George Best Hotel staff offered redundancy packages

The opening date for the George Best Hotel in Belfast has yet to be confirmed

Some staff at the George Best Hotel in Belfast have been offered redundancy packages as the project continues to be delayed.

The property group Signature Living bought the Scottish Mutual Building in the city centre in 2017, with plans to invest £15m in the hotel project.

It is understood about 24 staff were employed to work in the hotel.

But its opening date has not yet been set.

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Workers have been offered relocation packages to work in one of the group's other hotels in Cardiff and Liverpool, the Belfast Telegraph reports.

A spokesperson for Signature Living said: "A relocation assistance package was offered to anyone who decided the take up this option, with a view to returning to Belfast once the George Best Hotel has a confirmed opening date."

Ten workers who did not want to travel to work elsewhere will receive compensation.

The delays mean a number of weddings have been relocated to other venues.

A spokesperson for the group said the hotel's "anticipated opening dates" due to "policy and building work process protocols taking longer than originally anticipated".

In 2017, Signature Living's owner Lawrence Kenwright pledged to develop five new hotels in Belfast, including one in the derelict Crumlin Road courthouse.

None of the projects have opened to the public.