Council sanctions stadium spend

Belfast City Council has voted to spend £140,000 on a new business plan for a stadium in the city.

Sinn Fein, which opposed the proposal, says the decision is a waste of ratepayers' money.

It is believed NI's largest council has already spent around £60,000 on examining the business case for a Belfast stadium.

Proposals by two developers who had put forward plans to build it at Ormeau Park have now been ruled out.

The new report will examine all potential sites in the city. Unionist councillors have been fighting rival Government proposals to build a stadium at the Maze, outside Lisburn.

The vote was held during the last council meeting at Belfast City Hall for 20 months. The building is being closed for refurbishment in the next few weeks.