NI Conservatives’ spokesman, Trevor Ringland, has described the attempted murder of a police officer in East Belfast as “a revolting assault on the principles of law and order.”
“It is outrageous that anyone claiming to be a ‘loyalist’ or to uphold the values represented by the Union Flag would attack, much less try to murder, a policewoman”, Trevor observed. “This officer was out protecting and serving the community, when she was targeted, quite deliberately, by a group of deranged extremists.”
“The community in Northern Ireland has had enough. These protests, and the violence which has been their offshoot, should stop immediately. They are disrupting the social and economic life of our province, they are putting our police force under unacceptable pressures and, if they continue, they will eventually result in loss of life. The death threat against Naomi Long should be lifted immediately. Naomi works for her constituents and the threat to an elected representative is absolutely disgraceful. ”
“Flags and symbols stir up deep emotions and there are debates to be had about how we accommodate them in an appropriate way, which protects the various identities which we feel. But the vast majority of people in Northern Ireland, who are trying to get on with their daily lives - working, shopping, looking towards Christmas - should not be held to ransom by the few hundred fanatics who are creating problems.”
“This has to stop and stop now, with any further discussions around the flag taking place through the democratic process and in a less charged atmosphere. Otherwise the disruption to our communities, the damage to our economy and, most seriously, the threats to life against our police and elected representatives will continue.”