{"id":254086,"date":"2025-07-10T17:55:15","date_gmt":"2025-07-10T17:55:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/254086\/"},"modified":"2025-07-10T17:55:15","modified_gmt":"2025-07-10T17:55:15","slug":"village-bonfire-site-police-will-not-assist-council-in-removing-material-from-controversial-site","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/254086\/","title":{"rendered":"Village bonfire site: Police will not assist council in removing material from controversial site"},"content":{"rendered":"

It is understood that plans were afoot for contractors to move in overnight to remove the pyre following a majority vote at Belfast City Council<\/a> (BCC), however this was deemed \u201cunviable\u201d due to tensions on the ground.<\/p>\n

Sinn F\u00e9in, Alliance, SDLP and Green Party representatives backed the plan, while the DUP did not.<\/p>\n

City Hall sources told this newspaper on Thursday that the current assessment is that bonfire will go ahead on Friday night. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s understood that bonfire builders have voluntarily removed tiers of pallets from the top of the pyre as an “olive branch” to critics.<\/p>\n

Police had previously declared a major incident over the removal of the bonfire, but said the the decision not to assist had been taken following \u201ccomprehensive engagement\u201d with all stakeholders.<\/p>\n

\u201cFollowing comprehensive engagement with all relevant stakeholders, an evidence based assessment, and taking into consideration all of the risks associated with the removal, we have determined that police should not assist the proposed actions of Belfast City Council,\u201d said a spokesperson.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter receiving a formal request for assistance from Belfast City Council the Police Service of Northern Ireland chaired a multi-agency Tactical Coordination Group meeting on Wednesday evening.<\/p>\n

\u201cAmongst those present were the Northern Ireland Environment Agency, Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, Northern Ireland Electricity, Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service and Belfast City Council.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring this multi-agency meeting all partners considered the environmental risks associated with the asbestos on the site, the risks related to the electricity sub-station as well as the risks to public safety on a site occupied by members of the public, including children.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe consensus of the meeting was that the risk of the bonfire proceeding as planned was lower and more manageable than the intervention of contractors and the proposed methodology of dismantling the bonfire.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Police Service will continue to work with partners and communities to manage the remaining risks surrounding this bonfire.\u201d<\/p>\n

It comes after a Sinn Fein MLA estimated to cost of removal to be \u00a3100,000.<\/p>\n

\"General<\/p>\n

General views of a bonfire at the side of the Westlink in Belfast close Donegall Road in south Belfast on July 8th 2025 (Photo by Kevin Scott)<\/p>\n

Bonfire built beside south Belfast substation <\/p>\n

\u201cThe plan was for contractors to move overnight, but the situation that developed on the ground just made that unviable for several reasons,\u201d one said.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously the access to the site was blocked and there was the real possibility of disorder. The risk was just too great.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs things stand it\u2019s been privately conceded the council had its shot and missed, and the bonfire will in all likelihood go ahead.<\/p>\n

Another source said: \u201cThe whole thing has been a bit of a shambles, to be honest.”<\/p>\n

In a statement on social media, Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly said health and safety \u201cmust always be central to considerations\u201d and community celebrations \u201care a time to bring people together, for fun and in a context of safety and enjoyment\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am working with the range of local agencies and with our local DUP reps on the ground in relation to expressed concerns on the south Belfast bonfire near Broadway,\u201d said the Lagan Valley MLA.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe aim is a community celebration that can take place with absolutely minimised risks and in a safe way. I pay tribute to all those working on the ground to achieve this, and for their hard work thus far. I am continuing to support also.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose using this issue as a political football should step back and allow the space for discussions and work to continue.\u201d<\/p>\n

The towering structure sparked concerns that it could put the power supply to the City Hospital and the Royal Victoria Hospital at risk due to its proximity to an electricity substation.<\/p>\n

In addition, there is hazardous asbestos material on the site near the Westlink, which is a potential risk to human health.<\/p>\n

Within hours of the Council\u2019s vote, police declared a major incident over the bonfire and crowds gathered at the site, with entrances to the site being blocked.<\/p>\n

A joint statement issued on behalf of paramilitaries in south Belfast also warned of the possibility of \u201cserious and sustained disorder\u201d.<\/p>\n

“PSNI have been advised of the risk of widespread disorder, with loyalists in other areas across NI staging interface riots to stretch the PSNI,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n

“The police have been told there is a very real prospect of serious and sustained disorder should there be any effort to remove the bonfire.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, loyalist activist Jamie Bryson has launched a legal challenge in a bid to stop the bonfire being dismantled.<\/p>\n

The argument centres on a claim that BCC\u2019s Chief Executive disregarded a call-in mechanism during a committee vote on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

The procedure allows a minority of 15% of councillors to challenge any decision if they feel it will have a disproportionate community impact.<\/p>\n

\u201cElected members were advised at the start of yesterday\u2019s meeting that any decision in relation to the bonfire at Broadway Industrial Estate would not be subject to call-in,\u201d said a Council spokesperson.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is in accordance with Standing Order 48 (a) of the council \u2013 those cases in which an ability to immediately implement a decision would result in a breach of statutory or contractual duty or would otherwise prevent the council from responding to a situation of emergency, as defined in the Civil Contingencies Act 2004.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The bonfire site in the Village area. Credit: Jonathan Porter\/PressEye<\/p>\n

Sinn F\u00e9in MLA Pat Sheehan earlier demanded leadership from unionists to ensure \u201cthe hazardous bonfire\u201d does not go ahead and also warned that the PSNI must take action.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe silence from political unionism is deafening,\u201d the west Belfast representative said. <\/p>\n

“They must step up and make it clear they do not support the burning of materials that threaten hospital power supplies and risk releasing asbestos into the air.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It is understood that plans were afoot for contractors to move in overnight to remove the pyre following…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":254087,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[6571,5813,748,393,4884,1300,12,1144,1610,712,17793,94225,16,15,1764],"class_list":{"0":"post-254086","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-news","8":"tag-andrew-madden","9":"tag-belfast-city-council","10":"tag-britain","11":"tag-england","12":"tag-great-britain","13":"tag-liam-tunney","14":"tag-news","15":"tag-northern-ireland","16":"tag-police-service-of-northern-ireland","17":"tag-scotland","18":"tag-south-belfast-news","19":"tag-the-twelfth","20":"tag-uk","21":"tag-united-kingdom","22":"tag-wales"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114830227869134590","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/254086","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=254086"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/254086\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/254087"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=254086"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=254086"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=254086"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}