Belfast Council considering final recommendations on dual language signage for Forth Meadow

At a committee meeting at City Hall, councillors deferred a decision on the recommendations for a week after DUP councillors complained they did not have time to look at an equality impact assessment after a “call-in” they made last year.

In March 2023 a majority of elected representatives at committee level carried through a decision to have English and Irish signage at the Gaeltacht parts of the greenway, and on the seven metre sculpture at 385 Springfield Road.

This decision was subsequently “called in” by unionists. Information relating to the number of elected representatives who called it in and the party/parties they represent was not furnished by the council.

According to local government law, only 15 percent of a council is required to call-in a decision, setting off independent legal examination, a potential an equality impact assessment, then a redetermination of the decision. If the call-in is seen as competent, it will go back to the full council, where the original proposal has to then pass an 80 percent threshold of the vote to be successful.

The call-in in this case was deemed competent on procedural grounds, on the basis an equality impact assessment had not been made on proposals for the greenway.

The EQIA was then started last Autumn. As part of the screening work for the equality impact assessment, representations were considered from Conradh na Gaeilge and the Committee on the Administration of Justice, together with advice received from senior counsel in relation to the wider legal issues.

Council officers said that any decision taken on foot of this report would be a new decision and would not be subject to the qualified majority vote rules of a call-in.

The Forth Meadow Community Greenway is a £5.1million EU Peace IV funded project connecting existing open spaces in north and west Belfast along a 12 km route from Clarendon Playing Fields to Weavers Cross, to the new Transport Hub in the city centre.

A report for the Belfast City Council Strategic Policy and Resources Committee on October 25 states: “The greenway passes through two District Electoral Areas, Black Mountain and Court. While Black Mountain is predominantly a single identity in terms of community background, parts of Court are far more mixed.”

The report sets out the final recommendations for signage at the different greenway sections, as follows:

Beacons

Section 1 - Glencairn - two sides English and two sides Ulster Scots

Section 2 - Forth River / Springfield Road/Innovation Factory - four sides English

Section 3 - Falls Park - two sides English and two sides Irish

Section 4 - Bog Meadows - two sides English and two sides Irish

Springfield Park/Dam - four faces English and Irish

Information Panels

Section 1 - Glencairn - English

Section 2 - Forth River / Springfield Road/Innovation Factory - English

Section 3 - Falls Park - English and Irish

Section 4 - Bog Meadows - English and Irish

Section 5 – Westlink to City Centre - English and Irish

Springfield Park/Dam - English and Irish

Directional Finger Post Signs

Section 1 - Glencairn - English

Section 2 - Forth River / Springfield Road/Innovation Factory - English

Section 3 - Falls Park - English

Section 4 - Bog Meadows - English

Section 5 – Westlink to City Centre - English and Irish

Springfield Park/Dam - English and Irish

In March this year the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee voted in favour of a proposal in respect of signage for greenway “subject to the Beacons, Information Panels and the Directional Finger Post Signs located in the Gaeltacht Quarter area (that is Falls Park, Bog Meadows, Westlink to City Centre and Springfield Park/Dam) all being in dual-language, that is, English and Irish.”

The equality screening report has suggested tri-lingual language at Springfield Dam - that is English, Irish and Ulster Scots

At the S, P and R Committee meeting last Friday, councillors were asked to determine the next steps in relation to the erection of signage on the Forth Meadow Community Greenway with a final decision, based on the recommendations, and the freshly published equality impact assessment report.

DUP Councillor Sarah Bunting said at the committee meeting she had only seen the report the evening before, and asked for a deferral of a month until the next meeting of the S,P and R Committee.

Sinn Féin Councillor Ciaran Beattie proposed following the recommendations of the last committee decision. He said: “This did not just come yesterday, this has been going on for a number of years now, and for us it is frustrating, again at the length of time it takes around anything to do with the Irish language. It’s delay, delay, call-in, delay for more information - trying to put a dead hand on it.

“For us it is quite clear, Springfield Dam is in Black Mountain DEA, which has six Sinn Féin councillors, and one SDLP councillor, all supportive of this. It’s the same with the Westlink.”

Alliance acknowledged the report had come in “quite late” and said they were prepared to give the DUP further time to read the EQIA. Sinn Féin proposed a week’s deferral, with the committee reconvening on Friday November 1 for a decision. On a vote of 14 in favour and five against, this proposal was passed.