The PSNI has welcomed a High Court ruling on the policing of last month’s Drumcree parade stand‑off – as politicians on both sides of the dispute issued sharply contrasting responses.
In a judgment delivered earlier today, Mr Justice Scoffield held that while Portadown District LOL No.1 had a legal right to walk its notified route along the Garvaghy Road under a Parades Commission determination, the Secretary of State acted lawfully in later banning the procession on public‑order grounds. The court also found there was “nothing unlawful” in the Chief Constable’s decision to seek that review.
The ruling followed weeks of tension around the planned September 27 Drumcree procession, which the Parades Commission had permitted subject to conditions. Police ultimately advised the lodge it could not proceed because of a large, unlawful protest blocking the Garvaghy Road, and the Secretary of State then issued a prohibition order.
In a detailed statement, the PSNI said it “acknowledges” the judgment and “welcomes the court’s clear finding” that the Chief Constable’s referral to the Secretary of State, and the subsequent ban, were lawful.
Related: Judge dismisses Orange Order case against Secretary of State’s banning parade down Garvaghy Road
The PSNI said the court had recognised that its operational strategy was directed towards facilitating the lawful procession “while balancing the rights of all those affected and prioritising the preservation of life and public safety”.
It highlighted the judge’s acceptance that all “lawful and proportionate options” to get the parade through had been exhausted, and that a major public‑order operation to clear the Garvaghy Road would likely not have succeeded and would have carried an “unacceptable risk of serious injury, disorder and wider harm across Northern Ireland”.
The statement noted the court found that the policing operation, efforts to secure a negotiated resolution, and the “continuing criminal justice response” collectively met the State’s obligation to take appropriate steps to facilitate peaceful assembly – while making clear that obligation “does not require a lawful procession to be facilitated at any cost”.
Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said it had been “an exceptionally complex operation” in which officers and staff “worked prolonged hours in exceptionally challenging circumstances for an extended period”.
“Our decisions were informed by the operational picture, intelligence, public safety, the risk of serious disorder and the impact on communities and policing across Northern Ireland. The court has recognised that these were proper and compelling policing considerations,” he said.
“We recognise the significant public interest which continues to surround this matter. PSNI remains committed to impartial policing, upholding the rule of law, protecting the public and facilitating peaceful processions wherever it can be done safely and proportionately.”
The Chief Constable also pointed to the judge’s reference to an “ongoing investigation into alleged criminal offences connected with the un‑notified protest and obstruction of the route”, stressing that probe “remains ongoing”.
“I am proud of the policing response and want to publicly acknowledge the officers and staff involved who made sure that Northern Ireland did not suffer disorder. They are a credit to society,” he added.
DUP Upper Bann MP Carla Lockhart branded the ruling “damning”, saying it confirmed the lodge’s legal right to parade had been “thwarted by an unlawful mob”.
Quoting the judgment, she highlighted the passage where the judge noted that the lodge’s right to process along the notified route had been established, and that “significant concerns have now been expressed about respect for the rule of law in this jurisdiction… by reason of [some elected representatives’] participation in the unnotified protest”.
Ms Lockhart said: “Whilst no one will be surprised by Sinn Féin’s lawlessness, the SDLP must now be feeling very uncomfortable about the mob they allowed themselves to be caught up in.”
She pointed to intelligence material referred to in the judgment which, she said, showed that republicans “had brought weapons to Garvaghy Road and did intend to use them” as part of the protest.
Describing Mr Justice Scoffield as “damning in his criticism of the elected politicians who have sought to place themselves above the law”, she singled out First Minister Michelle O’Neill.
Citing a key line from the ruling – “whatever one’s standing or strength of conviction, the law does not apply only when you agree with it or with the outcome of a particular legal process” – Ms Lockhart said: “It is quite clear profound consequences can no longer be avoided with any credibility… Michelle O’Neill must be removed from office.”
She insisted the outcome – in which a legal right was prevented from being exercised by unlawful conduct – “cannot win, or be seen to win”, and reiterated the Portadown District’s view that its parade “must be respected and given effect”.
Sinn Féin representatives in Upper Bann hailed the judgment as the “right decision” which confirmed there should be no return to “unwanted, sectarian marches” along the Garvaghy Road.
Councillor Catherine Nelson said the ruling upholding the Secretary of State’s ban was “the only sensible outcome”.
Breandán MacCionnaith and Catherine Nelson
“The days of forcing unwanted, sectarian marches down the Garvaghy Road are over,” she said.
“Sinn Féin is proud to have stood with the residents of the Garvaghy Road to protect 28 years of peace and progress. Standing up for what is right is always the right thing to do.
“Everyone must be able to live their lives free from sectarian harassment and intimidation… The community of the Garvaghy Road must now be left to live in peace… There is no going back. Not now. Not ever.”
Sinn Féin councillors Paul Duffy and Clare McConville‑Walker issued a joint statement welcoming what they called a “clear message that the rights, dignity and peace of local residents must be respected”.
“The days of forcing unwanted, sectarian marches down Garvaghy Road must be firmly consigned to the past,” they said.
“No community should ever have to endure sectarian harassment, intimidation or the disruption of their daily lives simply to accommodate an unwanted march.”
They praised residents for “tremendous strength and determination” over many decades and said today’s decision was an “important affirmation that their voices matter, their rights matter, and their community deserves to be treated with dignity and respect”.
In the written ruling, the judge stressed that those opposed to the march should “take no particular joy” in the outcome, noting that the position reached had come “at very significant cost” in policing resources, community relations and disruption to daily life.
While acknowledging that the lodge had a legal right to walk its route under the Parades Commission decision, he concluded that the “equal and opposite forces of the procession and the protest” were “perpetuating harm to both communities” in Portadown and that “the public interest is best served… if the procession does not occur”.
He also underlined that the case concerned the specific notified parade for 27 September 2026 and did not prevent the lodge notifying future processions – nor did it amount to an endorsement of the unlawful protest that blocked the road.
