NORTH Belfast residents have held a protest at Belfast City Council over claims that there are a lack of leisure facilities in nationalist areas.
Members of Greater Ardoyne Residents Collective and the Reclaim St Gemma's Campaign say that a freedom of information request obtained by them shows that almost 90 per cent of Belfast City Council's 'leisure project spend' goes to Protestant, unionist and loyalist communities.
Protesters gathered outside the council's Adelaide Street office before handing over a letter of complaint.
Spokesman Dee Fennell last night said: "This is indicative of generations of inequality, neglect and discrimination against the nationalist/republican community in north Belfast by Belfast City Council.
"This is ably demonstrated by the fact that there is not one safe accessible leisure, health and wellbeing, complex for this section of the community in north Belfast."
Mr Fennell said Ardoyne residents want a health facility to be provided on the vacant St Gemma's High School site.
"Belfast City Council and the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure should secure the site for this purpose," he said.
"The Ardoyne and Marrowbone communities will be campaigning until this is achieved and will continue to highlight the discrimination by Belfast City Council until it ends."
A spokesman for Belfast City Council said: "Belfast City Council has committed £105 million to leisure services across the city, in its 10-year Leisure Transformation Programme.
"Phase I includes the delivery of Investment Programme projects, including Girdwood (located 1.3 miles from Ardoyne) Olympia, and Andersonstown. The first of the new leisure and community hubs to be completed is Girdwood, which is due to open this summer.
"The council is working on Phases II and III, and later this year, elected members will agree what the next priorities are for investment."
* CAMPAIGN: Garc spokesman Dee Fennell