Latest news with #RoyalIrishRegiment
Daily Mail
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Sir David's dig about lawyers drew a prim response from the PM. The House didn't warm to Starmer's tone... QUENTIN LETTS on SAS veterans
Tim Collins was in the gallery for PMQs with some old Army colleagues, one of them a beret-topped old lad quite possibly carved from mesquite wood. Col Collins was the Royal Irish Regiment commander who in 2003, before the Iraq war, gave his men a speech about death and honour and the imperatives both of ruthlessness in battle and magnanimity in victory. It ended with the stirring words 'our business now is north'. Anyway, he and the mesquite guy and their friends were in the Commons to hear Sir David Davis (Con, Goole & Pocklington) urge the Prime Minister to stop the legal harassment of former soldiers who served in Northern Ireland. The Government, whose attorney-general Lord Hermer KC once represented Gerry Adams, intends to undo a 2023 law which gave soldiers part-immunity from such prosecutions. It is the sort of area in which Sir Keir and his old buddy Hermer kept themselves busy in their professional days. We may guess their instincts. PMs can not always indulge their youthful radicalism. They must consider bigger concepts such as military morale, natural justice and public sentiment, which is not necessarily as fussed about dead IRA terrorists' human rights as certain fancy KCs might be. Sir David spoke up, for the sixth time in recent months, for veterans who could be 'exposed to legal persecution for crimes they did not commit'. Up in the gallery, Col Collins and his neighbours listened impassively. When lobby groups visit Parliament they normally do much nodding and craning of necks to demonstrate their emotional involvement. These Army boys did none of that. They just sat there like troopers awaiting the first shot of a skirmish. They were controlled. Intent. Sir David noted that during the Troubles there was never a shortage of legal oversight for the security forces. 'No bullet went unscrutinised. Our soldiers were held to the highest standard of law. The IRA were not. They tortured and shot men in the back.' Yet now the Government intended to prosecute 'our own men' over split-second decisions taken decades ago. The House, which had earlier been in a rather silly mood, listened to all this in silence. Sir David has, over the years, rebelled enough against his own whips to have earned the right to be heard. To swelling agreement he asked: 'Will the Government protect our veterans or sacrifice them to politically motivated lawyers trying to rewrite history with a pack of lies?' There followed, from Sir Keir, a 15-sentence reply that was oddly tone-deaf and, I fear, horribly revealing. For it was quickly evident that Sir David's line about 'politically motivated lawyers' had irked Sir Keir. Touched a nerve, you might even say. He complained that the final part of Sir David's question had lacked 'seriousness'. 'We have to get this right,' he said primly, 'but we don't get there by cheapening the debate. It's not about political point scoring.' 'Cheapening the debate' and 'scoring points'? If anyone were guilty of that, it wasn't David Davis. The House did not warm to Sir Keir's reply. Some MPs growled at it. Sir David himself looked startled that the Prime Minister had responded with such lack of, well, seriousness. As for Col Collins and his men, they flinched not an inch, or in the case of the hard-as-mesquite man, a twig. One sensed that they were unsurprised. Soldiers, and others who put their lives on the line for our safety, seldom have much time for lawyers. After PMQs there was an urgent question about the future of jury trials, which are under threat. During this discussion a justice minister, Sarah Sackman KC, spoke of the 'revered judge' who had come up with this grotty proposal. One often hears lawyers describe judges as 'distinguished' (they love the word). But 'revered'? That is quite a leap. Ms Sackman, who was on wearisomely partisan form, trilled away about how non-jury trials would be quicker and more efficient. Down my neck ran a chill.
Yahoo
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Former UUP leader 'beaten badly' in Army for being Irish
The former Ulster Unionist leader Doug Beattie has said he was "beaten badly" by instructors for being Irish when he joined the Army at the age of 16. Beattie became a soldier in 1982 and served three tours in Afghanistan with the Royal Irish Regiment (RIR). Originally from Portadown, Beattie became a UUP assembly member (MLA) in 2016 and was leader from 2021 until last year, after an internal row prompted his resignation. He said bullying he endured during his early years in the armed forces had a huge impact on his life. Speaking to BBC News NI's Red Lines podcast, Beattie said he joined the military as a teenager, after his mother died and his father struggled with alcohol addiction. He said he went to Somerset to do his initial Army training, where he faced discrimination because of his background. "Because I was an Irishman - and I've always been an Irishman - I was beaten badly by instructors, by people I was looking up to," he said. "I found myself bullied quite badly, it doesn't matter that I was a unionist or my father was a military man. "The fact I came from Northern Ireland meant I found myself being bullied and beaten quite a lot and that had an effect on my life as a young man." Beattie also spoke to the podcast for the first time about how the furore over his resignation as party leader unfolded last summer. He stepped down as leader after an internal row over the selection contest to replace Robin Swann as the UUP's North Antrim MLA after he became the MP for South Antrim. Beattie said he had wanted a female candidate to replace Robin Swann, saying the party had a "lack" of women in high-profile jobs at Stormont, and that he was "prevented" from bringing in another candidate he preferred over Colin Crawford, who was selected by the party's North Antrim association to take on the role. The Upper Bann MLA said when that happened, he felt it was "clear I could no longer influence the party". "People who weren't supporting me made what I was doing really difficult to stay on... the truth was I had no choice," he added. "I put in a letter of resignation, I didn't go to anyone I just went to the party chair. Then I was persuaded by the MLA group to withdraw it, I went back to withdraw and the party chair said no, they put it to party officers who said 'we're not letting you withdraw it, the letter stands'. "The bottom line is I stepped down, I found my place back in the party as an MLA and that's where I'm working now." Beattie admitted the affair had left him "bruised" after three years in charge, but said he would like to run for the assembly again in the next election scheduled for May 2027. He acknowledged that the UUP was a "broad church", which sometimes made the party "impossible to lead when you're trying to appease every level". "It's a fair criticism... it's never been easy to be leader of the UUP regardless of who it is," added Beattie. He was replaced as leader by Mike Nesbitt, Stormont's Health Minister, who also previously led the party from 2012 until 2017.
BBC News
02-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Doug Beattie: Ex-UUP leader was 'beaten badly' in the Army for being Irish
The former Ulster Unionist leader Doug Beattie has said he was "beaten badly" by instructors for being Irish when he joined the Army at the age of became a soldier in 1982 and served three tours in Afghanistan with the Royal Irish Regiment (RIR). Originally from Portadown, Beattie became a UUP assembly member (MLA) in 2016 and was leader from 2021 until last year, after an internal row prompted his said bullying he endured during his early years in the armed forces had a huge impact on his life. Speaking to BBC News NI's Red Lines podcast, Beattie said he joined the military as a teenager, after his mother died and his father struggled with alcohol said he went to Somerset to do his initial Army training, where he faced discrimination because of his background."Because I was an Irishman - and I've always been an Irishman - I was beaten badly by instructors, by people I was looking up to," he said."I found myself bullied quite badly, it doesn't matter that I was a unionist or my father was a military man. "The fact I came from Northern Ireland meant I found myself being bullied and beaten quite a lot and that had an effect on my life as a young man." 'Lack' of women in high-profile roles Beattie also spoke to the podcast for the first time about how the furore over his resignation as party leader unfolded last stepped down as leader after an internal row over the selection contest to replace Robin Swann as the UUP's North Antrim MLA after he became the MP for South Antrim. Beattie said he had wanted a female candidate to replace Robin Swann, saying the party had a "lack" of women in high-profile jobs at Stormont, and that he was "prevented" from bringing in another candidate he preferred over Colin Crawford, who was selected by the party's North Antrim association to take on the role. The Upper Bann MLA said when that happened, he felt it was "clear I could no longer influence the party"."People who weren't supporting me made what I was doing really difficult to stay on... the truth was I had no choice," he added."I put in a letter of resignation, I didn't go to anyone I just went to the party chair. Then I was persuaded by the MLA group to withdraw it, I went back to withdraw and the party chair said no, they put it to party officers who said 'we're not letting you withdraw it, the letter stands'."The bottom line is I stepped down, I found my place back in the party as an MLA and that's where I'm working now."Beattie admitted the affair had left him "bruised" after three years in charge, but said he would like to run for the assembly again in the next election scheduled for May acknowledged that the UUP was a "broad church", which sometimes made the party "impossible to lead when you're trying to appease every level"."It's a fair criticism... it's never been easy to be leader of the UUP regardless of who it is," added was replaced as leader by Mike Nesbitt, Stormont's Health Minister, who also previously led the party from 2012 until 2017.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Soldier jailed for nine years for rape
An "evil" soldier who raped a woman in a dark alleyway has been sentenced to nine years in prison. Pte John Harvey, 25, of Clive Barracks in Tern Hill, Shropshire, had previously admitted carrying out the attack in the early hours of 6 July in the Mardol area of Shrewsbury. A statement from the victim, read out at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court, said she had suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and anxiety since the attack, and rarely went out with friends now. She said she had been motivated to see the trial through to the end to prevent Harvey attacking anyone else, but as a result had been "forced to relive the worst moment of my life repeatedly". The court heard the incident, in which she was raped twice and sexually assaulted, had lasted about 20 minutes. Det Con Sam Jones said he had "committed a purely evil crime". In passing his sentence, Judge Richard McConaghy told Harvey: "You were drunk and had clearly been looking for sex. "She was not interested in you, but you did not care." After the attack, the victim called the police, and the judge said the call had been "harrowing to listen to". Despite making full admissions to officers when he was arrested, Harvey chose to go to trial and contest the allegations. Det Con Jones said as a result of changing his story, he had subjected "his victim and her loved ones to sit through a trial and relive that awful night". The victim's statement, read by prosecutor Caroline Harris, said: "This man has no regard for women." He was found guilty in February by a jury following a nine-day trial. Clive Barracks is the long-term home of the 1st Battalion of the Royal Irish Regiment, but a statement from the Army did not confirm details of Harvey's unit. The judge said he was "an educated man with a degree" and a "respectable career". "You had the capacity to make something of your life," the judge told him. He sentenced Harvey to nine years for each of the charges of rape, to run concurrently, and seven years for the sexual assault, also to run concurrently. The judge said he must also serve three years on extended licence once his sentence was complete, be placed on the sex offenders register for life and must not contact victim directly or indirectly. Follow BBC Shropshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram. 'Evil' rapist convicted of town centre attack HM Courts and Tribunals Service
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
'Our job is to protect a fort - to be fair it hasn't been attacked lately'
Final preparations are underway for a celebration that will take a County Down village back in time. Royal Hillsborough will play host on Saturday to the warrant ceremony of 13 new members, bringing the United Kingdom's oldest and smallest private army back up to its full complement. The Hillsborough Fort Guard was formed by Colonel Arthur Hill, he built the fort in 1660. But its members have only a ceremonial role. "Our job is to protect the fort and to be fair, it hasn't been attacked recently," Simon Walker, a corporal in the guard, told BBC News NI. The guard has a centuries-long history, although it has not always been well populated. During the Plantation of Ulster, King Charles II granted a Royal Charter to have 20 soldiers to protect Hillsborough Fort. Since that time, Mr Walker says, sometimes only one man has kept the guard going. "But the tradition has never ended," he says. The Investiture of Warrants ceremony is a rare historical moment as Hillsborough Fort Guard welcomes its first full complement of 20 warders since the late Victorian period. Dressed in their new bespoke uniforms, the warders will parade up Park Street, onto Dromore Road and down Main Street to Hillsborough Parish Church to music by the band of the Royal Irish Regiment. "The last time that it had 20 men, my great grandfather was one of the warders," Mr Walker said. The Guard takes pride in the village and strives to improve community spirit and increase tourism. Warder Trevor Hill said: "We are very much centrally based within the community, we do various walking tours and presentations, and we also run bingo nights, which is great for getting the community together." "I think will be brilliant for the village, the whole district, and just a wonderful experience, a once in a lifetime opportunity," he said. Arthur Nicholas Hill, 9th Marquess of Downshire leads the Guard, he said this will be the first time in living memory that they will be at full strength. "There is nearly 400 years of history in this Guard," he said. Mr Hill selects who becomes a warder, and they must be from County Down. "The large majority of them have all done some public service, not necessarily be in the army as some have been in the fire service or the police or the prison service." The future is bright for the regiment as the quota will be filled. "We haven't yet got our first lady member, but we have one in our sights. So that could be exciting as well that would be a new part of history."
