As First World War banners banned from part of Whiterock loyalist parade PUP asks ‘Are we meant to be ashamed of WWI soldiers?’

It said that the commission’s decision suggests that people should be “ashamed” of the actions of Northern Irish soldiers during the 1914-18 war, and only adds to the sense that the parades body is “long beyond being fit-for-purpose”.

However the commission has responded by saying such a condition dates back to 2006, and arose thanks to “dialogue” following rioting linked to the parade in 2005.

The party (which has historic UVF connections and is presently led by Billy Hutchinson) was reacting to a story broken by the News Letter yesterday about today’s Whiterock parade.

The annual loyalist parade in west Belfast has had conditions imposed upon it, which can be summarised as follows:

The parade is forbidden from passing through a security gate at an interface between the loyalist Springmartin area and the republican Springfield Road.

Instead the parade has been rerouted to avoid spending too much time on the Springfield Road, where a counter-protest is set to take place.

While on the road, hymns only are allowed to be played.