Portadown: Crunch vote taken on bilingual signage request

Churchill Gardens in Portadown is close to becoming the second area in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon borough to be granted Irish-English street signage after a crunch vote.

When the issue was raised at the council’s Planning & Regulatory Services committee meeting, five members chose to abstain when the recorded vote was taken, while seven others voted in favour of the recommendation for bilingual signage.

This means the matter will now be referred to the next monthly council meeting.

Rules governing the provision of bilingual street signage are particularly strict in the ABC Borough. As per the council’s Street Naming and Numbering Policy, a third of residents in any given area have to request bilingual signage in the first place.

If that first test is met, then all residents are canvassed, with a two-third majority required for a recommendation to be made for councillors to approve bilingual signage – by virtue of it being a recommendation only, residents’ wishes can still be disregarded in the end, as councillors ultimately use their own discretion when ruling on such requests.

In addition, those deemed to object also include residents who did not express a view one way or the other.

In the case of Churchill Gardens, 57 residents were surveyed, with a minimum of 38 responses in favour (two thirds) required for the request to be recommended.

Of the responses received, a total of 47 responses (82 per cent) were in agreement with the application request for dual language signage.

A total of 10 responses were deemed to object to the request – either because the residents in question had expressed opposition to bilingual signage, or through failure to respond.

Speaking at the committee meeting, Councillor Peter Lavery (Alliance, Lurgan DEA), referred to the length of time it had taken to get to a point where the street signage request could finally be approved.

"We’ve been over this at length at the last meeting. Looking at the data there, I think it’s approximately 82 per cent of residents in support of this dual-language street sign, which I think is a strong endorsement, and as a committee we need to respect the views of the residents of this street,” he said.

"As such, I’ll be content to propose that we allow a language street sign for this locality to progress.”

Councillor Paul Duffy (Sinn Féin, Portadown DEA) seconded the proposal to allow councillors to exercise discretionary powers on this issue.

Alderman Gareth Wilson (DUP, Cusher DEA), who had asked for the matter to be deferred at the February 5 Planning & Regulatory Services committee meeting – before it was deferred again at the February 24 ABC monthly meeting so that last-minute legal advice could be sought – insisted that his request for more time to examine the issue had been the correct one.

“Some people had an issue with it last month, but it was just to welcome that additional time, because I found it useful under the terms of reference and the legalities that we’re working with.

"There are sensitivities involved in these applications, so it has been useful for me to have those discussions in that intervening period.

"I do have concerns about it, so I would like a recorded vote on this one, because I’m not completely content with it in terms of the wider implications of it.

"But I understand we have the consistent legal advice that’s been provided by King’s Counsel over a number of occasions that we’ve had this issue, and I know other people outside of this committee have welcomed opportunities to contribute, (…) so that has been a useful process.

"I do fully understand we have a policy in place, we have to be responsible and we have to be seen to administer that policy fairly, but there are wider considerations around it that I feel need to be addressed as well going forward.”

Cllr Lavery said he could not understand why AldWilson still had concerns, when a strong majority of residents had clearly spoken in favour of dual-language signage at Churchill Gardens, and when the request had met all the relevant tests within council policy, adding: “I’m just a touch bamboozled by Ald Wilson’s contribution. I mean we’ve considered the occupiers of the street who are 82 per cent in favour.

"Having improved equality in this borough, that’s been long overdue. If we do not allow this application to go forward which has met policy, a judicial review will cost ratepayers heavily and the council reputationally.

"I think process has been followed, and I’m certainly not content with Ald Wilson sort of opposing it, or being against it or whatever, and I would welcome the recorded vote.

Responding, Ald Wilson insisted that exercising caution was the right approach: “We don’t have to go too far back in time to see occasions where applications would have been rushed through without due consideration.

"We’re dealing with a decision here under our own remit, and something I take quite seriously. The policy is clear, we have to give it due consideration.”

Councillor Kevin Savage (Sinn Féin, Banbridge DEA) felt there was no need for any further debate on this issue: “We’ve had a debate on this, we’ve had a long time to discuss this, and I think now is the time to make a decision so this can go forward to full council.”

A recorded vote was then taken, with the following committee members voting in favour: Cllr Peter Lavery (Alliance), Cllr Fergal Donnelly (SF), Cllr Paul Duffy (SF), Cllr Ashley Mallon (SF), Cllr Sorchá McGeown (SF), Cllr Mary O’Dowd (SF) and Cllr Kevin Savage (SF).

The following members abstained: Cllr Scott Armstrong (DUP), Cllr Julie Flaherty (UUP), Alderman Gordon Kennedy (UUP), Cllr Kyle Moutray (DUP), Alderman Gareth Wilson (DUP).

With seven committee members in favour, and five abstentions, the recommendation was carried, with a final decision to be made at the March 24 monthly meeting.