First Minister expresses ‘relief’ at Bryant’s decision to stop parade

First Minister Michelle O’Neill has expressed relief at a decision by Secretary of State Sir Chris Bryant to halt an Orange Order parade from going down the Garvaghy Road.

Sir Chris’ intervention came following a stand-off of almost two weeks after Northern Ireland’s Parades Commission ruled to allow the parade to travel its traditional route for the first time in almost 30 years.

Police said they were unable to facilitate the parade despite the ruling due to large-scale protests on the Garvaghy Road.

Ms O’Neill hailed the “right decision”, but said it should have been made earlier.

Appearing on RTÉ’s Late Late Show, Ms O’Neill said the Garvaghy Road residents have been living with “constant fear and a cloud hanging over them” that the parade was going to be forced down that road.

“We said from day one, the Secretary of State could step in, he could have stopped this nonsense, he could have put an end to it, but unfortunately he chose not to until the 11th hour,” she said.

In terms of the reaction, she said: “There’s tears. There’s a bag of emotions.

“I mean, these people have been on a roller coaster over the course of the last fortnight, and I think no-one ever thought for a second that that the Parades Commission would have, you know, reversed the decision that stood for 28 years.

“People were absolutely gobsmacked … men, women, and children were crying, and they were like, ‘Why is this happening to us? Why is this being brought back to our community? Please stand with us’.

“And I knew there and then that the right thing to do was to stand with those Garvaghy Road residents, and I’ve stood there every day for the past fortnight.

“I think people are relieved because this has been hanging over them, they’re they’re glad that this decision has now been taken.

“They regret that it’s taken so long, but I do think that they’ll sleep easier tonight, knowing that this is now being brought to an end and that they can get back to their lives.”

Meanwhile, a number of people have been contacted by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) in terms of potential breaches of the law over gatherings on the Garvaghy Road.

Ms O’Neill is one of those to receive a letter.

“I will go through the process. I’ll do whatever needs to be done,” she said.

“I’m happy that the decision that I took was the right decision. It was to do what was right, and it was to support that community who needed my support. So I stand over that decision, and I deal with whatever the processes that need to be dealt with.”

She added she was not aware of Sinn Féin president Mary-Lou McDonald receiving a letter from the PSNI.