Letter: Marching against civil rights

Sir: The decision by the Chief Constable of the Royal Ulster Constabulary to provide a heavily armed escort so as to make possible the Orange Order march through Portadown has highlighted, once again, the simple fact that Unionists support the link with Britain and wish British troops to remain in Northern Ireland to guarantee their permanent dominance there.

That being so it is clear that a continuing British presence and government from Westminster is not the answer to the problems facing the people in the Province but a major cause of those problems.

The best hope of peace must lie in the creation of conditions that would allow the communities in the North to determine their own future, and their relations with the Republic, within the island of Ireland, without the involvement of British troops and free from British jurisdiction.

TONY BENN MP

(Chesterfield, Lab)

House of Commons

London SW1