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Speaking as voters are set to go to the polls in this Wednesday’s Assembly election, UUP Foyle Assembly candidate, Peter Munce has said that its time for a change in the leadership of unionism in Londonderry and has urged the Unionist community to maximize the unionist position in Foyle by voting Ulster Unionist on March 7th.

In a statement Peter said,

“Other unionists have been in charge for too long in this city. They have had many years to address a number of issues for the unionist and wider community but have failed to do so. They have had their chance. That is why on March 7th it is time for a change. Unionism needs fresh, new, strong and purposeful leadership for the future in this city, not the tired, old, weak and uncertain leadership of the past.

“The figures show that there are two seats for the pro – union community in this constituency and I would urge each and every unionist and anyone who wants to make Stormont work to vote for the only unionist party committed to making Stormont work for all of us.

“At the outset of the election campaign I said that I offered voters in this constituency a choice. A choice between looking forward with me or looking back with others. My campaign, in stark contrast with the outgoing unionist MLA, has relentlessly focused on the positive. I have used the campaign in Foyle to highlight a number of issues and in a future Assembly I make a commitment to you that I will:

- Address the deep sense of isolation and social exclusion felt by some within the community.
- Improve transport links, both road and rail, to the Northwest.
- Maximise this city’s tourism potential by focussing on the cultural significance and tourism potential of Derry’s walls.
- Support steps to end the brain drain in the area where each year thousands of our talented young people leave the North West to work and study elsewhere.
- Focus on building stronger communities in the forgotten areas of Foyle like New Buildings, Eglinton, Maydown, Claudy and Drumahoe by tacking anti-social behaviour, encouraging economic regeneration and improving access to public transport.

“It is sad that with only a few days left until polling day all the DUP can do is resort to personal attacks against fellow unionists. They must have nothing else positive to offer the people. Whilst their campaign has been relentlessly negative, mine has been relentlessly positive.”

UUP Foyle Assembly candidate, Peter Munce has said the decision of the Northern Bank to close their branch in Eglinton is a massive blow for the local community.

Peter said that account holders in the Northern Bank’s Eglinton branch who have received letters this morning informing them of the bank’s decision to close have contacted the UUP.

Speaking today Mr Munce said,

“The decision to remove such a vital local service, without any consultation, is a massive blow for the local community in Eglinton. People in this area already feel like a forgotten community who over the years have been bypassed by Government and local authorities. This decision will only to serve to increase the sense of isolation felt by many in this community.

“The advice from the bank is to relocate to the Northern Bank’s branch at Altnagelvin or use the online banking facility. However, how is this of any use to the elderly or those on low income who will have to take two buses to reach the branch or those who don’t have access to a computer?

“The UUP will be seeking an urgent meeting with the Northern Bank to discuss this issue and would urge other banks to consider filling the gap left by the Northern Bank’s withdrawal.”

In a statement today UUP Leader Si Reg Empey restated the UUP’s pledge to the people of Northern Ireland:

“We will go into government on March 26. We have been listening to you. And you have told us loud and clear – you want a devolved government on March 26 that works for you.

Other parties are promising that devolved government will be “a battle a day”. That is what the DUP and Sinn Fein will give to the people of Northern Ireland - not a hard-working government that puts the people first, but a daily mud-slinging session.

While other campaigns were about papering over divisions within their own ranks, our election campaign has been about government.

The UUP knows that Northern Ireland deserves better than squabbling. We will put Northern Ireland first. Others will deliver logjam - we will make government work for you.

In the UK, politics is fought firmly in the centre ground. Northern Ireland is no different. The centre ground is where progress takes place. It is made up of people from all backgrounds who want to see devolved government work, who want normal politics here. The UUP is committed to working with others to deliver this.

I’m a unionist - and proud of it. I believe that as part of the United Kingdom, we can have a peaceful, stable, inclusive Northern Ireland that everyone can call home.

I don’t want Northern Ireland to be governed by Direct Rule Ministers giving more and more of a say to a Dublin government - neither of whom are accountable to the people of Northern Ireland. I am not content to be a spectator in my own country. You have been speaking to us on the doorsteps and you feel the same way.

I believe that those who govern Northern Ireland should be accountable to the people of Northern Ireland. That is why we need devolution. That is why the Ulster Unionist Party is committed to making Stormont work. We have no ifs or buts. Northern Ireland needs devolved government on 26th March.”

A Young Life and Times Survey carried out by Northern Ireland’s two universities has found that almost 30% of 16-year-olds in Northern Ireland were bullied at school within a two month period. Reacting to the report, Kenny Donaldson, Ulster Unionist Party Assembly candidate for Fermanagh and South Tyrone has described the findings as, “deeply disturbing but not entirely surprising.”

In a statement, Kenny said: “The report’s findings make for grim reading however I am all too well aware from personal experience that bullying is a serious problem within our Schools. What the bullies do not seem to understand is that their actions can have life-changing impact upon their victim.

“Bullying is a problem throughout our society, whether in Schools, the workplace or indeed in civic life. There are obviously multiple forms of bullying; physical, verbal name-calling and psychological are amongst the weapons used by aggressors.

“I believe the Education system and individual Schools must do more to combat bullying within the School and its’ associated after-Schools activities. Bullying policies have been found to be effective in combatting the scourge of bullying and I would call upon School Boards of Governors to give the issue of bullying the attention it deserves. No child or young person should feel threatened or unhappy at School – quite the reverse, School life should be where young people are afforded a positive climate in which to express themselves and develop.”

Kenny continued: “It is worth noting that bullying within Schools isn’t confined to pupils, the Irish National Teachers Organisation has claimed there has been a 10-fold increase in the bullying of teachers in recent years. I support the INTO’s call for a commitment by the Department of Education and employers to give support to teachers. If this is not achieved and teachers are not given the protection they deserve, dozens will leave the sector and that is something our education system can ill afford,”concluded Kenny.

Mr Robin Swann, the North Antrim Ulster Unionist Assembly candidate, has called on the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to have cattle being tested for tuberculosis (TB) to be removed from farms within three days.

Mr Swann, who has served as a member of the executive committee of the Ulster Farmers’ Union and a past president of the Young Farmers’ Clubs of Ulster, said he fully sympathised with the plight of farmers who had to take responsibility themselves for the isolation of so-called ‘reactor cattle’, suspected of requiring a TB test.

The North Antrim UUP candidate said: “The harsh reality is, we urgently require quicker reaction from DARD for the removal of reactor cattle.

“On the point of restrictions being applied on the supply of milk from herds that include reactor cattle, I would insist that reactor cattle should be removed from the farm by DARD within a minimum of three days.

“This would be more effective than a policy of isolation, which places additional burdens on the farmers themselves.

“Likewise, if tighter restrictions are to be applied by DARD, then it is absolutely essential that a more accurate TB test be developed and implemented,” urged Mr Swann.

In a statement, UUP peer Lord Kilclooney said: “I was elected in 1965 and am therefore Ulster’s longest-serving politician. For 30 years we all suffered. Looking back I recognise that this election is a real chance to move forward.

“We are spoilt for choice – those for St Andrews; those opposed to St Andrews; those sitting on the fence; those for the United Kingdom; those for a United Ireland.

“There simply is no excuse to fail to vote. And a poor turnout would bring about the collapse of Stormont and condemn us to indifferent rule by English politicians with no local mandate.

“Often people cry out for bread-and-butter politics – not constitutional politics. We have it in this election. We campaign about the future of grammar schools; the NHS; water charges; bureaucracy in agriculture etc. We are now electing MLAs who will decide these matters. We must vote to influence the decisions we want – not leave it to others.

“Over 40,000 registered to vote after the publication of the electoral role on October 16 – most of them were nationalists. This week the list of those who claimed postal votes are once again overwhelmingly nationalist. Nationalists are taking this election seriously. They are going to vote in large numbers. The pro-British majority must vote strongly and maximise their vote and thus the decisions in the new assembly.

“I am flying back from Westminster on polling day to vote and, using the PR system to its best advantage, I will vote for every pro-British candidate and then proceed to vote for all other candidates who are opposed to violent terrorism.”

Ulster Unionist Party Leader Sir Reg Empey. speaking as the last few days of the election campaign were drawing to a close, spoke of his hope for a devolved government on March 26th.

In a statement Sir Reg said,

“This entire election campaign - every manifesto, every policy statement, every article in newspapers by any party - means nothing, absolutely nothing, without devolution. This is the clear and unambiguous message that I and others in my party have been getting at the doorsteps up and down the country.

This election is about taking responsibility. It’s about ensuring that the people of Northern Ireland are no longer spectators in their own country.

That’s our core message - we want normal politics here to work. That means an end to Direct Rule politics. That means forcing change, and creating and supporting policies which are good for all of us.

But it’s no good talking about progress if you won’t say how you’re going to deliver it.

The DUP cannot tell the people about their way forward. On the one hand we hear grand words about the need for a strong Stormont and what Ministries they would take. But when it comes to delivering on those words, what do we hear? The silence is deafening. They cannot say with absolute clarity that they will go into government or else they will split. At the outset I said that it was the DUPs intention to slither through this election without committing to anything.

The people of Northern Ireland deserve better than such confusion and dithering. The people want local politicians to work together in opposing water charges, in fighting their corner for a better health service, in giving them the right to choose how their children are educated, in how their taxes are spent. They want accountable politicians.

With the Ulster Unionist Party there are no excuses, ambiguity or confusion. The people of Northern Ireland know where we stand - we intend to take those seats in the Executive to which we are entitled on March 26th.

A Paisley-McGuinness ticket is no solution. How on earth can two parties that refuse to speak to each other be expected to work together for the people of Northern Ireland? It would lead to endless stalemate. It would also be the perfect excuse that hardline Republicans have spent decades trying to prove: that politics in Northern Ireland can never work and joint authority is the only way forward. This is a very real prospect and the Union itself could be under threat if we don’t grasp the opportunity to make Stormont work – and we’re committed to grasping it before the opportunity is lost. For all of Us.”

Following on the back of the latest NISRA survey, Ulster Unionist Candidate in East Antrim, and DETI spokesperson, Roy Beggs Jnr, has questioned why the DUP considers the St Andrew’s Irish Language commitments to be a success.

In a statement, Mr Beggs said: “The latest NISRA survey shows that 97% of East Antrim residents have no knowledge whatsoever of Irish. Indeed only 0.72% of Carrickfergus residents claim to speak, read and write Irish. It would be expensive, wasteful and divisive to force public bodies to translate information into Irish. Northern Ireland is not the North of Wales and the sooner this is understood by the NIO the better.”

He added: “I believe that the St Andrews Agreement, which is lauded by the DUP, with its proposal to force the use of Irish would put back community relations and would be counter to the practical needs of the community.

“Rather than investing in translating from what can be understood by the virtually everyone, we should be investing in teaching English to immigrants who presently cannot understand it. This would help them to integrate into local communities and access local services. Such practical investment in ‘English for non-English speaking’ would improve community relations and could contribute to improving our economy.”

In a statement this evening Ulster Unionist Deputy Leader Danny Kennedy said,

“It has come to our attention today that the figures for Party support in the Belfast Telegraph Poll were based on answers from 530 (53%) out of the 1004 persons phoned from call centres in Edinburgh and Dublin.

The remaining 474 persons either refused to state a preference or stated that they were unlikely to vote. And are classified as don’t knows.

This is an enormous figure that should have been drawn to the public’s attention.

Of course this did not stop Peter Robinson from using this flawed poll to re-state his threat of Sinn Fein becoming the largest Party. This is an undisguised attempt to mislead, confuse and blackmail the voting public while talking up Republicans.

The St Andrews Agreement Act gerrymandered the system for appointing a First and Deputy First Minister and removed the unionist veto on who could occupy those offices. Despite Ulster Unionist efforts to amend this gerrymander in both Houses of Parliament, the DUP refused to support us. This carries its own clear message.

Ian Paisley’s confirmation yesterday that he wanted to take Finance, and Gerry Adam’s confirmation today that he wants Education, the door having been left open by the DUP yesterday, has a whiff of choreography about it.

Nobody knows what the DUP stands for anymore.

But there is one sure route for unionists to follow. A vote for Ulster Unionists will guarantee that we will take the Education Ministry and ensure a working Stormont with a Unionist First Minister.”

North Antrim Ulster Unionist Assembly candidates Rev Dr Robert Coulter and Mr Robin Swann have said increased funding needs to be made available to help farming families cope with the severe stresses and strains of working in the agricultural sector.

“In this respect, we would highly commend the work being done by the Rural Support helpline charity, which has already provided considerable advice to many farming families who are under pressure,” the two UUP candidates added in a joint statement.

Dr Coulter and Mr Swann said: “We welcome the existing funding for Rural Support from the departments of agriculture and health. However, we would also hope any future legislative Executive would ensure specific funding is allocated to continue this valuable service.

“Our farming community has faced a vast mountain of challenges in the past decade, including the European beef ban, the threats from BSE and Foot and Mouth, and the latest potential bird flu pandemic.

“All of these stressful situations have naturally placed at times a terrible strain on our farming families. In the constant battle to preserve the emotional well-being of our agricultural workers, the role of Rural Network is in the frontline. It is, therefore, essential this charity receives as much help as possible.

“We would, therefore, appeal directly to anyone in our farming community who is facing emotional or stress problems to get in touch with Rural Network as soon as possible. We would also highly commend the helpline volunteers who carry out a very worthwhile task,” said Dr Coulter and Mr Swann.