£10k community centre lifelines

At the meeting relief funding from the Council for two Community Associations, Newbuildings and the Diamond Centre, Claudy was discussed. Mrs Hamilton says that, contrary to claims, made by representatives of other political parties, she did not vote against the award of funding and had to leave the meeting before a vote was taken.

“The UUP has always been supportive of the community sector and some of our members are examples of best practice in this area in terms of commitment and expertise,” she said.

“I am therefore angry at the inaccurate public comments pertaining to my contribution at the recent meeting where the clear intent is to mislead the public into thinking that I have not acted in the best interests of particular communities where I, in fact, been have particularly active in helping groups and individuals.

“With an election looming it does not take a rocket scientist to work out the purpose of those who have chosen to misrepresent my actions and contribution at the meeting.

“One can only wonder if their eagerness to make available money which it would appear, according to public comments from some of the community representatives themselves goes beyond their needs, was in any way the beginning of an election campaign. If so, they should not be using public money to influence votes.”

Mrs Hamilton added: “Unlike other Council colleagues I had no prior knowledge of the item being raised and had no detailed knowledge of the financial state of the two associations seeking additional funding through Derry City Council. It’s unfortunate that the representatives did not find the time to appraise me if the situation.

“When the item was being discussed I sought guidance as to any likely precedent which might be established by providing funding from Council funds at a time of economic restraint and re-appraisal and the consequences of this if applications were to be forthcoming from other bodies in similar difficulty. I then listened to contributions to the debate. Before a vote was taken, I had to leave the meeting.

“This is becoming a growing problem for me as the only UUP Councillor. Unlike others who seem to be able to do three jobs I cannot be in two places at the one time and with the plethora of statutory and public bodies I have difficulty in ensuring that the UUP voice is heard on every occasion.

“I have requested some organisations to permit me to nominate a deputy from within the party but they are unwilling to allow me to do so even where the individual is well qualified to contribute meaningfully. Since the business is often not political in its strictest sense, requiring an elected representative to be in attendance, and the party’s view could be made known, I fail to see the problem.”