SDLP Irish Language Spokesperson Patsy McGlone MLA has said that the DUP’s failed attempt to overturn Belfast City Council’s bilingual signage policy in Stormont was a “deeply cynical and divisive move”.
The DUP motion, debated in the Assembly on Monday, sought to scrap Belfast City Council’s dual language street sign policy – a scheme that allows dual Irish-English signage where at least 15% of local residents express support.
McGlone suggested the DUP motion was not about policy or procedure, but about using the Irish language as a “political football”. He warned that such actions were a deliberate attempt to “stir up tensions in our communities” across the North.
Patsy McGlone MLA said, “Yesterday’s outcome highlights the failure of those who would reduce our language to a political football. The Irish language belongs to everyone on this island. It is not a threat, it is not a weapon, and it certainly is not a justification for the kind of inflammatory rhetoric we heard from the DUP benches.
“What we saw in the Assembly was an orchestrated attempt to turn cultural expression into a culture war. The people of Belfast, and indeed people right across the North, deserve so much better than that. This motion was a deeply cynical and divisive move that sought to stir up tension in our communities.
“Irish is part of our shared heritage. It lives in the names of our towns and cities, the rhythm of our speech, and the culture of our communities. To so blatantly deny its visibility, is to deny who we are. The SDLP will continue to stand firmly for fairness, respect and parity of esteem, not only for Irish speakers, but for everyone who believes in a shared future for our island.”
ENDS
Your MLA 