North Belfast resident "silenced" over Irish language street sign concerns

A resident who was refused a meeting with Belfast council after requesting a deputation to air concerns about an Irish language sign being placed on their street was “silenced,” it has been claimed at city hall.

At the recent monthly meeting of the full Belfast City Council, unionist councillors spoke against a committee decision not to hear a submission from a resident of Downview Park West in North Belfast.

At the council’s People and Communities Committee last month, elected representatives approved second street nameplates in Irish for nine streets: Orchardville Avenue, Mayfield Square, Hillhead Avenue, St Meryl Park, Downview Park West, Chichester Avenue, Ballymurphy Drive, Margaretta Park, and Airfield Heights. This was ratified at the full council this week.

In the Downview Park West survey 70 occupiers (39.55 percent) were in favour of the erection of a second street nameplate, 36 occupiers (20.34 percent) were not in favour of the erection of a second street nameplate, and 71 occupiers (40.11 percent) did not respond to the survey.

A council report states: “One resident from Downview Park West who is not in favour of the dual language nameplate has written in to complain about the time and money being wasted on what they perceive to be trivial issues.

“Another resident telephoned to raise a concern about their property depreciating in value should the signage be erected. A further resident from Downview Park West has written in and is strongly objecting to the dual language nameplate in a mixed area.

“The resident feels that a dual language nameplate can be very divisive. The resident has also requested to address the decision makers at the committee.”

The DUP proposed to defer a decision on the application from Downview Park West, which is in the Fortwilliam Area, pending a meeting with the resident - this was voted down by the committee.

During the full council meeting this week, DUP Councillor Sarah Bunting told the chamber: “While we recognise the application for Downview Park West met the threshold for the new policy on dual language signs, a resident from the street had requested to address the committee around concerns that they had. We believe ratepayers in this city should be given the opportunity to address committees on issues they are facing.

“We often allow delegations to council, as we did this evening, and to other committees, and so I think it was wrong not to invite this resident in. Just because a resident has a different opinion on the addition of a second name plate, it doesn’t mean they should be censored.

“We see in the responses on all of these street signs that pass through that a number of residents have concerns regarding the divisive nature of signs, and the cost of signs, among other things. We don’t have a proposal but we just want to note that if a resident asks to speak to committees on these issues, they should be heard.”

Newly elected TUV Councillor Ron McDowell said: “It says in the (report) the council retains a residual discretion around these things. I think to silence people, or to tell them we are too busy to listen to their opinion, especially on an emotive issue such as the Irish language in this city, sends the wrong message. For those who want to be proponents of the language… it would serve them better not to say ‘we don’t have to listen to you’.”

Alliance Councillor Micky Murray said: “As chair of that committee, I always try to make sure it does not go on too long. I give everyone their chance to speak, and to ask as many questions as they want, without silencing anyone or holding them back.

“But I would like officers to come back with some kind of report as to what we do in this instance. We can’t have someone coming in for every single item, but I also don’t want to put a timeframe for how long a committee goes on for.”

The Chief Executive John Walsh said: “I don’t think there is a strict rule as such, as you will know if you have been around here for a while. Council meetings can go on, or certainly used to go, for quite a period of time.

"But I am also happy to look around issues of whether you receive or don’t receive deputations from persons with interest. If they have a right to make a representation in writing, then that would probably suffice, but I will look at it.”

An application for an Irish name plate at Wynchurch Avenue in East Belfast has been deferred, for residents to be surveyed again by the council. The Rosetta area street application passed the 15 percent threshold of residents to erect the signs, with 20 occupiers (17.70 percent) in favour of the street being named ‘Ascaill Wynchurch’.

However 30 occupiers (26.55 percent) were also not in favour of the erection of a second street nameplate, four occupiers had no preference either way, and 59 occupiers (52.21 percent) did not respond to the survey.

Last July councillors agreed a new policy on dual language street signs would finally be implemented - 18 months after the policy was originally given the go-ahead in the chamber. Sinn Féin, Alliance, the SDLP, the Green Party, and the People Before Profit Party all support the new street sign policy, while the three unionist parties, the DUP, UUP and PUP, are against it.

The new policy means at least one resident of any Belfast street, or a councillor, is all that is required to trigger a consultation on a second nameplate, with 15 percent in favour being sufficient to erect the sign. Non-responses will no longer be counted as “against” votes, and there will be an equality assessment for each application.

Up until last July, the policy required 33.3 percent of the eligible electorate in any Belfast street to sign a petition to begin the process, and 66.6 percent to agree to the new dual language sign on the street. In the six months since the policy changed, a backlog built up of over 600 applications for Irish street signs.