NORTHERN IRELAND (Hansard, 6 April 1970)

§ Mr. Pounder
I beg to ask leave to move the Adjournment of the House, under Standing Order No. 9, for the purpose of discussing a specific and important matter that should have urgent consideration, namely, the current serious situation in Northern Ireland as instanced by the violent incidents which have occurred during the past week, particularly in Belfast. I believe that I can, in a very few sentences, show clearly that the matter is urgent, that it falls within the orbit of the responsibilities of Ministerial action, that it is important, and that it is specific.
That the recent disturbances in Ulster are a matter of urgency is self-evident. The extensive Press, television and radio news coverage of the disturbances on the Springfield Road and the series of explosions that have occurred in the heart of Belfast during the past 48 hours have clearly shown that these events are considered by the news media to be a matter of a national importance. If the importance of an issue is to be judged from the position which it occupies in newscasts and news broadcasts, over the past 10 days, tragically, Ulster has featured almost constanly as the main or second news item in almost every bulletin.
I realise that there are strict conventions regarding the aspects of Ulster affairs which can be discussed here, and that in a number of fields there is no direct Ministerial responsibility in this House. However, the specific matter which is the subject of my humble application to you, Mr. Speaker, for the Adjournment of the House, falls, I think, clearly within the responsibilities of the House, in that the General Officer Commanding, Northern Ireland, in his capacity as director of security operations, is responsible to the Ministry of Defence and, therefore, to this House. The presence of about 7,000 soldiers in the Province, of whom a sizeable proportion are deployed in Belfast, further fulfils the requirements of Standing Order No. 9 in respect of Ministerial responsibility.
33 May I, in conclusion, further stress the urgency of the matter by referring to a comment in today's issue of The Times, where it is reported that the Secretary of State for Defence declared in a television interview, I think last night, that more British troops would go to Northern Ireland if they were needed. That such a comment should be made at all underscores the seriousness and urgency of the subject matter of my request to you, Sir.
This is a sad, unhappy and tense Monday in Belfast.

§ Mr. Speaker
The hon. Member for Belfast, South (Mr. Pounder) was courteous enough to inform me this morning, as was the hon. Member for Belfast, West (Mr. Fitt), that he would seek to move the Adjournment of the House for the purpose of discussing a specific and important matter that he thinks should have urgent consideration, namely, the current serious situation in Northern Ireland as instanced by the violent incidents which have occurred during the past week, particularly in Belfast. I am satisfied that the matter raised by the hon. Gentleman is proper to be discussed under Standing Order No. 9. Does the hon. Gentleman have the leave of the House?

§ Mr. Speaker
The Motion for the Adjournment of the House will now stand over until the commencement of public business tomorrow, when a debate on the matter will take place for three hours.