Sinn Fein and other republican groups are very well aware of this fact, and they never miss the opportunity of pushing to the forefront some symbol which epitomises their traditions.

Hence the decision by the recently installed Sinn Fein Lord Mayor of Belfast to introduce items into his Parlour which are certainly not connected with the British way of life.

In moving such items into his Parlour, the Lord Mayor moved photographs of Her Majesty the Queen and Prince Philip to another part of the room.

This gesture angered loyalist people in Belfast, but the Lord Mayor was far from being apologetic. His party is now the largest in the City Hall, and with the support of the SDLP and Alliance, the Shinners have set in motion the wheels of a plan to have the Union Jack removed from flying over the City Hall.

Were Sinn Fein to succeed, with the support of SDLP and Alliance, it would have an extremely negative effect, and would send out the wrong signals. It would cause dismay among the pro-Union population throughout Northern Ireland, and would jeopardise future visits by members of the Royal Family.

People have asked how this has come about. There are several reasons, the paramount one being the exodus of a large proportion of the Protestant population within Belfast to the suburbs and towns on the periphery of the city.

Belfast has not had a boundary extension for over 100 years, and that is another key factor. Huge housing estates which are connected to Belfast and form part of the city’s post-war extension, are now included in Newtownabbey and Castlereagh.

Greater Belfast, which could include Lisburn and Carrickfergus, has a decisive unionist majority, but the area within the City Council jurisdiction has declined in population terms.

Yet, in spite of all this, at least half the population of Belfast is of the unionist tradition. If unionists were to vote in the numbers of a few years ago, then they could win back marginal wards, thus ensuring a unionist majority in the council chamber.

The lesson for Unionists from all this, is that they must start voting again in sizeable numbers, otherwise further inroads will be made into the British ethos and tradition in the capital city.

It has to be added that Sinn Fein’s sights are not just set on Belfast, but on promoting their anti-British agenda in other councils.

In Craigavon for example, which includes Portadown within its boundaries, Sinn Fein has been pushing an “equality” agenda, which has resulted in plaques presented to Craigavon Borough Council by army regiments stationed here during the years of terrorism, being removed from the walls where they were displayed.

Sinn Fein councillors are also striving to have a portrait of Her Majesty the Queen removed from a prominent position within the Civic Centre, but this is being strongly resisted by all unionist councillors.

The Orange Order has been striving for some time to persuade Unionists to come closer together and to maximise their efforts for the greater good of the majority population.