Belfast City Council’s decision to no longer have a Christmas Tree countdown and light switch-on for “health and safety” reasons has been questioned by elected representatives.
At the council ’s meeting of its City Growth and Regeneration Committee this week, councillors were asked to note a summary of the Christmas programme this year. While the range of activities were generally lauded by elected representatives, some questioned the dismissal of the count down and switch-on, which was last performed in front of City Hall in 2018.
A council officer told the committee: “The feedback we received to that activity was that it raised significant health and safety concerns. This was provided by colleagues from our Health and Safety Unit, about how we manage that space, about access and egress, how we control the crowd, and in particular when they disperse on the roadway.
