Mid Ulster councillor condemns 'threats' to workers putting up Irish-English signs

Councillor John McNamee said a recent incident had taken place while council staff were erecting Irish-English signs at the Monrush play park in Cookstown.

Speaking at the April council meeting, the Sinn Féin representative for Cookstown stated: “I want to condemn the recent threats to council staff in the Monrush area of Cookstown, where council workers erecting signage were threatened on site and had to leave the area.

"I know this has been reported to the police, and hopefully those responsible will be made accountable, but I want to place on record here tonight, any threats to any council staff is totally unacceptable, and it needs to be condemned by every member in this chamber,” Cllr McNamee added.

When contacted about the matter by the Mid Ulster Mail, police confirmed they had received a report regarding alleged intimidating behaviour in the Millburn Close area of Cookstown at around 3.45pm on Wednesday, April 9. They said the report related to an incident which occurred on Wednesday, March 26.

A police spokesperson said: “Officers engaged with the reporting person, and following initial enquiries, there was insufficient information available to progress the matter further.”

Last year the BBC reported that two thirds of incidents involving bilingual street signs being damaged in the whole of Northern Ireland in the past five years were recorded in the Mid Ulster area.