SDLP Leader Claire Hanna MP has called on political leaders to support efforts to find a peaceful resolution to the ongoing Garvaghy Road parade dispute. The SDLP has been consistent in highlighting the disparity in what is being asked of each community and in drawing an important distinction between accommodation and imposition. Wanting to walk through an area and living there are not the same thing. Residents of Garvaghy Road are entitled to live peacefully in their homes and community, free from intimidation and disruption.
Claire has visited Garvaghy Road several times in recent weeks, speaking directly with residents and advocating on their behalf with the Chief Constable and the Secretary of State. SDLP leadership subsequently met with the Secretary of State and proposed a process of structured dialogue, supported by an independent international mediator, as a means of moving beyond confrontation and towards a sustainable resolution.
With the most recent talks ending without agreement, the SDLP will continue to support dialogue and efforts to find a resolution. We will also challenge attempts by political parties to exploit this dispute for wider political advantage or to deepen division. This issue cannot become an excuse to destabilise Northern Ireland’s political institutions. Collapsing the institutions would not resolve the dispute on Garvaghy Road; it would simply create another crisis, with consequences for public services and communities across Northern Ireland.
At a moment of heightened tension, political leadership means lowering the temperature rather than raising it. There is a responsibility on political leaders across the board to support dialogue, reject intimidation and work towards an outcome that allows communities to move forward peacefully together.
You can watch Claire outlining her position on BBC’s The View here.
O’Toole: Political instability cannot derail Stormont
This week Northern Ireland reached the halfway point of the financial year without an agreed Budget. SDLP Leader of the Opposition Matthew O’Toole MLA challenged the four Executive parties over six months of failure to reach agreement, leaving departments unable to plan properly and public services facing yet more uncertainty.
With serious tensions around the situation at Garvaghy Road and growing instability at Stormont, Matthew warned that political crisis cannot become an excuse for abandoning the responsibilities of government. Collapsing the institutions would not resolve the parades dispute or any of the other challenges facing people here. It would leave our health service, schools and public sector workers dealing with even greater uncertainty and less control over the decisions that affect them.
The SDLP will continue to make the case for a fairer and more sustainable funding settlement for Northern Ireland, but Executive parties cannot use Westminster or the latest political crisis to avoid making the decisions that are theirs to take. Ministers need to agree a Budget and show that they are capable of delivering the stable government the public deserve.
