{"id":299101,"date":"2026-02-15T09:06:12","date_gmt":"2026-02-15T09:06:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/299101\/"},"modified":"2026-02-15T09:06:12","modified_gmt":"2026-02-15T09:06:12","slug":"ireland-should-apologise-for-unjustifiable-conduct-during-troubles-says-new-uup-leader-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/299101\/","title":{"rendered":"Ireland should apologise for \u2018unjustifiable conduct\u2019 during Troubles, says new UUP leader \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Almost 16 years ago, Jon Burrows, now leader of the Ulster Unionist Party<\/a> (UUP), stood with the crowds in Derry\u2019s Guildhall Square as the Saville report on Bloody Sunday<\/a> was published. <\/p>\n

Then the city\u2019s police chief, he watched as the British prime minister, David Cameron, apologised. The killings of civilians by British soldiers in Derry on January 30, 1972, had been \u201cunjustified and unjustifiable\u201d, Cameron said. <\/p>\n

\u201cI literally saw people sob in the street,\u201d Burrows tells The Irish Times of that day in June 2010. \u201cI felt the air lift; it was validation. I got goosebumps \u2026 it was a very powerful moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

He believes it is time for the Irish Government to make a similar gesture and create a similar moment. \u201cI think they should make a major statement about the past,\u201d he says. \u201cI would love Ireland to say that some of their conduct during the Troubles was unjustified and unjustifiable. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think it would be seismic for our relationships \u2026 seismic for good relations.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"UUPUUP leader Jon Burrows spent 22 years as a police officer, including as area commander for Derry. Photograph: Mark Marlow\/PA <\/p>\n

Burrows\u2019s own story is entwined with that past. The 49-year-old from Bangor, Co Down, describes his as a \u201cuniform family \u2026 there was pride in being in service and uniform\u201d.<\/p>\n

Relatives fought in the British army in the first and second world Wars, and his father was a member of the Royal Ulster Constabulary. <\/p>\n

Burrows joined the Police Service of Northern Ireland<\/a> (PSNI), saying: \u201cI 100 per cent wanted to follow in my dad\u2019s footsteps\u201d. He spent 22 years as a police officer, including as area commander for Derry and Strabane and as head of the force\u2019s disciplinary branch. <\/p>\n

In Derry, he was under \u201cheavy threat\u201d from dissident republicans. A viable letter bomb addressed to him was intercepted in the post, he lived in a constant security \u201cbubble\u201d, had to move house and was the subject of social media smear campaigns and false allegations. It took its toll on his mental health and he retired from the PSNI in 2021. <\/p>\n

He believes that, \u201cgiven the scale and threat of the Troubles, the UK police and army did remarkably well\u201d although at times things went \u201ccatastrophically wrong\u201d, not least on Bloody Sunday. <\/p>\n

But he also emphasises the need for Ireland \u201cto address \u2026 their conduct\u201d during the Troubles, particularly over the extradition of suspects to the UK. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think there\u2019s something specific about the Irish state\u2019s approach to extradition that stands out as an equivalent of Bloody Sunday, but over a long period of time, and it was a decision at the highest level,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey refused to [extradite] murderers,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Asked if Britain should make an apology similar to that which he advocates for from Ireland, Burrows cites the example of the Kenova<\/a> team\u2019s inquiries, particularly into the IRA double agent known as Stakeknife<\/a>. \u201cEvery time there\u2019s been something shown to be wrong, I think the British Government have said, \u2018We got that wrong\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"JonJon Burrows lays a wreath on Remembrance Sunday last November at the Memorial Gardens, Ballymena.
\nPhotograph: Andrew McCarroll\/Pacemaker <\/p>\n

He says \u201cthere is a double standard on legacy today\u201d and the Irish Government needs to \u201cengage in good faith, with equal footing\u201d and put in place \u201cparallel arrangements\u201d similar to those in place in the UK jurisdictions \u201cto investigate, to co-operate, to disclose\u201d in regard to Troubles-era killings, \u201cespecially given all the murders on the Border. <\/p>\n

\u201cSo many attacks were planned in the South; people came from the South, devices were made in the South, and they escaped to the South, and they\u2019ve left Northern Ireland and the UK with the burden of investigating and responsibility for the sort of ownership of legacy, and they need to take their part.\u201d <\/p>\n

Burrows is happy to have that conversation with the Irish Government. \u201cI\u2019m waiting for an invite,\u201d he says, while stressing the importance of \u201cmutual respect\u201d and \u201cpractical, good relationships because we share an island together\u201d.<\/p>\n

He describes Taoiseach Miche\u00e1l Martin<\/a> as \u201cone of the better ones\u201d in that he \u201cat least understands unionism, doesn\u2019t speak down to unionism\u201d.<\/p>\n

But, he says, \u201cyou still get different taoiseachs who\u2019d be nakedly nationalist\u201d. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think they should reassure us that in all of their policies there is no Trojan horse towards unity, that we\u2019re engaging, when we\u2019re discussing co-operation in good faith that it\u2019s not politically or ideologically driven, it\u2019s genuinely practically driven.\u201d <\/p>\n

He views the treatment of candidate Heather Humphreys<\/a> during the presidential election<\/a> campaign as \u201ca blast of cold reality for some unionists \u2026 clearly there\u2019s an issue [with sectarianism] in the Republic of Ireland\u201d.<\/p>\n

This is coupled with the election of Catherine Connolly<\/a>, whose geopolitical views he says many unionists \u201cwould be horrified by\u201d. He believes these \u201cprobably solidified unionist resistance to this new and agreed Ireland. It doesn\u2019t look very new and agreed\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"JonJon Burrows, right, arrives at the Stormont Hotel in Belfast before being elected leader at a party meeting last month. Photograph: Mark Marlow\/PA <\/p>\n

Burrows himself is \u201cconfident but not complacent\u201d about Northern Ireland\u2019s constitutional status. \u201cWe need to be on our game, arguing the case\u201d and \u201cevangelising \u2026 for the union\u201d.<\/p>\n

He believes unionism has thus far failed to sell the positive benefits of being part of the United Kingdom. He advocates making \u201cthe rational case for the union \u2026 for those people who are disinterested or just see themselves as Northern Irish or who are nationalist but persuadable\u201d.<\/p>\n

He lists multiple benefits from the economy to international security interests. \u201cWestern Europe is very vulnerable: international terrorism, [undersea] cables, organised crime, other hostile states.\u201d In Britain, Europe and globally, he says, \u201cyou want us to be part of the UK because we create a huge security headache for you if we leave\u201d.<\/p>\n

Yet, ultimately, Burrows is less concerned with the constitutional question. \u201cIt\u2019s going to take a lot to convince people to make this leap into the dark,\u201d he says. He is more concentrated on practical, day-to-day politics. He hopes to attract voters from across the traditional orange and green divide by sorting out grit boxes, school uniforms and potholes rather than discussing identity, nationality or geopolitics. <\/p>\n

\u201cI do think there\u2019s a real appetite out there for a bit more plain speaking and common sense and relatable politics that almost pricks this wee bubble that our politicians live in.\u201d<\/p>\n

His has been a remarkable political rise. A year ago, Burrows was not even a member of the UUP. He was co-opted into the Assembly in September and became party leader a matter of weeks ago. <\/p>\n

His goal is to make the UUP the dominant force in political unionism again, but it is a challenge many have faced and failed at. Burrows is the fifth person to lead the party since 2012, but in that time the party has stagnated, going from 13 per cent of first preferences in the 2011 Assembly elections to 11 per cent in 2022.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople can judge me on my performance, and ultimately they will judge me on the electoral performance of [the next Assembly election in] May 2027, and that\u2019s my challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n

Burrows speaks of \u201cmomentum\u201d building, of the gap narrowing in the polls between the UUP and Democratic Unionist Party<\/a>. \u201cIf we come back with 14 MLAs, 15 MLAs, dozens more councillors\u2026 suddenly we\u2019re building, so I\u2019m looking at building a mass movement,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think people in Northern Ireland want something different, and we\u2019re offering that difference.\u201d <\/p>\n

He compares it to his time as Derry\u2019s police chief when he tried to change relationships between police and the community and \u201chumanise\u201d the force by, for example, bringing PSNI officers into the city\u2019s schools. <\/p>\n

\u201cI am trying to challenge people\u2019s perceptions, build confidence and trust, but also deliver practically. In many ways it\u2019s the same, I\u2019m just wearing a different uniform now.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Almost 16 years ago, Jon Burrows, now leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), stood with the crowds…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":299102,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[61745,3656,9686,26189,7726,2044,61,60,101338,1843,43,2443,21754,49234],"class_list":{"0":"post-299101","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ireland","8":"tag-bloody-sunday","9":"tag-catherine-connolly","10":"tag-common-ground","11":"tag-democratic-unionist-party","12":"tag-derry","13":"tag-heather-humphreys","14":"tag-ie","15":"tag-ireland","16":"tag-kenova-report","17":"tag-micheal-martin","18":"tag-news","19":"tag-northern-ireland","20":"tag-police-service-of-northern-ireland-psni","21":"tag-ulster-unionist-party"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299101","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=299101"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299101\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/299102"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=299101"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=299101"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=299101"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}