Saturday’s Orange March in Perth passed without sparking a single recorded incident but still roused the ire of one of the area’s top politicians.
Perth and Kinross councillors praised both Tayside Police and those involved in the march and licensing committee chairman Peter Mulheron said he had walked the streets extensively before, during and after the march and had found “no bad blood nor rudeness.”
But Perth and North Perthshire MP Pete Wishart claimed he had been “extremely conscious of an unpleasant mood in the streets” and said he hoped the Orange Lodge would think twice before holding a similar gathering in Perth.
The centre of Perth came to a standstill as around 4000 loyalists paraded in full uniform along its streets, roared on by countless supporters.
The march, organised by the Orange Lodge to commemorate the Battle of the Boyne in 1690, was hosted by Perth’s own branch.
It required a massive police presence with 100 officers from Tayside Police supplemented by 20 special constables more than twice the number mobilised for the visit of one of the Old Firm to St Johnstone’s McDiarmid Park amid fears the parade could spark a “riot.”
In the end, a police spokesperson said the event had “passed off without any incident whatsoever.”
But Mr Wishart remains unhappy the march was allowed to take place and hopes it will not return.
“I am relieved that this weekend is over,” he said.
“I was in the town on Saturday and was extremely conscious of an unpleasant mood in the streets and, far from bringing benefit to the town, I understand that some pubs closed their doors for the day.
“I would like to think that processions through Perth should be about the community coming together in celebration.
“Orange marches are all about driving communities apart and celebrating division and I hope that they can be consigned to history.
Mr Mulheron appears to have had a very different experience.
He praised Tayside Police Chief Superintendent Craig Suttie and his officers for their “excellent performance” on Saturday, in particular their handling of traffic.
He added, “I would like to thank the 4000 marchers for their good manners, organisation and discipline.
“The people who feared this march had nothing to worry about in the end.”
More than 1400 people had signed up to a Facebook page calling for it to be cancelled and a number of senior local figures past and present echoed those calls.