MEP Maria Walsh mistakenly says ‘Ballymena, Co Leitrim’ during speech at European Parliament

Initial technical issues led to the Midlands-North West MEP re-starting her contribution on general “matters of political importance”, during which she condemned the violence in “Ballymena, Co Leitrim”.

The written record for the speech has since been corrected and Ms Walsh said the reference was “a slip of the tongue”.

“The reference to Leitrim was unintended and was not in the script - it was a slip of the tongue,” she said.

"My speech was focused on the need to end racist violence and support communities impacted by the riots.”

There have been 33 arrests made by the PSNI in total since the incidents began in Ballymena, with more than 60 police officers were injured in the disturbances that started after a peaceful protest over an alleged sexual assault in the town.

The unrest later spread to other areas.

Speaking in Strasburg, the Fine Gael MEP said families have been forced from their homes and innocent children have been left “vulnerable and traumatised” by the scenes, which she described as displays of “racism cloaked in outrage”.

“Mr President, recent riots on the island of Ireland, which began in the town of Ballymena in Co Antrim, have morphed from concern about a tragic sexual assault allegation into xenophobic violence against migrant families,” said Ms Walsh, in the corrected written record.

"As Amnesty Northern Ireland Director Patrick Corrigan said, we are just one petrol bomb away from racially motivated murder.

“Families have been forced from their homes as groups hurled bricks, petrol bombs and fireworks, leaving innocent children vulnerable and traumatised. This is not a protest for justice, it's racism cloaked in outrage.

“Sadly, inflammatory political rhetoric has added fuel to the fire. Some politicians have deliberately fanned the flames of hatred and, by linking migration to crime, they've pitted neighbour against neighbour.

“We must stand with victims and prosecute hate-fuelled crimes swiftly. And we must invest in our community dialogue and integration. Ireland and Europe must show that diversity is a strength, not a threat.”