PORTADOWN District Orange Lodge is to apply for a parade along the Garvaghy Road on September 27, not a traditional date for this traditional route.

The lodge also says it has no confidence in the five remaining members of the Parades Commission.

The sixth resigned after a court struck down the commission’s ruling on this year’s July parade.

All five remaining commissioners will have reached the end of their contracts by next March. The secretary of state has pointedly started the process to replace them.

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That leaves three full months for an all-new commission to rule on next year’s July parade, three times longer than the entire application and decision process normally takes.

So, why rush in an application for an unprecedented September date, to be considered by commissioners whose position you consider untenable?

This will be widely seen as a cynical move to either bounce permission out of the commission, or more likely to obtain a ruling against the parade that can be denounced and used to stir the pot.

There can be no confidence in any unionist party that uses or allows itself to be used for such an irresponsible tactic.

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PAUL Givan was vindicated in court in June after refusing to permit two schools in Bangor to convert to integrated status.

The DUP Education Minister correctly argued that neither school could enrol reasonable numbers of Catholics, as the law requires.

Now he appears to be adding criteria of his own.

Mr Givan refused conversion for another four schools, all state primaries, over the bank holiday weekend.

No statements were issued on this but the minister did publish a position paper two days later recommending “amalgamation between schools serving........

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