‘The wrong time’ for spending on Irish street signs in Belfast: DUP

Following a decision taken yesterday by a city council committee – that only 15% of residents will be required to consent to the provision of a second street sign in Irish – Councillor Tom Haire said the inevitable increased expenditure was hard to justify at this time.

At the meeting of the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee on Friday, it was decided to replace the existing stipulation – that one third of residents must petition for an Irish sign for a consultation process to begin, with two thirds then responding positively for the erection of a new sign.

“This is certainly not vital expenditure at the minute,” Cllr Haire said.

“It is not necessary, especially in these times when people are out of work because of the Covid pandemic. It is insensitive to bring it forward at this time...but it has been dragging on for years and I suppose it had to come to head at some point. But maybe this is the wrong time to discuss this issue.”

The proposal put forward by the committee yesterday is expected to be ratified when it comes up for debate by the full council.

The decision has been welcomed by Sinn Féin councillor Seanna Walsh, who said the new arrangements would “relax the stringent bilingual street signage policy” being operated by the council.

“This policy would be in line with the objectives set out in the European Charter for Regional and Minority Languages and subsequent minority language agreements to protect and grow the Irish language,” he said.

“Belfast now has one of the most vibrant and energetic Irish speaking communities in Ireland.

“It is a matter of great pride that our city is quickly emerging as the epicentre of a resurgent Irish language,” Cllr Walsh added.

Carl Whyte of the SDLP described the proposal as a “very small step” towards recognising the “language and identity” of the city’s Irish language speakers.

“You’d think from some of the commentary over the last 24 hours that this is some kind of budget busting decision.

“That couldn’t be further from the truth and those pushing the figure of £4 million are deliberately trying to provoke a negative reaction because they know the end figure won’t be anywhere near as expensive,” Cllr Whyte said.

He added: “It’s about providing recognition and respect to Irish language speakers, regardless of their background. That should have been something we could find common ground on.”

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