Belfast City Council has admitted failing to ensure the safety of a man who died at the Dargan Road rubbish dump over two years ago. The council's director of legal services was at Belfast Crown Court this month to plead guilty to the charge on behalf of the council. Ashley Cunningham died of asphyxiation as he helped process waste at the dump, in September 2006.
Defence QC Geoffrey Millar told the court that council chief executive Peter McNaney had given authorisation for the council's director of legal services, Ciaran Quigley, to enter a plea on behalf of the city council. Both Mr Millar and prosecution lawyer Michael Chambers told Mr Justice Hart they would be lodging guideline cases and a report from the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSE NI), with the council to be sentenced soon.
Mr Chambers added that the Crown would also be lodging a statement from Mr Cunningham's family, while Mr Millar said that he wished to convey the councils "deep regret" for the death.
In a statement, the council said they could not comment on the case until it came to a conclusion, but that they, "Wished to acknowledge and empathise with the deep distress, heartbreak and enduring devastation Mr Cunningham's death had caused. We fully accept that the guilty plea or words of condolence and regret cannot heal the pain for the family but we hope that our acceptance of our role in this tragedy can bring an early conclusion to this case and allow the family space, time and privacy to come to terms with their loss."
