High Court quashes Parades Commission decision to impose restrictions on the annual Orange Order parade at Drumcree

It follows a legal challenge brought by a member of the Order.

A post in social media from Portadown Orange District LOL 1 says: “BREAKING: Drumcree Legal challenge against Parades Commission **WINS** in the High Court. Drumcree determination quashed by Mr Justice McAlinden as “clearly unlawful”:

"This is a historic and unprecedented victory for the Loyal Orders and unionist community. It is a humbling eviceration of the Parades Commission.

"The Commission has also been ordered by Mr Justice McAlinden to pay all the costs of the legal proceedings, having described their decision as “clearly unlawful”.

"We have for decades warned successive UK Governments as to the unsustainable nature of the Commission, and the one sided and biased nature of their determinations.

"We were ignored. We have now been vindicated and the Commission stands condemned before the law.

"Today before the High Court the whole edifice of the Parades Commission has collapsed. It has been shown to not only be incompetent, unprofessional and plainly biased against the Loyal Orders, but in fact acting in bad faith.

"We are calling on the Chair and all Commissioners, in particular Mr Billy Gamble- who appears to be more concerned with how the Commission could avoid giving the Loyal Orders an “angle”- to do the right thing and now resign.

"They know why.

"The full issues of concern are set out in the Applicant’s Order 53 statement which is a public document and anyone is free to obtain.

"The Commission’s Secretary, by their own admission, gave incorrect evidence under oath on 3 July 2026.

"If the Commissioners and their Secretary do not voluntarily resign, then we urge the Secretary of State to review all the case papers from this legal challenge and we believe if he does so, he will be left with no rational choice but to remove the Commissioners from post.

"There is no section of the Loyal Orders, marching bands or unionist community more widely who could ever have any faith in this Commission.

"The conduct of this Commission has been utterly appalling.

"We have been denied our civil and religious liberty since 1998, and nationalist/republican threats of violence have been rewarded.

"They went so far as to try and embed a nationalist/republican veto, relying on ‘residents groups’ whose existence they had not even established.

"They further extraordinarily in their decision making relied upon an anonymous social media troll, who masquerades as a unionist but continuously engages in divisive and hostile commentary about the Loyal Orders in particular.

"We want to extend our sincere thanks to John Larkin KC, Emma Mcllveen BL and Jamie Bryson LL.B for delivering this victory using the law.

"We would also like to thank all politicians who have supported us, in particular Carla Lockhart MP who worked closely with the legal time on this case and who has stood by us consistently.

"On Drumcree Sunday our District Master said he truly believed we were on the cusp of a potential significant victory and urged brethren to trust the legal process. That stance has been vindicated.

"The District working with our legal team will now be putting together a fresh substantive application to complete our parade that we have been unlawfully denied since 1998. If the law is properly applied, the outcome should be inevitable.

"We will be selecting a significant date for this parade in the very near future and will communicate further details in due course.

"If it is not, we wish to make clear as the Loyal Orders we will be immediately going to the High Court once again. We trust this will not be necessary.

"Finally, we pay tribute to our Brother Alan Hynes who brought this challenge. “Here we stand, we can do no other”