Billy Hutchinson
Encyclopedia
Billy Hutchinson is the leader of the Progressive Unionist Party
in Northern Ireland
. He was elected to Belfast City Council
in 1997
and to the Northern Ireland Assembly
in 1998. He lost his assembly seat in 2003
and his council seat in 2005
. Before this he had been a member of the Ulster Volunteer Force
(UVF) and the founder of their youth wing the Young Citizen Volunteers
(YCV).
Hutchinson took part in a series of riots in the area, during which Shankill dwellers clashed with residents of the neighbouring nationalist
Unity Flats area. Hutchinson originally joined the Red Hand Commando but was later transferred to the U.V.F. Members of the UVF fired shots at Unity Flats and it was around this time Hutchinson became a member of the organisation, describing his part in the rioting as "my initiation" into the UVF. A strong supporter of Linfield F.C.
, Hutchinson would often lead his fellow Shankill-based supporters in throwing stones and singing loyalist songs at the Unity Flats as they returned from the club's Windsor Park
home off the Lisburn Road
. These young loyalists formed the basis of the reformed YCV, which Hutchinson played a leading role in re-establishing in the early 1970s. Hutchinson was in charge of recruitment for this group in its early years although he was aided by Billy Spence
in this endeavour.
In October 1974 Hutchinson and a fellow YCV member, Thomas Winstone, drove up Northumberland Street (which links the Shankill to the neighbouring Falls Road, Belfast, a republican
area) at 7:30 in the morning. They came upon two Catholic men, Michael Loughran and Edward Morgan, walking to work and shot and killed them both. Both men were arrested soon afterwards and were both charged with murder to which they pleaded guilty, receiving life sentences. Hutchinson had been the driver of the car whilst Winstone was the shooter. Both men were aged nineteen at the time of their attack.
, a founder member of the modern UVF who had begun a conversion to political aims. In fact Hutchinson had already known Spence as the two had spoken on a few occasions during 1972 when Spence, aided by his nephew Frankie Curry
, had escaped from prison for a few months. Hutchinson even served as Spence's bodyguard briefly and had been in his company the day Spence was recaptured. In the prison Hutchinson, along with the likes of David Ervine
, Eddie Kinner, Billy Mitchell
and William "Plum" Smith
, was convinced by Spence that loyalism needed to develop a more political side to its agenda and Spence encouraged these younger members to become involved in this development. In 1977 when Spence advocated a policy of dialogue with republicans Hutchinson and Mitchell co-authored a letter to UVF members on the outside endorsing Spence's call. Whilst in prison Hutchinson took a degree in social sciences
and a diploma in town planning. He was released after serving sixteen years of his sentence.
Spence resigned from the UVF in 1978 and, after a period of collective leadership by "officers commanding" of each prison compound, Hutchinson succeeded him as leader of the UVF in Long Kesh. This arrangement did not last long however as prisoners tired of the strict disciplinary regime that Hutchinson, like Spence before him, insisted on. However before long the extreme lack of discipline that ensued became too much for a number of senior figures to stand and as a consequence in 1984 Hutchinson took control again, holding the post until his release from prison in 1990.
Hutchinson was also nominated by the UVF as their point of contact with John de Chastelain
and the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning
and he helped to ensure the eventual decommissioning of weapons in 2009. This was despite the fact that Hutchinson had been a noted sceptic on the issue and had even criticised David Trimble
, arguing that his insistence on republican decommissioning was in fact damaging the peace process.
(PUP) and began working towards the establishment of the Northern Ireland peace process
. During the early 1990s Hutchinson and David Ervine became more familiar faces in the media, presenting the loyalist political demands. Both men were influenced by the example of Sinn Fein
, who had demonstrated that an articulate media presence could ensure that paramilitary groups' demands might be heard. Hutchinson and Ervine in particular became close personal friends as well as colleagues and also enjoyed a friendly rivalry with Hutchinson being a Linfield-supporting west Belfast man and Ervine from the east of the city and a Glentoran F.C.
fan. Along with Spence and Ervine, Hutchinson was a strong advocate of moves towards police and he played a leading role in helping to convince the UVF commanders to endorse the Combined Loyalist Military Command
ceasefire in 1994. Following the announcement of the ceasefire Hutchinson was part of a six-man delegation representing the PUP and the Ulster Democratic Party
(UDP) that toured the United States
.
Hutchinson became known as a proactive supporter of the Northern Ireland peace process
, not least during an incident in North-West Belfast in summer 1996. Protestants in the loyalist enclave of Torrens - a small area between the mainly nationalist Oldpark and Cliftonville roads - had been involved in a stand-off with republicans in neighbouring Ardoyne
and this had escalated with a number of Provisional IRA members entering Ardoyne in order to "protect" residents. Members of the UVF then entered Torrens, having retrieved weapons, including an AK-47
, from an arms dump and a clash between the two groups looked imminent. When Hutchinson learned of this he entered Torrens and convinced the UVF members to put down their weapons, even standing in front of the AK-47 wielder in order to prevent him approaching Ardoyne. The weapon was removed and the UVF left the area with the incident defusing as a result. He also spoke at an event in the republican Bogside
area of Derry
, during which he expressed support for the possibility of non-executive cross-border bodies before posing for pictures with local Sinn Fein activist Robin Perceval.
in 1996 election to the Northern Ireland Forum
. He was not elected although the PUP managed to win two seats in the interim body. He returned as North Belfast candidate for the 1998 election
to the new Northern Ireland Assembly
and was elected to this body. Hutchinson lost his seat in the 2003 election
after the Democratic Unionist Party
and Sinn Fein took an extra seat each.
Hutchinson ran for the PUP in the 1997 local government election and was elected to Belfast City Council
as a representative of the Oldpark District Electoral Area
. Indeed he was the top-rated of all the various unionist candidates in this ward. He retained the seat in 2001 but lost it in 2005 to Fred Cobain
of the Ulster Unionist Party
.
that broke out between the UVF and the West Belfast Brigade
of the Ulster Defence Association
(UDA). The roots of Hutchinson's involvement lay three years earlier in the immediate aftermath of the killing of Loyalist Volunteer Force
(LVF) leader Billy Wright
by the Irish National Liberation Army
. Wright had been close to the West Belfast UDA and as a result their leading hitman Stephen McKeag
shot up a Catholic bar in the Cliftonville Road in retaliation. The UDA encouraged the LVF to claim the attack but when the claim was made Hutchinson refuted the claim and placed the blame on the UDA. He received a strong rebuke for this from the UDP's John White
, who accused Hutchinson of working with Sinn Fein and the Social Democratic and Labour Party
against the UDA. The war of words had ignited despite the fact that Hutchinson and White had enjoyed a close friendship in prison.
After violent clashes between members of both groups on the Shankill Road the UVF shot and killed two men close to the UDA's West Belfast leadership, Jackie Coulter and Bobby Mahood. The UDA Brigadier Johnny Adair
fumed at this development and, seeing Hutchinson being interviewed about the feud on television, phoned one of his deputies Jim Spence
, who lived near Hutchinson, and allegedly told him to "go and shoot him right now". Spence told Adair he would but delayed as he wanted to end the feud with as little bloodshed as possible whilst his phone had been tapped by Special Branch
who were able to warn Hutchinson. As a result the attack did not occur. Nonetheless on 31 October of that same year Bertie Rice, a friend of Hutchinson and a voluntary worker at his constituency office, was shot and killed by members of the UDA's North Belfast Brigade who were close to Adair.
at the party's annual conference in succession to Brian Ervine
.
nature of loyalism
and has argued in favour of socialism
, although other socialists have criticized the exclusionary nature of his ideas, arguing that it does not constitute true socialism as it only applies to one community. His declared support for socialism also came in for strong criticism from then UVF Mid-Ulster Brigade
commander Billy Wright whose virulent opposition to left-wing politics
helped to push him away from the mainstream UVF. John "Grugg" Gregg
, Brigadier of the UDA South East Antrim Brigade
and, like Wright, a man with close links to far right
groups in England
, was also a strong critic of Hutchinson and accused him of thinking "like a republican". Hutchinson has conceded that some of his ideas were influenced by contact with Official IRA
members with whom he studied in prison.
Although brought up in the Protestant religion, Hutchinson is an atheist
and has never been a member of the Orange Order.
Progressive Unionist Party
The Progressive Unionist Party is a small unionist political party in Northern Ireland. It was formed from the Independent Unionist Group operating in the Shankill area of Belfast, becoming the PUP in 1979...
in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. He was elected to Belfast City Council
Belfast City Council
Belfast City Council is the local authority with responsibility for the city of Belfast, the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland. The Council serves an estimated population of , the largest of any district council in Northern Ireland, while also being the fourth smallest by area...
in 1997
Northern Ireland local elections, 1997
Elections for local government were held in Northern Ireland on 21 May 1997, shortly after the 1997 general election across the entire United Kingdom.-Overall:-Belfast:-References:...
and to the Northern Ireland Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...
in 1998. He lost his assembly seat in 2003
Northern Ireland Assembly election, 2003
The second elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly, which at the time of the elections had been suspended for just over a year, were held on Wednesday 26 November 2003. Six members were elected by Single Transferable Vote from each of Northern Ireland's eighteen Westminster Parliamentary...
and his council seat in 2005
Northern Ireland local elections, 2005
Elections for local government were held in Northern Ireland on 5 May 2005 along with the 2005 general election across the entire United Kingdom and local elections in England.-Results:-Belfast:-Derry:...
. Before this he had been a member of the Ulster Volunteer Force
Ulster Volunteer Force
The Ulster Volunteer Force is a loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in late 1965 or early 1966 and named after the Ulster Volunteer Force of 1913. The group's volunteers undertook an armed campaign of almost thirty years during The Troubles...
(UVF) and the founder of their youth wing the Young Citizen Volunteers
Young Citizen Volunteers
The Young Citizen Volunteers of Northern Ireland had its first meeting just prior to the signing of the Solemn League and Covenant , opposing Home Rule, in Belfast City Hall on September 10, 1912...
(YCV).
UVF activity
A native of the Shankill Road, BelfastBelfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
Hutchinson took part in a series of riots in the area, during which Shankill dwellers clashed with residents of the neighbouring nationalist
Irish nationalism
Irish nationalism manifests itself in political and social movements and in sentiment inspired by a love for Irish culture, language and history, and as a sense of pride in Ireland and in the Irish people...
Unity Flats area. Hutchinson originally joined the Red Hand Commando but was later transferred to the U.V.F. Members of the UVF fired shots at Unity Flats and it was around this time Hutchinson became a member of the organisation, describing his part in the rioting as "my initiation" into the UVF. A strong supporter of Linfield F.C.
Linfield F.C.
Linfield F.C. , is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club, whose home ground is Windsor Park in Belfast, which is also the home of the Northern Ireland international team....
, Hutchinson would often lead his fellow Shankill-based supporters in throwing stones and singing loyalist songs at the Unity Flats as they returned from the club's Windsor Park
Windsor Park
Windsor Park is a football stadium in Belfast, Northern Ireland and the home ground of Linfield F.C. and the Northern Ireland national football team. It is also where the Irish Cup and Irish League Cup finals are played.-History:...
home off the Lisburn Road
Lisburn Road
The Lisburn Road is a main arterial road linking Belfast and Lisburn, in Northern Ireland.The Lisburn Road is now an extension of the "Golden Mile" with many shops, boutiques, wine bars, restaurants and coffee houses. The road runs almost parallel to the Malone Road, the two being joined by many...
. These young loyalists formed the basis of the reformed YCV, which Hutchinson played a leading role in re-establishing in the early 1970s. Hutchinson was in charge of recruitment for this group in its early years although he was aided by Billy Spence
Billy Spence
Billy Spence was a loyalist activist in Northern Ireland. A native of the Shankill Road area of Belfast Spence was a leading figure with both Ulster Protestant Action and the Ulster Volunteer Force.-Early life:...
in this endeavour.
In October 1974 Hutchinson and a fellow YCV member, Thomas Winstone, drove up Northumberland Street (which links the Shankill to the neighbouring Falls Road, Belfast, a republican
Irish Republicanism
Irish republicanism is an ideology based on the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic.In 1801, under the Act of Union, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
area) at 7:30 in the morning. They came upon two Catholic men, Michael Loughran and Edward Morgan, walking to work and shot and killed them both. Both men were arrested soon afterwards and were both charged with murder to which they pleaded guilty, receiving life sentences. Hutchinson had been the driver of the car whilst Winstone was the shooter. Both men were aged nineteen at the time of their attack.
In prison
Sent to prison in Long Kesh in 1975, Hutchinson, like many other young UVF inmates, came under the influence of Gusty SpenceGusty Spence
Augustus Andrew "Gusty" Spence was a leader of the Ulster Volunteer Force and a leading loyalist politician. One of the first UVF members to be convicted of murder, Spence was a senior figure in the organisation for over a decade but later renounced violence and joined the Progressive Unionist...
, a founder member of the modern UVF who had begun a conversion to political aims. In fact Hutchinson had already known Spence as the two had spoken on a few occasions during 1972 when Spence, aided by his nephew Frankie Curry
Frankie Curry
Frankie Curry nicknamed "Pigface", was an Ulster loyalist who was involved with a number of paramilitary groups during his long career...
, had escaped from prison for a few months. Hutchinson even served as Spence's bodyguard briefly and had been in his company the day Spence was recaptured. In the prison Hutchinson, along with the likes of David Ervine
David Ervine
David Ervine was a Northern Irish politician and the leader of the Progressive Unionist Party .-Biography:...
, Eddie Kinner, Billy Mitchell
Billy Mitchell (loyalist)
Billy Mitchell was a Northern Irish community activist and member of the Progressive Unionist Party. Mitchell was a leading member of the loyalist Ulster Volunteer Force and served a life sentence for his part in a double murder but later abandoned UVF membership and took up cross-community...
and William "Plum" Smith
William Smith (loyalist)
William Smith is a Northern Irish Loyalist former paramilitary and politician. He has been involved in loyalism in various capacities for at least forty years.-Early life:...
, was convinced by Spence that loyalism needed to develop a more political side to its agenda and Spence encouraged these younger members to become involved in this development. In 1977 when Spence advocated a policy of dialogue with republicans Hutchinson and Mitchell co-authored a letter to UVF members on the outside endorsing Spence's call. Whilst in prison Hutchinson took a degree in social sciences
Social sciences
Social science is the field of study concerned with society. "Social science" is commonly used as an umbrella term to refer to a plurality of fields outside of the natural sciences usually exclusive of the administrative or managerial sciences...
and a diploma in town planning. He was released after serving sixteen years of his sentence.
Spence resigned from the UVF in 1978 and, after a period of collective leadership by "officers commanding" of each prison compound, Hutchinson succeeded him as leader of the UVF in Long Kesh. This arrangement did not last long however as prisoners tired of the strict disciplinary regime that Hutchinson, like Spence before him, insisted on. However before long the extreme lack of discipline that ensued became too much for a number of senior figures to stand and as a consequence in 1984 Hutchinson took control again, holding the post until his release from prison in 1990.
Hutchinson was also nominated by the UVF as their point of contact with John de Chastelain
John de Chastelain
Alfred John Gardyne Drummond de Chastelain is a retired Canadian soldier and diplomat.De Chastelain was born in Romania and educated in England and in Scotland before his family immigrated to Canada in 1954...
and the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning
Independent International Commission on Decommissioning
The Independent International Commission on Decommissioning was established to oversee the decommissioning of paramilitary weapons in Northern Ireland, as part of the peace process.-Legislation and organisation:...
and he helped to ensure the eventual decommissioning of weapons in 2009. This was despite the fact that Hutchinson had been a noted sceptic on the issue and had even criticised David Trimble
David Trimble
William David Trimble, Baron Trimble, PC , is a politician from Northern Ireland. He served as Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party , was the first First Minister of Northern Ireland , and was a Member of the British Parliament . He is currently a life peer for the Conservative Party...
, arguing that his insistence on republican decommissioning was in fact damaging the peace process.
Progressive Unionist Party
Soon after his release from prison Hutchinson became active in the Progressive Unionist PartyProgressive Unionist Party
The Progressive Unionist Party is a small unionist political party in Northern Ireland. It was formed from the Independent Unionist Group operating in the Shankill area of Belfast, becoming the PUP in 1979...
(PUP) and began working towards the establishment of the Northern Ireland peace process
Northern Ireland peace process
The peace process, when discussing the history of Northern Ireland, is often considered to cover the events leading up to the 1994 Provisional Irish Republican Army ceasefire, the end of most of the violence of the Troubles, the Belfast Agreement, and subsequent political developments.-Towards a...
. During the early 1990s Hutchinson and David Ervine became more familiar faces in the media, presenting the loyalist political demands. Both men were influenced by the example of Sinn Fein
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
, who had demonstrated that an articulate media presence could ensure that paramilitary groups' demands might be heard. Hutchinson and Ervine in particular became close personal friends as well as colleagues and also enjoyed a friendly rivalry with Hutchinson being a Linfield-supporting west Belfast man and Ervine from the east of the city and a Glentoran F.C.
Glentoran F.C.
Glentoran F.C. is a semi-professional, football club in Northern Ireland. The club was founded in 1882 and plays its home games at the Oval in east Belfast. Club colours are green, red, and black.Glentoran's biggest rivals are Linfield...
fan. Along with Spence and Ervine, Hutchinson was a strong advocate of moves towards police and he played a leading role in helping to convince the UVF commanders to endorse the Combined Loyalist Military Command
Combined Loyalist Military Command
The Combined Loyalist Military Command was an umbrella body for loyalist paramilitary groups in Northern Ireland set up in the early 1990s, recalling the earlier Ulster Army Council and Ulster Loyalist Central Co-ordinating Committee....
ceasefire in 1994. Following the announcement of the ceasefire Hutchinson was part of a six-man delegation representing the PUP and the Ulster Democratic Party
Ulster Democratic Party
The Ulster Democratic Party was a small loyalist political party in Northern Ireland. It was established in June 1981 as the Ulster Loyalist Democratic Party by the Ulster Defence Association to replace their New Ulster Political Research Group...
(UDP) that toured the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Hutchinson became known as a proactive supporter of the Northern Ireland peace process
Northern Ireland peace process
The peace process, when discussing the history of Northern Ireland, is often considered to cover the events leading up to the 1994 Provisional Irish Republican Army ceasefire, the end of most of the violence of the Troubles, the Belfast Agreement, and subsequent political developments.-Towards a...
, not least during an incident in North-West Belfast in summer 1996. Protestants in the loyalist enclave of Torrens - a small area between the mainly nationalist Oldpark and Cliftonville roads - had been involved in a stand-off with republicans in neighbouring Ardoyne
Ardoyne
Ardoyne is an Irish nationalist, working class and mainly Catholic district in north Belfast, Northern Ireland. It gained notoriety due to the large number of incidents during "The Troubles". It is home to approximately 20,000 inhabitants...
and this had escalated with a number of Provisional IRA members entering Ardoyne in order to "protect" residents. Members of the UVF then entered Torrens, having retrieved weapons, including an AK-47
AK-47
The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova . It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an "AK", or in Russian slang, Kalash.Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year...
, from an arms dump and a clash between the two groups looked imminent. When Hutchinson learned of this he entered Torrens and convinced the UVF members to put down their weapons, even standing in front of the AK-47 wielder in order to prevent him approaching Ardoyne. The weapon was removed and the UVF left the area with the incident defusing as a result. He also spoke at an event in the republican Bogside
Bogside
The Bogside is a neighbourhood outside the city walls of Derry, Northern Ireland. The area has been a focus point for many of the events of The Troubles, from the Battle of the Bogside and Bloody Sunday in the 1960s and 1970s...
area of Derry
Derry
Derry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
, during which he expressed support for the possibility of non-executive cross-border bodies before posing for pictures with local Sinn Fein activist Robin Perceval.
Elections
Hutchinson was a candidate for the PUP in North BelfastBelfast North (Assembly constituency)
Belfast North is a constituency in the Northern Ireland Assembly.The seat was first used for a Northern Ireland-only election for the Northern Ireland Assembly, 1973...
in 1996 election to the Northern Ireland Forum
Northern Ireland Forum
The Northern Ireland Forum was a body set up in 1996 as part of a process of negotiations that eventually led to the Belfast Agreement in 1998....
. He was not elected although the PUP managed to win two seats in the interim body. He returned as North Belfast candidate for the 1998 election
Northern Ireland Assembly election, 1998
-Seats summary:-Details:Although the SDLP won the most first preference votes, the Ulster Unionists won the most seats in the Assembly. This has been attributed to several reasons, including:...
to the new Northern Ireland Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...
and was elected to this body. Hutchinson lost his seat in the 2003 election
Northern Ireland Assembly election, 2003
The second elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly, which at the time of the elections had been suspended for just over a year, were held on Wednesday 26 November 2003. Six members were elected by Single Transferable Vote from each of Northern Ireland's eighteen Westminster Parliamentary...
after the Democratic Unionist Party
Democratic Unionist Party
The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the...
and Sinn Fein took an extra seat each.
Hutchinson ran for the PUP in the 1997 local government election and was elected to Belfast City Council
Belfast City Council
Belfast City Council is the local authority with responsibility for the city of Belfast, the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland. The Council serves an estimated population of , the largest of any district council in Northern Ireland, while also being the fourth smallest by area...
as a representative of the Oldpark District Electoral Area
Oldpark (District Electoral Area)
Oldpark is one of the nine district electoral areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Located in the west of the city, the district elects six members to Belfast City Council and contains the wards of Ardoyne; Ballysillan; Cliftonville; Legoniel; New Lodge and Water Works...
. Indeed he was the top-rated of all the various unionist candidates in this ward. He retained the seat in 2001 but lost it in 2005 to Fred Cobain
Fred Cobain
Fred Cobain, MBE is a Unionist politician from Northern Ireland and was a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly from 1998 until 2011.Cobain was first elected to Belfast City Council in 1985. He served as Lord Mayor of Belfast in 1990-1991...
of the Ulster Unionist Party
Ulster Unionist Party
The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland...
.
2000 feud
In 2000 Hutchinson was caught up in a loyalist feudLoyalist feud
A loyalist feud refers to any of the sporadic feuds which have erupted almost routinely between Northern Ireland's various loyalist paramilitary groups since they were founded shortly before and after the religious/political conflict known as The Troubles broke out in the late 1960s...
that broke out between the UVF and the West Belfast Brigade
UDA West Belfast Brigade
The UDA West Belfast Brigade is the section of the Northern Irish loyalist paramilitary group the Ulster Defence Association based in the western quarter of Belfast in the Greater Shankill area...
of the Ulster Defence Association
Ulster Defence Association
The Ulster Defence Association is the largest although not the deadliest loyalist paramilitary and vigilante group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 and undertook a campaign of almost twenty-four years during "The Troubles"...
(UDA). The roots of Hutchinson's involvement lay three years earlier in the immediate aftermath of the killing of Loyalist Volunteer Force
Loyalist Volunteer Force
The Loyalist Volunteer Force is a loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed by Billy Wright in 1996 when he and the Portadown unit of the Ulster Volunteer Force's Mid-Ulster Brigade was stood down by the UVF leadership. He had been the commander of the Mid-Ulster Brigade. The...
(LVF) leader Billy Wright
Billy Wright (loyalist)
William Stephen "Billy" Wright was a prominent Ulster loyalist during the period of violent religious/political conflict known as "The Troubles". He joined the Ulster Volunteer Force in 1975 and became commander of its Mid-Ulster Brigade in the early 1990s...
by the Irish National Liberation Army
Irish National Liberation Army
The Irish National Liberation Army or INLA is an Irish republican socialist paramilitary group that was formed on 8 December 1974. Its goal is to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and create a socialist united Ireland....
. Wright had been close to the West Belfast UDA and as a result their leading hitman Stephen McKeag
Stephen McKeag
Stephen McKeag , known as Topgun or Top Gun, was a Northern Irish loyalist who became one of the most notorious figures within the Ulster Defence Association's 'C' Company in the 1990s...
shot up a Catholic bar in the Cliftonville Road in retaliation. The UDA encouraged the LVF to claim the attack but when the claim was made Hutchinson refuted the claim and placed the blame on the UDA. He received a strong rebuke for this from the UDP's John White
John White (loyalist)
John White is a former leading loyalist in Northern Ireland. He was sometimes known by the nickname 'Coco'. White was a leading figure in the loyalist paramilitary Ulster Defence Association and, following a prison sentence for murder, entered politics as a central figure in the Ulster Democratic...
, who accused Hutchinson of working with Sinn Fein and the Social Democratic and Labour Party
Social Democratic and Labour Party
The Social Democratic and Labour Party is a social-democratic, Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. Its basic party platform advocates Irish reunification, and the further devolution of powers while Northern Ireland remains part of the United Kingdom...
against the UDA. The war of words had ignited despite the fact that Hutchinson and White had enjoyed a close friendship in prison.
After violent clashes between members of both groups on the Shankill Road the UVF shot and killed two men close to the UDA's West Belfast leadership, Jackie Coulter and Bobby Mahood. The UDA Brigadier Johnny Adair
Johnny Adair
Jonathan Adair, better known as Johnny "Mad Dog" Adair is the former leader of the "C Company", 2nd Battalion Shankill Road, West Belfast Brigade of the "Ulster Freedom Fighters" . This was a cover name used by the Ulster Defence Association , an Ulster loyalist paramilitary organisation...
fumed at this development and, seeing Hutchinson being interviewed about the feud on television, phoned one of his deputies Jim Spence
Jim Spence (loyalist)
Jim Spence is a Northern Irish former loyalist activist. Spence became notorious for his time in the Ulster Defence Association , serving two spells as Brigadier in West Belfast...
, who lived near Hutchinson, and allegedly told him to "go and shoot him right now". Spence told Adair he would but delayed as he wanted to end the feud with as little bloodshed as possible whilst his phone had been tapped by Special Branch
Special Branch
Special Branch is a label customarily used to identify units responsible for matters of national security in British and Commonwealth police forces, as well as in the Royal Thai Police...
who were able to warn Hutchinson. As a result the attack did not occur. Nonetheless on 31 October of that same year Bertie Rice, a friend of Hutchinson and a voluntary worker at his constituency office, was shot and killed by members of the UDA's North Belfast Brigade who were close to Adair.
Subsequent activity
In October 2007 Hutchinson was arrested in connection with the murder of Catholic teenager Thomas Devlin. A protest followed outside the police station in which he was being held although ultimately Hutchinson was released without charge.PUP leader
In October 2011 Billy Hutchinson was elected leader of the Progressive Unionist PartyProgressive Unionist Party
The Progressive Unionist Party is a small unionist political party in Northern Ireland. It was formed from the Independent Unionist Group operating in the Shankill area of Belfast, becoming the PUP in 1979...
at the party's annual conference in succession to Brian Ervine
Brian Ervine
Brian Ervine is a playwright, songwriter and teacher living in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The Northern Irish playwright St John Ervine was a distant relative...
.
Beliefs
Hutchinson has often stressed the importance of the working classWorking class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
nature of loyalism
Ulster loyalism
Ulster loyalism is an ideology that is opposed to a united Ireland. It can mean either support for upholding Northern Ireland's status as a constituent part of the United Kingdom , support for Northern Ireland independence, or support for loyalist paramilitaries...
and has argued in favour of socialism
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
, although other socialists have criticized the exclusionary nature of his ideas, arguing that it does not constitute true socialism as it only applies to one community. His declared support for socialism also came in for strong criticism from then UVF Mid-Ulster Brigade
UVF Mid-Ulster Brigade
UVF Mid-Ulster Brigade formed part of the loyalist paramilitary Ulster Volunteer Force in Northern Ireland. The brigade was established in Lurgan, County Armagh in 1972 by its first commander Billy Hanna. The unit operated mainly around the Lurgan and Portadown areas. Subsequent leaders of the...
commander Billy Wright whose virulent opposition to left-wing politics
Left-wing politics
In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...
helped to push him away from the mainstream UVF. John "Grugg" Gregg
John Gregg (UDA)
John Gregg was a senior member of the UDA/UFF loyalist organisation in Northern Ireland. From the 1990s until his shooting death by rival associates, he served as brigadier of its South East Antrim Brigade...
, Brigadier of the UDA South East Antrim Brigade
UDA South East Antrim Brigade
The UDA South East Antrim Brigade was one of the six paramilitaries of the Ulster Defence Association . It operated in County Antrim, mainly in Newtownabbey, Larne and Antrim. The Guardian has identified it as "one of the most dangerous factions"...
and, like Wright, a man with close links to far right
Far right
Far-right, extreme right, hard right, radical right, and ultra-right are terms used to discuss the qualitative or quantitative position a group or person occupies within right-wing politics. Far-right politics may involve anti-immigration and anti-integration stances towards groups that are...
groups in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, was also a strong critic of Hutchinson and accused him of thinking "like a republican". Hutchinson has conceded that some of his ideas were influenced by contact with Official IRA
Official IRA
The Official Irish Republican Army or Official IRA is an Irish republican paramilitary group whose goal was to create a "32-county workers' republic" in Ireland. It emerged from a split in the Irish Republican Army in December 1969, shortly after the beginning of "The Troubles"...
members with whom he studied in prison.
Although brought up in the Protestant religion, Hutchinson is an atheist
Atheism
Atheism is, in a broad sense, the rejection of belief in the existence of deities. In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities...
and has never been a member of the Orange Order.