Andy Tyrie: Former UDA leader dies in his 80s
Andy Tyrie, a former leader of loyalist paramilitary group the Ulster Defence Association (UDA), has died.Mr Tyrie, who was in his 80s and died on Friday, began his leadership of the paramilitary group in the early 1970s, during some of the bloodiest years of the Troubles.He continued until the late 1980s when he avoided death in a car bomb attack and resigned.He later backed the Ulster Democratic Party's (UDP's) support of the Good Friday Agreement, which brought an end to the 30-year conflict in 1998.
A prominent figure within loyalism, the Loyalist Conflict Museum in east Belfast, which recounts the history of the UDA, was originally called the Andy Tyrie Interpretive Centre. Former chair of the Parades Commission and Community Relations Council, Peter Osbourne, paid tribute on X, writing: "In the years that I knew him, Andy Tyrie was an advocate for tolerance, reconciliation, and on those issues that particularly affect working-class communities."
Mr Tyrie emerged as UDA leader after former leader Tommy Herron was shot dead in 1973. The UDA, which formed in 1971, had tens of thousands of members at its peak and killed hundreds of people during the Troubles, often claiming responsibility under the cover name the Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF). It remained a legal organisation until it was banned in August 1992.During his leadership, Mr Tyrie was involved in Ulster Workers' Council strike in 1974, a 14-day campaign of civil disobedience which brought down Northern Ireland's first power-sharing executive.In 1999, he told The Observer that the UDA were not opposed to power sharing but "the Council of Ireland, which was being seen as a mechanism to roll us into a United Ireland".
State papers released in 2005 showed that 30 years previously Mr Tyrie had organised talks between the UDA and the IRA, without the knowledge of many of his supporters. Merlyn Rees, the then Northern Ireland secretary, told Prime Minister Harold Wilson that the meetings included a "certain amount of camaraderie". In that interview with The Observer in 1999, Mr Tyrie said many of the things they had argued for had come to fruition through the Good Friday Agreement."We called for power sharing, sensible north-south co-operation under the control of a Belfast assembly and a council of the British Isles. All of this has happened and that is why I'm happy about the new government at Stormont."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
26 minutes ago
- The Sun
Deputy head had sex with teen girl in cupboard at top school & visited her home for secret trysts while her mum was out
A MARRIED deputy headteacher had sex with a teen girl in a cupboard at a top school. Philip Culling targeted the "vulnerable" pupil while he was director of music at Godolphin and Latymer School in West London. 2 The married dad-of-three, who was in his 40s at the time, had a sexual relationship with the 19-year-old. This included intimate liaisons in his office and a sexual encounter in a cupboard that was interrupted by a dinner lady. His fling was reportedly an "open secret" among staff at the £33,000-a-year private school. He was allowed to quietly resign in 2014 without facing a disciplinary hearing, which allowed him to continue working in education. This included a stint at Holland Park Pre-Prep and Nursery in 2016, which was just one mile from his previous post. But in 2022 - eight years after his resignation - a whistleblower came forward, which triggered a formal probe. Culling has now been banned from teaching for life following a tribunal. The Teaching Regulation Agency found he had embarked on an "inappropriate sexual relationship with a vulnerable pupil". Panel chair Jo Palmer-Tweed said: "Mr Culling was a child protection officer at the school, and as such had appropriate training in safeguarding. "Despite this, he took advantage of the position of trust he was in towards a vulnerable child for his own gratification." The tribunal was told Culling and the girl met up secretly, kissed in parks and embraced in the school lift. They first had sex in a park following a leavers' reception in June 2013 and the pupil performed a sex act on him after the school's jazz night. After the teen left school in 2013, Culling would visit her home while her mum was out and the pair would have sex. The hearing was told: "Mr Culling came around, approximately once a week, and that they would talk and have sexual intercourse. "She stated that she moved into a flat in late August 2013, and that a lot of sexual acts including touching and oral sex happened in very public areas." Culling bought the girl, who was named only as Person B, gifts and referred to her as the "LOML" - love of my life - in a good luck message before her A-levels. He also signed a Valentine's card addressed to "by far the most gorgeous and wonderful person in the entire world". Culling took the girl to the pub for her birthday drink during school hours and received oral sex from her in the cupboard on a number of occasions. Goldolphin leaders did not contact police or teaching regulators because they believed the relationship had only started when the teenager left the school. The girl told the tribunal that Culling had "asked her lie" about the relationship in 2014 amid fears he would lose his job. The deputy head coached her on how to make the fling sound as "recent as it could be", it was said. He even messaged her in 2023 after the probe was launched in a bid to convince her not to help the investigation. Culling told her: "I'm hoping you'll agree with me that it is best not to engage with it. You can't be made to." He has now been banned from teaching indefinitely, with no review period, after being found him guilty of unacceptable professional conduct. The watchdog said: "The panel heard evidence of the long-term impact on Person B including the shame she feels as a result of their relationship and of having been coerced to lie to protect him. "It has tainted her memories of her school experience, and she referred to having 'struggled to see herself in a good light'. "Mr Culling's conduct led to Person B being exposed to, or influenced by, his behaviour in a harmful way." Godolphin and Latymer School, based in Hammersmith, has around 800 female pupils between the ages of 11 and 18. Famous alumni include celebrity chef Nigella Lawson, Hollywood actress Kate Beckinsale, singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor and TV presenter Davina McCall. A spokesperson said: "he TRA's report reveals a shocking and deeply disturbing pattern of past behaviour which we unequivocally condemn. "We fully support the TRA's decision to bar Philip Culling from working in the teaching profession ever again. "He left Godolphin and Latymer 11 years ago after a comprehensive governor-led investigation into his conduct. "The Hammersmith and Fulham LADO was fully aware and supported the school's actions at the time, and the police were also informed. Information and evidence not previously available to the school have now come to light through the TRA process and we are reviewing this. "Above all, we are devastated to learn that a former pupil suffered in this way." 2
BBC News
30 minutes ago
- BBC News
Crays Hill man 'refuses to attend court' accused of 41 dog deaths
A man accused of causing the deaths of 41 dogs at a rescue centre he ran refused to attend court, a judge animals were discovered during a raid at a property in Crays Hill near Billericay, Essex, on 13 discovered the remains of four more dogs on 4 June, after a number of buildings at the site were Rahman, 25, of Hope Road in the village, was due to appear at Southend Crown Court charged with three counts of fraud by false representation and two animal cruelty offences. However, Judge Samantha Leigh said he refused to leave the prison cell he was remanded in and attend the adjourned proceedings until the week beginning 23 June. Basildon Council launched an internal inquiry after the discovery, which also led to the seizure of 21 alive dogs in need of treatment.A 25-year-old woman from London and another man who were arrested by police have been bailed until were prohibited from entering Hope Road and being in possession of any animal during that period. Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Daily Mail
34 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Over-60s free travel costs taxpayers £100 MILLION more than fare dodgers
Free public transport for older Londoners is costing taxpayers around £500 million a year - £100 million more than fare dodgers. More than 1.5 million people aged 60 and above currently travel for free on London 's buses, Tubes, trains and trams thanks to two schemes: the 60+ Oyster Card for those aged 60 to 65, and the Freedom pass for those 66 and over. But with costs rapidly rising and many users still working, critics say the benefit is becoming 'difficult' to justify. Transport for London (TFL) is predicated to spend a staggering £135 million on the 60+ Oyster Card alone this year, up from £60 million in 2016 - and the figure is expected to hit £185 million by 2027. Meanwhile, the Freedom Pass costs London's boroughs another £350 million annually and could reach nearly £500 million by the end of the decade, as reported by The Telegraph. The hefty price tag has now sparked debate about whether these schemes are still fair - or sustainable. According to TfL, 60 per cent of those using the 60+ Oyster Card are still in work, and 20 per cent use it to commute. On average, Londoners aged 60 to 64 earn about £42,000 a year - nearly double the income of workers in their early twenties. Critics say this shows the benefit is going to people who don't necessarily need it. Reem Ibrahim, of the Institute of Economic Affairs, said: 'It is difficult to justify a system where the wealthiest age group in the country is having their travel funded by taxpayers. We urgently need a targeted approach.' Liz Emerson, chief executive of the research charity International Foundation, called it a 'perfect example of intergenerational unfairness,' with younger workers essentially footing the bill for their older colleagues' commutes. The Freedom Pass scheme is managed by the London boroughs, most of which raised council tax by the maximum 5 per cent this year. The body that it on behalf of the boroughs has warned the the scheme will soon become 'unsustainable.' The 60+ Oyster Card was introduced by then-Mayor Boris Johnson in 2012, and is funded through council tax and the congestion charge. Once users celebrate their 66th birthday, they automatically move onto the Freedom Pass - unless they have a disability, in which case they may qualify earlier. During the pandemic, Mayor Sadiq Khan paused the use of these passes before 9am to save money - a move that generated an extra £15 million in fares. However, he rejected a proposal to gradually raise the age limit for the 60+ card in line with the state pension age. A TfL spokesperson told the Telegraph: 'Both the Mayor and TfL are committed to making public transport in London as accessible, convenient, and affordable as possible. 'We regularly review our range of concessions to ensure that they continue to benefit Londoners, while also remaining affordable for TfL to operate.' It comes as a report released last Wednesday found fare evasion is becoming 'normalised', with train staff telling the inquiry that they are struggling to cope with 'aggressive' passengers who refuse to buy tickets. Travellers are using 'a range of techniques to persistently' underpay or avoid paying and see it as a 'victimless crime ', according to the Office of Road and Rail (ORR). It found fare evasion is a mounting problem now costing taxpayers £400million a year which is resulting in higher fares and less investment cash to improve services.
