Unionists on Belfast city council considering legal action on new Irish language policy

Unionist councillors on Belfast City Council are considering legal action after the council voted through a policy to promote the Irish language.

The policy will include dual signage at all council run facilities and a new design and logo for the council.

The motion was passed by a majority of parties including Alliance and the Greens, with Sinn Féin hailing it as a “historic moment” for the city.

“This is a game changing policy in terms of equality for the Irish language across the city,” said Sinn Féin councillor Natasha Brennan.

“It has been widely campaigned for with the Irish language community sector, who are a vibrant sector and have been asking for this for a very long time. It’s about culture, it’s about heritage, and it’s about the history of our language, but also the future of our language.”

All the unionist parties are united in their opposition to the move and they are now seeking legal advice on challenging the vote.

UTV councillor Ron McDowell said: "This is a very controversial policy as far as unionism is concerned and those with an Ulster British identity. It’s also bad governance.

“There’s no costing around this and what we fear is that this is going to drive an articulated lorry right through the middle of good relations in the city and for council workers, and it’s bad policymaking.”

Unionist parties at Belfast City Hall are co-operating on a “call-in” mechanism within the council to force an official review of the decision.

The new draft policy aims to remove barriers to the use of the Irish language in public life, promote the learning of Irish, support the promotion of Irish through council facilities, programmes and events and take resolute action to promote and protect the Irish language across its own public-facing services.

It also includes a pledge for the council to adopt a dual-language approach to signage at all its facilities.

The policy comes with a two-year implementation plan and is expected to see a new identity and logo designed for use on vehicles and uniforms.

Around £1.9 million of funding has been initially earmarked for the measures.

The policy was passed with the support of Sinn Fein, the SDLP, Alliance, People Before Profit and the Green Party, while the DUP, UUP and TUV voted against it.