SerpApi.Org
Belfast is failing to put its best foot forward for the all-Ireland Fleadh, a city centre business owner has warned - with drugs, dereliction and rough sleepers set to greet 800,000 visitors expected next month.
Richard Evans, owner of The Pocket cafe, has accused Belfast City Council of “a total lack of planning, coordination, and action” in an open letter, warning that the state of the city centre “poses a serious risk to the reputation of Belfast and to the safety of those attending” the festival.
Mr Evans, whose own premises was broken into and vandalised on Saturday morning, told The Irish News that the city was in urgent need of help.
Asked if Belfast was putting its best foot forward for the Fleadh, his answer was blunt.
“Unequivocally, without question, absolutely not,” he said.
“It’s so disappointing, because there are business owners who have invested so heavily, that really want to showcase what we have to offer — and if they aren’t getting things done, then what hope is there for the average Joe on the street? It’s a missed opportunity.”
The decline, he said, is visible across the whole city.
“I think it is evident across the city,” he said. “It’s not just this little window. We’re in a boiling pot here, and it’s getting worse. To have such a serious problem is just very, very sad.”
His fear is that the authorities will simply hide the crisis while the festival is on.
“You know what we’ll do? We’ll just move them to the periphery for this massive festival, and we’ll just sweep them under the rug and we’ll deal with it after,” he said. “It’s not going away. It’s getting progressively worse.”
But he stressed the people on Belfast’s streets were victims of the crisis, not the cause of it.
“When you walk past somebody sleeping in the street, they have ended up at that point as part of a process, and it’s deeply tragic,” he said. “The problem is we develop a desensitisation. We become apathetic. And as soon as you other a group of people, they don’t factor in.”
In his letter, Mr Evans wrote that traders were “dealing with addicts injecting in public spaces, including inside business premises”, while rough sleepers were being left in conditions that were “deeply inhumane for those who are clearly in need of structured help”.
“The city centre is at a tipping point,” he wrote. “Without decisive action, the situation will continue to deteriorate, and the consequences will be felt long after the Fleadh has passed. We need leadership, urgency, and accountability. Belfast deserves better, and so do the people who live, work, and visit here.”
The letter demands “immediate, visible, and meaningful action” before the festival: a coordinated drugs strategy combining enforcement and support, more police and community safety patrols, a proper plan for rough sleepers, and engagement with businesses.
But Mr Evans insists enforcement alone would not fix the city.
“Prison time is not the solution here,” he said. “There has to be the other side of it — and that’s mental health services, that’s healthcare, that’s support in schools. You cannot pray it away. You cannot hope it away. There has to be structure. There has to be care and support.”
Belfast City Council said it was committed to making the city centre “the best it can be for residents, visitors and businesses”, but noted it lacks statutory powers over healthcare, temporary accommodation and crime.
“We recognise the role we do have in bringing partners together and ensuring these issues and concerns are addressed,” a spokesperson said.
“A multi-agency approach will be in place during the Fleadh to support businesses, visitors and residents, with enhanced co-ordination between organisations, particularly in the city centre, to deliver a safe and welcoming event for everyone.”
The PSNI said it was aware of concerns about anti-social behaviour and drug use in the city centre.
Chief Inspector Andy George said: “We have been working tirelessly with our partner agencies, to clean up locations where drug use was suspected to have been taking place, and to make these locations less welcoming environments for drug users.”
