A majority of ABC Planning & Regulatory Services committee members have approved a request for the provision of English-Irish street signage at Corcrain Gardens and Ballyoran Hill in Portadown.
However – as has been the case in the past – that decision could be challenged again at the full council meeting on July 27.
The requests are proving highly contentious because members of RBP 1517, and other stakeholders using Corcrain Orange Hall, have expressed strong opposition to the move.
At the same time, more than two thirds of householders have indicated that they want bilingual signage in Corcrain Gardens and Ballyoran Hill, which means that they have met the required threshold for such provision.
Ultimately however, councillors retain the right to exercise discretion when it comes to requests for bilingual signage – even when the ‘two-thirds majority test’ has been met.
The requests were debated at length at the May 6 Planning & Regulatory Services committee meeting of the local authority, with a majority of committee members in favour.
But then, at the May 26 monthly meeting of Armagh City, Banbridge & Craigavon (ABC) Borough Council, the matter was deferred – in a dramatic development – so that a “legal workshop” could be held ahead of any final decision. It was held on June 23.
The dual-language requests were then listed for reconsideration at the July 1 monthly meeting of the local authority. Corcrain Gardens was the first application to be discussed.
Having attended the legal workshop, Councillor Paul Duffy (SF, Portadown DEA) commented at the July 1 meeting: “Having gone to it, I got a lot of clarity.
“There were objections [claiming] that it could raise tensions, but I don’t believe there are any tensions related to a street sign.
“So, on the back of all that, I’m happy to recommend that this council uses its discretionary power to accept the application for dual language street signage at Corcrain Gardens.”
Councillor Kyle Moutray (DUP, Portadown DEA) had also attended the workshop, and felt it had confirmed his view that all legal considerations must be taken on board, beyond the simple two-thirds majority test.
He commented: “From that legal workshop, we’ve recognised that whilst the [two-thirds] threshold has been met, the threshold is not the end of the assessment. It’s advisory.
“We are advised to take account of all lawful considerations. We have been made aware of other lawful considerations in the form of objections from two Black Preceptories, from an Orange Lodge, and from a cultural and developmental association.
“Within these objections, I feel I have to apply some weight to the fact that they make specific mention of the decades of division and violence in this area, and they have certainly demonstrated that this will give them a sense of instability in terms of community relations in this area.
“They’ve also given us an insight into how they feel it will contribute to a sense of feeling intimidated within what is a shared space.”
Corcrain Orange Hall is close to Corcrain Gardens (part of a wider red-brick development at the back). Credit: Google
Councillor Peter Lavery (Alliance, Lurgan DEA), who is supportive of the request for bilingual signage, pointed to the strong majority of residents in favour of English-Irish street signs, and felt that shared spaces could accommodate different forms of cultural expression.
“At that workshop, we were informed that the threshold of two-thirds is relatively high, so in my mind it would need a relatively high weighting on the other side in order to go down a potential refusal route,” said Cllr Lavery.
“We need more shared space in Northern Ireland — that is true — but shared space doesn’t have to mean neutral space.
“I don’t feel it is necessarily appropriate that organisations can tell other groups what they can and cannot do in the area.
“I think we shouldn’t let the past hold us back, and whilst it has been touched on in some of the responses about the divisions of the past, I don’t see that as a barrier to progress and moving ahead into more shared and peaceful areas.
“If we were to approve these signs today, we would end up in a situation where we would have a dual language street sign relatively close to an Orange lodge. I think that reflects shared space.
“I do take into account the views of the objectors, but in my view they do not override the weight of a strong majority of residents in the street wanting those signs.”
Cllr Lavery went on to second Cllr Duffy’s recommendation to approve the street signs.
A recorded vote was taken, with seven councillors voting in favour of dual-language street sign provision, namely Cllr Fergal Donnelly (SF), Cllr Paul Duffy (SF), Cllr Sarah Duffy (SF), Cllr Peter Lavery (Alliance), Cllr Chris McCartan (SF), Cllr Kevin Savage (SF) and committee Vice-Chair, Cllr John Óg O’Kane (SF).
Two committee members voted against, namely Cllr Kyle Moutray (DUP), and committee chair, Alderman Stephen Moutray (DUP), while Alderman Gordon Kennedy (UUP) abstained.
The English-Irish street signs request at Corcrain Gardens was consequently approved.
The request for English-Irish street signs at Ballyoran Hill was then debated, with the arguments for and against largely similar to those articulated in the course of the Corcrain Gardens street signage debate.
Again, Councillor Paul Duffy (SF) proposed that committee members use their discretionary power to approve the request. His proposal was seconded by Cllr Peter Lavery (Alliance).
A recorded vote was taken, and the outcome was identical to the previous vote, with the same seven councillors voting in favour, the same two against, and Cllr Gordon Kennedy abstaining.
