Harry Cullen, spokesperson for the NI Conservatives, has criticised the Executive for not securing the future of HMS Caroline, the World War 1 warship which has been berthed in Belfast since 1923.
“HMS Caroline is a unique piece of history with enormous potential for attracting visitors”, Harry Remarked. “There have been discussions about what to do with the last surviving ship from the Battle of Jutland for at least three years, yet, in all that time, the Executive couldn’t get its act together in order to secure the vessel’s future or realise its tourist potential”.
“Now the National Museum of the Royal Navy plans to move Caroline to Portsmouth, thanks to the inactivity of our politicians.”
“This sloppy attitude is simply unacceptable. Northern Ireland needs to be constantly improving its tourism product, rather than looking gift horses in the mouth. The Executive, and DETI in particular, ought to be ashamed that it has taken so long to assess HMS Caroline’s potential. If the ship leaves Belfast it is squarely the fault of do-nothing ministers at Stormont.”