NI Conservatives’ spokesman, Julian Robertson, has urged Sinn Féin and the SDLP not to compromise security and boost organised crime by opposing the new National Crime Agency (NCA) operating in Northern Ireland.
“In the rest of the UK the NCA will play a vital role coordinating the response to drugs and people trafficking, as well as guarding against the exploitation of children”, Julian explained. “Do the SDLP and Sinn Féin seriously propose to leave the people of Northern Ireland vulnerable to serious crime and the threat of child exploitation, because of narrow party political concerns?”
“It is time for both parties to mature and it is time for Sinn Féin to decide whether it stands for politics or paramilitarism. Northern Ireland deserves the best protection which the UK can offer, especially because we have areas where organised crime has traditionally been rife. The parties which oppose the NCA need to set aside their selfish concerns and concentrate on what is best for everyone in Northern Ireland.”