Legal opinion is being sought after a motion condemning the “scheduling” of the UEFA Nations League fixtures between Ireland and Israel in September and October was passed by Mid-Ulster District Council.
Brought by Independent Councillor Dan Kerr, it won majority support when debated at last Thursday’s full sitting of council.
But now the outcome has been ‘called-in’, essentially meaning that legal advice be sought.
DUP Councillor Clement Cuthbertson confirmed the move, saying: “Unionist councillors on Mid-Ulster District Council have had enough.”
Councillor Kerr’s motion had asked that Mid-Ulster District Council become one of the first local authorities to formally condemn the scheduling of the matches.
His motion read: “The members note and support the massive public outcry and recent fan protests at the Aviva Stadium, which reflect the deep-seated anger of the Irish public regarding these fixtures.
“We strongly support the sentiments of Ireland’s captain Seamus Coleman, who rightly highlighted that this moral dilemma should never have been landed ‘on the toes of the players’, and that the footballing authorities need to show leadership. The burden of international diplomacy and human rights advocacy must not be forced onto individual athletes, and no Irish player should be put under pressure or left exposed to career threatening sanctions by taking a standalone personal position.
“Therefore, this Council calls directly on the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) to take full institutional responsibility, show true moral leadership, and withdraw the Ireland team from the match.
“While the FAI highlights potential UEFA sanctions and estimates a disputable financial impact of €5.5 million to €10.3 million, claiming a boycott would cause lasting harm, this Council firmly asserts that while the FAI may fear financial cost by standing up for human rights, that is absolutely no excuse for being morally bankrupt as they are now.
“While the FAI abdicates its moral duty by hiding behind its UEFA ‘obligations’ and claiming they have ‘no choice’ but to play, they completely ignore the people of Palestine who truly have ‘no choice’ as a genocide continues to be carried out against them. Moving the fixtures to neutral venues behind closed doors, such as shifting the October 4th match to Serbia, fails entirely to address the ethical issue at hand.
“The FAI must be prepared to accept whatever regulatory or financial consequences UEFA may impose, rather than forcing our players and hoping our fans participate in fixtures that run entirely counter to the ethics, heart, and conscience of the Irish people.”
Majority support for the motion granted the go-ahead for it to be “forwarded immediately to the Chief Executive of the FAI” and the Republic’s Culture, Communications and Sport, as well as “every other local authority in the country, North and South, asking they support this motion unanimously”.
The decision to ‘call-in’ the outcome will see that action put on hold – for now.
Councillor Cuthbertson detailed the reasons via social media.
He said: “Month after month, Council meetings are dominated by motions on international issues that have no direct connection to the people of Mid Ulster. Instead of focusing on the day-to-day issues that matter to our residents, these motions have become little more than political grandstanding, with nationalist and republican councillors trying to out-do one another.
“Enough is enough.
“Following the latest motion passed at last Thursday night’s Council meeting, Unionist councillors have submitted a Call-in Notice under Section 41 of the Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) 2014.
“Our view is that the motion risks having a disproportionate adverse impact on the minority Jewish community within our district and raises important questions about whether the Council is meeting its obligations to promote good relations and represent every section of our community fairly.
“The Call-in process now seeks a legal opinion, which we hope will allow these concerns to be properly considered before the council’s decision can proceed.
“Mid Ulster District Council should be concentrating on delivering better services, cleaner streets, economic growth, supporting local businesses and improving services for the people who live here, not repeatedly debating matters far beyond its remit.”
