Crossword Genius

Round the fringes of Belfast, employment is slow on the uptake (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

obtuse

'slow on the uptake' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)

'round the fringes of belfast employment' is the wordplay.
'round' becomes 'o' (o is a circular letter).
'the fringes of' means to remove the middle letters.
'employment' becomes 'use' (how something is used).
'belfast' with its middle removed is 'bt'.
'o'+'bt'+'use'='OBTUSE'

'is' acts as a link.

(Other definitions for obtuse that I've seen before include "Dopey" , "Annoyingly insensitive" , "Blunt - stupid - insensitive" , "not acute?" , "Dim-witted" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.
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