THE existence of an 'elite nationalist network' operating in professions such as law, the media and public service will have come as a surprise to many, not least those employed in such fields themselves.
The claim by former Labour MP Kate Hoey earlier this week unleashed an avalanche of criticism on social media.
Writing in a document about the Northern Ireland Protocol released by Jamie Bryson's Unionist Voice Publications, the cross-party peer expressed support for activism by young people in the 'pro-Union community' and efforts to encourage those from working class loyalist communities in particular to engage in education and seek entry to professional vocations.
However, she went on to claim that "many professional vocations have become dominated by those of a nationalist persuasion, and this positioning of activists is then used to exert influence on those in power".
In a video message, Sinn Féin Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill described the comments as "outrageous" and called for them to be withdrawn.
A National Union of Journalists officer also accused Baroness Hoey of "gross stereotyping" and representing the regional media as if it were a "sectarian tug of war".
Ms Hoey responded in a platform piece for this paper yesterday, insisting her remarks were concerned with identity and political agenda rather than religion and suggesting the storm they created was evidence itself of the "elite nationalist network" at work.
While the Co Antrim-born politician is entitled to her view, the danger in her comments is that they will inevitably be used to support the drawing of crude associations between community background and political views.
References to the Marxist philosopher Antonio Gramsci also appear to suggest a plot to infiltrate institutions of the kind that would fit better with the paranoia of the McCarthyism period in 1950s America rather than a modern society seeking to free itself from tribal labels of the past.
SDLP leader Colum Eastwood will have summed up the puzzlement of many yesterday when he wondered drily: "Am I supposed to have received a membership card for the Elite Nationalist Network?"
Far more useful would be a proper discussion of the link between deprivation and educational underachievement that continues to blight the lives of young people from all community backgrounds in Northern Ireland.
A future where our political elites focus their energies on ensuring opportunities for all is a conspiracy we all could endorse.
