Ministers condemn 'violence, disorder and racism'

Executive ministers have condemned the recent violence ahead of the Northern Ireland Assembly being recalled today.

First Minister Michelle O’Neill said the executive is “unequivocally” collective in its determination to say no to racism.

Recent disorder had “created such a deep fear” that “we’ve never seen before,” she said.

Ms O’Neill said people from ethnic minorities were afraid to go about their normal routines.

“We have healthcare workers who are afraid to go to their work, we have nurses who are afraid to go home,” she says.

That is “the real human impact” of this type of racist activity, she added.

The Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly said Northern Ireland’s political parties were “sending a strong and united message against violence, disorder and racism”.

The fact that some healthcare workers are thinking of leaving as a result of the violence is “deeply disturbing”, Ms Little-Pengelly said, emphasising their “huge” contribution.

She also wanted to acknowledge the “positive contribution of many ethnic minority people” in Northern Ireland.

Violence is always “wrong” and “never the answer,” she added.

The Justice Minister Naomi Long said the disorder is not representative of the vast majority of people in Northern Ireland.

“We need to call it for what it is. It is racism; it is islamophobia. If we’re going to deal with it, we need to name it what it is, and we need to challenge it,” Ms Long said.

The Alliance Leader also said the people being attacked are “part of our community” and “valued”.

“It is incumbent on all of us in political leadership but also all of us as a community to make them feel that they are welcome and safe,” she added.

The Police Service for Northern Ireland (PSNI) Chief Constable Jon Boutcher also said his officers are going to the homes of people that have taken part in rioting on Saturday night.

“The PSNI will deal with this disorder. We will stop it,” he added.

“There is no place in society for this,” he said.

“All our migrant communities, all our diverse communities feel under threat, they feel a fear that I have not experienced of the like that I have not seen in 40 years of policing.

Mr Boutcher said: “That’s not just here, that’s across the country.”

”This has got to stop and we will stop it.”

The Northern Ireland Assembly has been recalled.

A successful petition, put forward by the Alliance Party, means MLAs have return from their summer break to discuss recent disorder.

It follows a spate of violence, with several businesses in the city attacked after an anti-immigration protest erupted into disorder.

The first and deputy first ministers have said their joint priority is to face down racism and intimidation.

There has been violent disorder in towns and cities across the UK since last Tuesday, the day after three young girls were killed in Southport.

False claims on social media followed that someone who had arrived in the UK illegally was to blame.

On Saturday, a cafe was set alight and several businesses were attacked after disorder broke out in Belfast.

A second night of disorder took place in south Belfast on Monday night.

And six people, including three teenagers, were arrested during a third night of disorder on Tuesday. Police are treating the incidents as racially-motivated hate crimes.

The Police Service for Northern Ireland (PSNI) has said there was “no doubt” that a paramilitary element was involved in orchestrating the violence.

Assembly members will debate a motion from the Alliance Party that calls on the assembly to condemn the criminal damage and “targeting of businesses” at the weekend.

It also calls on MLAs to recognise that PSNI resources are stretched and “could have been much more effectively deployed elsewhere”.

The move by Alliance to recall the assembly from its summer break was backed by Sinn Féin, the SDLP and independent unionist Claire Sugden.

On Monday, Sinn Féin’s Deirdre Hargey said First Minister Michelle O’Neill was cutting short a family holiday to return to the assembly for the debate.

Immigration is a matter largely reserved for Westminster, but there have been calls for The Executive Office to do more to help refugees living in Northern Ireland.

The recall motion also calls on the first and deputy first ministers to finalise a Refugee Integration Strategy by the end of this year, and replace an “outdated” Racial Equality Strategy.

Unlike England, Scotland and Wales, Northern Ireland has no refugee integration strategy.

A public consultation on a draft strategy took place in February 2022, but the power-sharing executive collapsed during that time and the institutions remained suspended for two years.