A WEST Belfast councillor has hit out at "astronomical hikes" to the cost of weddings at Belfast City Hall.
At Monday night's monthly Belfast City Council meeting, parties approved plans to raise the price of City Hall weddings from £100 to £350 on weekdays – and £100 to £500 on Saturdays.
People Before Profit Councillor Michael Collins proposed taking the issue back to committee for further consideration, but after receiving no support from other parties, his proposal did not proceed any further.
"I objected to these price increases at the Council meeting and urged parties to bring the matter back to committee for further discussion," he explained.
"Unfortunately, none of the other parties supported our proposal, and now we are seeing unjustifiably large price hikes being rushed through for weddings at Belfast City Hall.
"Part of the appeal of getting married at City Hall is the location and subsidised rate available for ratepayers. This is set to be done away with and it is deeply disappointing that no other party in the chamber objected to this move.
"These are astronomical hikes of 350 per cent on weekdays and 500 per cent on weekends. People are already struggling with rising living costs. During a cost-of-living crisis this is totally unacceptable.
"These price increases reflect a creeping corporatisation of Council revenue raising, where prices of services are continually hiked alongside ever increasing bills for the ratepayer.
"City Hall is a civic building which is funded by the ratepayer. It should continue to offer subsidised rates for weddings so people can afford to avail of this service.
"People Before Profit urges parties to reconsider this decision. We will continue to be to be a voice against price increases and commit to fighting back against the corporatisation of Council services."
