Almost £49m of £114m spent on public realm schemes in NI was in Belfast
City accounts for £49m invested in projects compared to £65m for rest of Northern Ireland
Spending on public realm schemes varies greatly across Northern Ireland, new figures show.
Almost £49m of the £113.8m spent on schemes over a five-year period was in Belfast — 36% of the total.
It has prompted calls for more investment outside the capital.
SDLP communities spokesperson Daniel McCrossan voiced his concern at the funding disparity.
'Given Belfast's size and strategic role, it is reasonable it receives a significant share of public investment,' he said.
'But with so many towns, cities and villages across the North crying out for support, it is impossible to justify such a large concentration of public realm funding in one area.'
Public realm schemes are designed to improve the overall attractiveness of an area and can range from the creation of public squares to seaside promenades.
For years there have been concerns, not just relating to public realm schemes, but to the geographical allocation of public funds across Northern Ireland, with many in more rural or less-populated areas believing they are overlooked compared to major towns and cities.
This disparity is also cited in areas such as foreign direct investment, arts funding and business investment from bodies like Invest NI.
The Department for Communities is responsible for allocating tens of millions in public money for public realm schemes here. Figures obtained via a Freedom of Information request reveal where this money has gone from the beginning of the 2019/20 financial year to the end of 2023/24 — the latest data available.
Broken down by council area, Belfast has received the most in public realm investment over this period, with £48,661,702 spent.
Next came Mid and East Antrim council area, which received £17,406,600.
The Antrim and Newtownabbey council area received the least amount of public realm funding (£1,353,044), followed by Lisburn and Castlereagh, which received £3,768,600.
Mr McCrossan added: 'These schemes have the potential to transform communities, boosting tourism, supporting local businesses and making places more attractive to live and work. That kind of impact should be felt in every corner of the North, not just in Belfast.
'In Strabane, I've been campaigning for years to secure public realm investment. While close to delivery, we're still waiting for work to begin. When completed it will make a huge difference to the town and every community deserves the same opportunity to benefit.'
Weekend News Catchup - 16th June 2025
A spokesperson from the Department for Communities said, 'Belfast is, by far, the largest urban settlement and so it has attracted the greatest amount of spending on public realm.
'Investments in public realms per council area fluctuate depending on the schemes that are developed up, largely in partnership with councils.
'At present the department is delivering a £5m public realm scheme in Derry~Londonderry and has approved significant investment in public realm schemes in Strabane (£6m DfC investment), Downpatrick (£2.6m) and Glengormley (£2.4m).'
Last year, it emerged there was a significant east-west disparity in potential foreign direct investment visits hosted here by Invest NI.
Between 2013 and 2023, the economic development agency hosted 1,772 visits. Of these visits, 92% were in the east and 8% in the west.
Some 1,445 (82%) took place in Belfast and just 66 (3.7%) in Derry.
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