Democratic Unionist Party European election candidate, Jim Allister QC, has responded to an attack on the DUP by the UUP’s Michael McGimpsey, David McNarry and Dermot Nesbitt.

Jim Allister said, “UUP spokesmen are a bit like buses.  You wait for one, and then three come along at once. 

It seems that Michael McGimpsey and David McNarry have been struck with an affliction that causes them to forget entirely the recent past.  There can be no other explanation for the rambling rhetoric of the failed men of Ulster Unionism.  What’s perhaps more worrying, is their delusion that the people of Northern Ireland are as equally forgetful about the political history of the Province.

They have completely blanked out of their mind everything pre the 26^th November 2003.  They castigate the DUP for not delivering a new agreement just six months after the Assembly election.  Don’t they remember that the mess of a system that they endorsed was in suspension for thirteen months prior to the November poll?  The UUP were absolutely abysmal at making political progress in over a year before the election.  Indeed, what passed for political progress in the eyes of the UUP were even further giveaways to the IRA in the shape of an amnesty for on the runs, massive demilitarisation and concessions on equality, human rights and policing.  The UUP aren’t exactly committed to political progress given their walkout approach to the talks process.

The dire structure of devolution brought about by the UUP sponsored Belfast Agreement, coupled with the countless concessions to Sinn Fein/IRA, is entirely the responsibility of the UUP yet this fact escapes them.  There is much for the Democratic Unionist Party to rectify and we will not be distracted from our work by the bluff and bluster of the Ulster Unionist Party.  They created this mess and if they are unwilling to assist us in clearing it up, they can simply stand aside.

The DUP are not the let down that David McNarry claims.  We have produced proposals that are paving the way for the fair deal that Northern Ireland needs.  The UUP habitually let the unionist people down with their rolling over in the face of Sinn Fein/IRA.

Furthermore, doesn’t Mr McNarry recall that his Party Leader set the precondition of engagement between the DUP and Sinn Fein before he would meet with us, in a blatant attempt to hide the secret deal done between the UUP and Sinn Fein/IRA. 

As for Michael McGimpsey’s talk of DUP u-turns, it is ironic that Mr McGimpsey should make such a ridiculous claim in the middle of the European election.  Doesn’t he remember that it was at the last euro campaign that the UUP said “no guns, no government” only to turn their back on that promise less than six months later. 

As for Dermot Nesbitt, instead of being incapable of remembering further back than November 2003, he can only trumpet out the same, sad old stories.  How dare Dermot declare that the DUP are determined to return Northern Ireland to the past.  The DUP are mandated to take Northern Ireland away from the past that the UUP are culpable for and stop the sort of future from unfolding that the UUP, had they remained as leaders of unionism, would have inevitably seen happen.

So devoid of a plausible line of attack the UUP have now resorted to the ridiculous”.