Law changes could help police remove paramilitary flags

Proposed changes to terrorism laws could give police in Northern Ireland additional powers to remove paramilitary flags.

At a policing board meeting last week, Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said he has been engaging with the government's independent reviewer of terrorism legislation Jonathan Hall KC about "additional legislation".

Justice Minister Naomi Long said the fact that "public displays of support for illegal organisations remain in place, unchallenged, enhances the hold these organisations have over communities".

Currently, the PSNI can only remove flags if they are collecting evidence for a prosecution case.

Speaking on BBC News NI's Good Morning Ulster, Mr Hall said the current law also allows police to prosecute anyone who has erected a paramilitary flag.

"Police feel unable to remove [the flags] because they say, 'we're never going to be able to prosecute anyone so how can we seize them?'" he said.

There is now a bill going through Parliament which will allow police to seize flags "even if they're never going to be able to prosecute someone or use them as evidence", Mr Hall said.

"So that's the key change.

"I'm trying to help the authorities use their powers and not feel they can't use their powers when these flags are hanging up and they've got no idea who did it."

The decision of which flags to take down is the "million dollar question", Mr Hall added.

"The way police and terrorism powers work is you just have to trust the authorities to use those powers wisely... I'm sure that sometimes the police will say, 'if we do this it's going to cause massive disorder so either we don't want to do it at all or we don't want to do it now'."

When the bill passes, Mr Hall said it will mean police can "go and seize a flag and no one will be able to say they can't do that".

"That will give them the confidence to act. I hope very much they do act."

He said if police feel they need "further powers", for example in relation to murals, he will discuss this with them.

Long said that if "so-called paramilitary and terrorist groups are truly committed to moving away from violence", they should "stop laying claim to neighbourhoods".

"If they will not do so voluntarily, then it is right that they should be removed by the appropriate authorities."

She added that while the PSNI has "a key role to play in upholding and enforcing the law", all statutory partners should "take seriously their responsibilities to act".

A spokesperson for the PSNI said that where an offence is identified they retain "operational discretion as to what action to take in terms of removal".

This includes alerting or advising land and property owners of the material and requesting its removal by them.

"This is particularly relevant where there is no necessity and in some cases express statutory power to seize material as evidence," the spokesperson said.