The Orange Order has weighed into the debate about a historical exhibition at the Ulster Museum in Belfast and revealed it had a meeting last week with officials to discuss its complaint.

Assembly Culture, Arts and Leisure Minister Nelson McCausland caused a storm after accusing the National Museums Northern Ireland of not paying enough attention to Ulster-Scots heritage and the Orange Order in its exhibits. In a letter to Museum trustees, the DUP minister also urged them to give more prominence to alternative views such as creationism.

Mr McCausland specifically mentioned a local history exhibition at the Ulster Museum, called Plantation to Power Sharing, which he felt treated “the views, beliefs and cultural traditions” of Northern Ireland society inadequately.

In a statement, the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland backed the minister.

It said: “We have been concerned for some time about how little space and weight has been given to the Orange Order in the Plantation to Power Sharing exhibition at the Museum. We received a number of complaints from members of the public and then viewed the exhibition for ourselves.

“As a result we wrote a letter of complaint to the Museum and last week had a meeting with Ulster Museum officials when we raised a number of points with them.

“We appreciate the support given by the Culture Minister Nelson McCausland on this matter.”