‘We don’t forget’: Michael Gove’s address appears on Belfast wall amid anger over Northern Ireland protocol
Police have launched a criminal damage investigation
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Michael Gove's name, address and a threatening message against him have been spraypainted on a wall in a traditionally loyalist area of Belfast amid rising anger over Brexit's Northern Ireland protocol.
The Cabinet Office minister's details were scrawled on a hoarding in the Sandy Row area of the city, along with the message: "We don't forget, we don't forgive".
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said it was made aware of the graffiti on Wednesday morning and had launched a criminal damage investigation.
A Metropolitan Police spokesperson would not be drawn on whether Mr Gove’s personal security had been ramped up as a result of the graffiti. The Independent has contacted the Cabinet Office for comment.
Sandy Row, south Belfast, had a loyalist paramilitary presence during the Troubles and was the home of a mural celebrating the Ulster Freedom Fighters. It was replaced with a gable-wall sized portrait of William of Orange in 2012.
Mr Gove had been heavily involved in the Brexit process until he was recently replaced by Lord Frost.
Last week Mr Gove and European Commission vice president Maroš Šefcovic announced in a joint statement that both sides were committed to the “proper implementation” of the NI protocol as set out in the terms of the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement.
But loyalists are staunchly opposed to the protocol, arguing that it has created trade barriers between NI and the rest of Great Britain and therefore threatens the province's constitutional status within the UK.
The graffiti was condemned by politicians from across the spectrum in NI.
Claire Hanna, the SDLP MP for Belfast South, said no politician should have to face intimidation. “As anticipated, Brexit has brought us to a very difficult place but we are where we are and have to make the best of it and whatever your view on that issue, no politician should face this,” she told Mail Online.
DUP MLA Christopher Stalford said there was no place for threats in NI's politics.
"Regardless of one's views on the protocol there is absolutely no place for threats of violence against any person," said Mr Stalford, whose office is in the area. "This is totally wrong."
He added: "In a democracy, we resolve our disputes through the ballot box, we don't resort to threats sprayed on walls. There's no place for this and the people responsible should be ashamed of themselves."
The spraypainting of Mr Gove's address is among a number of menacing graffiti incidents in NI since the end of the Brexit transition period and the implementation of the protocol.
In January staff carrying out post-Brexit checks at ports in Belfast and Larne were removed from duty after graffiti appeared describing them as "targets".
The PSNI later said it had no evidence of credible threats.
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