Statement by TUV North Belfast candidate and party secretary Ron McDowell:
“The decision to place restrictions on Saturday’s parade by No.4 District defies logic. To ban an Orange Order parade from the very community it draws its membership from, is incredible even by the disastrous standards the Parades Commission normally achieves. In an area of good community relations there is now absolute fury. In an area of shared space there is now a ‘no Orange allowed’ message from the Parades Commission. At the time of writing, I cannot properly articulate the anger that I feel personally. I know this area; I know these people and it is safe to say that this decision is a total disgrace.
“The Parades Commission have only ever served to be a tool utilised by republicans and there can be no place for the Commission in a Northern Ireland representative of all our citizens. It therefore comes as no surprise to hear this decision being welcomed by Gerry Kelly of Sinn Fein and Nichola Mallon of the SDLP. I am happy to go on record and state that the removal of the Parades Commission is a personal goal of mine going forward.
“Some loyalists are wondering if, with two-tier policing, dual language street signage, the Protocol and these preposterous Parades Commission decisions, there is a desire on the part of some to provoke a reaction from the PUL community. If so, it may just work because right now our community is furious. I encourage everyone to protest against this ludicrous decision peacefully.”