HomeBelfast in brief
- Belfast is the capital of Northern Ireland.
- The city, and its wider metropolitan area, is the largest settlement in the region and the second largest city on the island of Ireland. It lies at the head of Belfast Lough in the lower reaches of the Lagan valley.
- The Belfast district council area sits at the heart of the growing population of the wider Belfast Metropolitan Area, which also comprises the surrounding district council areas of Castlereagh, Lisburn, North Down, Newtownabbey and Carrickfergus.
- 268,323 people live in the city while over 650,958 live in the wider metropolitan area.
- 43.9% of the population is under 30 years of age.
- The city's working age population (16-64) accounts for 60% of the total population.
Who's in charge?
Northern Ireland has three Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) and 18 Members of Parliament (MPs) at Westminster, four of whom represent the city of Belfast.In March 2007, 24 Members of the Local Assembly (MLAs) were elected from six political parties to represent Belfast in the Northern Ireland Assembly at Stormont. The Northern Ireland Assembly was restored in May 2007, consisting of 108 elected members (MLAs).
Belfast City Council
Belfast City Council is the largest of 26 district councils in Northern Ireland. It is the local democratic institution for the city with 51 elected councillors representing nine electoral areas. The councillors elect a Lord Mayor and Deputy Lord Mayor who serve a ceremonial function for one year.The role of a councillor is to represent the interests of their constituents and electoral areas. They aim to ensure that the interests of the people of Belfast are reflected in council decisions and in the way services are delivered.
The council is governed through a committee system. Political representation on each committee is based on the number of seats each party holds on the council.
Committees
Our six committees are:- Strategic Policy and Resources
- Development
- Health and Environmental Services
- Licensing
- Parks and Leisure
- Town Planning
The Review of Public Administration (RPA)
The Review of Public Administration (RPA) represents a real opportunity to revitalise public services in Northern Ireland. It will replace current structures with a new, more accountable public sector, working together with a common purpose to meet the needs of the 'on-demand' lifestyles that people now lead.A recent announcement on the future shape of local government proposes that the current 26 local government districts will be rationalised to create 11 new local government districts. This number will allow new council areas to deliver important services to communities in an efficient and effective manner.
In order for local government to fulfil its role as leader and shaper of communities, a range of functions will be transferred to the new local councils, including:
- Local development
Local development plan functions, development control and enforcement.
- Public realm aspects
Local public realm aspects of road functions including streetscaping, town and city centre environmental improvements, street lighting, off-street parking and permitting local events to be held on roads.
- Urban regeneration and community development
Urban regeneration and community development delivery functions including those associated with physical development, area based regeneration (such as Neighbourhood Renewal) along with some community development programmes and support for the voluntary and community sectors.
- Housing functions
A range of housing related functions.
- Local economic development, tourism, arts and leisure
A number of functions associated with driving forward local economic development, local tourism and local arts, sports and leisure.
