ON the appointment of Roy Mason as Northern Secretary:
'This is the best bit of news the people of Northern have had for the past two years.
— Ian Paisley, 1976.
ON Mason's rule while office:
"At every level of political activity routine day-to-day representations to inter-party discussions Northern Ireland Office has shown an arrogant indifference to the real problems facing Northern Ireland?
Seamus Mallon, Democratic and Labour Party, 3 January 1979.
ON the effects of Labour in office:
*The union with Britain is now in less danger and more secure than at any time since Too and probably since rurter back still.
- Enoch Powell, April 1976.
*On the basis of information available to it, Amnesty International believes that maltreatment of suspected terrorists by the RUC has taken place with sufficient frequency to warrant the establishment of public inquiry to investigate Amnesty International, June 1978.
ON H Block:
*A visiting radio journalist from America got in touch with the Northern Ireland Office to see if he could ask Mr Roy Mason about the controversy over conditions in Bleck.
*He was told, reasonably, that Mr Mason was too busy to see him. But instead of answering the questions the Northern Ireland Office gested that the journalist get in touch Mr Norman Hatton, the chief of the Official Unionists who, the official said, would be able to put the government view quite adequately.' from the Guardian, 14 March 1979.
*The fact that a man refuses to wear prison uniforms or to do prison work should not entail the loss of physical exercise, association with his fellow prisoners, or contact with the outside world.
*These are basic human needs for physical and mental health, not privileges to be granted or withheld punishments.
*To deprive anyone of them over a long period is surely a grave injustice and cannot be justified in any circumstances.
Dr Tomas O Fiaich, Catholic Primate of Ireland, 1 August 1978.
ON Labour and the Unionists:
*It's like this: Roy Mason is giving us sheer bloody good Socialist Challenge 29 March 1979 page 4 government politically, economically and militarily.
- anonymous Unionist Party official, quoted in Irish Times, 10 September 1977.
"All the lives in Ireland are negotiable day office."
Hugh Logue, in Democratic and Labour Party, September 1977.
ON the passing the Prevention of Terrorism Act:
"You may rely on our support for the speedy passage of the proposed Bill.
William Craig, Unionist MP, November 1974.
*The only comparison that 1 know of is the practice in South Africa where citizens can moved out of areas where they have always lived and sent off by administrative 100-200 miles away, wherever please authorities to send because they are considered a •We are lation which is comparable with the legislation existing in South Africa."
Frank Hooley, MP, November 1974. quite ON the unification of Ireland: sug- In March 1978 Irish Premier Jack Lynch said:
*I do not believe there can ever be a permanent peace in Ireland while the remains.' Roy Mason savagely attacked Lynch for this evoking the following praise for Mason:
*The words which fell from the Secretary of afternoon were the impressive which been used from the government front bench on the subject.
Enoch Powell, 10 March 1977.
IN summary:
*Direct rule is positive, is compassionate and Roy Mason, October 1977. difficult, roughly 150-160 prisoners have shown themselves to me with injuries which I would not be satisfied were self-inflicted. All — Dr Robert Irwin, 11 March 1979.
*Building new prisons seems to be the only growth area in Northern Ireland.' Joan Maynard, Labour MP, August 1977. Northern for impotent of the Ulster be action, them,