Debate contribution: Display of Flags and Emblems Bill: Second Stage
Debate contribution by Mr Trevor Clarke on .
- MLA
- Mr Trevor Clarke
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 22 September 2026
- Type
- Debate contribution
- Business
- Private Members' Business
- Heading
- Display of Flags and Emblems Bill: Second Stage
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5739968
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I thank the Member for giving way. This typifies the attitude of the Bill sponsor: "Take my Bill. Adopt my Bill. Over to you, guv; here's the problem". The Member said that there have been 605 interactions with the police in the past 12 months. She said that none of those resulted in flags coming down. I am afraid to say that she is wrong, because I have been approached in my constituency on numerous occasions, and I have worked with the community to try to get flags down. Equally, I have worked with the police for nationalist flags to come down, and they worked with the nationalist community and got the flags down. It is wrong for the Member to sit here and mislead the House by saying that no such flags are ever removed — absolutely wrong.
Will the Member give way?
I was on my feet when the point of order was called, Mr Deputy Speaker, but I took my seat, as per the protocol of the House. However, I stand by my comment that I believe that the Member misled the House, because there is a difference between referring for advice and working with the community to bring flags down.
The point was that, in her clarification, it was the latter. My point is that there are many examples. I am sure, as the Member shares the same constituents as me, that the PSNI has approached her on occasion to see what she can do in the community to remove flags. Often, that is successful, and often it is not. However, to allow the House to leave today with the perception that there has never been any accommodation with the PSNI is absolutely wrong, misleading or whatever else Members wish to call it.
297 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
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