Where is DUP veto now?

17 June 2008

Statement by Traditional Unionist Leader, Jim Allister MEP

"Earlier this month I warned the Unionist people that one of the ideas being floated was to “allow Westminster to take some language decisions, which the DUP would publicly protest but tolerate. Such would be a travesty and a mockery of supposedly having devolved powers”. Time has proven this to be correct.

In January, in response to a question from Gerry Adams, the then DUP Culture Minister Edwin Poots stated that he was “unable to secure further funding” for the Irish Language Broadcast Fund in the draft budget agreed by the Executive.

This prompted an angry press release from the Sinn Fein/IRA leader.

Now we learn that the Irish Language Broadcast Fund is to receive over £6 million following negotiations with the Government surrounding Sinn Fein’s threat to veto the DUP’s leadership change.

Where is the Unionist veto if – behind DCAL’s back (or was it) – the government can squander millions of pounds on the Irish language? And why did the DUP not seek assurances that Republicans would not receive further concessions when they were negotiating with the government about 42 day detention?  Instead, we have the DUP Minister, Gregory Campbell actually welcoming this further extravagant hand out to the Irish language, with its overtly republican agenda. Is this what delivering for unionism now looks like?

It is time for the DUP to come clean on what else they conceded to Republicans in order to avoid facing the electorate."

NI politics