SCOTLAND'S largest council is to recognise "a tragedy that knew no national or sectarian boundaries", with plans for a memorial to the Potato Famine that blighted Ireland and the Scottish Highlands in the mid-19th century moving closer.
A full meeting of the council approved a plan to establish a working group to examine the feasibility of a memorial to those who died as a result of the famine and migrated to escape starvation.
The working group will decide on the most appropriate memorial and setting.
The Herald understands a finalised plan should be ready within six months, with a finalised project a year after that.
Councillor Feargal Dalton, of the SNP, said a memorial would pay tribute to victims of the famine, act as an educational focus for future generations and tell an important part of the Glasgow story.
The Irish-born former Royal Navy commander said: "People of many faiths both in Scotland and Ireland suffered. A memorial will bring us into line with other great cities such as New York, where they make sure to acknowledge and celebrate their diversity. We do too in Glasgow and any memorial will be a physical recognition of that fact.
"As a citizen of the world it will send out a strong message to those in the world today still suffering from famine and other poverty."
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