Member's statement: Winston Cross: 50th Anniversary
Member's statement by Mr Gary Middleton on .
- MLA
- Mr Gary Middleton
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 11 November 2024
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- Winston Cross: 50th Anniversary
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 4667080
Read the official Assembly record
Text
Today is an important day of remembrance, when we remember all those who fought and died for our freedoms. It is also a day to remember Winston Cross. Winston was only 18 years old and was from the Glen estate on the city side of Londonderry. His family described him as a "happy-go-lucky" teenage boy who was funny, full of life and had a bright future ahead of him. Winston worked as a painter in Ebrington Barracks and was leaving his work one Friday in 1974 to join the army the following week. He had his papers to sign up on Tuesday 11 November 1974, 50 years ago to the very day. Winston's sister, Sharon, shared her story, and here are some of her words:
"When he didn’t come home that Friday night"
— that was 8 November —
"my mother presumed he had gone out for a drink with friends. His best friend, Joseph Slater, (known as Bert), was with him. They never came home. The IRA had abducted both of them from a bar across the border. They had been taken to Donegal and tortured for three days before being hooded and shot on Sheriff’s Mountain. There they left them — lying at the side of the road — with black bin bags over their heads. At first, the IRA said that he was an informer for the military because he worked in Ebrington Barracks. They then changed their story and claimed it was a case of mistaken identity, and they apologised for taking him and shooting him ... The truth is they murdered our beautiful brother and his friend Bert, and they did not care less about the carnage they would cause through their actions".
In stark contrast to the murderers, the people in the Glen estate were all mixed and from various backgrounds, but:
"they still gathered together and paid for the funeral. That’s how close-knit our community was."
Today, I want to ensure that the name Winston Cross is remembered in the House. Let us make sure that Winston, who was brutally murdered in the prime of his youth, is never forgotten. My thoughts and prayers are with Winston's family and friends. Their loved one was cruelly taken from them by murderous cowards 50 years ago today. Fifty years on, we will remember him. This evening, a special 50th anniversary service will take place at All Saints’ Clooney Parish Church, where a plaque will be unveiled. We will be thinking of the family at this time.
421 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Assessment
Jev’s structured answers met the documented threshold for “not flagged”.
- Overall probability that the activity is being used to promote, exploit or escalate an identity-based controversy: 0.18 (flagging needs at least 0.70; at or below 0.30 is not flagged).
- None of the five culture-war criteria was met (each was below 0.60).
- No identity-based framing was identified (0.57).
- Subject area: Legacy of the Troubles, victims and paramilitarism.
- The overall probability was at or below the not-flagging threshold.
This is an AI-generated assessment of the text, made against published criteria. It is not a finding of fact about the MLA or their intentions. The Assembly record itself is the fact.
Jev’s structured answers
| Question | Probability | Met? |
|---|---|---|
| Identity framing | 0.15 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.06 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.06 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.07 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.13 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.05 | No |
| Overall judgement | 0.18 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 0.57 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.01 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.37 |
| Adopts it | 0.05 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| Legacy of the Troubles, victims and paramilitarism | 0.85 |
| Sectarianism, hate crime and community relations | 0.12 |
| No identity-related subject | 0.01 |
| Religion and belief (including people of no religion), churches, faith communities and religious prejudice (including antisemitism and anti-Muslim prejudice) | 0.01 |
| Sexism, misogyny, ageism and other equality groups | 0.01 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:32 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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