Ulster Unionist Policing Board member Ross Hussey MLA has urged the general public to give total support to the Police as they seek to combat what Assistant Chief Constable Will Kerr has described as a ‘severe threat’ from republican terrorists in the run up to Christmas.
Mr Hussey said:
“As Northern Ireland prepares to celebrate Christmas, today’s warning by Assistant Chief Constable Will Kerr that violent republicans pose a ‘severe threat’ and are preparing to carry out attacks, is a sober reminder that there are those in our midst to whom the season of peace on earth and goodwill to all men, means absolutely nothing.
“I would urge the entire community to remain vigilant and to give total and unequivocal support to the Police as they work to protect the entire community from these criminals and gangsters.
“In any society the Police cannot be everywhere. Any Police service operates most effectively when it receives a steady flow of information from the public. It is essential that anyone who knows anything about suspicious or illegal activity should pass that information on to the Police immediately.
“Having come through the Troubles, it is imperative that we do not sit back and permit a new generation of criminal gangs to emerge and try to hold the rest of us to ransom. People in Northern Ireland want a normal society and they are entitled to one. It is the job of us all to help the Police deliver and maintain it.”