Ulster Unionist East Antrim MLA Roy Beggs Jnr has condemned racially-motivated attacks on an Indian family and a Filipino family in Whiteabbey on Tuesday.

"This is simply not acceptable. Northern Ireland cannot become defined by its intolerance and violence towards other races and cultures.

"Not only were cars extensively damaged, but the families themselves could easily have been injured or perhaps killed had their homes been affected.

"This is a disgrace, and I am sure that the vast majority of local residents and the wider community are horrified by the actions of a thuggish minority.

"These are families who do not deserve to be afraid in their own homes, and have the right to live in peace. Indeed there are many vital jobs - particularly in our health service - being filled, of necessity, by overseas workers, and we are fortunate that they are here sustaining essential services.

"I would ask that anyone with information come forward to police, so we can purge our community of those who seek to destroy and maim for no reason other than their own narrow-mindedness."