Anti Irish language flag taken down before contractors sent in to remove it after Stormont department u-turn

An offensive anti-Irish language flag has been taken down from a lamppost in Belfast before contractors for the Department for Infrastructure were sent in to remove it.

The flag, which featured the words ‘f*** your Irish language alongside a Belfast City Council logo, were placed on a lamppost on the Lisburn Road, close to the city centre more than two months ago.

A DfI spokesperson told The Irish News that Minister Liz Kimmins had ordered the removal of the flag, but that it had been removed by unknown persons this week before contractors were able to attend.

The move by the Infrastructure minister appears to have been a u-turn for her department, whose officials had told Irish language campaigners that they would not remove the flag as there was no evidence of “clear community support for their removal” two weeks ago.

On Tuesday, the DfI spokesperson said: “The Minister instructed officials to engage with other contractors and to secure the removal. However, the flags were removed ahead of the agreed removal operation.”

The spokesperson did not comment on who had removed the flag.

• However, despite requests from campaigners to have the flag removed, DfI officials said in a letter seen by The Irish News dated 24 August that it would not be taking any action to remove the flag.

An official said it had contacted the PSNI and other agencies to determine whether there was “clear local community support” for the removal of the flag.

The PSNI said the removal of the flag “presents a low risk of public disorder”, but that “the presence of the flags within a mixed community area itself is a source of tension”.

The letter also states that The Executive Office said it was not aware of any local community support for, or opposition to, the proposed removal of the unauthorised flag”.

Belfast City Council’s response to the request stated that it did not hold any information about the community response to the anti-Irish flag, but advised that DfI “may wish to contact relevant DUP councillors in the area”.

The departmental position on 27 August was that: “The Department will take action to arrange the removal of unauthorised attachments where there is clear community support for their removal and where we are satisfied that removing them will not raise local community tensions or present risks to the safety of our staff and contractors.

“In the absence of such evidence the Department has therefore decided to take no action at this time.”

Irish language rights group Conradh na Gaeilge welcomed the move by the department to change its position and employ contractors to remove the flag.

“We welcome the intervention by the Department for Infrastructure and their role in moving to take down this flag and for setting a strong precedent going forward,” a spokesperson said.

“The Irish language is an official language here, legally protected in statute and is a fundamental pillar of our peace agreements.

“There is absolutely no place for intimidating, offensive and abusive displays in public spaces, or anywhere across our shared society.”