The Other View

The P.S.N.I. search of the Stormont Offices of Sinn Fein and the arrest of ‘party’ members resulted in daily headlines such as the ‘Collapse of the Assembly’, the ‘Final Nail in the Coffin’ and ‘Stormontgate’. While one of our largest political institutions and indeed landmarks is under collapse, the collapse of one of our biggest economic institutions, and there can be no doubt that the massive features of Samson and Goliath (shipyard cranes) which greet travellers whether they arrive by ship, plane or car are symbols of Belfast, goes basically un-noticed.

Even the most casual observer believes that we are witnessing the ‘collapse’ of the ‘shipyard’ (Harland and Wolff) as we once knew it, you cannot build ships with a work force of 121. Union officials have stated that this is the ‘last nail in the coffin’ for the shipyard and while the yard has not got a ‘stormontgate’ union officials and local councillors are questioning ‘the integrity’ of the sale of 70+ acres of shipbuilding land for £20 million which was to produce a business plan which would at least secure the remaining 400 jobs.

This has not happened leaving a workforce ‘stunned and angry’ and with part of the £20 million now being earmarked for redundancy payments union officials have stated that workers feel that this exercise has been nothing but a ‘land-grab’.

Of course it can be argued that the shipyard is no longer the economic power it once was. It is stated that it has rarely been in profit since 1924 and before privatization in 1989 the ‘yard’ received more than £1bn in grants.

But it can also be argued that along with the early linen industry it was Harland and Wolff, which made Belfast. The Belfast Directory in 1900 stated that ‘No city in Ireland (if indeed any in the United kingdom) has so rapidly developed itself from insignificance to vast importance as Belfast.’ From the launch of its first iron vessel ‘The Khersonese’ in 1855 the shipyard became of worldwide importance with the success of its international expertise and enterprise.

The ‘yard’ was inspirational in putting Belfast on the international map. In 1911 probably the most famous ship of them all was built, the Titanic. With a workforce of 14,000 in 1911, 4,000 actually worked on the Titanic and her sister ship ‘The Olympic’. During the South African War and the two ‘World Wars’ the shipyard built naval vessels and incredibility during the Second World War the shipyard built 139 warships and 130 merchant vessels. During the following years the shipyard set world standards in innovation and design, had up to 35,000 men on its books and continued to pioneer the building of world class ships including the Canberra, the Sea Quest oil rig and the 253,000 ton Esso Petroleum tanker.

The shipyard with all its financial problems has for so long been a symbol of Belfast’s economic greatness and while its success installed economic confidence in other areas its collapse will also have a devastating effect on the local economy. The suspension of the Stormont Assembly and the collapse of the Shipyard following on from the announcements of more pay- offs at Shorts and the closure of major Electronic firms in South East Antrim will once again damage community confidence in the political process. While our local politicians and Tony Blair examine the political implementations of ‘stormontgate’ they should not lose sight of the economic implementations of the impending collapse of arguably one of the greatest local land marks and ship-building firm in the world.

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