Councillor David Taylor

Newry Mourne and Down District Council

Speech at the Ulster Unionist Party Conference

#UUP17

CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY

I welcome the opportunity to rise in support of the resolution presented this morning by my colleagues in the Ulster Unionist Councillors Association.

The motion before us is very pertinent at this time based on the current state of our political institutions in Northern Ireland and the ongoing attempts by Sinn Fein to destabilise our province, through the guise of a campaign for so called equality on issues such as rights, culture and identity.

There is not one person in this room today who would wish to deny any citizen of Northern Ireland respect in terms of their rights, culture or identity.

In so doing, we must explore further, the motives of Sinn Fein's campaign on so called equality issues on the basis of the fact that it is a Party that knows nothing of respecting the rights of citizens, knows nothing of respecting other cultures and knows nothing of respecting identity unless your particular viewpoint conforms to their narrow sectarian outlook on life.

I have been afforded the honour to represent the Ulster Unionist Party as an elected representative since 2011, serving the Newry and South Armagh area, previously as a member of Newry & Mourne District Council, now serving on Newry, Mourne & Down District Council.

As you will all be aware, the Unionist community exists as a minority community in this area and in so being, we face challenges on a day and daily basis, experiencing first hand Republicanism's warped notion of equality and respect.

It is not a particularly comfortable or pleasant experience at times serving as a Unionist representative on this Council and it is clear that little or no respect is shown to my rights, my culture or my identity as a member of the Unionist community.

One clear example of this disregard for equality is the naming of a play park in Patrick Street, Newry, after convicted IRA terrorist, Raymond McCreesh.  The issue is ongoing within Council and it is one where the position of representatives of Sinn Fein and the SDLP on equality issues has been severely compromised.  This unacceptable situation has served to highlight a poor reflection of their attitude towards offering members of the Unionist community equality.

Both I and my Ulster Unionist Party colleagues continue to fight the good fight, resolutely defending the interests of the Unionist community locally, ensuring that we have a strong voice.

Our experience however, as a minority voice in an area where Republicans hold the reins of power, offers you a useful and significant insight into what Unionism would have to confront on a more general basis should Sinn Fein succeed in achieving the unreasonable demands they are attempting to force upon the people of Northern Ireland at present.

On the issue of rights for instance, the clear fact is that no member of the Unionist community has been afforded the honour of serving as First citizen of our district for over a decade.

This situation is likely to continue for the foreseeable future such is the lack of desire amongst the elected representatives of the Republican and Nationalist community within my Council area to extend this gesture to Unionism.

By accident of birth, as a consequence of my political desire to see Northern Ireland remain an integral part of the United Kingdom, I am denied the opportunity to serve as first citizen of the District where I was born and have resided in all my life.

I see no attempt by Republicans or Nationalists to right this wrong, I do not hear any cry about the lack of equality being afforded to Unionists in this regard and I firmly believe this situation offers a clear challenge to the notion that Sinn Fein in particular have any genuine concerns about offering equality to all.

In terms of culture, I am a proud member of the Loyal Orders in Newry and in so being, I have no other desire than to express my culture in a positive manner, free from the threat of intolerance by others and by way of respect being extended to myself as a member of the Unionist community in a majority Nationalist area.

The reality is unfortunately, that Sinn Fein, the self proclaimed defenders of equality, continue to challenge this right to practice my culture.  They also continue to attempt to deny equality of opportunity to members of the Protestant community who want to utilise civic space which should be shared by all citizens of our district.

It is abundantly clear that Sinn Fein do not genuinely believe in the concept of true equality, the fact is they despise our very existence as a cultural identity within Northern Ireland and they seek at every opportunity to demean and degrade a culture many of us hold close to our heart. This is the real face of the Republican equality agenda.

On the issue of Irish Language, Newry, Mourne & Down District Council has adopted a policy which ensures that the Irish Language is heavily promoted, significantly financed and offered equal status with the English Language, despite the fact only a minimal number of citizens within our district population have any fluent knowledge of the language. 

An unnecessary burden has been placed on ratepayers as a consequence of Republican and Nationalist demands on this issue and yet still, this is not enough.  An Irish Language Strategy working group has now been established by the Council to further develop Irish Language Policy and this may lead to further financial support in the form of grants and bursaries being offered. 

Something I genuinely fear most is that a recommendation may come forward which requires anyone seeking employment within the Council to have knowledge of the Irish Language.

It is important to note that, as an elected member of the Council, with a mandate as legitimate as any other member of the Council, I am denied the opportunity to use official headed paper because of the insistence by Republican and Nationalist representatives that all elected members should include Irish Language on their individual correspondence. 

I pose the question, where was the respect offered to me in terms of my preference not to include the Irish Language on my documentation?  It is obvious that no respect has been offered to my opinion in this regard despite pleas from both I and other Unionist representatives for a spirit of compromise to be offered on this issue.

My British identity is something I hold very dear, something I cherish greatly and I respect the fact that many of our citizens in the past and in more recent times have laid down their lives in service of our country in order to protect our freedoms, our identity and our British way of life.

My British identity however, is under constant threat from Sinn Fein.  The fact is despite the vast majority of citizens within Northern Ireland wishing to remain an integral part of the United Kingdom, Sinn Fein fails to offer respect to the expressed wish of the majority of people regarding Northern Ireland’s constitutional position.

We face ongoing attempts by Republicans to remove any vestige of our British identity across Northern Ireland, they want to pursue an agenda where Unionism is marginalised and alienated and it is clear that we must resist this at every point.

Republicans for many decades tried to break the Unionist community through their grubby terror campaign and they now attempt to use the issues of rights, culture and identity as a political weapon against us.

Sinn Fein has attempted to blackmail Political Unionism over recent months in respect of the future of devolution within Northern Ireland, forgive me however, if I treat their unacceptable ultimatums with the contempt they deserve.

Sinn Fein will never want Northern Ireland to succeed despite the fact that most of our citizens wish to see our Country flourish.  Such a scenario would serve as an obvious impediment to their sinister attempts to coerce the people of our province into a United Ireland.

It is clear the time has come to firmly reject Sinn Fein's narrow sectarian agenda and to let the rest of Northern Ireland move forward in a spirit of genuine compromise with the hope of a better and prosperous future being achieved for all of us.