PUP leader Billy Hutchinson: Loyalist anger now highest it has been since 1994 ceasefires

PUP leader Billy Hutchinson was speaking in the wake of a letter from the Loyalist Communities Council (LCC) to unionist political leaders. It warned southern politicians not to visit NI at present, and warned of "dire consequences" in relation to calls for joint authority. It also called for unionist demands on the NI Protocol to be delivered, in order to protect the union. Unionist leaders distanced themselves from what was seen as the threat of violence in it

"At a time when tensions and anger are high- as high as I have experienced since before the CLMC [Combined Loyalist Military Command] ceasefire of 1994 - everyone must be careful as to their use of language and tone of contributions," the Belfast city Councillor said in an article on the Unionist Voice website.

"I do not think Sinn Fein, SDLP and Alliance have done so; rather they have inflamed tensions with their blatant disregard for the foundational principles upon which peace and our political process rests.

"That is not to ‘sabre-rattle’, but rather to state as a fact that as far as loyalism is concerned, the core promises which led to the 1994 ceasefire and support for the Belfast Agreement have been shredded."

Elaborating on the Nolan Show this morning, the former UVF prisoner, who served time for murder and later helped deliver the 1994 loyalist ceasefires, called for a review of the landmark 1998 peace deal.

"The difficulty is, the whole notion of the Good Friday Agreement needs to be rebalanced," he said. "It seems to be that it went one way."

Since the Northern Ireland Protocol, he says the Acts of Union have been amended.

And instead of customs checks on the Irish border, "because of threats of violence from republicans they moved it to British ports".

"We also have had changes to the Northern Ireland Act [the legislative form of the GFA]- it has been treated very shabbily."

"The political system seems to be failing at the minute and my view is that the political system is the most important thing we have. We live in a divided society and we need to have a system that allows people to work together."

Asked if there was a genuine depth of anger in his community and whether he was not "sabre rattling" he replied: "This is not sabre rattling. I think that we need to make politics work. I don't want to see violence. What I am saying is that people should listen to what the original [LCC] statement was."

He said he lives in working class communities.

"If I walk out the door people are at me about it so I assume that the people who put out the original LCC statement are having similar experiences."

He was accosted by a pensioner about concessions to nationalism on his way to his office this morning, he said.

"This was coming from a man in his eighties, and he was going - 'it has never been as bad'.

"I am trying to emphasise here that this is what people continually talk about.

"Are we going to ignore loyalism and we are just going to listen to republicanism or nationalism? That is not going to work."

Asked if he was essentially saying, "give us what we want or else" he replied: "No that is not what I am saying. I am saying, this is real and I don't think people should be poo pooing it - and people are."

He added: "What is real is the tension in unionist communities."

Those behind the LCC statement are facing the same pressure on the streets that he is, he added.

"Loyalists were involved in ceasefires and a political process and what I am saying is, those are the people who delivered peace.

"So somebody needs to take this seriously and talk to them. We cannot ignore loyalism and the reason we can't is because loyalism is part of society and we need to move forward together."

He also urged the British government to talk to "mainstream political parties" about the issues angering his community.

Asked why anyone should talk to loyalists when they are involved in extortion and intimidation and drug dealing, he replied that he was asking for engagement with the leadership, whom he said did not want such activities.

In his written article he said: “These concerns have been raised for years and been ignored. I implore people to please listen now before it is too late. Restore the delicate balance to the heart of our political and peace processes, and give our communities a chance.

"It may be popular now to trample all over the unionist and loyalist community, but in the long run pushing one community so far into a corner will be to the detriment of us all as a society.

“Finally, I want to emphasise this article is written as a personal effort to use whatever influence I have or credibility which my voice carries to urge people to listen and take the concerns being raised seriously.

“I have been around long enough to know a ploy or an effort to sabre-rattle for leverage when I see it. Trust me, that is not what you are seeing coming from loyalism.”