Most parades need little policing

THE TOP police officer in the North West, Chief Superintendent Stephen Martin briefed the Stormont Justice Committee recently on the healthy relationship between the PSNI and both the Loyal Orders and GAA - the vast majority of whose events do not require policing each year.

The G District commander was providing evidence to the committee on changes to local justice legislation proposed under David Ford's Justice Bill.

Commenting on police management of sporting events in the Londonderry area Chief Superintendent Martin said the PSNI here had a particularly good relationship with the GAA.

He told committee members: "We have a healthy relationship with the GAA, and the overwhelming majority of its matches go completely unpoliced.

"The Deputy Chairperson will know that last year's file was in Derry - I had meetings with the secretary of the Ulster branch around that - and we facilitated issues about parking and worked with them on stewarding. GAA games largely go unpoliced; in fact, are virtually entirely unpoliced.

"That is also the case in my own area of Derry City, to be parochial."

PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Will Kerr added that the same could be said for football and rugby authorities.

During the same briefing the North West police chief said most Loyal Order parades in G District go unpoliced although he admitted the annual "Derry Day" Apprentice Boys' demonstration is a special case.

"There are literally hundreds of Loyal Order parades in my district every year," said Chief Superintendent Martin. "Many of them go unpoliced, some of them go with very little policing, and then, on the Saturday closest to 12 August, the Apprentice Boys of Derry hold a major demonstration, and I deploy literally hundreds of police.

"At demonstrations such as that, we will work with the organisers in notifying the visiting clubs and bands that we will be enforcing legislation relating to alcohol under the Public Processions (Northern Ireland) Act 1998.

"Even though we do that, we still seize quite a bit of alcohol on those days. We are not in the position of having to do that for the hundreds of other parades."

Mr Martin explained it was a matter of working with the relevant sporting or cultural authorities and advising them that the PSNI intended enforcing specific legislation as and when it was required.

"If the Republic of Ireland was playing Northern Ireland at Windsor Park, for example, I imagine that, depending on the prevailing environment, there could be quite a few tensions," he said.

"The local police commander might want to work with the IFA and the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) to indicate that we would intend to enforce the legislation.

"As tensions would be high, it would be appropriate to do it under those circumstances.

"My colleague said that there are a lot of football grounds in his area, and that only one in five are policed.

"It is about having the availability, when appropriate, to dip into that toolbox and use it - in the example I gave, to use it with the IFA or FAI.

"At the moment, I do that in parallel with the Loyal Orders and it works positively.

"We use it when it is appropriate.

"It is about having it so that we can do it on the right occasions, Mr O'Dowd, as opposed to doing it all the time," the Chief Superintendent told the committee.

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