £2.5m each year. It did not offer any response to the DUP.