Stormont’s Minister for Communities Gordon Lyons breached the ministerial code of conduct through social media comments made during rioting in Northern Ireland last year, a report has found.
Former independent Assembly Commissioner for Standards Melissa McCullough found that Mr Lyons’s actions had the potential of “heightening tensions and exacerbating an already contentious situation”.
However, the DUP has insisted Mr Lyons was “fully entitled” to publish the social media post, insisting it was “appropriate, factual, and aimed at the de-escalation of a difficult situation”.
The findings relate to a Facebook post the Minister made about the temporary relocation of immigrant families to Larne Leisure Centre (LLC) following rioting in Ballymena last June.
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Race-related anti-immigration violence flared in the Co Antrim town in June before spreading to other parts of Northern Ireland in subsequent days.
During the disorder, the leisure centre that had been temporarily used to house migrants whose homes had been targeted in Ballymena was attacked and extensively damaged.
In her report Ms McCullough said she received 64 complaints from members of the public and one from an MLA between June 11th and 16th alleging a breach of the ministerial code by the Minister.
The commissioner found the office of an Ulster Unionist MLA had sent an email to Mr Lyons’s office on June 11th asking for advice about a social media post about an anti-immigration protest scheduled for LLC at an hour when there would be more than 100 swimmers, including children, using the facilities.
The commissioner’s report said police contacted a DUP councillor on the same afternoon to ask them to “get the word out that there were no people sheltering in LLC and that the people had been moved out of Larne”.
The report said that, at the time of the Facebook post from Mr Lyons at 3.50pm, he would have been “aware of the unrest over the previous days and was aware of the volatility within communities”.
In the post Mr Lyons said a “number of individuals” had been temporarily moved to the leisure centre following the disturbances in Ballymena.
He went on to state that he and his DUP colleagues had not been consulted about this, adding that the individuals had since been moved out of Larne. The Minister posted again on Facebook later in the evening condemning the damage caused to the leisure centre in an arson attack.
When the commissioner interviewed the Minister, he told her “the intention of his message on Facebook was to clarify the situation and help calm tensions surrounding the planned protest at LLC”. He said he had been acting at the request of police.
The report said: “His aim was to reassure [presumably his 8,000 Facebook followers] that those who had taken refuge at the centre the night before were no longer there.”
The commissioner said: “In my view and on the balance of probabilities, the post likely had the opposite effect.
The report added: “Ministers are senior public figures whose words carry significant weight.. ... Even small misjudgements can lead to serious consequences.”
“In this case, I believe there was a clear need for more thoughtful communication, better co-ordination with authorities, and a stronger sense of responsibility for how the message might be received by the wider public.”
The Minister advised the commissioner that the Facebook post had been drafted by his office, but that he “took full responsibility for it” and had personally reviewed it and removed a reference to the number of people who had stayed at LLC.
The commissioner said: “This shows the post was not made in haste, rather it was deliberate and considered, which makes it all the more important to assess.
“It is clear to most readers of his message that it included no expression of empathy for those who had been harmed or forced to flee their homes. This was an omission that, whether intentional or not, carries real weight.
The report concluded that Mr Lyons’s actions fell short of standards on leadership, accountability and community relations.
A DUP spokesman said Mr Lyons was “fully entitled to publish the social media post that he did”.
“Mr Lyons co-operated fully with the then commissioner and made clear that his social media post was published on the basis of communication from the PSNI – which has now been confirmed.
“The commissioner clearly ignored the significance or weight this would carry for any MLA.
“The DUP will never support a situation where, through vexatious complaints to the Standards Commissioner, there is an attempt to gag public representatives and restrict their free speech,” the spokesman said.
It is the role of the Assembly to decide whether any sanctions should be imposed on the Minister. – PA
