Community Relations Council

• Jobs
• Press Releases
• News
• Links
• Speeches
• Contact
• Council Minutes

15 June 2011

The NI Assembly’s Regional Development Committee which met on 8 June 2011 has been briefed by the Community Relations Council and the Rural Community Network on the importance of addressing contested space outside Belfast and the potential impact this has on regional development opportunities.

Presenting to the committee Duncan Morrow (CRC) and Michael Hughes (RCN), accompanied by Bebhinn McKinley (CRC), told the committee members present that it was vital that the Regional Development Strategy and the Department of Regional Development ensures that contested spaces both in cities and in smaller towns or rural areas are addressed. 

The presentation which was welcomed by the Regional Development committee was based on the publication Beyond Belfast: Contested Spaces in urban, rural and cross border settings produced by CRC and RCN. 

Duncan Morrow highlighted to members that if we are serious about ensuring the region is both economically and socially prosperous it necessitates contested spaces being considered as a key priority across all departments within the executive rather than the remit of OFMDFM solely. 

Dr Morrow stated:

“The vision behind the  Regional Development Strategy is of ‘an outward-looking, dynamic and liveable Region with a strong sense of its place in the wider world; a Region of opportunity where people enjoy living and working in a healthy environment which enhances the quality of their lives and where diversity is a source of strength rather than division.’  

“It is of fundamental importance that the issue of contested space is seen as having critically important implications for regional development as a whole.  This is not simply nor solely about addressing community relations but also about the limitations that contested relationships and spaces have in these areas on economic, social and physical viability and sustainability and in our ability to become a region where people want to live in, work in, visit and invest in.”   

Mr Hughes of the Rural Community Network also noted that there was a requirement on the Department of Regional Development to strengthen community cohesion (under SG20) and to work to address urban and rural renaissance (under SG21). 

Mr Hughes commented

“More than ever we need all Departments including the Department for Regional Development to grasp the nettle and work to address division and contested spaces. This has implications for our economy as whole, our schools, services and facilities, as we enter a period where scarce resources are getting scarcer. It is morally wrong to fund two of everything or none of anything because we can’t or won’t share.”

Also raised at the presentation to the committee was the need for traffic calming criteria to enable rather than limit opportunities for transformation in communities where there are physical interfaces and barriers but where conditions are now right to open or remove these.  At the meeting committee members expressed this was an area which should be addressed to enable communities who were ready to move on from the legacy of the conflict and agreed to the write to the Department concerning this matter.

For further information contact

Ray Mullan or Bebhinn McKinley at 90-227500