§ Rev. Ian Paisley (Antrim, North)I beg to ask leave to move the Adjournment of the House, under Standing Order No. 20, for the purpose of discussing a specific and important matter that should have urgent consideration, namely,
the new phase of IRA terrorism and intimidation which surfaced this weekend in County Fermanagh and which has forced both Roman Catholic and Protestant businesses to insert public notices in the local paper announcing that, under threat from the IRA, they will not in the future do any business with or serve Her Majesty's security forces.The matter is specific. I have a copy of the newspaper involved at hand. It contains a series of adverts and I will quote from several of them. One from a Roman Catholic business states:At the request of the Fermanagh Brigade of the Provisional IRA, I Barry McCormack Proprietor of Silver Dollar Take Aways in Lisnaskea and Irvinestown will not be serving members of the Security Forces.Another advert, from a Protestant business, states:The Proprietors of Henry's Filling Station, Lisnaskea, wish to announce that they can no longer welcome business from the Security Forces.Another advert, this time from Traynor's cafe at Maguiresbridge, which is a Roman Catholic business, states:Owing to a phone call we can no longer serve the Security Forces.Another advert from a Protestant business, W. J. Kennedy at Magheraveely, states:We wish to make it publicly known that we will no longer serve the security forces.The matter is specific. Had it happened on this side of the water, there would have been a furore in the House.The matter is also important. Anyone who reads Irish history knows the power of boycott. The terrorists will escalate this weapon in their armoury. Terrorists always prevail when law enforcement powers are not exercised by the legal Government. Many people who are against the IRA and all its works have had to bow because they are on record as saying that they went to the authorities, who told them that unfortunately they could not protect them.
This is a matter of life and death. It strikes at those good and true men and women who serve in the security forces in Northern Ireland. They put their lives at risk to serve all the community and they are being struck at in this way by murderous thugs.
§ Mr. SpeakerThe hon. Gentleman asks leave to move the Adjournment of the House, under Standing Order No. 20, for the purpose of discussing a specific and important matter that he believes should have urgent consideration, namely,
the new phase of IRA terrorism and intimidation which surfaced this weekend in County Fermanagh and which has forced both Roman Catholic and Protestant businesses to insert public notices in the local press announcing that, under threat from the IRA, they will not in the future do any business with or serve Her Majesty's security forces.I listened with deep concern to the hon. Gentleman but, as he knows, my decision is whether to give the matter priority over the business set down for today or for tomorrow. In this case, I regret that the matter does not fall within the criteria laid down under the Standing Order 681 and I cannot, therefore, submit his application to the House. Nevertheless, I hope that he will find other opportunities to debate the matter.