Ulster Political Research Group
Encyclopedia
The Ulster Political Research Group is an advisory body connected to the Ulster Defence Association
(UDA), providing advice to them on political matters. The group was permanently founded in January 2002, and is largely a successor to the Ulster Democratic Party
(which had been dissolved in 2001).
, in January 1978 under the chairmanship of Glen Barr, largely as a reaction to antagonism that had grown between the UDA and Ian Paisley
after the loyalist group had supported a failed strike organised by Paisley the previous year. Barr's old friends Tommy Lyttle
and Harry Chicken both took up seats on the NUPRG whilst South Belfast Brigadier and Tyrie's deputy John McMichael
was appointed secretary of the new body.
After a few months McMichael wrote about the progress of the group in the UDA's Ulster magazine and stated that they had examined the case for direct rule from Westminster
and found it to be wholly unsatisfactory. According to McMichael the future lay in "a special type of negotiated independence". Tyrie also began to argue for independence and Barr, who had advocated this Ulster nationalism
for some time, gave indications to Magill
magazine that this was the direction in which the NUPRG was going. Their March 1979 report, Beyond the Religious Divide, argued the case for independence and even provided an outline of the workings of such a state, basing it largely on the American model of a Supreme Court, written constitution and bill of rights and the separation of the executive and judicial arms of government. The document also called for a power-sharing arrangement that would take account of the wishes of the Catholic minority.
The group fielded three candidates in the 1981 local elections
, with one of them holding the seat that he had won in a 1980 by-election. However the NUPRG were disbanded soon afterwards and replaced with the Ulster Loyalist Democratic Party, a group that took Beyond the Religious Divide as the basis of its ideology.
The UPRG came to wider prominence in 2003 after West Belfast brigadier
Johnny Adair
had been expelled from the movement and the UDA leadership decided to present a more civilian face. On 22 February 2003 a new one year ceasefire extension was announced at a hotel in east Belfast but this was presented as a UPRG event, with journalists' questions being answered by the likes of Frank McCoubrey
, Sammy Duddy
, Frankie Gallagher
, Jim Wright and Tommy Kirkham
, all of whom had emerged as the leading figures on the group. The ceasefire was indefinitely extended in January 2004 and once again it was left to the UPRG to make the announcement.
Although the UPRG is not a registered political party some members have gained elected office. McCoubrey is a member of Belfast City Council
ostensibly as an independent (and was formerly deputy Lord Mayor
of the city), whilst Kirkham (a member of Newtownabbey Borough Council
) is also registered as the leader of the Ulster Protestant League, a title he has never used in elections.
.
announced plans to give £1 million to a Farset Youth and Community Development project designed to move the UDA away from paramilitarism
. The announcement followed an initiative by the UPRG to consult with UDA activists, culminating in the publication of a business plan to facilitate a Conflict Transformation Initiative. The move was supported by Chief Constable Hugh Orde
who was seen to shake hands with Jackie McDonald
, a senior loyalist believed to be the UDA's leading figure in the south of the city. In direct contrast to the statement by leading Police Service of Northern Ireland
officer Det Supt Esmond Adair, who claimed that the UDA was still heavily involved in extortion
. Orde was to later criticise the UDA following the shooting of a police officer in Castlmara by dissident elements associated with Kirkham's South East Antrim-based Beyond Conflict Group. Further disturbances took place in Bangor, were again members of the UDA East Belfast group represented by Gallagher were said to fire shots at the police during a police raid against criminals living in Killcooley Estate.
This led Margaret Ritchie
Minister for Social Development to say that she would pull the plug on the £1.2m project run by Farset, if the UDA did not begin to decommission in 60 days. She further called on the group to begin a meaningful dialogue with the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning
, the group responsible for overseeing decommissioning and led by General John de Chastelain
. McDonald had stated that he was reluctant to see the UDA decommission because of the threat posed by dissident republican
groups. However ultimately McDonald was credited with convincing the UDA to go through with the process when the UDA decommissioned in 2010.
Ulster Defence Association
The Ulster Defence Association is the largest although not the deadliest loyalist paramilitary and vigilante group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 and undertook a campaign of almost twenty-four years during "The Troubles"...
(UDA), providing advice to them on political matters. The group was permanently founded in January 2002, and is largely a successor to the Ulster Democratic Party
Ulster Democratic Party
The Ulster Democratic Party was a small loyalist political party in Northern Ireland. It was established in June 1981 as the Ulster Loyalist Democratic Party by the Ulster Defence Association to replace their New Ulster Political Research Group...
(which had been dissolved in 2001).
Origins
The group had its origins in the earlier New Ulster Political Research Group (NUPRG), which was set up, on the initiative of UDA chairman Andy TyrieAndy Tyrie
Andrew "Andy" Tyrie is an Ulster loyalist and served as commander of the Ulster Defence Association during much of its early history...
, in January 1978 under the chairmanship of Glen Barr, largely as a reaction to antagonism that had grown between the UDA and Ian Paisley
Ian Paisley
Ian Richard Kyle Paisley, Baron Bannside, PC is a politician and church minister in Northern Ireland. As the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party , he and Sinn Féin's Martin McGuinness were elected First Minister and deputy First Minister respectively on 8 May 2007.In addition to co-founding...
after the loyalist group had supported a failed strike organised by Paisley the previous year. Barr's old friends Tommy Lyttle
Tommy Lyttle
Tommy "Tucker" Lyttle , was a high-ranking Northern Irish loyalist who was a member of the Ulster Defence Association . He served as the UDA's spokesman as well as the leader of the organisation's West Belfast Brigade from 1975 until his arrest and imprisonment in 1990...
and Harry Chicken both took up seats on the NUPRG whilst South Belfast Brigadier and Tyrie's deputy John McMichael
John McMichael
John "Big John" McMichael was a leading Northern Irish loyalist who rose to become the most prominent figure within the Ulster Defence Association as the Deputy Commander and leader of its South Belfast Brigade. He was also commander of the organisation's cover name, the "Ulster Freedom Fighters"...
was appointed secretary of the new body.
After a few months McMichael wrote about the progress of the group in the UDA's Ulster magazine and stated that they had examined the case for direct rule from Westminster
Westminster
Westminster is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, southwest of the City of London and southwest of Charing Cross...
and found it to be wholly unsatisfactory. According to McMichael the future lay in "a special type of negotiated independence". Tyrie also began to argue for independence and Barr, who had advocated this Ulster nationalism
Ulster nationalism
Ulster nationalism is the name given to a school of thought in Northern Irish politics that seeks the independence of Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom without becoming part of the Republic of Ireland, thereby becoming an independent sovereign state separate from England, Scotland and Wales...
for some time, gave indications to Magill
Magill
Magill was an Irish politics and current affairs magazine founded by Vincent Browne and others in 1977. Magill was widely perceived as groundbreaking, specialising in in-depth investigative articles and colourful reportage by journalists such as Eamonn McCann and Gene Kerrigan...
magazine that this was the direction in which the NUPRG was going. Their March 1979 report, Beyond the Religious Divide, argued the case for independence and even provided an outline of the workings of such a state, basing it largely on the American model of a Supreme Court, written constitution and bill of rights and the separation of the executive and judicial arms of government. The document also called for a power-sharing arrangement that would take account of the wishes of the Catholic minority.
The group fielded three candidates in the 1981 local elections
Northern Ireland local elections, 1981
Elections for local government were held in Northern Ireland in 1981.-Overall:-Belfast:...
, with one of them holding the seat that he had won in a 1980 by-election. However the NUPRG were disbanded soon afterwards and replaced with the Ulster Loyalist Democratic Party, a group that took Beyond the Religious Divide as the basis of its ideology.
Re-establishment
The Ulster Democratic Party, which had succeeded the earlier Ulster Loyalist Democratic Party, dissolved in 2001 and the UPRG was re-established soon afterwards.The UPRG came to wider prominence in 2003 after West Belfast brigadier
UDA West Belfast Brigade
The UDA West Belfast Brigade is the section of the Northern Irish loyalist paramilitary group the Ulster Defence Association based in the western quarter of Belfast in the Greater Shankill area...
Johnny Adair
Johnny Adair
Jonathan Adair, better known as Johnny "Mad Dog" Adair is the former leader of the "C Company", 2nd Battalion Shankill Road, West Belfast Brigade of the "Ulster Freedom Fighters" . This was a cover name used by the Ulster Defence Association , an Ulster loyalist paramilitary organisation...
had been expelled from the movement and the UDA leadership decided to present a more civilian face. On 22 February 2003 a new one year ceasefire extension was announced at a hotel in east Belfast but this was presented as a UPRG event, with journalists' questions being answered by the likes of Frank McCoubrey
Frank McCoubrey
Frank McCoubrey is a Unionist politician and loyalist in Northern Ireland, as well as a community activist and researcher. He is a leading member of the Ulster Political Research Group and a member of Belfast City Council, representing the Court area...
, Sammy Duddy
Sammy Duddy
Evan Abbott Samuel Duddy , known as Sammy, was a Northern Irish loyalist, having joined the Ulster Defence Association shortly after its formation in 1971...
, Frankie Gallagher
Frankie Gallagher
Frankie Gallagher is a loyalist politician from Northern Ireland and leading spokesman for the Ulster Political Research Group which offers political advice to the Ulster Defence Association .-Work with UPRG:...
, Jim Wright and Tommy Kirkham
Tommy Kirkham
Tommy Kirkham is a Northern Ireland loyalist political figure and former councillor. He was previously associated with the Ulster Defence Association and the Ulster Political Research Group although he has since been expelled from both groups. He was a former deputy mayor of Newtownabbey and was...
, all of whom had emerged as the leading figures on the group. The ceasefire was indefinitely extended in January 2004 and once again it was left to the UPRG to make the announcement.
Although the UPRG is not a registered political party some members have gained elected office. McCoubrey is a member of Belfast City Council
Belfast City Council
Belfast City Council is the local authority with responsibility for the city of Belfast, the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland. The Council serves an estimated population of , the largest of any district council in Northern Ireland, while also being the fourth smallest by area...
ostensibly as an independent (and was formerly deputy Lord Mayor
Lord Mayor
The Lord Mayor is the title of the Mayor of a major city, with special recognition.-Commonwealth of Nations:* In Australia it is a political position. Australian cities with Lord Mayors: Adelaide, Brisbane, Darwin, Hobart, Melbourne, Newcastle, Parramatta, Perth, Sydney, and Wollongong...
of the city), whilst Kirkham (a member of Newtownabbey Borough Council
Newtownabbey Borough Council
Newtownabbey Borough Council is a Local Council in County Antrim in Northern Ireland. Newtownabbey has a population of over 80,000 and is on the north shore of Belfast Lough just immediately north of Belfast. The Borough was founded in 1958 as a result of an Act of Parliament passed in 1957 and...
) is also registered as the leader of the Ulster Protestant League, a title he has never used in elections.
2006 split
In October 2006, the South East Antrim Brigade of the UDA announced it would no longer give its support to the UPRG, but would henceforth align itself with a new body named Beyond Conflict, founded by Kirkham. Several hours after this announcement, Beyond Conflict stated that it could take eight million pounds of British Government money and five years before the South East Antrim Brigade would cease all terrorist activity. Kirkham's role within the UPRG is in doubt after he was expelled from the UDA for his role in this loyalist feudLoyalist feud
A loyalist feud refers to any of the sporadic feuds which have erupted almost routinely between Northern Ireland's various loyalist paramilitary groups since they were founded shortly before and after the religious/political conflict known as The Troubles broke out in the late 1960s...
.
2007 funding row
In March 2007 the British governmentGovernment of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Government is the central government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The Government is led by the Prime Minister, who selects all the remaining Ministers...
announced plans to give £1 million to a Farset Youth and Community Development project designed to move the UDA away from paramilitarism
Paramilitary
A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....
. The announcement followed an initiative by the UPRG to consult with UDA activists, culminating in the publication of a business plan to facilitate a Conflict Transformation Initiative. The move was supported by Chief Constable Hugh Orde
Hugh Orde
Sir Hugh Stephen Roden Orde, OBE, QPM is the current President of the Association of Chief Police Officers, representing the 44 police forces of England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Between 2002-2009 he was the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland .Sir Hugh joined London's...
who was seen to shake hands with Jackie McDonald
Jackie McDonald
John "Jackie" McDonald is a senior Northern Irish loyalist and the incumbent Ulster Defence Association brigadier for South Belfast, having been promoted to the rank by former UDA commander Andy Tyrie in 1988, following John McMichael's killing by the Provisional IRA in December 1987...
, a senior loyalist believed to be the UDA's leading figure in the south of the city. In direct contrast to the statement by leading Police Service of Northern Ireland
Police Service of Northern Ireland
The Police Service of Northern Ireland is the police force that serves Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabulary which, in turn, was the successor to the Royal Irish Constabulary in Northern Ireland....
officer Det Supt Esmond Adair, who claimed that the UDA was still heavily involved in extortion
Extortion
Extortion is a criminal offence which occurs when a person unlawfully obtains either money, property or services from a person, entity, or institution, through coercion. Refraining from doing harm is sometimes euphemistically called protection. Extortion is commonly practiced by organized crime...
. Orde was to later criticise the UDA following the shooting of a police officer in Castlmara by dissident elements associated with Kirkham's South East Antrim-based Beyond Conflict Group. Further disturbances took place in Bangor, were again members of the UDA East Belfast group represented by Gallagher were said to fire shots at the police during a police raid against criminals living in Killcooley Estate.
This led Margaret Ritchie
Margaret Ritchie (politician)
Margaret Ritchie is an Irish politician from Northern Ireland. She was the leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party from 7 February 2010 to 5 November 2011 - being replaced in this role by Alasdair McDonnell - and served as the Minister for Social Development from 8 May 2007 until her...
Minister for Social Development to say that she would pull the plug on the £1.2m project run by Farset, if the UDA did not begin to decommission in 60 days. She further called on the group to begin a meaningful dialogue with the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning
Independent International Commission on Decommissioning
The Independent International Commission on Decommissioning was established to oversee the decommissioning of paramilitary weapons in Northern Ireland, as part of the peace process.-Legislation and organisation:...
, the group responsible for overseeing decommissioning and led by General John de Chastelain
John de Chastelain
Alfred John Gardyne Drummond de Chastelain is a retired Canadian soldier and diplomat.De Chastelain was born in Romania and educated in England and in Scotland before his family immigrated to Canada in 1954...
. McDonald had stated that he was reluctant to see the UDA decommission because of the threat posed by dissident republican
Dissident republican
The term dissident republican or anti-ceasefire republican is used to describe Irish republicans who do not support the current peace agreements in Ireland. Some dispute the validity of both parliaments on the island The term dissident republican or anti-ceasefire republican is used to describe...
groups. However ultimately McDonald was credited with convincing the UDA to go through with the process when the UDA decommissioned in 2010.