Statement by TUV deputy leader Court Councillor Ron McDowell:
“In recent days, Conal Heatley has repeatedly attacked the Ulster Banner claiming that it is divisive and even associated with racism. Any flag can be abused. There are many who see the Irish Tricolour as tainted because of its association with IRA terror and a state which facilitated there campaign for 30 years. Yet Mr Heatley cares not a jot for young Unionists who do not have the option to compete under any other flag on the world’s biggest sporting stage, the Olympics.
“It is untrue to claim that the Ulster Banner has no official status. It is simply based on the coat of arms granted by royal warrant to the Government of Northern Ireland on 1924. The Government of Northern Ireland has not disappeared. It is simply under new management.
“If Mr Heatley wants to promote inclusivity in sport he should perhaps speak first to his wife who is a member of O’Donovan Rossa Gaelic for Mothers and Others initiative. O’Donovan Rossa was a director of Irish Republican terrorism in the 19th century and a leader of the Fenian movement in the United States.”