ORGANISERS of a Loyalist parade who wanted to march through a section of Glasgow's east end "to put a burning stick into the nest" have been ordered to re-route their event and change the date.
The Regimental Blues, a group formed just this year, said it wanted to march through the Gallowgate and Barras district this Saturday to show its disapproval of all aspects of Irish Republicanism in Britain, adding that the area had become a "no-go area" for Loyalists.
But they were told by Police Scotland and Glasgow City Council the march posed a threat to public order, falling on a weekend with several major football games in the city, the Liberal Democrat conference and Bedroom Tax protests, as well as intelligence of counter-demonstrations.
At a meeting to determine whether the parade would proceed as requested, Regimental Blues chairman Kris McGurk stuck by his view that the event was intended to cause tensions, claiming he used such language as a he was "a man of the common tongue".
Mr McGurk, who described himself as a former British soldier and whose group is linked to a series of flag protests in Glasgow, also said the Gallowgate, a main thoroughfare on the way to Celtic Park and where many of the bars are frequented by supporters of the club, was out of bounds to Protestants and Loyalists.
Countering the claim, Police Scotland said in the past year the Gallowgate and surrounding area had hosted 24 Loyalist parades against 11 Republican events.
Mr McGurk, who was accompanied at the meeting by several supporters, said the Regimental Blues were prepared to shift some of their route but were adamant about proceeding up the Gallowgate, which on a Saturday also hosts the famous Barras market.
He said: "For years we've seen increased numbers of Republican parades, bands and committees picking up all over the city. It's getting to the point places are a 'no go area' for people like me. This parade is aimed at IRA propaganda. At Celtic games they're handing out paraphernalia. I go and pick it up. They hold meetings discussing their hatred of everything British. We're saying enough is enough."
Mr McGurk added: "We are a pressure group for the Protestant people of Scotland. I am just a common guy who speaks with a common tongue. There's no point in dressing it up. It will cause tensions. But for them for the simple fact they support terrorists."
He also said an alternative route along London Road would cause greater disruption to traffic and would be disrespectful to the congregation of a Catholic church along the route.
Police Scotland's representative at the meeting said there was a clear difference between Loyal Order parades which had historic purposes and that being proposed by the Regimental Blues.
He added: "This parade intends to cause maximum tension. It's not a protest about any particular issue but is intended to cause a reaction by people who may be along the route. There's no justification to behave in that fashion."
The group has been given the option of parading up London Road on an alternative date.
Why are you making commenting on HeraldScotland only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article