Mid and East Antrim Council agree to rename Prince Andrew Way - will Belfast and Mid Ulster councils follow?
Mid and East Antrim Council has agreed to rename Prince Andrew Way - with Queen Elizabeth II, Prince George or Princess Catherine suggested as possible replacements.
However no formal moves have as yet been made to change the names of other streets named after the disgraced royal in south Belfast or Co Tyrone.
The Carrickfergus street in question was named after Andrew to mark his marriage to Sarah Ferguson in 1986.
However the former prince - now simply Andrew Mounbatten-Windsor - has since been stripped of his royal titles after revelations about his close friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and allegations by the late Virginia Giuffre that he sexually assaulted her when she was 17 - which he denies.
Mid and East Antrim Borough DUP Councillor Marc Collins, said the DUP, UUP, TUV, Alliance and Sinn Fein were unanimous in agreeing to change the name of Prince Andrew Way on Monday night.
"There has been quite a lot of discussion from residents, mostly for but some against the change," he told the News Letter.
"But Carrick has a long and proud history with the royal family. And because the actions of the former Prince have obviously brought the family into disrepute, we didn't think it was fitting for us to still have a road named after him."
He said that suggestions for the replacement name were after Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Anne, Prince George or Princess Catherine.
Alliance Party councillor Lauren Gray formally proposed the name change at the meeting.
She too thinks naming it after Queen Elizabeth II would be a “fitting tribute” to the late monarch. “In recent weeks as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor stepped away from some of the titles conferred on him, and now with the royal family removing his style, title and honours, we’re now in the space to have this conversation,” she said. The council’s interim chief executive Valerie Watts cautioned there is no council policy for changing the name of the street.
“Clearly I respect the views of the chamber this evening on this particularly emotive issue, however what I do need to advise members is that there is no council policy for changing the name of a street, and it’s not just straightforward,” the PA news agency reportted.
“Residents absolutely need to be consulted because it can have far reaching implications for them, such as changing your address for your bank account, credit cards, driver’s licence, utility bills etc, however it can be done and council do have the power to change street names.”
She said other agencies, such as Royal Mail, need to be consulted, and officers will bring a full report back to council.
Belfast City Council told the News Letter it has not received any formal requests to rename Prince Andrew Gardens and adjoining Prince Andrew Park in south Belfast.
However the council's Chief Executive recently agreed that a report would be submitted to the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee on the city’s procedures for naming streets, following the removal of Andrew Mountbatten Windsor’s royal title,
Mid Ulster District Council also said it had not received any name change requests in relation to Prince Andrew Crescent in Moygashel, Co Tyrone, nor has the matter been discussed at committee level.
A Yew tree planted by Andrew in Lisburn to mark the 400th anniversary of the city in 2009 won’t be touched, however it is not known if the plaque at the location will be changed.