DUP leader and UFU president both sound note of caution on Tuesday's mooted widespread fuel protests
The UFU president has urged against the blocking of roads by fuel protestors tomorrow, while the DUP leader has said those struggling with fuel costs will not be helped by creating traffic jams.
Gavin Robinson also went on to add that, in the Republic of Ireland, “the protests were targeted at a government who have levers at their disposal”, whereas Northern Ireland is dependent on what the Westminster government does.
Since the middle of last week, online flyers have circulated for a series of fuel protests across Northern Ireland, the biggest of which is slated for tomorrow.
The PSNI has made contingency plans, while the Department for Infrastructure is calling for people to plan for their journeys to take longer.
Businesses are bracing for the impact too; for example, Mollie's Diner in Omagh is planning to shut tomorrow, with the town centre being one of the locations cited for protests.
The other locations being circulated online are: Sprucefield in Co Down; the Westlink in Belfast; Sandyknowes roundabout in Newtownabbey; Ballygawley roundabout; New Toome Bridge in Toomebridge; Larne Harbour; and Nutts Corner in south Antrim.
Protestors are to converge on these areas at 2pm, it is claimed.
However, it has been unclear from the outset who is behind this protest call, and other smaller-scale demonstrations which were slated to take place in recent days never came to pass.
As reported, the UFU had already sent out an unnamed statement when asked about the protests, saying: “The UFU is aware of the planned protest but is not involved in organising it...
“We would encourage that if any action is taken, it is safe, lawful and mindful of the wider public.”
Now its president William Irvine has personally come out and told the press: “It remains to be seen what plays out. We have no input into that and we are not calling for our members to support it.
“If roads are blocked, our members are as likely to be impacted as anyone else in society.
“For all, this is a very real issue, very current, but blocking roads is not the way forward at this moment in time.”
He said he does not know who is behind the protest call.
Mr Irvine met political parties at Stormont today, and will be meeting government officials in Westminster tomorrow.
He called on political leaders from Northern Ireland to co-sign a letter to the Prime Minister to “send a very strong and clear message” about the challenges facing the agriculture sector.
Mr Irvine said: “At farm level there is a very real crisis around energy costs, fuel costs and fertiliser costs.
“It is a very real crunch for farmers.
“Prior to the Iranian war, I was having a lot of conversations around the cost of doing business, and this energy hike has just risen that higher than anybody thought it would ever go.”
He added: “We currently have a letter drafted that we would be very keen that all party leaders would co-sign with us, that’s a letter to the Prime Minister.
“That would be a very strong and clear message right to Downing Street of the current situation here in Northern Ireland.”
The UFU president also said NI needs “greater reserves of fuel and fertiliser”.
Mr Irvine also warned of the impact of the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM), which will apply a carbon tax on fertilisers imported from the beginning of next year.
He said: “The timing of that is disastrous. It was going to be a challenge to agriculture, but in the current situation it is a challenge too far.”
Gavin Robinson said he did not want to see any disruption to emergency services or medical appointments tomorrow.
“We all know the pressures people are facing, we can see how much this crisis is hurting and we understand the need for a response,” he said.
“In Dublin the protests were targeted at a government who have levers at their disposal.
“It is the Westminster government that will be able to bring forward the significant changes that people wish to see.
“Whilst I understand and support people’s right to protest, I think it is important to reflect at this stage that I don’t think we would benefit from widespread disruption.
“I don’t think anyone who is struggling with fuel costs would benefit from sitting in an idling queue with their engines turning over and their fuel being wasted...
“Anyone who is having to fill up a vehicle, they are suffering at the moment with the increased costs.
“These are issues which can only be dealt with by Westminster.”
Mr Robinson said communities minister Gordon Lyons would bring a proposal to the Executive this week about distributing £17 million in support for home heating oil customers.
The PSNI said: “Police are maintaining an ongoing assessment in relation to social media posts calling for planned protests across Northern Ireland.
"A policing response has been prepared, if needed, to ensure public safety and to help minimise any potential disruption to the wider community.
"Road users are advised to allow for possible disruption before embarking on any journey.”
The Department for Infrastructure said: “We would encourage road users to allow extra time for journeys due to potential traffic disruption.”