Row over price of Council visit to Somme

A row broke out at Tuesday's meeting of Coleraine Council's Policy and Development Committee when members were asked if they wished to send representatives to this year's Somme and Gallipoli pilgrimages.

The cost for the Somme trip would be 550 per councillor and the price per member for the Gallipoli pilgrimage 1,200.

Councillors were asked whether, given the current financial climate, they wished to send a representative to the events this year.

DUP Cllr Maurice Bradley initially proposed that the Gallipoli trip be dropped and that Council send someone to the Somme pilgrimage.

However independent councillor Christine Alexander disagreed saying that it would be inappropriate to send anyone to either of the events this year, given the financial constraints facing Council.

She said that the trips were very worthwhile but this year councillors needed to cut back on travel expenses.

Cllr Timothy Deans said that he had travelled to the Somme ceremony and that it was "educational" and fellow DUP councillor Sam Cole said that Council couldn't "neglect history".

SDLP councillor Maura Hickey proposed that anyone wanting to attend the Somme ceremony do so but agree to pay 50% of the travel costs.

"This means that everyone gets the chance to participate in whatever they want but that Council is also seen to be paying its way," she said, extending the idea to councillors' attendance at conferences as well.

Cllr John Dallat supported his SDLP colleague saying that the idea was a "nice gesture" and "did not in any way dilute the importance of visiting the Somme".

However Cllr Deans said that the idea was moving into "silly ground".

Cllr Christine Alexander stressed that Council honoured the war dead every year in every town in the borough. She said that not sending anyone to the Somme service this year would not dilute that respect.

Cllr Adrian McQuillan said that the issue was being used by some to "score cheap political points".

He claimed that Alderman Hickey was one of the "best travelled" councillors last year and that there was no difference in the Council's financial state last year and this.

Alderman Hickey hit back that she was not "demeaning" the Somme ceremony at all and would be happy to attend and happy to pay her own way.

UUP Cllr Robert McPherson pointed out that in 2007 no one from Coleraine Borough Council had attended the Somme ceremony simply because there were no places available on the trip and "there wasn't a word said about it."

"I think we could miss it for one year without demeaning anything," he said.

Alderman Hickey's proposal to have the Council representative pay 50% of the cost was defeated in a vote.

A further vote agreed to send the Mayor to the Somme ceremony in July with Council picking up the full cost. Cllr Christine Alexander voted against this.