Orange Walk organisers cancel re-routed loyalist Easter march
By Democrat reporter
An Orange Walk which was re-routed following concerns there would be serious disorder at the spot where a priest was assaulted last year has now been cancelled, BBC Scotland is reporting tonight.
The Apprentice Boys of Derry were due to pass St Alphonsus’ Church in Glasgow on Easter Sunday.
Canon Tom White, pictured right, was spat on outside the church in London Road during the annual Orange Order Boyne march last July.
On its website, Glasgow City Council said the application for the Apprentice Boys Easter march had been withdrawn.
It followed the local authority’s decision on Tuesday to divert the planned route away from St Alphonsus’ Church. The Apprentice Boys of Derry said they had expected about 80 people to take part in the parade on Sunday.
However, police told the council’s public processions committee last week that they had received “highly graded intelligence” that counter protests were planned.
As a result, Police Scotland said the force would have had to boost officer numbers from 20 to more than 100, as well as draft in mounted and public order officers.
The council said it had received a total of 81 submissions expressing concerns about the proposal, including one from an individual who expressed fears for their own safety.
The Apprentice Boys said they had used the route for 10 years without incident.
Earlier this year, Bradley Wallace, 24, from Uddingston, was convicted of attacking Canon Tom White during the incident last July.