SDLP West Belfast councillor Paul Doherty has said there must be an urgent response to the deaths of five people in the city.

The deaths have occurred in the wake of the closure of the Welcome Organisation’s headquarters after an attack.

Councillor Doherty is working with the charity to establish a new premises.

Councillor Doherty said:

“The heartbreaking deaths of five people on the streets of Belfast over the past few days underlines the crisis we are currently facing around homelessness, addiction and poor mental health. All of these issues are interlinked and without a proper multi-agency long-term approach we are never going to get these people the support they need.

“It’s absolutely chilling to hear workers on the ground warn that more deaths are likely in the coming days and that should focus minds around the scale of what we are dealing with here. Many people in our city are currently in the grip of addiction and we can’t expect charities and volunteers to solve this problem, our health service, with support from the Executive, council and other statutory bodies needs to step in and get this under control.

“It’s disappointing that at a time when their services are so badly needed that the Welcome Organisation have been forced to close their doors, but I am currently engaging with them to establish a new premises that will better serve their needs and address the concerns of residents around their previous headquarters.

“Unfortunately it is not only the Welcome Organisation that is struggling at the minute, groups across the North dealing with homelessness are facing budget cuts that will put their very existence at risk. These tragic deaths show the consequences for failing to adequately support people when they are struggling and at the very least should provide a catalyst for a reversal of these cuts from the Department for Communities and the Executive.”