Garda groups call for Love Ulster rally to be planned properly

GARDA associations yesterday said police and the public could not be exposed to the same level of violence which marked the Love Ulster rally last year.

They called for a proper risk assessment to be conducted beforehand and for gardaí on the ground to be properly equipped and briefed before a repeat of the march.

The group behind the Love Ulster rally in Dublin in February 2006 said they had been given the go-ahead for another march for later this year after a meeting with garda bosses in Dublin on Thursday. The march is expected to take place in August or September.