Some major questions arise about the venture, chiefly, will the politicalinstability deter the investment needed, writes Una McCaffrey

Optimism was in the air in Belfast yesterday, as the latest vision for the 150- year-old Harland & Wolff shipyard was finally revealed to the world.

The whole thing sounds rather grand, with its talk of attracting £1 billion in investment, and plans to build a modern and prosperous quarter within a perennially depressed part of Belfast.

If it all works out few will be in a position to criticise the intentions of the public-private partnership which has brought Titanic Quarter to its current stage of development.

At this stage however, a number of significant questions arise about the whole idea, chief among which is its feasibility. Whether it is realistic to expect international investors to commit millions to a city in seemingly constant political upheaval at a time when the world at large is counting its pennies is surely of crucial importance.

At the helm of the Titanic Quarter development entity is Mr Mike Smith, the man who previously oversaw Belfast's existing mixed-use development, Laganside.

Mr Smith was keen to explain yesterday that the figure of £1 billion had not merely been plucked from the air, but was realistic when considered beside the £750 million Laganside had managed to attract within a decade.

When asked about what exactly might see Belfast win £1 billion sterling in additional investment to Titanic Quarter at this time, Mr Mike Smith became almost poetic.

"There is the magic of the waterfront and a magic to the river itself," he said, quickly adding that there would be some monetary support from the North's inward investment body, Invest Northern Ireland.

This organisation, recently rebranded, is likely to become the flagship tenant of the Titanic Quarter. It seems a touch ironic that the biggest star the development could attract in its infancy is a body which needs no persuasion of the merits of investing in Belfast. It is reasonable to presume that the rest of the world might need more convincing.

"People said exactly the same thing about Laganside," said Mr Smith in defence of the Titanic vision.

"If you've got the right provider and if you can remove the development risk, you're going to attract major international investment." Removing the development risk is one matter, but another, arguably more pressing, issue is planning permission.

The 185 acres on which Titanic Quarter is located has been the subject of controversy in recent times, with some interested parties judging that its redesignation as development land had only been allowed because it formed part of a so-called rescue plan for the now almost- defunct shipyard.

Mr Smith insisted yesterday that there were "no incumbrances on the land" and that he was not expecting opposition from local councillors in the planning process. Whether he is right remains to be seen, but it is clear that moves are being made in the right direction, with one councillor previously troubled by the matter telling this newspaper yesterday that he was now feeling broadly positive about the development.

Perhaps the time has finally come for the name Titanic to be associated with a project that stays afloat.