DUP accuses Sinn Fein of breaking the law over Orange Order parade delay after joining protesters blocking Garvaghy Road

The DUP has accused Sinn Féin of breaking the law after the party's president joined protesters blocking the Orange Order parade today.

Sinn Féin President Mary Lou McDonald joined thousands of protesters on Garvaghy Road to block the controversial loyalist parade, which was planned to go ahead at 8am this morning for the first time in nearly 30 years after a late-night ruling.

They linked arms in the rain and sang songs in an attempt to block the march, just minutes before it was due to start, as an announcement over a loudspeaker told them that they were liable for arrest for taking part in an unnotified parade.

The Sinn Féin president was joined by Northern Ireland Assembly members and MPs and First Minister Michelle O'Neill, while a spokesperson for the local residents association has said they will not negotiate. 

DUP leader Gavin Robinson has accused Mrs McDonald and Sinn Féin of breaking the law, saying 'She's the head of an executive and she's prepared to wilfully disregard the ruling of our courts.'

Mr Robinson also took aim at Mrs O'Neill, saying she was 'giving two fingers to the police, the courts and the rule of law', and said it was 'shameful' she had joined the protesters.

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Sir Chris Bryant, added that he did not 'think any elected politician should be supporting an unlawful protest'.

The parade still has not gone ahead, more than six hours after it was due to.

Mr Robinson said the Orangemen will remain steadfast. He said: 'If it takes another 28 hours, if it takes another 28 days they will show the same steadfast determination and patience and a willingness to uphold the law that's been there for the last 28 years.'

An 'unprecedented' sitting of the High Court in Belfast upheld a ruling by the Parades Commission permitting the march on Garvaghy Road. 

A crowd of protesters gather to block the Garvaghy Road in Portadown, Northern Ireland, on September 27, 2026

The crowds, many of them wearing balaclavas, clustered in large groups along Garvaghy Road in the hours leading up to the scheduled start of the parade at 8am. 

But as of 2pm, the march has still not started due to the road being blocked, with members of the Orange Order being asked by police to stay inside Drumcree Church where it was due to begin.

Meanwhile, Orange Order supporters have gathered at Orange Hall in Portadown town centre where the march is due to finish. 

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has appealed for 'calm on all sides', saying there have been 'big gains made in Northern Ireland, and we don't want to see things go backwards'.

Mr Robinson said cast doubt over his ability to work with Sinn Féin, however, following Mrs McDonald's endorsement of the unnotified parade.

'There are standards that need to be maintained,' he said, adding that those standards have now been 'shattered'.

Armoured vehicles have arrived and police are operating checkpoints on the main roads into Portadown. 

Sir Chris Bryant is coming under pressure from Sinn Féin to ban the Orange Order parade, but he can only do so if asked by the Police Service of Northern Ireland on the basis that it poses a serious risk to public order, of which there is no indication.

An information sheet is being handed to drivers, reports the BBC, which reads: 'You are entitled to disagree with the procession and to make your views known peacefully.

'The procession has been permitted by a determination of the Parades Commission. People taking part in it also have a right to do so peacefully and safely.'

Sinn Féin President Mary Lou McDonald and First Minister Michelle O'Neill were among the party members to join the protest.

Speaking to reporters, O'Neill said: 'There must be no march through this community. That is how we restore calm, that is how we restore confidence.

She added: 'Why after 28 years of determination to block a march down this road that the Parades Commission thought this was the right idea today? To bring this mess back onto this community.'

'I commend this community. We stand with this community and we will continue to stand with this community.' 

O'Neill said the reignition of the Drumcree dispute 'brings into question how this whole peace process works'.

Some in the crowd blocking the Garvaghy Road on Sunday morning could be heard shouting 'bring Stormont down'.

Asked if she thought Stormont could collapse over the Drumcree dispute, the First Minister said: 'I think that this brings into question how this whole peace process works.

'The progress of the last 28 years have been brought into question by the actions of the Orange Order and those within political unionism that want to drag us backwards, and I think that brings into question – you heard it here today.

'You heard it about the people's view of Stormont. You heard it about the terms of politics working for them, and you hear it here time and time again and we've certainly heard it over the last 24 hours.

'What's the point? What's the point whenever people are going to railroad over their rights? Whenever they're going to try to roll back in 28 years of progress?

'But I can tell you what we're about. We're about the future. We're about building on our peace and progress. We're about not allowing people to bring us back.'

McDonald told reporters it was 'madness' that the Orange Order parade was going ahead and called on Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Bryant to ban the parade. 

She said: 'We have spent all night here, all night talking to people, listening to people, seeking to reassure people that actually this can be resolved, and it must be.

'So here is what needs to happen now – the Secretary of State needs to intervene. The chief constable of the PSNI needs to intervene and put a stop to this.'

McDonald added: 'This, in fact, is primitive treatment of any community in the year 2026. It is intolerable, and it will not be tolerated. 

'This is a dignified and united community, and they are absolutely determined that they and we will not be drawn back into the past.'

A small group of Orange Order members wearing traditional silk orange sashes and black bowler hats gathered at another part of the town, a picture posted on X by Democratic Unionist Party lawmaker Carla Lockhart, showed 

Loud cheers erupted from the crowds on Garvaghy Road after being informed the Orange Order had left Drumcree.

The cheers were soon followed by chants of 'Bring Stormont down' from some of the protesters.

Sir Chris Bryant said he is to leave Labour's Party conference early and return to Belfast this afternoon.

He urged people to cooperate with the police and warned any protest was 'unlawful'. 

Thousands of protesters gathered in the rain where they linked arms and sang songs in an attempt to block the parade 

Protesters block Garvaghy Road after a late-night High Court ruling upheld the decision by the Parades Commission to permit the march

Breandán Mac Cionnaith, head of The Garvaghy Road Residents' Coalition, speaks through a loudspeaker at the front line of the protest

A member of the Orange Order outside Drumcree Parochial Hall in Portadown

The crowds, many of them wearing balaclavas, clustered in large groups along Garvaghy Road

Armoured police vans block the road in Portadown, Northern Ireland

People block the Garvaghy Road, a Catholic enclave in the largely Protestant town of Portadown, on the day members of the Protestant Orange Order are expected to march through the area

Speaking to the BBC, he said: 'I can imagine that lots of people didn't sleep very well last night, not least because of course the court case was going on till very late into the night, till 2.30 in the morning.

'I know lots of people will be watching this very, very closely, including people who have long memories of things that happened 30 years ago, and people will be very nervous and anxious.

'So the number one thing I think is people should co-operate with the police. I want everything to pass off as calmly as is possible. I'm speaking to the police obviously on a regular basis throughout the day, and was last night as well, and so is my team.'

He added: 'I wish we weren't in this position. I wish we weren't looking at relitigating things of the past. But the court decided that the adjudication, the determination of the Parades Commission stood. So it's important that everybody abides by the law.'

Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) chief constable Jon Boutcher said he was 'unbelievably proud' of his officers and praised the force's operation, which he said had 'helped ensure there has been no violence or disorder'.

'I'm unbelievably proud of my officers who, supported by mutual aid colleagues, are managing an exceptionally challenging situation,' he said.

'We have an evidence gathering operation in place to detect any offences and will continue to do this throughout today.

'I appeal to everyone to remain calm and peaceful. I am immensely grateful for all those voices who have already called for calm.'

The march was finally given the go ahead at a hearing which concluded at 2.15am on Sunday after legal teams repeated their arguments over the contentious parade, which was a notorious flashpoint of the Troubles in the 90s.

The time-limited sitting beginning at 12.20am on Sunday was heard before Justice Michael Humphreys.

He acknowledged the 'unusual if not unprecedented circumstances as it is now 1.45am, with a parade scheduled to begin in just over six hours' time'.

Outlining his decision, Mr Justice Humphreys cited case law that as a public body the courts must respect its judgment and 'their decisions will not be lightly interfered with'.

He said: 'The picture painted here is of a public body which took evidence from the relevant sources, weighed up the key issues which were in play and arrived at a reasoned decision.

'The jurisdiction to impugn (a) public body's decision on that basis is necessarily limited to cases where no reasonable decision could arrive at that outcome and in my view, in this case that threshold has not been met.'

He added: 'This court cannot substitute its own view or anyone else's view for that of the commission.'

Northern Ireland's most senior judge, Lady Chief Justice Siobhan Keegan, described the situation as 'unprecedented'.

Justices Keegan and Humphreys joined Lady Justice Denise McBride in the Court of Appeal which, in the late hours of Saturday, upheld an appeal by Portadown Orangeman Alan Hynes to allow the march to go ahead.

The stand-off at Drumcree made headlines in the 1990s, with nationalist residents of the Garvaghy Road opposed to the parade passing through the area, leading to violent clashes for several summers and political tension necessitating a major security operation.

The Orange Order has unsuccessfully applied for more than a quarter of a century to complete its 1998 walk along its traditional route.

On Friday, the commission reversed its long-running determination, to the welcome of unionist parties and outrage of nationalist and republican parties.

On Saturday afternoon, Justice Patricia Smyth blocked the commission's decision, saying the 'long-running dispute has the potential to escalate' across Northern Ireland.

Under the legal framework around parades in Northern Ireland, if the court simply passed an injunction against the Parades Commission ruling in relation to Drumcree, it would allow the Portadown District to carry out the parade without the restrictions outlined by the commission, because it was legally notified.

Justice Smyth passed an injunction pausing the effect of the Orange Order's notification of the parade, which counsel for the Garvaghy residents had described as 'novel' and John Larkin KC, representing Mr Hynes, as 'rewriting history'.

Protesters hold up a sign reading: 'From Gaza to Garvaghy Road. Resist occupation and fascism'

Michelle O'Neill, First Minister of Northern Ireland (centre), and Sinn Féin President Mary Lou McDonald (right) speak to the media

McDonald speaks to residents in Garvaghy Road ahead of the Orange Order parade

The Orange Order then lodged an appeal, which was upheld, before the case was remitted to the High Court and heard again before a new judge.

Barrister Denise Kiley KC represented the residents of the largely nationalist Garvaghy Road, outlining their position that much remained unclear about the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI)'s threat assessment provided to the Parades Commission.

She said 'nowhere' in the PSNI's contribution to the commission was there 'any assessment of future risk' and was 'entirely directed to past risk'.

Emma McIlveen, junior counsel for Mr Hynes, argued the Orange Order 'has gone to great lengths to engage on the ground in the community'.

Ms McIlveen also said it is an issue of the protection of minority rights, describing it as a 'hecklers' veto situation' where 'those that scream the loudest get what they want'.

Ms Kiley argued the imposition of the injunction 'does not mean that this parade cannot proceed, it means it cannot proceed tomorrow'.

She added: 'The only way to preserve the position for this applicant and to preserve the supervisory position of this court was to grant interim relief and it was granted as a last resort.'

Tony McGleenan KC, representing the Parades Commission, said the court's move to 'deem a notified parade unnotified' was 'entirely unprincipled'.

'It's not who threatens the most, it's that there's an assumption in favour of legal assembly,' he said.

'We cannot have every Parade Commission determination brought back into this court every week, that's not how it is supposed to work.'

Justice Keegan earlier said 'there is a major problem that the decision in this case was given after 2pm on a Friday afternoon.

'This cannot happen again.'