Birth and troubled life of commission
1997: The Parades Commission was established following an RUC decision to allow the Orange Order to march down the predominantly nationalist Garvaghy Road in Portadown, Co Armagh
1999: The commission carried out a four-month review following complaints from nationalists and unionists
2000: Garvaghy Road resident Evelyn White took a legal challenge on the grounds the Parades Commission was not fairly representative of both communities. The application was dismissed
2007: Former Liberal Democrat leader Paddy Ashdown began a review of the Parades Commission after complaints had been received from both unionists and nationalists
April 2008: An interim report recommended that the commission disappear and its functions be handed to a panel appointed by politicians
October 6 2009: Details of a DUP ‘wish list’ were leaked to the media including a call for the scrapping of the Parades Commission. The party made no official comment
October 7 2009: Sinn Fein released a statement criticising several items on the ‘wish list’ but when questioned the party would not say whether the parades body was on the talks table
October 27 2009: Peter Robinson told the House of Commons that the Parades Commission must be abolished before policing and justice powers are devolved.
