Ulster Unionist Leader Mike Nesbitt MLA has described the Executive’s Action Plan - ‘Tackling Paramilitary Activity and Organised Crime’ - as being little more than a wish list with no real detail as to how to achieve its goals.

Mike Nesbitt said:

“We are deeply disappointed with the contents of the Action Plan, which has arrived three weeks late and utterly bereft of concrete actions.

“It isn't an Action Plan. It's a promissory note.

“The language is full of wholesome promises, but no actual plans. They say they ‘will propose’ ‘will commission’ ‘will assess’ ‘will consider’ ‘will engage’, but how, when and what is the actual plan?

“We are particularly disturbed by the lack of end game for the Independent Reporting Commission, which will ‘have responsibility for reporting annually on progress towards ending continuing paramilitary activity’. That suggests these people will be around in a structured paramilitary manner for years to come. It is time, high time, they disbanded and ceased their destructive activities now. They terrorise their own communities, they put legitimate traders out of business and they stain our international reputation on the world stage. Enough is enough.

“Many communities need the help of the State to get these criminals removed from their midst. We note that £50m is being made available over five years. We must be extremely careful as we ‘support ambitious initiatives aimed at building capacity in communities in transition’ and in developing ‘creative and ambitious initiatives that will support communities in transition’ that we do not promote schemes which end up acting as some form of slush fund or new revenue streams for the very organisations we are trying to put out of business.”