The Ulster Unionist Party Leader Steve Aiken OBE MLA, Policing Board representative Mike Nesbitt MLA and Justice Spokesperson Doug Beattie MC LA, have met with the Chief Constable to discuss issues arising from Police handling of republican funerals during the Covid pandemic and the growing sense of anger and frustration in Unionist communities as a result of the imposition of the NI protocol and the Irish sea border.

Following the meeting Steve Aiken said:

“We welcomed the opportunity to raise directly with the Chief Constable our concerns regarding the scenes at the funeral of former IRA terrorist Eamon McCourt in Londonderry on Monday, where a large crowd was in attendance, clearly breaching Covid guidelines and fuelling the perception of – at best – inconsistent policing.     

“This was the latest in a number of republican funerals – including those of Francie McNally and Bobby Storey - where the general public has looked on in amazement at what was being facilitated and tolerated at a time when the rest of society has to obey the rules with all the suffering this entails in terms of limited attendance at funerals and other very necessary restrictions.

“We expressed our considerable disappointment that none of the lessons of the Storey funeral had been learned, and also made clear our regret that prior to the McCourt funeral, the Chief Constable had not publicly called for the strict adherence to the rules and guidelines that it was his duty to enforce. Police leadership in the rest of the UK has not hesitated to do so, and we should expect the same here.

“We also took the opportunity to echo the remarks by Assistant Chief Constable Mark McEwan that there is growing anger amongst the Unionist community and many others within Northern Ireland as a result of the imposition of the Irish Sea Border.

“That these comments came as a surprise to anyone indicates just how out of touch certain politicians – especially in London and Dublin - have become. We told the Chief Constable that the picture painted by ACC McEwan is accurate and that we must do all we can to ensure that these very real concerns are addressed at a political level, to ensure they do not develop into a policing problem, which is in none of our interests.”