Party Leader Naomi Long stated: “We are committed to seeing all paramilitary organisations disbanded; however, we do not believe that this is the appropriate approach.  We have reiterated that position to the Secretary of State and to the Irish Government and our view that 28 years after the Good Friday Agreement, the route to ending paramilitarism has to be through more robust law enforcement, coupled with more targeted community relations work to tackle vulnerability and the harms they cause.

“Governments engaging directly with illegal organisations risks providing a veneer of legitimacy to paramilitary groups and criminal gangs, which persist based on a combination of threats. Intimidation, and organised crime.

“The appointment of an interlocutor risks undermining the good work which is already being done to end paramilitarism and organised crime. The idea that paramilitary groups can transition into law-abiding entities has long since moved beyond the point of credibility. They cannot continue to be treated as if they are genuinely committed to reform; that moment passed long ago.

“Whilst we all want to see paramilitarism ended and those currently engaged in it to desist, I cannot understand what the impediment is to them doing so now, if they are genuinely keen to do so.  There can be no negotiation or sweeteners involved, so it is difficult to see what purpose an interlocutor will serve, but easy to see how it could give these groups a credibility which they don’t deserve.”