Member's statement: Foyle: Sectarian Violence
Member's statement by Mr Gary Middleton on .
- MLA
- Mr Gary Middleton
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 28 April 2025
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- Foyle: Sectarian Violence
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 4913815
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I rise with sadness and concern following a week of sectarianism and violence in my constituency of Foyle. On Easter Monday, we saw violence from republicans near the Fountain estate. Following the Easter Monday parade, petrol bombs, fireworks and masonry were thrown near an old people's home. At the weekend, we saw two young people targeted in the Nelson Drive area. Yesterday, there were arranged fights, with fireworks and masonry being thrown. A bus carrying young people from a cross-community tournament was targeted with stones and masonry. The murals in the Fountain estate were also targeted. It is deeply disappointing that that level of sectarianism still exists. I urgently call on those involved in it to stop what they are doing. It is unfortunate that we are seeing a rise in that activity, but the ultimate result of it will be serious injury, if not death. I urge those who have information to bring it to the PSNI. There is an onus on us all to show political leadership, and I welcome the condemnation of that activity across the board. It is not about finger-pointing at one section of the community. Sectarianism, unfortunately, blights all sections of our society. There is an onus on us to highlight that, so it is important that, today, we call it out for what it is and we urge those involved to bring it to an end and those with information to bring it to the PSNI.
243 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: 0.07 (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).
- The text criticises or condemns the framing or division (0.96).
- Subject area: Sectarianism, hate crime and community relations.
- 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 | 0.21 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.03 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.08 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.05 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.06 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.31 | No |
| Overall judgement | 0.07 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing | 0.04 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.00 |
| Criticises or condemns it (chosen) | 0.96 |
| Adopts it | 0.00 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| Sectarianism, hate crime and community relations | 1.00 |
| No identity-related subject | 0.00 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
| Parades, bonfires and commemorations | 0.00 |
| Irish language, Ulster-Scots and language policy | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 12:27 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
Disagree with this assessment?
Classifications can be challenged. A person reads every challenge, and any change is recorded publicly above with its reason.