Councillor in bid to bring ducks back to village

Up until 2011 the two ducks were proudly displayed in a floral tribute on the Ballymagin Road in the village.

When council made the decision to no longer maintain flower beds outside the public realm areas, the community association asked if they could take on responsibility for the upkeep of the flowers rather than have the area grassed over.

However, more recently the public display has fallen into a sorry state and Alderman Lockhart has mounted a campaign to bring back the ducks of Magheralin.

She brought a notice of motion before council on Monday to either reinstate the ducks with flowers or coloured stones.

She said: “Magheralin does not ask for terribly much from this council. People would really appreciate this feature.”

Sinn Fein Councillor Tommy O’Connor said it wasn’t right to make an exception given a decision had been taken in 2011 not to maintain flowers outside of town centres.

“This is just another stunt by the DUP,” he said.

Fourteen councillors voted in favour of the costing the proposal while five councillors abstained.