The Parades Commission is a

quasi-judicial A quasi-judicial body is a non-judicial body which can interpret law. It is an entity such as an arbitration panel or tribunal board, which can be a public administrative agency (not part of the judicial branch of government) but also a contra ...

non-departmental public body In the United Kingdom, non-departmental public body (NDPB) is a classification applied by the Cabinet Office, Treasury, the Scottish Government, and the Northern Ireland Executive to public sector organisations that have a role in the process o ...

responsible for placing restrictions on any parades in Northern Ireland it deems contentious or offensive. It is composed of seven members, all of whom are appointed by the

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland The secretary of state for Northern Ireland (; ), also referred to as Northern Ireland Secretary or SoSNI, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the Northern Ireland Office. The offi ...

. Restrictions it can impose include a prohibition on music being played, re-routing parades to avoid contentious areas, or banning certain participants based on previous breaches of its determinations. Its rulings are usually enforced by either parade stewards or the

police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...

, though there are disputes as to whether this is done to the letter of the law in certain areas. The Commission acts under the Public Processions (Northern Ireland) Act 1998. Parade organisers and participants are liable to arrest and prosecution for breaching any of the commission's rulings, although no-one has been charged since the commission was established in 1998. A section 6(7) offence has a maximum punishment of six months imprisonment or level five on the

standard scale The standard scale is a system in Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth law whereby financial Criminal law, criminal penalties (Fine (penalty), fines) in legislation have maximum levels set against a standard scale. Then, when inflation makes it nec ...

. The commission was set up after the large-scale civil strife that followed the Drumcree conflict over an

Orange Order The Loyal Orange Institution, commonly known as the Orange Order, is an international Protestant fraternal order based in Northern Ireland and primarily associated with Ulster Protestants. It also has lodges in England, Grand Orange Lodge of ...

parade in

Portadown Portadown ( ) is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town is based on the River Bann in the north of the county, about southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population ...

. It has come under strong criticism from the Order. The Grand Lodge of the Order has a policy of non-engagement with the commission, although some private and district lodges, particularly those with contentious parades, have agreed to talk to it.

Commissioners

As of April 2021, the commissioners are: * Graham Forbes (chair) *Joelle Black *Derek Wilson *Marian Cree *Eimear McAllister *Billy Gamble

References

External links

* {{Authority control Quasi-judicial bodies Orange Order The Troubles (Northern Ireland) Northern Ireland peace process 1998 establishments in Northern Ireland Northern Ireland Office Non-departmental public bodies of the United Kingdom government Organizations established in 1998 Freedom of assembly

Commissioners

See also

References

External links