Following a Court of Appeal ruling on an Orange Order parade in Portadown, the organisation's legal adviser has said that the decision could lead to the reopening of all traditional parade routes in Northern Ireland.

Jamie Bryson, speaking outside the court on Monday, said that anyone opposed to future parades, including a planned march along the Lower Ormeau Road in November, should "go ahead" with their objections. He stated that after the ruling, the Orange Order would be "walking all of those traditional routes again."

The Court of Appeal had ruled that the Parades Commission was entitled to make its own determination regarding the parade, but the court did not comment on the validity of that decision. Bryson's remarks were not made alongside Portadown Orange leaders.

The Garvaghy Road Residents Coalition had opposed the Orange Order's application to march along the road, which has been a flashpoint since the 1990s. The Parades Commission has consistently refused permission for such parades since 1998.

Bryson has written in his self-published book that he sees the parading issue, and Drumcree in particular, as a key tool in a campaign to dismantle the Good Friday Agreement. He became the public face of the Drumcree campaign after being retained as legal adviser by Portadown District.

A local editorial criticised Bryson's comments as an "extraordinary and unguarded exposé" of the strategy behind the campaign, describing his aim as shattering the fragile consensus on parading. The editorial also noted that Bryson is not a qualified lawyer acting in court, and that he took a "distant back seat" when actual lawyers entered proceedings.

The Garvaghy Road residents and others who oppose such parades, including those on the Lower Ormeau Road, are expected to maintain their opposition. The editorial suggested that the residents' victory in this case would strengthen their position in future disputes.