Questions have been raised about why Stormont education minister Paul Givan met with a group representing loyalist paramilitaries about children’s education.
The chair of Stormont’s education committee has hit out at the DUP minister’s engagement with the Loyalist Communities Council (LCC) on the “education of our children”.
It comes after the paramilitary-linked pressure group said its delegates, led by chair David Campbell, had met with Mr Givan on Tuesday.
In a statement, the LCC said during the meeting it had voiced its objections to an Irish language school in east Belfast, telling the minister it had “no meaningful support from the local unionist and loyalist population, and no consultation had taken place with local residents”.
The group also said its delegation had “appraised the minister of the LCC’s objective of ending educational underachievement in loyalist areas and outlined some of its pilot projects that have supported school activities in north and west Belfast”.
“The minister was asked if the ‘Fair Start’ education strategy that had been commissioned by previous education minister Peter Weir was still on the table to be implemented and the minister confirmed that it remained departmental policy subject to funding,” the statement said.
“The delegation emphasised their support for the early intervention measures in the strategy and stressed that no child should leave primary school without being competent in core literacy and numeracy skills.”
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The LCC, which represents groups including the UVF, UDA and Red Hand Commando, said it had raised its objections to the building of an Irish primary school in east Belfast.
It comes after Scoil na Seolta, set to open on Montgomery Road, had plans for the temporary building passed earlier this year.
Residents in the area later gathered for a public meeting, where claims of an “inexcusable and unjustifiable” lack of community engagement were heard.
The LCC added: “The delegation also advised the minister that the proposal to build an Irish language school in the mainly unionist area of east Belfast should be stopped, that it had no meaningful support from the local unionist and loyalist population, and no consultation had taken place with local residents”.
The discussions with Mr Givan come just months after Northern Ireland secretary of state Hilary Benn said he had “no intention” of sitting down with the LCC.
Sinn Féin MP John Finucane said the meeting was “deeply concerning”.
“Belfast City Council has already approved temporary plans to build a new nursery, soft play and primary school facilities to host Bunscoil na Seolta, and that should move forward without delay,” he said.
“The Irish language is thriving across our society and record numbers of our children and young people are being educated through the medium of Irish with more and more demand on our local Gaelscoilanna.
“It’s outrageous that a group which includes representatives of loyalist gangs are attempting to influence decisions about our children’s future and right to be educated through the language of their choice.”
Mr Finucane added: “The education minister must make it clear that his department rejects this outrageous demand and that work will continue to progress on delivering this facility.”
Former Ulster Unionist leader Doug Beattie posted on X, formerly Twitter, that he did not believe the stance taken by the LCC “represents the majority view of the loyalist community”.
Meanwhile, Alliance MLA Nick Mathison, who chairs Stormont’s education committee, criticised Mr Givan’s engagement.
“The LCC is an umbrella organisation for active paramilitary groups and organisations such as this should have absolutely no place when it comes to decision-making over the education of our children,” he said.
“Questions must be asked about the minister’s judgement in this case.
“He should be seeking to remove all paramilitary influence over our children and young people, rather than giving their views a platform.”
A Department of Education spokesperson told the Irish News: “Paul Givan, Education Minister met with the LCC to discuss a range of issues relating to education underachievement in loyalist areas and undertook to share information on DE’s RAISE programme and other relevant initiatives. The meeting was arranged at the request of the LCC.”
