Protest underway in Dungiven over sports facility refusal

A major protest is underway in Dungiven over the decision by the Causeway Coast and Glens council to refuse funding for a new sports and leisure facility in the town.

By The Newsroom

Published 23rd Dec 2015, 12:06 BST

The project was to be funded by the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure as part of the UK City of Culture legacy project.

Unionist councillors voted down the project due to a budget shortfall totalling hundreds of thousands of pounds. However, the Culture, Arts and Leisure Minister Carál Ní Chuilín said in a statement that “a grant for that amount had been approved by the regulator of the Landfill Community Fund but required Borough Council agreement.”

In a strange turn of events, the council’s planning committee has granted planning permission to the proposal in spite of the fact that it will no longer be going ahead.

Outrage has been expressed in Dungiven over the failure to approve the proposal and Sinn Féin say they are considering legal action.