Lisburn DUP Alderman Paul Porter has tightened the security settings on his Facebook account after a post about his son attracted what he described as severe personal attacks.

The councillor had shared an image of handing down a family tradition to his son: placing the Union flag outside the home from early July to late August, a practice to mark the anniversaries of the Battle of the Somme and the Twelfth of July celebrations.

In response, a volume of messages targeted his son, prompting Porter to delete the comments. He later adjusted his privacy settings on the advice of family.

Porter, who chairs the council’s corporate committee, said he accepts that elected representatives are open to criticism but that his family should not be subjected to such treatment. He noted that many of the attackers used fake accounts, which he argued allows abusive speech rather than genuine free expression.

The incident comes against a backdrop of growing concern over online abuse of local politicians. A recent report from the NI Local Government Association found that 66 per cent of councillors surveyed said they had experienced abuse or intimidation on social media. The Local Government Association has warned that high levels of vitriolic abuse are pushing people out of public life and harming democratic participation.