A member of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) was thrown out of the Northern Ireland Assembly chamber today for alleging Sinn Féin’s Gerry Adams had played a leading role in the IRA.
Nelson McCausland was applauded by party colleagues as he left the chamber having been given a one day ban for refusing to withdraw the remarks.
He made the claims during a debate yesterday on victims of republican violence whose bodies have yet to be recovered, though Mr Adams refuted the allegations made against him.
While relatives of the “Disappeared” looked on from the public gallery yesterday, Mr McCausland accused Mr Adams of being the Belfast Commander of the IRA in the 1970s and of setting up specialist units which killed and disposed of so-called informers.
But today Assembly Speaker Willie Hay said: “I indicated during yesterday’s sitting on several occasions that I had some concerns about remarks that had been made during a debate on the Disappeared in this house yesterday.”
He said allegations of criminal behaviour had been made against another member.
The Speaker added: “These allegations were very clearly denied and refuted by the member concerned in the house here yesterday, Mr Adams.
“I regard the remarks as being unparliamentary and I would call on Mr McCausland to withdraw the remarks.”
But the DUP member responded: “The statements which I made about the member for west Belfast, were based on extracts from (journalist) Ed Moloney’s book A Secret History Of The IRA, which is available in bookshops and in the library of this Assembly.
“I will not therefore be withdrawing the statement.”
To cheers from DUP members, he added: “As Mr Adams keeps calling for truth recovery, I think it’s important that we get to the truth on these matters.”
Mr McCausland was then ordered to leave the chamber and was banned from today’s Assembly proceedings.
Yesterday, Mr Adams denied the claims made against him. “I want to deny and refute the assertion made by the member for North Belfast (Mr McCausland),” he said.
“I want to commend and support all the families that have suffered a grievous injustice and who have campaigned with dignity for many years to locate the remains of their loved ones and I want to welcome them here today.
“I want to acknowledge once again the grave injustice inflicted on these families and to express my deep regret about this.”
He said republicans who had information about the Disappeared had passed it on to aid the recovery of bodies and would continue to do so.
Today, meanwhile, DUP member Ian Paisley Jnr drew attention to comments made in Irish yesterday by Mr Adams where the Sinn Féin President preceded his denial of the allegations by saying Mr McCausland was talking nonsense.
The Speaker said he did not consider the remark unparliamentary, but he reminded members using Irish in debates to translate their comments into English.
In his controversial comments yesterday, Mr McCausland said: “Of course Gerry Adams has always sought to distance himself from the whole gruesome episode, but the fact is we don’t believe him.
“The violence is over and for that we are glad, but is it not time for Adams to show some remorse for these crimes, is it not time that he showed some remorse for the evil inflicted on so many families by the organisation that he commanded?”
PA