Policing Board vice chairman criticises police response

The vice-chairman of the Policing Board, Denis Bradley, has criticised the security forces over their response to loyalist violence at interface areas.

In an interview this morning, Mr Bradley, criticised the police for not doing enough to safeguard people living in trouble-spot areas, particularly from attacks by the UDA.

"There has not been enough done by the police… to actually protect, take on and deal - in whatever appropriate manner - with people like the UDA who are not necessarily doing any of this for political reasons," he said.

Mr Bradley said that while the IRA have "certainly been way out of line around a lot of issues," he described what he saw as "a certain anger" in the nationalist community over the way in the police has responded to loyalist paramilitary violence.

He added that as someone who came from the nationalist community, he should be prepared to interpret, to all the people in Northern Ireland, that there was within the nationalist people "a certain anger".

However, fellow Policing Board member and DUP assembly member, Ian Paisley Jr, rejected this statement, saying that the outburst would have a serious effect on the morale of the PSNI.

(GMcG)